362 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[May 9, 1903. 
A Reminiscence of Buffalo Days. 
It was twenty-four years ago that Billy Jackson and I 
had the following adventure. It was during the days 
when, as Alex. Bodkin, then United States Marshal, said : 
''It was impossible to impanel a jury in Montana that 
would convict a man of trading whisky to an Indian," 
those days when you could travel all the way from the 
Missouri to the Yellowstone River and not' find a single 
bona-fide settler; but, scattered over the country from 
forty to si.xty miles apart, were trading posts. Great 
Falls, Lewistown or Billings were not thought of as yet ; 
nor had tlie iron horse of the Northern Pacific, much less 
the Great Northern, yet made his entry into Montana. 
Immense herds of buffalo grazed where large and pros- 
perous herds of cattle and sheep now range, and thous- 
ands of happy homes grace the valleys and river bottoms. 
1 hen the red man and Indian trader reigned supreme, 
the buffalo being the lodestone which attracted both, and 
the poor animals were ruthlessly slaughtered for the 
"almighty dollar," which was surely gathered by the 
merchants at Fort Benton and on the Yellowstone, at 
both of which points, supplied by river navigation, were 
established mercantile firms who carried immense stocks 
of goods which were sold to both Indians and traders — 
outfitting points for all. 
It was one of Montana's tj^pical falls; all the month 
of November it was dry and cold, but no snow, and the 
ground was as drj^ and hard as a bone; the bright sun 
would often raise the temperature to as high as 50 de- 
grees during the middle of the day. 
Billy Jackson, the interpreter, and myself were told to 
take a four horse team and find White Calf's camp some- 
where on the Musselshell River. We were in the employ 
of Joe Hamilton and "Pike" Landuskey, at old "Lucky 
Fort" trading post on Flat Willow. 
We loaded up with an assortment of goods such as 
Billy thought was proper for such a trip, mostly groceries 
and dry goods; "fire water" being absolutely, barred by 
Joe's orders. 
One cold frosty morning we struck out, myself on the 
'"hurricane deck" of a "cayuse," and Billy handling the 
"ribbons." The second night out we camped on the 
Musselshell alx)ut two miles below Johnnj' Harr's trading 
post. He had been outfitted by Hoskins & McGurl, of 
Baker's Battle Ground or Huntley's Ferry, as it was 
sometimes called. Not wishing to let Harr know that we 
were operating in his "sphere of influence," we "rolled" 
at daylight the next morning down the river, as we 
could plainly see by a large fresh travois trail that 
the camp had gone that way. As the road was fine we 
bowled along at a good rate until, about 3 P. M., we 
rounded a bend and came upon the camp we were hunt- 
ing for. • 
Billy engaged the first Indian we met in Piegan, and 
he at once conducted us to Little Plume's lodge, where 
we soon had the strings off the horses and they were 
taken by an Indian boy out to the herd, and we were 
soon comfortably seated in the lodge enjoying a smoke 
and the warmth of the lodge fire. 
Little Plume was and is, perhaps, the most remarkable 
Indian I ever met, and Joe Kipp says he is the most re- 
m.arkable one he ever knew, and that is saying a great deal. 
It is said, and I believe truly, that he has never taken a 
drink of intoxicating liquor. Anyhow, at that time he 
was a man of about thirty years of age, and as fine a 
specirnen of physical manhood as one could wish to look 
at, with a handsome, bright and intelligent face; a 
natural leader, though one that would be more likely to 
lead in the direction of peace and civilization than in 
rapine and war. His looks did not belie him, as it is 
stated he is now one of the most prosperous Indians to- 
day on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. He will cer- 
tainly carry my best wishes to his grave, for I have a 
lurking suspicion that but for his prompt action and 
friendship, I might not now be writing this story. 
We had not been long in the lodge beforie I discovered 
that one of Little Plume's children, a boy, was seriously 
sick with a bad cold on the lungs, with danger of pneu- 
monia ahead. In our grub outfit were a few pounds of 
onions. I went out to the wagon and got some of these, 
and a frying pan and some sugar, and brought them 
into the lodge and proceeded to cut the onions in the 
frying pan. That done I covered them liberally with 
brown sugar and put the whole on the lodge fire and 
spent about an hour cooking the mess, putting in occa- 
sionally a little water. When I was done I had about 
three pints of rich browai onion syrup. I then got Billy 
to explain to Little Plume that I was a medicine man, 
and that my medicine was all ready for that boy, and 
that if he did not take it it might be all off with his 
heir. I sat up all night with that kid and doped him 
with onion syrup, with the result that in the morning 
his cold was broke. Little Plume and his wife, with true 
Indian stoicism, said nothing. 
That day we drove a pretty good trade until well after 
noon, when I took a nap, only to be awakened by Billy 
about 4 o'clock and informed that there was whisky in 
the camp and that he had not as yet found out where it 
came from. We went out together to investigate. There 
was no question as to the presence of liquor, and in 
abundance, too. 
It was plainly evident to me that in a short time the 
entire camp would be helplessly drunk, as indeed they 
were. Men and women were crying in loud excited tones 
to one another; hides, robes and furs were being un- 
earthed from the recesses of lodges, and were piled out- 
side in heaps, ready for the women to pack them to the 
trader. This looked mighty blue for us : groceries and 
dry goods were at a discount when fire water was in 
sight. We might just as well pack up our outfit and 
"silently steal away" unless this business was stopped. 
1 went into the lodge and soon came out with my Win- 
chester over my arm, and told Billy that I would be back 
in an hour or two, that I was going to see who the 
trading party consisted of, and whether it would be ad- 
visable for us to pull out for another camp or for home. 
Billy only said, looking at me: 
"Leave that gun here, you don't want that." 
"What? For four years I have not traveled a half 
mile without my rifle and I don't think I'll begin under 
the present circumstances to travel without it," I replied, 
as I started. 
"Better leave it," he called after me, but I went on, 
ignoring his advice. 
The camp consisted of about 150 lodges — perhaps 750 
men, women and children. As I picked W way through 
the small fallen cottonwood trees which' had' been cut 
down by the women for the ponies to gnaw from, I ob- 
served that the ground all about the camp was thickly 
strewn with broken frozen green branches of the fallen 
ccttonwoods, an inch or two in diameter and from six 
inches to three feet in length. 
As I went up a rise out of the timber where the camp 
was located on to a prairie bench, I had a good view of 
the whole camp, which made a slight bend in shape like 
a crescent, while at the lower end I could see for perhaps 
a mile across a long prairie on a level or a trifle lower 
than where I stood. This prairie was literally alive with 
moving beings; coming and going, running and walking, 
gesticulating and yelling. While I was observing the 
scene on the prairie below, my attention was drawn to a 
dispute that had just arisen about fifty yards from me 
among the lodges between a man and, I presume, his 
wife, about taking some robes to the whisky trader. She, 
apparently, with woman's natural economy in trade or 
barter, wanted to take only certain skins, while her lord 
insisted on taking the whole pile. The dispute waxed 
warm, when a neighbor lady intervened in behalf of the 
wisdom of her sex ; when Lo, insulted at this slight put 
upon his authority, deliberately knocked the intervener 
down._ At this three or four more ladies interfered in 
behalf of their friend, one of them picking up a frozen 
cottonwood limb and cracking him over the head. In 
a moment the air was dark with frozen cottonwood clubs, 
which were breaking like icicles over Blackfeet heads. 
The men, who until the first blow was struck, were 
amused spectators, were at once active participants in the 
melee, when suddenly a diversion was caused by the ap- 
pearance of an old man, who went among them and 
roundly scored them for their foolishness in taking up 
valuable time in such silly quarreling over such a trivial 
matter, when such a glorious good time was ahead for 
all. The Indian is a true communist. 
Looking shame-faced the woman who had started the 
row shouldered the large bundle, and with her lord 
proudly bringing up the rear with his battered head, 
headed down the river, and so did I. 
Two caravans were moving across the prairie, one 
loaded with hides and furs, and the other with gallon 
kegs and bottles and their contents. 
I had seen many drunken Indians before, and although 
I realized that as a rule he is really more harmless than 
a drunken white man, I was not anxious to mix with 
them, so I made a trail of my own about thirty yards 
to the left of the returning column. I had traveled about 
two-thirds of the distance across the prairie when I could 
see both columns appearing from and disappearing into 
a dense thicket of willows and cottonwoods, which lined 
a creek coming in from the north which cut off the 
prairie bench on. which we were traveling, the bench be- 
ing about twenty feet above the creek bottom. About 
the time I observed this, Billy's advice came home to me 
about the rifle; a young Indian, espying me with the gun 
over my arm, took it as an insult, I suppose, and the 
long-endured wrongs of his race working on his mind, 
assisted, no doubt, by the contents of his bottles, one of 
which he carried in each hand by the neck, and perhaps 
the noble spirit of the martyr coming over him, placed 
both hands to his breast and tearing open his shirt ex- 
posed his manly breast, and, striking a tragic attitude, 
dramatically defied me to shoot, bravely referring to me 
as a "cowardly white dog." With a friendly nod and a 
smile of forbearance I passed on. Had I only turned off 
to the north away from them a few hundred yards, and 
cached the gun or emptied the magazine and thrown it 
away, I would have saved myself about the greatest scare 
T ever had. But I was yet to learn another trait of In- 
dian character, and that was that it was an established 
rule when the camp was on a spree for all hands to lay 
aside all firearms, a rule which could with profit be imi- 
tated by whites. But, although I had been more or less 
among Indians from Fort Pierre to Fort Benton for 
six years, this was my first experience where the whole 
camp was on a spree. But I passed on and soon forgot 
about my dramatic friend. 
About a hundred yards to the north of the point where 
the trail disappeared down the prairie embankment into 
the willows, and about thirty from the creek, stood a 
cabin which I knew belonged to Eaton. Nearby was a 
pile of logs for firewood; I could see a fire near the 
woodpile, also a wagon with a sheet stretched over the 
bows and two white men. I made for the cabin to see 
who it was. As I neared the camp I recognized both 
Eaton and Dunn. I called to them, asking who was do- 
ing the trading ; they answered, inviting me to their camp, 
and told me it Avas Nigger Andy, and named three white 
men, all of whom have since met with violent deaths. 
I was standing debating whether to go down to the 
whisky trader's camp at once or go over to Eaton's camp 
and have a chat with him and Dunn and get the latest 
news from the Yellowstone, whence I knew they had just 
come, when a party of particularly noisy young Indians 
appeared coming up the bank of the creek; they were 
alDOUt fifty feet from me. One of them observing me 
called to me; I responded pleasantly and started for 
Eaton's camp, but the jolly crowd would not have it that 
way, and started after me. Now, for the first time, I 
wished I had left that gun as Billy advised. They all 
came at me with yells of displeasure, but I did not believe 
they intended to do me any harm, so I faced about to see 
what they wanted. One of them was about ten feet 
ahead of the others; as he closed in on me he grabbed 
for my head, which I threw back, with the result that 
he caught the brim of my hat (it was a new one, too), 
and, stumbling as he grabbed it, his whole weight came 
on my head and nearly knocked me off my feet. In an 
itistapt niy hat brirn formed a collar arouncj my flecl? and 
blood was running down my face. I jumped a , from 
him, but the others were upon me. Mad w-%i \fein, dis- 
cretion was thrown to the winds. In an instant I had 
felled one of them, using the barrel of the rifle as a club; 
I made a pass at a second one and he was hors ' <> combat. 
By this time the crowd had increased until t :,^\t it w^is 
necessary to use other measures, so I pumpf .i.^artridgc 
into the chamber and brought the rifle v shoulder, 
w-arning all to keep back. I gave one s- ' glance at 
Eaton's camp and saw both he and Dunn <:ai still near 
their fire ; I cried to them to unlock the cal loor and I 
v.^ould make a run for it and get inside. lere I knew 
I would be safe for a time, anyhow. 
In the meantime I kept walking backw^r.ic; and facing 
an increasing number of foes in a ' • .■. r\vhich w.a.s 
momentarily being reinforced from all, }|ions, and I 
plainly saw that in a few minutes I wc fl. ; 'e outflanked 
and my retreat cut off. As quick as a flaoh I turned and 
made a run for the cabin door, only to find on my arrival 
that it was locked with a large padlock. Before I could 
turn or seek the protection of Eaton's camp, the mob was 
upon me. 
What occurred during the next minute or two is yet in 
my mind more like a dream than . anything else. It 
sounded to my ears as though a hundred angry, revenge- 
ful voices were talking at once. I w^s conscious that a 
number of other hands than my own were on that rifle, 
and that it was full cocked. With a cartridge in the 
chamber, it might be discharged any instant. Oh, the 
grip I had on that gun! 
Suddenly I saw or rather felt a bright flash in front of 
my eyes; I glanced up and to this day my eye still re- 
tains the photograph then taken; a large bright-bladed 
butcher knife in a dusky hand, the point about six inches 
in front of my face and a pair of dark wicked eyes peer- 
ing with murder into mine. I closed my eyes to shut out 
the sight, and in that moment, expecting to feel the cold 
steel cutting its way to my heart, a panorama of all my 
life passed in instantaneous review — and still I never re- 
laxed my grip on that gun, and still the pandemonium of 
angry voices sounded in my ears. But why did not that 
knife bury itself in my body? 
I opened my eyes. The knife was not there; the pull- 
ing and straining at the rifle was not so strong; the 
density of the crowding at my right side was less; more 
light was in my eyes. Suddenly . ..,.;an standing near 
my right arm disappeared as by magic, in another 
moment one who stood directly in front of me reeled 
back and struck the ground about eight feet away, then 
another and another. In a few mpments I was standing 
alone beside my deliverer. I sti'j 'aci J the rifle ; I glanced 
up and there stood Little PluhV/ -^ifjring at those around 
him like an angry god. ' 
Not a word passed hf' '' al, satisfying himself 
that none cared to dispufe i.. ion of the field with 
him, he turned to me and.'ittet yo words in English: 
"Me gun," pointing to the r: 'I , Lowering the hammer 
I gave it to him. He recockecl, ',t, fired it in the air, 
pumped out the remaining cartridges and giving them to 
me said in his own tongue, "Come." 
A brave Indian who could talk very good English now 
appeared and swore by all the gods in his calendar that 
he would see that no harm ""le to me or any other 
white man. He was caref' I "ay all this in English. 
I had noticed him in the L.j'ivjiiOund of my assailants. 
Little Plume at once became pleasant to all, explaining 
that I did not want to have a^^y .trouble, and that it was 
all a mistake : for all to come to his lodge the next morn- 
ing and I would show them that I would recompense all 
who had been injured. We then visited the trader's 
camp, after I had washed tne blood from my face, which 
had been scratched and bruised in the melee, and found 
that Eaton had been cor ect. The outfit belonged - to 
three white men, hard cl ara'cters, who some few years 
afterward were hung for lorse and cattle stealing at the 
mouth of the Musselshell River on the Missouri. 
I accompanied Little Plume to his lodge, where I 
learned that a short time after I left for the trader's camp 
h..' had learned from Billy where I had gone, and that I 
iiad taken my rifle in spite of his advice. 
Billy said Little Plum, made no reply, but shortly he 
went out, saying nothinr " ' to where he was going. 
Next morning there held a big pow-wow. Both 
the injured families — that s, the parents of the young 
bucks who had recei\ a broken heads — presented their 
grievances and wanted about all we had in the wagon 
as indemnity, but endt taking a few pounds of sugar, 
a few yards of calico ai.^ some other nick-knacks to the 
amount of perhaps two dollars, beside some plugs of 
"black strap" tobacco. A cheaply paid for lesson. 
I afterward saw Eaton and asked him why he did not 
unlock the door of the cabin when I cried to him to do 
so. He gave as an excuse that the whole thing occurred 
so quickly that he had not realized anything until Little 
Plume was on the ground and had the game under con- 
trol. He had not seen the Indian with the knife until he 
went head over heels, knife and all. 
But those days are gone; and such scenes are only 
memories of the frontier. Their place has been taken by 
civilized pursuits less hazardous and more pleasant, the 
natural sequence of the opening to settlement of all sav- 
age populated countries. 
Nigger Andy was a remarkable character. With the 
general characteristics of the negro, he combined a sur- 
prising amount of nerve and physical bravery, vvith ab- 
normally developed combativeness and aggressiveness. 
He possessed another quality not often found in the 
negro, for he was apparently as much at home in a 
frigid as in a torrid or temperate climate. It was under- 
stood he had spent a number of years as far north as 
Athabasca Lake among the northern Indians, where he 
had lost both hands and feet by freezing. He used 
wooden pegs for both, with iron hooks in the ends of the 
arm pegs to seize hold of anything, and he used them, 
too, with amazing agility and success. He handled a 
Winchester as rapidly and successfully as anyone with 
both hands. He was usually good natured, unless an- 
tagonized, when, especially with Indians, he was a fiend 
incarnate. Lie was looked upon by the Indians as a sort 
of evil spirit to be placated or avoided. He was mur- 
dered in cold blood, shot in the back, at Junction. 
J. H. Boucher. 
