Year: 1878

gloomy forebodings like shadowy pail
enyeioped our little crowd. After all oul
trouble in screwihg our courage up to the
desired point to have our hopes dashed
at one fell swoop was really too bad We


who had dared and risked everything +,


GAIN glory and win our spurs, to ROW find
twas all in vain, for by the way the party
skedaddled it was only too evident that
they were certainly not Indians, but men
of our own noble Caucasin race. Indians
could not have ran SO fast, all of which


tend to prove the Caucasin race yet pre-
eminent In order to discover the exact
whereabouts of the hestiles Robbins with


another man rode down the lake and fol
miles down Henry's Fork of Snake river,
but all we made by our trip WAS the ad


vantage of being able to brag that we
were the only men in the expedition who
had ever been in advance OF Joseph and
his brethren. This was at the same time
the fight took place at Cmmas creek, where
the Virginia CITY volunteers lost then
horses and got So terribly scared The
Montana volunteers have been severely
criticised fortheir general conduct through
out the campaign, even their utility has
been questioned, some go SO far as to say
that they arc worse than useless In this
| beg to differ from them; say they are
an essential benefit To a command COM
posed generally Of young and daring men,


For example, we will say that men who
l,,,, .,,a,,.ra1 In, H.
require fresh horses and good guns, now
in an engagement where many raw volun-
teers congregate the old hands if they
keep their eyes open can always find a
good chance to get away with a good out
fit even if he goes in naked, for many of
the volunteers directly after shot is fred
get so terribly scared that they first drop
their guns, then as they have nothing To
defend themselves with they feel they
must run On general principles, now if a
man requires horse all lie has to do Is


Just to give yell and ten to one but the
man on the animal rightly thinks he had
better trust to those weapons of defense
and safety provided him by nature-his
legs-than to his horse, SO abandon HIM.
As many Of us derived many such beEe-
fits during the Nez Perez war from the
volunteers who cane out to {" help" us,
take this opportunity of showing our
gratitude. Horses were our weak point
one might as well ask a kiss from pretty
girl as to attempt to "borrow horse
from a fellow. The only resource as III
/ I, e n uhu fnln
and the consequences along with it. In
either case they are never very dreadful.
In SIX days by making long de!oW We
again arrived at Henry Lake, where Rob
bins dishanded his Bannoeks and to the
end Of The campaign had only white
scouts. He Travelled days in advance of
the main command and on one occasion
actually encountered the hnstiies- He
was sent 70 the Yellowstone mountains on
scout that left his lake expedition En-
tirelv in the shade Finding traces of
TIE enemy here in the vast limestone can
yons at the head OF Clark's Fork with
three others he brayed every danger To
carry the news to Howard q: S;;lrgis. We
sotofT with just enough toeat for one meal,
and through & country covered with ever
lasting snow, down prceipiees that even now
cause aShpdder to even think of, we hurried
on with the news. Theroughest country on
earth was haverSed; where white men
had never before placed their feet, but on
and on; ever the same energetic, generous
and whole-souIed man, Robbins, by his
example, infused fresh courage in the
breasts of his well nigh despondent and
starved ont comrades and never let up
for moment. For days no food passed
our lips; We had to hunt around the old
camping grounds for anything eatable to
sustain life; the oM coffee groundsemptied
on the ground were collected and reboiled.
The reward for all this with Robbins and
his men is that they cannot collect Their
pay from the government for all the en-
ergy displayed and the work performed,
and the only sigh of appreciation OF the
citizens at home is the presentation OF a
bubble to represent the empty heads OF
those who were fools enough to help the
country in her need On reaching How
ard after several weary days suffering
Robbins again went to the front and par
ticipated in Sturgis' fight with the reGs-
He recaptured from the Indians the stage
they occupied when on their spree on the
Yellowstone, and he rescued Fanny Clark
from her perilous position where she had
been driven. In al work he was ably as
sisted by Vandervoot, Tom Haley, Jack
Campbell and Tom Price The latter was
the same old Tom from beginning to end.
TON is brave and generous man and for
his care and attention on certain night
after futile attempt on the part of the
wri;er to drain the Yellowstone, am un-
der many obligations. In conclusion pro
tan. l advise my Old and tried friends to
settle down with good piece of kitchen
furniture and devote the remainder Of
their lives in doing gcod-to themselves
and always let the country be second
airy consideration. IdahoaR.