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31 chapters
PREFACE
PREFACE
The work of writing a book is one that requires a vast amount of knowledge, natural ability and educational advantages, to produce something that is reliable, as regards information imparted, unimpeachable authority, and, at the same time, a power of expression that will present the matter to the reader in a manner that will convey the proper meaning of the author. I would not have undertaken the present work, were it not that I was encouraged by the friends of former days who felt confident in
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CHAPTER I.
CHAPTER I.
General Conditions. Someone has said, and I think very truthfully, too, that one-half of this world doesn’t know how the other half lives, and if he had added that one-half did not care, he would have hit the nail on the head. In order to verify this statement, go to the frontier of any new country, and you will readily see that the progressive, or producing class, is too busy and too much interested in trying to make a little home, and in providing the necessaries of life, for himself and famil
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CHAPTER II.
CHAPTER II.
Santa Fe Trail; How It Was Obtained; Freighting, Etc. The man who enlists in the army under the influence of patriotic speeches delivered by some great orator, accompanied by a brass band, has no conception of the nerve, energy and enterprise that was required of the first man who popped his bull-whip over the backs of his oxen at little old Westport on the banks of the Missouri River, and shouted to his men, “Come on, boys, we are bound for Santa Fe.” There were no mile posts before him to dire
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CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER III.
The Freight Outfit on the Trail.—The Difficulties and Hardships Endured.—Different Kinds of Outfits, Etc. The freighter’s team was composed of from four to six yokes of oxen, sometimes more, driven by one man called a “bullwhacker.” The train consisted of a “lead” wagon and one or two “trail” wagons. The “lead” wagon, being the heaviest and largest, usually carried a load of about five tons. The “trailers” were loaded considerably lighter, carrying about two or three tons each. In ascending stee
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CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER IV.
No Man’s Land.—First Settlers.—Branding Mavericks, Etc. About the year 1878, as the last buffalo was about to disappear, the hunters were compelled to seek some new field of labor, or devote their attention to some other occupation. It was about this time that the first house was erected in what is now called Beaver City, the county seat of Beaver county, Oklahoma. At that time the county was unsurveyed, and a man’s possessions were limited to what land he could use, or furnish cattle to graze u
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CHAPTER V.
CHAPTER V.
The Round-Up.—Difficulties.—Some Incidents, Etc. Every Spring and Fall occurred the general round-up, which consisted of all the cattlemen in the country, who assembled all the cattle found on the ranges in which they were interested. They rounded them up, or bunched them at a common center in different districts, each ranch being represented at each place. All the increase was branded and marked by the owner, the ownership being decided by the brand borne by the mother cow. The beef-cattle were
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CHAPTER VI.
CHAPTER VI.
Beaver County.—Peculiar Conditions in Vogue.—Good Men and Bad.—The Vigilantes.—Personal Experiences. About the year 1876, if I remember rightly, the U. S. Government made an appropriation to have Beaver county surveyed. The contract was let and the county divided up into sections or townships, each six miles square, and zinc monuments were erected at the corners of each, but as the appropriation was insufficient to meet the costs of the survey, the work was abandoned for a considerable time, and
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CHAPTER VII.
CHAPTER VII.
Wild Horses; Traits; Difficulties of Catching Them; Preparations for the Same; Personal Experiences. My experience has taught me that there has not been another animal on the plains as inquisitive and suspicious as the wild horse, or mustang, as it is called. The early horse hunter took advantage of this characteristic inquisitiveness to approach sufficiently close to effect his capture. This was done by placing a wagon sheet, or a bed quilt on a stake and then hiding in the bushes or grass in t
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CHAPTER VIII.
CHAPTER VIII.
Further Reflections on Western Life; Also on the East; Why I Came West; Some Men I Have Met; Cowboy Acquaintances, etc. When commencing to write this semi-historical work, it was my intention to confine myself to the early settlement of “No-Man’s-Land,” but find that I must include the Panhandle to Texas and the South-western part of Kansas, as the soil, climate, and social conditions were almost identical. The industries of all three localities were very much the same, excepting that the Panhan
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CHAPTER IX.
CHAPTER IX.
Getting Acquainted With the West—The Character of the Cow-boy—A Cow-boy’s Love Affair, Etc. Next day I began to breathe easier as I had not witnessed any shooting scrapes, nor funerals, so I felt rather safe in walking the streets, although I was rather suspicious of anybody I met wearing a six-shooter. Nevertheless, I kept on the move, endeavoring to find where I could locate a good homestead, as that country was nearly all open and unsettled. In my wanderings I happened into Cox’s feed yard wh
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CHAPTER X.
CHAPTER X.
What One Sheep Rancher Did—Entertaining a Hobo—A Practical Joke. About the year 1877, an extensive sheep ranch was established in the Panhandle by a Mr. Southerland. He came from California and bought up the range in the neighborhood of the Adobe Walls, for the purpose of transferring his flocks from that far off State, where the grazing was getting very scarce, to the northern part of Texas, where there abounded better opportunities for pasturage. He was not the only one to cast a longing eye u
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CHAPTER XI.
CHAPTER XI.
The Man From Missouri; An Attempt at Dry Farming, etc. While out hunting one day, about 18 miles south of Dodge City, I chanced to meet a stranger who inquired the way to the nearest horse corral. In the twinkling of an eye I took an inventory of his outfit, and I must say that it was good. He had a fine team of young mules, a three seated spring wagon covered over, harness all covered over with brass mountings. His wife and children who were with him were well-dressed and he himself showed trac
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CHAPTER XII.
CHAPTER XII.
Colonization Indian Scares; Organizing in Self Defense, etc. In the autumn of the year of 1878, a gentleman by the name of John Joplin was sent out from Zanesville, Ohio, to select a suitable place in Western Kansas for the purpose of locating a colony. The intention was to start a co-operative business in farming. After surveying the country at large, he came to the conclusion that the Crooked Creek valley, Meade County, where I was living at the time, was the most desirable for the purpose. He
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CHAPTER XIII.
CHAPTER XIII.
A New Venture.—Hard Times.—The Territory, Etc. For three years, from 1879 to 1882, it seemed as if the very elements had conspired to render the attempt at settling Western Kansas futile. The continuous drouth, together with the hot winds, made any attempt at farming discouraging. As a consequence a great many settlers sold their holdings for what they could get for them, and returned to their former place of abode. The gathering of buffalo bones, which had been their chief source of subsistence
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CHAPTER XIV.
CHAPTER XIV.
Returning to Kansas; A Settler; A Phenomenon, etc. Reluctantly we folded our tent and started off in the direction of the Sun-flower State, where our ranch was located. Business had been good and we were loath to leave such a good opportunity for increasing our profits, but the unseen enemy made further delay impossible. Our outfit on the trail did not present a very inviting appearance, but there was something substantial about it that cheered us considerable. We had increased our holdings duri
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CHAPTER XV.
CHAPTER XV.
The Opening of the State of Oklahoma; The Race for Land; Irrigation in the Panhandle; Postmasters of Early Days; New Locations, etc. In the spring of the year 1889, the president of the United States issued a proclamation that Oklahoma was opened for homestead settlement, the few Indians that had already settled there to be allowed to remain in undisturbed possession of their holdings. As the proclamation included but a small portion of the present state, the other little nations were left for f
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CHAPTER XVI.
CHAPTER XVI.
The Messiah Craze; A Thrilling Experience; An Arkansaw Traveler, Etc. A short time prior to the period of which I am writing, there had been taught and promulgated by some half-breed, a religion which afterwards became known as the “Messiah Craze.” It had spread all over the Northwest territories and finally reached Oklahoma. The principal tenet of this strange religion was that the Great Spirit was going to remove all the white folks and restore the buffalo to his native plains, which were to b
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CHAPTER XVII.
CHAPTER XVII.
Conditions Prior to the Indian Raids; The Frontier Line; Savages on the Warpath; Custer’s Fate; General Forsythe’s Predicament. Before setting down the narrative of the Dull Knife Raid, or any other, it is not amiss to relate something of the conditions that prevailed prior to those events. In 1878, and for ten years prior to that time, the most of the plain Indians had been on the war-path for some reason or another. To give an idea of the size of the country which was the scene of their endeav
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CHAPTER XVIII.
CHAPTER XVIII.
The Whirlwind Raid; Great Expectations Reduced to Disappointment, etc. For several years succeeding to terminations of the Civil War, the whole plains country, as I have said in the previous chapter, from the frontier settlements westward including a great portion of the Rocky Mountains, and from the British line on the north to the Red river of the north line of Texas, was claimed by the Indian by virtue of his title begotten of prior possession, and was used by him as a hunting ground, and als
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CHAPTER XIX.
CHAPTER XIX.
The Sun Dance; Preparations; Its Religious Significance; and Purpose; How it was Conducted, etc. It may not be amiss to insert here a description of what was known to the various Indian tribes as the Sun Dance. Each nation, people, or tribe in past history has had some ceremony, symbolic in its nature, by which honors and dignities were conferred upon those who sough honor and preferment. Nor has this custom been confined to any particular class, for all have, at different times, indulged in the
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CHAPTER XX.
CHAPTER XX.
The Adobe Wall Raid; Reason for Description; A Day and a Night of Terror—Some Hitherto Unknown Heroes, Etc. Before setting down in detail the series of events that comprise what is called the ‘Adobe Wall’ raid, I wish to put forth my reason for undertaking the task of making known to the public an event that will long be remembered, not only by those who took part in the occurrence, but, also, by many of the early settlers of the then Far West. So many accounts of the above mentioned raid have b
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CHAPTER XXI.
CHAPTER XXI.
The “Dull Knife” Raid; The Indian’s Motive for the Same, etc. The summer of 1877 found the Indians as active as they had been for some years prior to that date. They had long since come to the realization that if the buffalo hunter continued his destructive work upon their base of supplies, the time would soon come when they would be brought to the verge of want. They had so long considered the buffalo their natural source of sustenance that they could not behold the plains depopulated of the va
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CHAPTER XXII.
CHAPTER XXII.
Great Awakening of the West; Buffalo Hunters; Quakers’ Influence; Indian Disturbances; A Treaty Made and Broken, Etc. When the first railroad construction train started West from the Missouri River, with its gangs of graders, tie-slingers, and track layers, the sound of the locomotive whistle proclaimed to the Indian more plainly than any language could do, that the days of his activity over that vast expanse of country were about to terminate, peaceably if possible, but forcibly if necessary. T
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CHAPTER XXIII.
CHAPTER XXIII.
Sheridan’s Arrival; Kansas Volunteers’ Disasterous March; Sheridan’s Activity; Custer’s Engagement With the Indians, Etc. About this time General Phil. H. Sheridan made his appearance in the Indian country, bringing some additional soldiers under the command of General Custer. He also asked for a regiment of Kansas volunteers. His request was granted and the recruits were placed under the command of Colonel Crawford with orders to meet General Sheridan at the junction of Wolf and Beaver Creeks,
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CHAPTER XXIV.
CHAPTER XXIV.
Sheridan’s Camp; Discovery of Elliot and Companions; A Truce; Capture of Comanches and Kiowas Return to Camp. The night of the battle, Custer started for Camp Supply and very nearly overtook his scout, California Joe, as the latter had to hide so much on the way to avoid being caught by the Indians; and I believe that Custer made a record trip, as he was afraid of the same thing. When he returned and Major Elliot’s absence was not satisfactorily explained, General Sheridan showed great dissatisf
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CHAPTER XXV.
CHAPTER XXV.
California Joe’s Weakness; A Trip to Camp Supply; Bringing in Renegade Indians; Expedition to Panhandle, etc. Previously to the time of which I am writing, the General had sent a bunch of cavalry horses to Fort Arbuckle where he had made arrangements for their keep. The Chickasaw and Choctaw Indians raised some crops and had feed to spare and agreed to look after the horses. The General thought by this time they would be sufficiently recuperated to be of service to him in his present needs. Cons
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CHAPTER XXVI.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Civilizing the Indian; A Period of Unrest; An Outbreak; Murder of a Freighter. At this time the Quakers were largely in control of the Indian Department and were indorsed in their views by Pres. U. S. Grant. They believed the Indian could be civilized and kept under control by moral suasion by the erection of school houses for his children, and by imparting a knowledge of the proper system of agriculture. Under their influence, rations were issued and blankets distributed among them. They were a
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CHAPTER XXVII.
CHAPTER XXVII.
A Decade of Warfare; Custer’s Massacre; Sheridan, etc. For several years, I might say the whole decade from 1870 to 1880, the Indians occupied the attention of the public. In the Northwest they were very active. The Utes, Apaches, Cheyennes, and the Sioux were almost continuously on the warpath, and their activities were so widespread and far-reaching that, at times, they almost blocked the progress of the wheels of commerce, and made trade and travel a very dangerous proceeding. The movement on
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CHAPTER XXVIII.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Trouble With the Northern Cheyennes; Little Chief Conducted to the Agency at Reno, I. T. The year 1878 found the Northern Cheyennes up in arms and on the warpath, as were the other tribes on the plains and in the mountains. Prominent among the roving bands of warriors was the Little Chief band of Northern Cheyennes. They were very active and indications seemed to point out that they were likely to make things very disagreeable for the troops as well as for the ranch man in that section. Little C
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CHAPTER XXIX.
CHAPTER XXIX.
Ben Clark; General Creel; Some Observation in Conclusion. In concluding the little work, I deem it impossible to close without paying tribute to two men who have done so much in the way of settling the difficulties of the west, and making it possible for the white settlers to live in peace and prosperity, freed entirely from the haunting spectre of an Indian raid. Many have contributed their share to the important work, and credit must be given them, nevertheless in any undertaking, there are me
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AFTERWORD
AFTERWORD
Before taking leave of my readers, I cannot refrain from expressing the appreciation I feel for the assistance I have received from numerous reliable sources. The best authority for an account of any happening is the chief actor in the drama, and this is undoubtedly true when the authors themselves are men of integrity, reliability, modesty and truth. Men of this type necessarily leave the impression of truthfulness and reliability, on any narration of events they may make. Such men I have consu
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