Year: 1875

Some twenty years ago the steamer
Kate Sweeney, returning from Fort
Pierre where she had been with car
go of Government supplies-to st.


Louis, was snagged and sunk short
distance above Elk Point, in what has
since been known as Kate Sweeney Bend.


In those days this point was long way


from civilization, and the officers and


crew of the sunken boat had to make
their way out of the wilderness and home
as best they could. All the crew arriy-


ed in st. Louis in good time excepting


two deck hands, who had become CON


trary, separated from the main body


and thought they could make short cuts


of the river bends and gain time. One


OF these had $500 in his belt, and had a


wife and two or three children in st.


Louis. He never got home. His com


paninn returned several months after


and his old acquaintanceS asked him


whathad become of the other man, He


told two or three stories about his lost


cOmrade. One was that they could not
agree upon the best route to take, and so
parted on the prairie. Another was that


he was drowned in trying to swim
small river up in the Indian country.


Still another, that he had joined an en-
igrant train at Council Bluffs and gone
to California. The general opinion of
the acquaintrnces of the returned roustl-
bout was that he had murdered his COM
paniOn III the wilds of the North Mis-
souri, for his money. Two or three
years after this same rouster was Sleep
ing on the deck of steamboat on the
lower river, when the boat ran on a bar
high and dry, and hugh pile of wood
toppled over on the sleeping man. His
legs were broken. also one of his arms,
and his body was much bruised. He
suffered two or three days, died in great
misery, was rolled into pine box and
buried at a wood yard on the river shore


He never mentioned that he had once
been a murderer. Some days ago far
mer was rambling in company with his


little son through the timber and under
brush which skirt the Sioux River in
search of horse that strayed away from
his farm near by. They stumbled upon
the skeleton of man nearly hidden from
view by the weed and brush that had
grown up around and through it. 1t
was lying under the branches of large
elm, on high bank, a few PAGES from
were in their natural position, but some
"CIo tiuISl tholelC Dy d ollltIl ttlll Twelve
OF fifteen years old which had sprung up
among the bones. The man tramped
down the weeds around to get a better
view of the remains, and trod upon
something that turned over with his
weight. 1t was a boat hook, such as
deck hands use for handling sacks and
bales. The hook was covered deep with
rust, and the handle crumbled off with
touch. Upon further search the farmer
found long, brass handled clasp knife,
such as roustabouts use when eating to
cut their food. There was hole in the
back part of the skull which looked as if
1t had been made by blow. 1t is sup
posed that the skeleton found in the
woods on Sioux River is that of the
roustabout of the Kate Sweeney, who
was lost in the Indian country in June,
1886. There remains no motive for ex-
amining into the case more closely, for
if there was a murder, the man who
must have done the murder is long since
dead.-St. Louis Republican.