comforts which aided the cowboy in rounding out his full measure of whatever he might chose to call it, misery or joy. We crossed both forks of the Platte river a few miles east of the town of Ogallala; and then our course was to Birdwood creek; to the head waters of the Dismal and Loup rivers; and on northward through the great chain of shifting sand-hills that are now so well known. There were ten of us, including our trail boss, Mr. Mack Stewart, and the cook. In addition to our regular crew we had a guide by the name of Aaron Barker, who had been employed at North Platte City. This guide probably knew western Nebraska as well as any man living in those days, having been associated with the Sioux Indians in that part of the country for years. I have been told that he and a few companions engaged in handling Sioux ponies at the expense of their real owners. We passed through the sand-hill country at the season when the sand cherries were at their best, as were the blossoms on the soapweeds; and since the cattle seemed to have found something that pleased their palates as well as the cherries did ours, it looked to me, at one time, as though we would never all get together again. This was my first experience with sand cherries, and it left a pleasant impression on my memory.2 1 The sand-hill region of Nebraska comprises upwards of 18,000 square miles--not quite a fourth of the entire area of the state. Its boundary runs, somewhat irregularly and indefinitely, westerly from a point In the southwestern corner of Antelope county to and along the north boundary of Wheeler nearly to its western end; continuing northwesterly to a point on the Niobrara River at the middle of Brown county and following the river to a point near the western line of Sheridan county; thence southwesterly, crossing the southeastern corner of Box Butte; thence nearly southeasterly across Morrill county to the North Platte River and along or near the river into the northwestern corner of Dawson; thence northwesterly nearly to the center of |
Driving on north from the headwaters of the north fork of the Loup river, our guide took us to one of the sand-hill lakes, then unnamed. Here occurred an incident worth mentioning. The weather was very warm, and we had a long drive without water before we arrived at the lake. The cattle scented the water long before we reached it, since the direction of the wind was favorable, and they strung out for it at a trot. We tried to hold the leaders back, but when they came within about Logan; thence northeasterly across the northwestern corner of Custer to the southeastern corner of Blaine; thence easterly to a point on the western line of Boone at the southeastern corner of Wheeler; thence northeasterly to the place of beginning. The region comprises the southwestern corner of Antelope county and a smaller area in the northwestern corner of Boone; about one-fifth of Holt county--the southwestern part; all of Rock except about one-fourth, on the north; all of Brown except the not very extensive northeastern corner; all of Cherry except some small areas north of the Niobrara; the part of Sheridan--about a half--which lies south of the Niobrara and east of the Box Butte rivers; a small area in the southeastern corner of Box Butte. and a considerable area in southern Sioux; about two-fifths of Morrill--the northeastern corner; about three-fourths of Garden--on the north; all of Grant, Hooker, Thomas, Blaine, Loup, Garfield, Wheeler, Arthur, and McPherson; all of Logan except the southeastern corner; a projection into northeastern Valley and northwestern Greeley; a considerable area in the northwestern corner of Custer and a lesser in the southwestern corner; the northwestern corner of Dawson; the greater part of Keith--about two-fifths--lying north of the Platte; about two-thirds of Lincoln--a segment north of the Platte River and another in the southwest; a considerable part of southeastern Perkins and a lesser part of northeastern Chase and northwestern Hayes. A distinct section covers the western half of Dundy county and the small corner of southwestern Chase. The designation or limitation of the sand-hill section of Nebraska is governed by the distinctive character of its plant life--that part not adapted to the production of agricultural crops, though within its area there are many pockets or depressions and valleys of principal streams where the soil is fertile in the ordinary sense of the word. Sand-hills, which are constantly shifting through the action of the wind, are common in this section. The sandy land outside this distinctive area is more or less fit for cultivation. The sand cherries common to this region grow on spreading |
half a mile of the water they split into bunches and, in spite of our efforts, rushed madly into the lake. About a hundred head were mired down before we could crowd those following to a place where the mud and gumbo were not so deep. At that time, and probably for centuries before, the lakes in the sand-hills of Nebraska were breeding places for all sorts of wild fowl. Upon our arrival, countless flocks of wild geese, ducks, pelicans, swans and many other varieties of waterfowl hovered over and flew about us, no doubt greatly surprised by our abrupt intrusion. shrubs, varying in size according to their relatively advantageous situation. The cherry is somewhat smaller than the orchard cherry. It resembles the chokecherry in color, though somewhat darker; in its astringent taste; and in "puckering" the mouth. When fully ripe it is pleasant to the taste, notwithstanding the dictum of long-distance authority that it is scarcely edible, and is used locally for making jam and marmalade. This sand-hill shrub was named Prunus besseyi, for Charles E. Bessey, the distinguished botanist, though he himself doubted that it should be regarded as a different species from the Prunus pumila of the sand district in the region of the Great Lakes. Soapweed, more properly yucca, is so-called because it yields a substance sometimes used as a substitute for soap. The root of the Nebraska species, Yucca Glauca, was used by the 0glala, and probably other trans-Missouri Indians, as a shampoo. They believed that it stimulated the growth of the hair. A decoction of the roots was used in tanning hides also, and the leaves for fuel. While the sand-hill region is sparsely settled, the population of its typical counties ranging from about 1500 to about 2500, its production of cattle and dairying are very important industries. There was a heavy loss of population from 1900 to 1902; a heavy gain from 1902 to 1904, doubtless due mainly to the so-called Kinkaid act, passed April 28, 1904, which conferred the right to homestead 640 acres in the territory it covered instead of only 160; a considerable loss again from 1904 to 1906; then an important increase from 1906 to 1908; a small loss from 1908 to 1910; a general increase from 1910 to 1912; and a small general increase from 1912 to 1914. The territory to be affected by the Kinkaid act was evidently determined with reference to the sand-hill region and the degree of aridity. Thus on the northeast this favored land extends to the eastern boundary of the counties of Boyd, Holt, and Wheeler, while in the southwest the eastern boundary of the counties of Hayes and Hitchcock is its eastern limit.--ED. |
The task that confronted us before we could get anything in the line of supper was to save the cattle that- had mired. This proved to be quite a job, as we got our saddle horses mired in the attempt to get near enough to the cattle to throw ropes over their horns so that we could pull them out. As some of the best cattle in the herd were in the mire, we had to get them out and save them if such a thing was possible. Fortunately there was a clump of willows growing at one side of the lake, and we cut some of these, tied them into bundles and used them to make a sort of corduroy road to some of the cattle farthest from the shore, so that our horses or work oxen could get a footing to pull from. Every one of the cattle that we would pull out of the mire was ready to fight the whole of mankind the moment he could stand on his feet. One of our party had his horse badly gored because he thought it could outstart and outrun any steer. Something frightened the cattle that night, along in the small hours, and our neighbors, the wild fowl, must have wondered at the thundering sound of hoofs and clashing horns and lesser noises, such as the yells of the herders, as we would crowd and swing the "point," or leaders, of the stampede back into the rapidly following mass, or would sing strains of the old Texas lullaby to them, when we gained control, and had them either "milling" around and around in a compact bunch, or standing, trembling and alert, ready for another wild rush at the slightest unusual scent or sound. When we crossed to the north side of the Platte River we knew that we were in a country which was claimed by the Dakota Indians both by birth and treaty rights. Many bands of Dakota and Cheyenne Indians were very much opposed to the invasion of the Black Hills country by the white gold seekers. A bridge just |
completed across the Platte River had opened a great highway for the transportation of supplies and mail to the miners, and enabled thousands of adventurers to enter the land where they seemed to think a fortune could be obtained by picking up gold with little labor or expense. Most of our outfit of cowboys having had experience in trailing herds through country infested with Indians who denied the right of white men to travel through or make roads across their hunting ground, each went armed with a heavy revolver and knife. Few carried rifles, because the added weight of a gun on one side of a horse caused saddle galls, to avoid which on an eighteen hundred mile trip was very important; for a horse tortured with bad saddle sores cannot thrive, and much hinged on the condition of the saddle horses in handling these immense herds of wild cattle. On this trip it happened that I was the only one in the outfit who owned a rifle, and it was hauled in the wagon except on occasions when we needed a little game for a change of diet. There were plenty of elks, deer and antelopes then. We saw but few Indians, and these did not come up near us while we were driving the cattle to their destination, but on our return trip to the Platte River we found some. We left the guide and wagon when the cattle were delivered to the contractors and used pack ponies on the return trip, "flying light," as the boys called it. Arriving at the Niobrara one day about noon, we camped for dinner on the northern bank.' At this point and season the river was about fifty yards wide and about four feet deep, with a very swift current and plenty of quicksand. About the time our coffee and bacon were ready, an Indian rode into full view on top of the bluffs that skirted |
the river valley, about half a mile distant. We saw him signaling with both horse and blanket, and in a very few minutes the bluffs for half a mile up and down the river were occupied by mounted Indians. This was interesting, but it became more so when they swarmed down from the bluffs and charged for our camp, a yelling, screeching line, beautifully painted and nearly naked. Some had rifles and pistols, but the greater part were armed with bows and arrows. Most of our little band, I think, felt that our time on earth would soon be ended, but as the Indians did not shoot, no one in our camp "pulled a gun." They were all riding bareback and made an impressive picture. Their impetuous rush soon brought them upon us, and they formed a complete circle about us. One old warrior with a badly scarred face dashed up almost to my feet and pulled his horse to a sudden stop. Trying to look greatly pleased to meet him, I said, in as strong and cheerful a voice as I could command, "How! my friend." He jumped from his horse and looked at me for a few minutes. I then said to him in the Dakota tongue, "I look at you. My heart is glad to see my friends." He stepped toward me and said, "What is your Dakota name?" I told him the name given me by the old chiefs of his people: such men as Red Cloud, American Horse, Little Wound, and Young Man Afraid of His Horses were friends of mine at that time. He then wanted to know where we came from and where we were going. I told him that we had just driven a herd of cattle to the Indians upon the Missouri river and were now on our way back to the Platte river to take a herd of cattle to the Red Cloud agency on the White River. I then said to him, |
"My Dakota friends have bad hearts, but they must not kill the cowboys who bring the cattle that the Great Father sends to them or the soldiers will come in great numbers, with many big guns, and wipe out the Sioux nation." He then said that his people were hungry. I told him that we had but little food and that we would be hungry before we could get to the Shell River (North Platte). Our talk probably did not take up the amount of time it has taken me to write this account of it, but it was very interesting, to me, at least. Springing onto his pony, the old warrior called out to all his people who I was, what our party was doing in the country, and what I had said to him. Yells of "Ho! Ho!" came back to him from every direction. Packing our camp outfit onto our ponies, we started in to round up our saddle horses and drive them across the river, the entire band of Indians helping us. Their mood had changed, and there were many "Hows" exchanged, as we parted on the south side of the Niobrara. I have always felt that if ever I had a close call to being used as a pincushion, with arrows in the place of pins, that was the time, and I think there were those about me that felt nearly as weak as I did after the ordeal was over. I think my efforts in picking up a little knowledge of the Dakota speech and sign language saved my scalp on that occasion, and perhaps those of the entire party, as there must have been at least three hundred Indians in the bunch that swooped down upon us so unceremoniously. In connection with this incident of my life I want to illustrate the fact that in almost all parties of men there are some that have very short memories, and for- |
get to be grateful for mercies received. After we had left the Indians who had so kindly helped us across the river we "made tracks" pretty fast toward the Union Pacific railroad. I was riding with one of my companions ahead of our band of saddle horses, leading the way. We approached the top of a steep sand-hill that lay in our course when we suddenly came upon two old Sioux warriors, leading two tired ponies loaded with carcasses of antelopes. These Indians were taken by surprise at our sudden appearance, but they put on a brave front and made signs of being greatly pleased at meeting us. They wanted to shake hands all around and say "How! How!" as fast as possible. One of our party troubled with a short memory drew a pistol and said, "Let's kill these two old devils anyway." He was quickly persuaded by the rest of our party not to do such a rash thing as to take advantage of these Indians who were at our mercy after our having, only by the mercy of God, been allowed to escape from their tribesmen and relatives. Those days are long since past, and when the last of the old Sioux warriors have visited me in my home each year, I have often told them of the awful scare they gave me on the banks of the river upon which I have made my home for so many years. We can all laugh over it now as a good joke on me, but at the time it seemed to me to be about as serious a proposition as had ever come my way. After Captain Cook's paper the chairman introduced James Mooney of the Department of American Ethnology, who gave an address on Systematic, Nebraska Ethnologic Investigation.1 1 Mr. Mooney's address is printed in Collections of Nebraska State Historical Society, volume XVII, page 103. |
Following Mr. Mooney's address Vice President Harvey introduced Mr. Edgar R. Harlan, curator of the Historical Department of Iowa, who gave an illustrated lecture on Influence of Visualized Ideas, during which he presented views of the building of the Historical Department of Iowa and of the collections housed therein. The meeting adjourned sine die.
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Itemized for the guidance of the legislature but which will not prevent any part being available for other items herein enumerated as follows:
The resignation of
Mr. W. E. Hannan, superintendent of the newspaper
department, to take effect April 1, |
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