 CHAPTER XXII. A DESPERATE FIGHT. On leaving camp, the command took a westward course up the Republican, and made your north with two companies of his Pawnees and two or three companies of Calvary under the command of Colonel Royal, made a scout to the north of the river. Shortly after we had gone into camp, on the Black Tailed Deer Fork, we observed a band of Indians coming over the prairie at full gallop, singing and yelling and waving their lances and long poles. At first we supposed them to be Sue, and all was excitement for a few moments. We noticed, however, that our Pawnee Indians made no hostile demonstrations or preparations towards going out to fight them but began swinging and yelling themselves. Captain Lute North stepped up to General Carr and said, General, those are our men who are coming, and they have had a fight. That is the way they act when they come back from a battle and have taken any scalps. The Pawnees came into camp on the run. Captain North calling to one of them, a sergeant, soon found out that they had run across a party of Sue who were following a large Indian trail. These Indians had evidently been in a fight, for two or three of them had been wounded and they were conveying the injured persons on Trevoy. The Pawnees had jumped them and had killed three or four more of them. Next morning the command, at an early hour, started out to take up this Indian trail which they followed for two days as rapidly as possible. It becoming evident from the many campfires which we passed that we were gaining on the Indians. Wherever they had encamped, we found the print of a woman's shoe and we concluded that they had with them some white captive. This made us all the more anxious to overtake them and General Carr accordingly selected all his best horses which could stand a hard run and gave orders for the wagon train to follow as fast as possible while he pushed ahead on a forced march. At the same time I was ordered to pick out five or six of the best Pawnees and go on in advance of the command, keeping ten or twelve miles ahead on the trail so that when we overtook the Indians we could find out the location of their camp and send word to the troops before they came in sight, thus affording ample time to arrange a plan for the capture of the village. After having gone about ten miles in advance of the regiment we began to move very cautiously as we were now evidently nearing the Indians. We looked carefully over the summits of the hills before exposing ourselves to plain view and at last we discovered the village encamped in the sand hills south of the South Platte River at Summit Springs. Here I left the Pawnee scouts to keep watch while I went back and informed General Carr that the Indians were in sight. The General at once ordered his men to tighten their saddles and otherwise prepare for action. Soon all was excitement among the officers and soldiers, everyone being anxious to charge the village. I now changed my horse for old Buckskin Joe who had been led for me thus far and was comparatively fresh. Acting on my suggestion the General made a circuit to the north believing that if the Indians had their scouts out they would naturally be watching in the direction once they had come. When we had passed the Indians and were between them and the Platte River we turned to the left and started toward the village. By this maneuver we had avoided discovery by the Sioux Scouts and we were confident of giving them a complete surprise. Keeping the command wholly out of sight until we were within a mile of the Indians the General halted the advanced guard until all closed up and then issued an order that when he sounded the charge the whole command was to rush into the village. As we halted on the top of the hill overlooking the camp of the unsuspecting Indians General Carr called out to his bugler, sound the charge. The bugler for a moment became intensely excited and actually forgot the notes. The General again sang out sound the charge and yet the bugler was unable to obey the command. Quartermaster Hayes who had obtained permission to accompany the expedition was riding near the General and comprehending the dilemma of the man rushed up to him, jerked a bugle from his hands and sounded the charge himself in clear and distinct notes. As the troops rushed forward he threw the bugle away then drawing his pistols was among the first men that entered the village. The Indians had just driven up their horses and were preparing to make a move of the camp when they saw the soldiers coming down upon them. A great many of them succeeded in jumping upon their ponies and leaving everything behind them advanced out of the village and prepared to meet the charge. But upon second thought they quickly concluded that it was useless to try to check us and those who were mounted rapidly rode away while the others on foot fled for safety to the neighboring hills. We went through their village shooting right and left at everything we saw. The ponies, the regular soldiers and the officers were all mixed up together and the Sioux were flying in every direction. General Carr had instructed the command that when they entered the village they must keep a sharp lookout for white women as he was confident the Indians had some captives. The company which had been ordered to take possession of the village after its capture soon found two white women, one of whom had just been killed and the other wounded. They were both Swedes and the survivor could not talk English. A Swedish soldier, however, was soon found who could talk with her. The name of this woman was Mrs. Wetzel and her story as told to the soldier was that as soon as the Indians saw the troops coming down upon them, a squaw, tall bull's wife, had killed Mrs. Alderdice, the other captive with a hatchet and then wounded her. This squaw had evidently intended to kill both women to prevent them from telling how cruelly they had been treated. The attack lasted but a short time and the Indians were driven several miles away. The soldiers then gathered in the herd of Indian horses which were running at large over the country and drove them back to the camp. After taking a survey of what we had accomplished it was found that we had killed about one hundred and forty Indians and captured one hundred and twenty squaws and papooses, two hundred lodges and eight hundred horses and mules. The village proved to be one of the richest I had ever seen. The Redskins had everything pertaining to an Indian camp besides numerous articles belonging to the White Settlers whom they had killed on the Selene. The Pawanese as well as the soldiers ransacked the camp for curiosities and found enough to start twenty museums besides a large amount of gold and silver. This money had been stolen from the Swedish settlers whom they had murdered on the Selene. General Carr ordered that all the tepees, the Indian lodges, buffalo robes, all camp equipage and provisions including dried buffalo meat amounting to several tons should be gathered in piles and burned. A grave was dug in which the dead Swedish woman, Mrs. Alderdice, was buried. Captain Kane, a religious officer, read the burial service as we had no chaplain with us. While this was going on the Sioux warriors having recovered from their surprise had come back and a battle took place all around the camp. I was on the skirmish line and I noticed an Indian who was riding a large bay horse and giving orders to his men in his own language, which I could occasionally understand, telling them that they had lost everything, that they were ruined and he entreated them to follow him and fight until they died. His horse was an extraordinary one, fleet as the wind, dashing here and there, and I determined to capture him if possible, but I was afraid to fire at the Indian for fear of killing the horse. I noticed that the Indian as he rode around the skirmish line, past the head of a ravine not far distant, and it occurred to me that if I could dismount and creep to the ravine I could as he passed there easily drop him from his saddle without danger of hitting the horse. Accordingly I crept into and secreted myself in the ravine, reaching the place unseen by the Indians, and I waited there until Mr. Chief came riding by. When he was not more than thirty yards distant I fired, and the next moment he tumbled from his saddle and the horse kept on without his rider. Instead of running toward the Indians, however, he galloped toward our men, by one of whom he was caught. Lieutenant Mason, who had been very conspicuous in the fight and who had killed two or three Indians himself, single-handed, came galloping up to the ravine, and jumping from his horse secured the fancy war bonnet from the head of the dead chief, together with all of his accoutrements. We both then rejoined the soldiers, and I at once went in search of the horse. I found him in the possession of Sergeant McGrath, who had caught him. The Sergeant knew that I had been trying to get the animal, and having seen me kill his rider, he handed him over to me at once. Little did I think at that time that I had captured a horse, which, for four years afterwards, was the fastest runner in the state of Nebraska, but such proved to be the fact. I jumped on his back and rode him down to the spot where the prisoners were corralled. One of the squaws among the prisoners suddenly began crying in a pitiful and hysterical manner at the sight of his horse, and upon inquiry I found that she was Tall Bull's wife, the same squaw that had killed one of the white women and wounded the other. She stated that this was her husband's favorite war horse, and that only a short time ago she had seen Tall Bull riding him. I gave her to understand that her liege lord had passed in his mortal chips and that it would be some time before he would ride his favorite horse again, and I informed her that henceforth I should call the gallant steed Tall Bull in honor of her husband. Late in the evening our wagon train arrived, and placing the wounded woman, Mrs. Wetzel, in the ambulance, she having been kindly attended to by the surgeons, and gathering up the prisoners, the squaws and papooses, and captured stock, we started at once for the South Platte River, eight miles distant, and there it went into camp. Next morning General Carr issued an order that all the money found in the village should be turned over to the adjutant. About one thousand dollars was thus collected, and the entire amount was given to Mrs. Wetzel. The command then proceeded to fort Sedgwick, from which point the particulars of our fight, which took place on Sunday, July 11th, 1869, were telegraphed to all parts of the country. We remained at this post for two weeks, during which General Auger of the Department of the Platte paid us a visit and highly complimented the command for the gallant service it had performed. For this fight at Summit Springs, General Carr in his command were complimented not only in general orders, but received a vote of thanks from the legislatures of Nebraska and Colorado, as Tall Bull and his Indians had long been a terror to the border settlements, and the resolutions of thanks were elegantly engrossed and sent to General Carr. The wounded white woman was cared for in the hospital at this post, and after her recovery she soon married the hospital steward, her former husband having been killed by the Indians. Our prisoners were sent to the Wheatstone Agency on the Missouri River, where spotted tail and the friendly Sue were then living. The captured horses and mules were distributed among the officers, scouts, and soldiers. Among the animals that I thus obtained were my Tall Bull horse and a pony which I called Powderface, and which afterwards became quite celebrated, as he figured prominently in the stories of Ned Buntline. One day while we were lying at Fort Sedgwick, General Carr received a telegram from Fort Macpherson stating that the Indians had made a dash on the Union Pacific Railroad and had killed several section men and run off some stock near O'Fallon Station. Also that an expedition was going out from Fort Macpherson to catch and punish the Redskins if possible. The general ordered me to accompany the expedition, and accordingly that night I proceeded by rail to Macpherson Station, and from thence rode on horseback to the Fort. Two companies under command of Major Brown had been ordered out, and next morning, just as we were about to start, Major Brown said to me, by the way, Cody, we are going to have quite an important character with us as a guest on this scout, its old Ned Buntline, the novelist. Just then I noticed a gentleman who was rather stoutly built and who wore a blue military coat on the left breast of which were pinned about twenty gold medals and badges of secret societies. He walked a little lame as he approached us, and I at once concluded that he was Ned Buntline. He has a good mark to shoot at on the left breast, said I to Major Brown, but he looks like a soldier. As he came up, Major Brown said, Cody, allow me to introduce you to Colonel E. B. O. Judson, otherwise known as Ned Buntline. Colonel Judson, I am glad to meet you, said I. The Major tells me that you are to accompany us on the scout. Yes, my boy, so I am, said he. I was to deliver a temperance lecture tonight, but no lectures for me when there is a prospect for a fight. The Major has kindly offered me a horse, but I don't know how I'll stand the ride, for I haven't done any riding lately. But when I was a young man, I spent several years among the fur companies of the Northwest and was a good rider and an excellent shot. The Major has given you a fine horse, and you'll soon find yourself at home in the saddle, said I. The command soon pulled out for the South Platte River, which was very wide and high, owing to recent mountain rains, and in crossing it we had to swim our horses in some places. Buntline was the first man across. We reached O'Fallon's at eleven o'clock, and in a short time I succeeded in finding the Indian Trail. The party seemed to be a small one, which had come up from the South. We followed their track to the North Platte, but as they had a start of two days Major Brown abandoned the pursuit and returned to Fort McPherson while I went back to Fort Sedgwick, accompanied by Buntline. During this short scout, Buntline had asked me a great many questions, and he was determined to go out on the next expedition with me, providing he could obtain permission from the commanding officer. I introduced him to the officers, accepting those he already knew, and invited him to become my guest while he remained at the post, and gave him my pony, Powderface, to ride. By this time I had learned that my horse, Tall Bault, was a remarkably fast runner, and therefore when Lieutenant Mason, who was quite a sport and owned a racer, challenged me to a race, I immediately accepted it. We were to run our horses in a single dash of a half mile for one hundred dollars a side. Several of the officers, and also Rube Wood, the post trader, bantered me for side bets, and I took them all until I had put my last cent on Tall Bault. The ground was measured off, the judges were selected, and all other preliminaries were arranged. We rode our horses ourselves, and coming up to this score nicely, we let them go. I saw from the start that it would be mere play to beat the Lieutenant's horse, and therefore I held Tall Bault in check so that none could see how fast he really could run. I easily won the race and pocketed a snug little sum of money. Of course everybody was now talking horse. Major North remarked that if Tall Bault could beat the Pawnees' fast horse, I could break his whole command. The next day the troops were paid off, the Pawnees with the rest, and for two or three days they did nothing but run horse races, as all the recently captured horses had to be tested to find out the swiftest among them. Finally the Pawnees wanted to run their favorite horse against Tall Bault, and I accordingly arranged a race with them. They raised three hundred dollars and betted on their horse, while of course I backed Tall Bault with an equal amount, and in addition took numerous side bets. The race was a single dash of a mile, and Tall Bault won it without any difficulty. I was ahead on this race about seven hundred dollars, and the horse was fast getting a reputation. Here to four nobody would bet on him, and now he had plenty of backers. I also made a race for my Pawnee powderface, against a fast Pawnee belonging to Captain Loot North. I selected a small boy living at the post to ride powderface, while an Indian boy was to ride the other Pawnee. The Pawnees as usual wanted to bet on their Pawnee, but as I had not yet fully ascertained the running qualities of powderface, I did not care about risking very much money on him. Had I known him as well then, as I did afterwards, I would have backed him for every dollar I had, for he proved to be one of the swiftest Pawnees I ever saw, and had evidently been kept as a racer. The race was to be four hundred yards, and when I led the Pawnee over to the track, he seemed to understand what he was there for. North and I finally put the riders on, and it was all I could do to hold the fiery little animal after the boy became seated on his back. He jumped around and made such quick movements that the boy was not at all confident of being able to stay on him. The order to start was at last given by the judges, and as I brought powderface up to the score, and the word goal was given, he jumped away so quickly that he left his rider sitting on the ground. Notwithstanding, he ran through and won the race without him. It was an easy victory, and after that I could get up no more races, thus passed the time while we were at Fort Sedgwick. General Carr having obtained a leave of absence, Colonel Royle was given the command of an expedition that was ordered to go out after the Indians, and in a few days, after having rested a couple of weeks, we set out for the Republican, having learned that there were plenty of Indians in that section of the country. At Frenchman's Fork we discovered an Indian village, but did not surprise it, for its people had noticed us approaching and were retreating when we reached their camping-place. We chased them down the stream, and they finally turned to the left, went north, and crossed the South Platte River, five miles above Ogallala. We pushed rapidly after them, following them across the North Platte, and on through the Sandhills, towards the Nyobrara, but as they were making much better time than we, the pursuit was abandoned. While we were in the Sandhills, scouting the Nyobrara country, the Pawnee Indians brought into camp one night some very large bones, one of which a surgeon of the expedition pronounced to be the thighbone of a human being. The Indians claimed that the bones they had found were those of a person belonging to a race of people who had a long time ago lived in this country, that there was once a race of men on the earth whose size was about three times that of an ordinary man, and they were so swift and powerful that they could run alongside of a buffalo, and taking the animal in one arm could tear off a leg and eat the meat as they walked. These giants denied the existence of a great spirit, and when they heard the thunder or saw the lightning, they laughed at it and said that they were greater than either. This so displeased the great spirit that he caused a great rainstorm to come, and the water kept rising higher and higher so that it drove those proud and conceited giants from the low grounds to the hills and thence to the mountains. But at last even the mountaintops were submerged, and then these mammoth men were all drowned. After the flood had subsided, the great spirit came to the conclusion that he had made man too large and powerful, and that he would therefore correct the mistake by creating a race of men of smaller size and less strength. This is the reason, say the Indians, that modern men are small and not like the giants of old, and they claim that this story is a matter of Indian history which has been handed down among them from time immemorial. As we had no wagons with us at the time this large and heavy bone was found, we were obliged to leave it. End of Chapter 22 Chapter 23 of the Life of Honorable William F. Cody This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Recording by Barry Eads. The Life of Honorable William F. Cody by William F. Cody Chapter 23 Administering Justice On returning to Fort McPherson, we found that Brevet Major General W. H. Emery, Colonel of the Fifth Calvary, and Brevet Brigadier General Thomas Duncan, Lieutenant Colonel of the Regiment, had arrived there during our absence. General Emery had been appointed to the command of the District of the Republican, with headquarters at Fort McPherson. As the command had been continually in the field, it was generally thought that we were to have a long rest, and it looked as if this post was to be my home and headquarters for some time to come. I accordingly sent to St. Louis for my wife and daughter to join me there. General Emery promised to build a house for me, but before the building was completed, my family arrived. During the fall of 1869, there were two or three scouting expeditions sent out, but nothing of very great importance was accomplished by them. I found Fort McPherson to be a lively and pleasant post to be stationed at, especially as there was plenty of game in the vicinity, and within a day's ride there were large herds of deer, antelope, and elk. During the winter of 1869-70, I spent a great deal of time in pursuit of game, and during the season we had two hunting parties of Englishmen there, one party being that of Mr. Flynn, and the other that of George Boyd Houghton of London, the well-known caricaturist. Among their amusements were several horse races, which I arranged, and in which Tall Bull and Powderface were invariably the winners. Tall Bull by this time had such a reputation as a running horse that it was difficult to make a race for him. I remember one, however, in which he ran against a horse in Captain Spaulding's company of the Second Calvary. The race was rather a novel affair. I had made a bet that Tall Bull would beat the Second Calvary horse around a one-mile track, and during the time that he was running, I would jump off and on the horse eight times. I rode the horse bareback, seized his mane with my left hand, rested my right on his withers, and while he was running at full speed, I jumped to the ground and sprang again upon his back eight times in succession. Such feats I had seen performed in the circus, and I had practiced considerably at it with Tall Bull so that I was certain of winning the race in the manner agreed upon. Early one morning, in the spring of 1870, the Indians, who had approached during the night, stole some twenty-one head of horses from Mr. John Burke, a government contractor, Ben Gallagher, and Jack Waite. They also ran off some horses from the post, among the number being my pony, Powderface. The commandant at once ordered out Lieutenant Thomas with Company I of the Fifth Calvary and directed me to accompany them as trailer. We discovered the trail after some little difficulty, as the Indians were continually trying to hide it and followed it sixty miles when darkness set in. We were now within about four miles of Red Willow Creek, and I felt confident the Indians would camp that night in that vicinity. Advising Lieutenant Thomas to halt his company and lay low, I proceeded on to the creek, where, moving around cautiously, I suddenly discovered horses feeding in a bend of the stream on the opposite side. I hurried back to the troops with the information, and Lieutenant Thomas moved his company to the bank of the creek, with the intention of remaining there until daylight, and then, if possible, surprised the Indians. Just at the break of day, we mounted our horses, and after riding a short distance, we ascended a slight elevation when, not over one hundred yards distant, we looked down into the Indian camp. The Indians, preparing to make an early start, had driven up their horses and were in the active mountain when they saw us charging down upon them. In a moment, they sprang upon their ponies and dashed away. Had it not been for the creek, which lay between us and them, we would have got them before they could have mounted their horses. But as it was rather myri, we were unexpectedly delayed. The Indians fired some shots at us while we were crossing, but as soon as we got across, we went for them in hot pursuit. A few of the Redskins had not had time to mount, and had started on foot down the creek toward the brush. One of these was killed. A number of our soldiers, who had been detailed before the charge to gather up any of the Indian horses that would be stampeded, succeeded in capturing thirty-two. I hurriedly looked over them to see if powder face was among them, but he was not there. Starting in pursuit of the fugitives, I finally aspired an Indian, mounted on my favorite, dashing away and leading all the others. We continued to chase for two or three miles, overtaking a couple who were mounted upon one horse. Coming up behind them, I fired my rifle one about thirty feet distant. The ball passed through the backs of both, and they fell headlong to the ground. But I made no stop however just then, for I had my eye on the gentleman who was riding powder face. It seemed to be fun for him to run away from us, and run away he did. For the last I saw of him was when he went over a divide about three miles away. I bade him a do. On my way back to the Indian camp, I stopped and secured the war bonnets and accoutrements of the pair I had killed, and at the same time gently raised their hair. We were feeling rather tired and hungry, as we had started out on the trail thirty-six hours before, without a breakfast or taking any food with us. But not a murmur or complaint was heard among the men. In the abandoned Indian camp however, we found enough dried buffalo meat to give us all a meal, and after remaining there for two hours, to rest our animals, we started on our return to Fort McPherson, where we arrived at night, having traveled one hundred thirty miles in two days. This being the first fight Lieutenant Thomas had ever commanded in, he felt highly elated over his success, and hoped that his name would be mentioned in the special orders for gallantry. Sure enough, when we returned, both he, myself, and the whole command received a complimentary mention in a special order. This he certainly deserved, for he was a brave energetic dashing little officer. The war bonnets which I had captured, I turned over to General Carr, with the request that he present them to General Auger, whose daughters were visiting at the post at the time. Shortly after this, another expedition was organized at Fort McPherson, for the Republican River Country. It was commanded by General Duncan, who was a jolly, blustering old fellow, and the officers who knew him well, said that we would have a good time, as he was very fond of hunting. He was a good fighter, and one of the officers said that an Indian bullet never could hurt him, as he had been shot in the head with a cannon ball, which had not injured him in the least. Another said the ball had glanced off and killed one of the toughest mules in the army. The Pawnee Scouts who had been mustered out of service, during the winter of 1869 and 70, were reorganized to accompany this expedition. I was glad of this, as I had become quite attached to one of the officers, Major North, and to many of the Indians. The only White Scout we had at the post, besides myself at the time, was John Y. Nelson, since traveled with me in my dramatic combination, as interpreter for Sioux Indians, whose Indian name was Cha Cha Cha Oppo Yeo, which interpreted means Red Willow, fill the pipe. This man is a character in his way. He has a Sioux Squaw for a wife, and consequently a half-breed family. John is a good fellow, though as a liar he has but few equals and no superior. We started out from the post, with the regimental band playing the lively air of, The Girl I Left Behind Me. We made but a short march that day, and camped at night at the head of Fox Creek. Next morning General Duncan sent me word by his orderly that I was to bring up my gun and shoot a mark with him. But I can assure the reader that I did not feel much like shooting anything except myself, for on the night before I had returned to Fort MacPherson and spent several hours in interviewing the Soutler's Store in company with Major Brown. I looked around for my gun, and found that I had left it behind. The last I could remember about it was that I had it at the Soutler's Store. I informed Major Brown of my loss, who said that I was a nice scout to start out without a gun. I replied that that was not the worst of it, as General Duncan had sent for me to shoot a match with him, and I did not know what to do, for if the old gentleman discovered my predicament, he would very likely severely reprimand me. Well, Cody said he, the best you can do is to make some excuse and then go and borrow a gun from some of the men, and tell the general that you lent yours to some man to go hunting with today. While we are waiting here, I will send back to the post and get your rifle for you. I succeeded in obtaining a gun from John Nelson, and then marching up to the General's headquarters, I shot the desired match with him, which resulted in his favor. This was the first scout the Pawnees had been out on under command of General Duncan, and in stationing his guards around the camp, he posted them in a manner entirely different from that of General Carr and Colonel Royal, and he insisted that the different post should call out the hour of the night thus. Post number one, nine o'clock, all is well. Post number two, nine o'clock, all is well, etc. The Pawnees who had their regular turns at standing upon guard were ordered to call the hour the same as the white soldiers. This was very difficult for them to do, as there were but few of them who could express themselves in English. Major North explained to them that when the man on the post next to them should call out the hour, they must call it also as near like him as possible. It was very amusing to hear them do this. They would try to remember what the other man had said on the post next to them. For instance, a white soldier would call out, post number one, half past nine o'clock, all is well. The Indian standing next to him knew that he was bound to say something in English, and he would sing out something like the following. Post number half past five cents go to I don't care. This system was really so ridiculous and amusing that the general had to give it up, and the order was accordingly countermanded. Nothing of any great interest occurred on this march until one day, while proceeding up Prairie Dog Creek, near the lonely camp where I had so long been laid up with a broken leg, when trapping years before with Dave Harrington, Major North and myself went out in advance of the command several miles and killed a number of buffaloes. Night was approaching and I began to look around for a suitable camping ground for the command. Major North dismounted from his horse and was resting while I rode down to the stream to see if there was plenty of grass in the vicinity. I found an excellent camping spot, and returning to Major North told him that I would ride over the hill a little away so that the advance guard could see me. This I did, and when the advance came in sight, I dismounted and laid down upon the grass to rest. Suddenly, I heard three or four shots, and in a few moments Major North came dashing up towards me, pursued by eight or ten Indians. I instantly sprang into my saddle and fired a few shots at the Indians, who by this time had all come in sight to the number of fifty. We turned our horses and ran, the bullets flying after us thick and fast, my whip being shot from my hand and daylight being put through the crown of my hat. We were in close quarters when suddenly Lieutenant Volkmer came galloping up to our relief with several soldiers, and the Indians seeing them whirled and retreated. As soon as Major North got in sight of his ponies, he began riding in a circle. This was a sign to them that there were hostile Indians in front, and in a moment the ponies broke ranks palmel and with Major North at their head started for the flying warriors. The rest of the command pushed rapidly forward also and chased the enemy for three or four miles, killing three of them. But this was a wrong move on our part, as their village was on Prairie Dog Creek while they led us in a different direction. One Indian only kept straight on up the creek, a messenger to the village. Some of the command who had followed him stirred up the village and accelerated its departure. We finally got back to the main force and then learned that we had made a great mistake. Now commenced another stern chase. The second day that we had been following these Indians, we came upon an old squaw whom they had left on the Prairie to die. Her people had built for her a little shade or lodge and had given her some provisions, sufficient to last her on her trip to the happy hunting grounds. This the Indians often do when pursued by an enemy and one of their number becomes too old and feeble to travel any longer. This squaw was recognized by John Nelson who said that she was a relative of his wife. From her we learned that the flying Indians were known as Pawnee Killers Band and that they had lately killed Buck's Surveying Party consisting of eight or nine men, the massacre having occurred a few days before on Beaver Creek. We knew that they had had a fight with surveyors as we found quite a number of surveying instruments which had been left in the abandoned camp. We drove these Indians across the Platte River and then returned to Fort McPherson bringing the old squaw with us, from there she was sent to the Spotted Tail Agency. During my absence my wife had given birth to a son and he was several weeks old when I returned. No name had yet been given him and I selected that of Elmo Judson in honor of Ned Butler. But this the officers and scouts objected to. Major Brown proposed that we should call him Kit Carson and it was finally settled that that should be his name. During the summer we made one or two more scouts and had a few skirmishes with the Indians but nothing of any great importance transpired. In the fall of 1870 while I was a witness in a court-martial at Fort D.A. Russell I woke up one morning and found that I was dead broke. This is not an unusual occurrence to a frontiersman or an author I may add especially when he is endeavoring to kill time. To raise necessary funds I sold my racehorse Tall Ball to Lieutenant Mason who had long wanted him. In the winter of 1870 and 1871 I first met George Watts Garland an English gentleman and a great hunter whom I had the pleasure of guiding on several hunts and with whom I spent some weeks. During the winter I also took several parties out on the Lupe River country hunting and trapping. Although I was still chief of scouts I did not have much to do as the Indians were comparatively quiet thus giving me plenty of time for sporting. In the spring of 1871 several short scouting expeditions were sent out from Fort McPherson but all with minor results. About this time General Emery was considerably annoyed by petty offenses committed in the vicinity of the post and as there was no justice of the peace in the neighborhood he was anxious to have such an officer there to attend to the civilians. One day he remarked to me that I would make an excellent justice. General you compliment me rather too highly for I don't know any more about law than a government mule does about bookkeeping said I. That doesn't make any difference said he for I know that you will make a good squire. He accordingly had the county commissioners appoint me to the office of justice of the peace and I soon received my commission. One morning a man came rushing up to my house and stated that he wanted to get out a writ of replevin to recover possession of a horse which a stranger was taking out of the country. I had no blank forms and had not yet received the statutes of Nebraska to copy from so I asked the man where is the fellow who has got your horse. He is going up the road and is about two miles away replied he very well said I I will get the writ ready in a minute or two. I saddled up my horse and then taking my old reliable gun Lucretia I said to the man that's the best writ of replevin that I can think of come along and we'll get that horse or know the reason why. We soon overtook the stranger who was driving a herd of horses and as we came up to him I said hello sir I am an officer and have an attachment for that horse and at the same time I pointed out the animal well sir what are you going to do about it he inquired I proposed to take you and the horse back to the post said I you can take the horse said he but I haven't the time to return with you you'll have to take the time or pay the cost here and now said I how much are the cost twenty dollars here's your money said he as he handed me the green backs I then gave him a little friendly advice and told him that he was released from custody he went on his way a wiser and a poor man while the owner of the horse and myself returned to the fort I pocketed the twenty dollars of course some people might think it was not a square way of doing business but I didn't know any better just then I had several little cases of this kind and I became better posted on law in the course of time being assisted by lieutenant Burr Riley of the fifth cavalry who had been educated for a lawyer one evening I was called upon to perform a marriage ceremony the bridegroom was one of the sergeants of the post I had braced up for the occasion by imbibing rather friendly of stimulants and when I arrived at the house with a copy of the statute of Nebraska which I had recently received I felt somewhat confused whether my bewilderment was owing to the importance of the occasion and the large assembly or to the effects of Lewis Wooden's tanglefoot I cannot now distinctly remember but my suspicions have always been that it was due to the latter cause I looked carefully through the statutes to find the marriage ceremony but my efforts were unsuccessful finally the time came for the knot to be tied I told the couple to stand up and then I said to the bridegroom do you take this woman to be your lawful wedded wife to support and love her through life I do was the reply then addressing myself to the bride I said do you take this man to be your lawful wedded husband through life to love honor and obey him I do was her response then join hands said I to both of them I now pronounce you to be man and wife and whom so ever God and Buffalo Bill have joined together let no man put us under may you live long and prosper amen this concluded the interesting ceremony which was followed by the usual festivities on such occasions I was highly complimented for the elegant and eloquent manner in which I had tied the matrimonial knot during the summer of 1871 Professor Marsh of Yale College came out to McPherson with a large party of students to have a hunt and look for fossils Professor Marsh had heard of the big bone which had been found by the Pawnees in the Nile-Bra-Raw country and he intended to look for that as well as other bones he accordingly secured the services of Major Frank North and the Pawnees as an escort I was also to accompany the bone hunters and would have done so had it not been for the fact that just at that time I was ordered out with a small scouting party to go after some Indians the day before the professor arrived at the fort I had been out hunting on the north side of the North Platte River near Pawnee Springs with several companions when we were suddenly attacked by Indians who wounded one of our number John Weister we stood the Indians off for a little while and Weister got even with them by killing one of their party the Indians however outnumbered us and at last we were forced to make run for our lives in this we succeeded and reached the fort in safety the general wanted to have the Indians pursued and said he could not spare me to accompany Professor Marsh however I had the opportunity to make the acquaintance of the eminent professor whom I found to be not only a well posted person but a very entertaining gentleman he gave me a geological history of the country told me in what section fossils were to be found and otherwise entertained me with several scientific yarns some of which seemed too complicated and too mysterious to be believed by an ordinary man like myself but it was all clear to him I rode out with him several miles as he was starting on his bone hunting expedition and I greatly enjoyed the ride his party had been provided with government transportation and his students were all mounted on government horses as we rode along he delivered a scientific lecture and he convinced me that he knew what he was talking about I finally bade him goodbye and returned to the post while the fossil hunters were out on their expedition we had several lively little skirmishes with the Indians after having been absent some little time Professor Marsh and his party came back with their wagons loaded down with all kinds of bones and the professor was in his glory he had evidently struck a boneyard and Gad a favorite expression of the professors wasn't he happy but they had failed to find the big bone which the Pawnees had unearthed the year before End of Chapter 23 Chapter 24 of the life of Honourable William F. Cody This LibriVox recording is in the public domain Recording by Barry Eads The Life of Honourable William F. Cody by William F. Cody Chapter 24 Hunting Expedition Early in the month of September 1871 information was received at Fort McPherson that General Sheridan and a party of invited friends were coming out to the post to have a grand hunt in the vicinity and to explore the country from McPherson to Fort Hayes in Kansas On the morning of September 22nd they arrived in a special car at North Platte a station on the Union Pacific just an 18 miles from Fort McPherson The party consisted of General Sheridan Lawrence R. Jerome James Gordon Bennett of the New York Herald Leonard W. Jerome Carol Livingston Major J. G. Heckscher General Fitzhugh General H. E. Davies Captain M. Edward Rogers Colonel J. Schuyler-Crosby Samuel Johnson General Anson Steger of the Western Union Telegraph Company Charles Wilson Editor of the Chicago Evening Journal General Rucker Quartermaster General and Dr. Ash the two last named being of General Sheridan's staff They were met at the station by General Emery and Major Brown with a cavalry company as escort and a sufficient number of vehicles to carry the distinguished visitors and their baggage A brisk drive of less than two hours over a hard and smooth road brought them to the fort where they found the garrison consisting of five companies of the Fifth Cavalry under the command of General Carr out on parade awaiting their arrival The band played some martial music and the cavalry passed very handsomely in review before General Sheridan The guests were then most hospitably received and assigned to comfortable quarters Lieutenant Hayes, the quartermaster of the expedition arranged everything for the comfort of the party One hundred cavalry under command of Major Brown were detailed as an escort A train of sixteen wagons was provided to carry the baggage, supplies, and forage for the trip And besides these there were three four-horse ambulances in which the guns were carried and in which members of the party who became weary of the saddle might ride and rest At General Sheridan's request I was to accompany the expedition He introduced me to all his friends and gave me a good send-off During the afternoon and evening the gentlemen were all entertained at the post in a variety of ways including dinner and supper parties and music and dancing At a late hour they retired to rest in their tents at the camp which they occupied outside the post named Camp Rucker in honor of General Rucker At five o'clock next morning a cavalry bugle sounded the revelry and soon all were astir in the camp preparatory to pulling out for the first day's march I rose fresh and eager for the trip and as it was a knobby and high-toned outfit which I was to accompany I determined to put on a little style myself So I dressed in a new suit of light buckskin trimmed along the seams with fringes of the same material and I put on a crimson shirt ansomely ornamented on the bosom while on my head I wore a broad sombrero then mounting a snowy white horse a gallant stepper I rode down from the fort to the camp rifle in hand I felt first rate that morning and looked well The expedition was soon underway Our road for ten miles wound through a wooded ravine called Cottonwood Cannon intersecting the high ground or divide as it is called between the Platt and Republican rivers Upon emerging from the cannon we found ourselves upon the plains First in the line rode General Sheridan followed by his guests and then the orderlies Then came the ambulances in one of which were carried five greyhounds brought along to course the antelope and rabbit With the ambulances marched a pair of Indian ponies belonging to Lieutenant Hayes captured during some Indian fight and harnessed to a light wagon which General Sheridan occasionally used These little horses but thirteen hands high showed more vigor and endurance than any other of the animals we had with us Following the ambulances came the main body of the escort and the supply wagons We marched seventeen miles the first day and went into camp on Fox Creek a tributary of the Republican No hunting had as yet been done but I informed the gentlemen of the party that we would strike the Buffalo Country the next day A hundred or more questions were then asked me by this one and that one and the whole evening was spent principally in Buffalo talk sandwiched with stories of the plains both of war and of the chase Several of the party who were good vocalist gave us some excellent music We closed the evening by christening the camp naming it Camp Brown in honor of the Gallant Officer in command of the escort At three o'clock next morning the bugle called us to an early start We had breakfast at half past four and at six were in the saddle All were eager to see and shoot the Buffalo's which I assured them we would certainly meet during the day After marching five miles the advanced guard of which I had the command discovered six Buffalo's grazing at a distance of about two miles from us We returned to the hunters with this information and they at once consulted with me as to the best way to attack the enemy Acting upon my suggestions Fitzhugh, Crosby, Lawrence Jerome, Livingston, Heckshire, and Rogers accompanied by myself as guide rode through a convenient cannon to a point beyond the Buffalo's so that we were to the windward of the animals The rest of the party made a detour of nearly five miles keeping behind the crest of a hill We charged down upon the Buffalo's at full gallop and just then the other party emerged from their concealment and witnessed the exciting chase The Buffalo started off in a line single file Fitzhugh, after a lively gallop led us all and soon came alongside the rear Buffalo at which he fired The animal faltered and then with another shot Fitzhugh brought him to the ground Crosby dashed by him and leveled another of the herd while Livingston dropped a third Those who were not directly engaged in the hunt now came up and congratulated the men upon their success and Fitzhugh was at once hailed as the winner of the Buffalo Cup while all sympathized with Heckshire whose chance had been the best at the start but who lost by reason of his horse falling and rolling over him The hunt being over the column moved forward on its march passing through a prairie dog town several miles in extent These animals are found throughout the plains living together in a sort of society their numberless burrows in their towns adjoin each other so that great care is necessary in riding through these places as the ground is so undermined as often to fall in under the weight of a horse Around the entrance to their holes the ground is piled up almost a foot high on these little elevations the prairie dogs sit upon their hind legs chattering to each other and observing whatever passes on the plains They will permit a person to approach quite near but when they have viewed him closely they dive into their dens with wonderful quickness They are difficult to kill and if hit generally succeed in crawling underground before they can be captured Rattlesnakes and small owls are generally found in great numbers in the prairie dog towns and live in the same holes with the dogs on friendly terms A few of the prairie dogs were killed and were found to be very palatable eating A short distance beyond the dog town we discovered a settlement of five white men who proved to be the two Clifford brothers Arthur Ruff, Dick Seymour, and John Nelson the latter already referred to in these pages Each of them had a squaw wife and numerous half-breed children living in tents above low skins They owned a herd of horses and mules and a few cattle and had cultivated a small piece of land Their principal occupation was hunting and they had a large number of buffalo hides which they had tanned in the Indian manner Upon reaching Pleasant Valley on Medicine Creek our party divided into two detachments one hunting along the bank of the stream for elk or deer and the other remaining with the main body of the escort The elk hunters met with no success whatever but the others ran across plenty of buffalos and nearly everybody killed one or more before the day was over Lawrence Jerome made an excellent shot While riding in an ambulance he killed a buffalo which attempted to cross the line of march At about four o'clock p.m. we arrived at Mitchell's Fork of the Medicine having traveled 35 miles during that day and there we went into camp calling it Camp Jack Hayes in honor of Lieutenant Hayes On the next morning the 25th we moved out of camp at eight o'clock The party was very successful through the day in securing game Hecture, Fitzhugh, Livingston, and Lieutenant Hayes and in fact all did good shooting Lawrence Jerome persuaded me to let him ride Buckskin Joe the best buffalo horse in the whole outfit and on his back he did wonders among the buffalos Leonard Jerome, Bennett, and Rogers also were very successful in buffalo hunting Our camp of this night was named Camp Ash to commemorate our surgeon Dr. Ash The evening was pleasantly spent around the campfires in relating the adventures of the day Upon crossing the Republican River on the morning of the 26th we came upon an immense number of buffalo scattered over the country in every direction as far as the eye could reach and all had an opportunity to do as much hunting as they wished The wagons and troops moved slowly along in the direction of the next camp while the hunters went off separately or by twos and threes in different directions and all were rewarded with abundant success Lawrence Jerome however had his career suddenly checked He had dismounted to make a steady and careful shot and thoughtlessly let go of the bridle The buffalo failing to take a tumble as he ought to have done started off at a lively gate followed by Buckskin Joe The horse being determined to do some hunting on his own account The last scene of him he was a little ahead of the buffalo and gaining slightly leaving his late rider to his own reflections and the prospect of a tramp His desolate condition was soon discovered and another horse warranted not to run under any provocation was sent to him It may be stated here that three days afterwards as I subsequently learned Buckskin Joe all saddled and bridled turned up at Fort McPherson We pitched our tents for the night in a charming spot on the bank of Beaver Creek The game was so abundant that we remained there one day This stopping place was called Camp Cody in honor of the Reader's Humble Servant The next day was spent in hunting jackrabbits coyotes elks antelope, and wild turkeys We had a splendid dinner as will be seen from the following Bill of Fair Soup Buffalo Tail Fish Cisco Broiled Fried Days Entries Salmi of Prairie Dog Stood Rabbit Filet of Buffalo All Champagons Roast Elk Antelope Blacktailed Deer Wild Turkey Broiled Teal Mallard Antelope Chops Buffalo Calf Steaks Young Wild Turkey Vegetables Sweet Potatoes Mashed Potatoes Green Peas Dessert Tapioca Pudding Wines Champagne Frappe Champagne On Natura Claret Whiskey Brandy Bass Ale Coffee This I considered a pretty square meal for a party of hunters and everybody did ample justice to it In the evening a court martial was held at which I presided as chief justice We tried one of the gentlemen for aiding and abetting in the loss of a government horse and for having something to do with the mysterious disappearance of a Colt's pistol He was charged also with snoring in a manner that was regarded as fiendish and with committing a variety of other less offenses too numerous to mention The accused made a feeble defense as to the pistol and claimed that instead of losing a government horse the fact was that the horse had lost him His statements were all regarded as too thin and finally failing to prove good character he confessed all and threw himself upon the mercy of the court The culprit was Lawrence Jerome As chief justice I delivered the opinion of the court which my modesty does not prevent me from saying was done in an able and dignified manner As an act of clemency I suspended judgment for the time being remarking that while the campfire held out to burn the vilest sinner might return and in hope of the accused's amendment I would defer pronouncing sentence The trial afforded its considerable amusement and gave me a splendid opportunity to display the legal knowledge which I had acquired while acting as justice of the peace at Fort McPherson On the morning of the 28th the command crossed the South Beaver distant nine miles from Camp Cody and then striking a fair road we made a rapid march until we reached our camp on Short Nose or Prairie Dog Creek about 2 p.m. after having made 24 miles The remainder of the afternoon was spent in hunting buffaloes and turkeys Camp Stager was the name given to this place in honor of General Stager of the Western Union Telegraph Company The next day we made a march of 24 miles and then halted at about 1 p.m. on the North Solomon River This day we killed three buffaloes, two antelopes, two raccoons, and three teal ducks Near our camp which we named Camp Leonard Jerome was a beaver dam some six feet high and 20 yards wide It was near the junction of two streams and formed a pond of at least four acres On the 30th we traveled 25 miles and during the march nine turkeys, two rabbits, and three or four buffaloes were killed We went into camp on the bank of the South Fork of the Solomon River and called the place Camp Sam Johnson We were now but 45 miles from Fort Hayes the point at which General Sheridan and his guests expected to strike the Kansas-specific railway and then return home That evening I volunteered to ride to Fort Hayes and meet the party next day bringing with me all the letters that might be at the post Taking the best horse in the command I started out expecting to make the trip in about four hours The next morning the command got an early start and traveled 30 miles to Selene River where they made their last camp on the plains As some of the party were attacking a herd of buffaloes I rode in from Fort Hayes and got into the middle of the herd and killed a buffalo or two before the hunters observed me I brought a large number of letters which proved welcome reading matter In the evening we gathered around the campfire for the last time The duty of naming the camp, which was called Camp Davies having been duly performed, we all united in making that night the pleasantest of all that we had spent together We had eloquent speeches, songs, and interesting antidotes I was called upon and entertained the gentleman with some lively Indian stories The excursionists reached Fort Hayes, distant 15 miles on the morning of October 2nd where we pitched our tents for the last time and named the camp in honor of Mr. Heckscher That same afternoon General Sheridan and his guests took the train for the east after bidding Major Brown, Lieutenant Hayes, and myself a hearty goodbye and expressing themselves as greatly pleased with their hunt and the manner in which they had been escorted and guided It will be proper and fit to state here that General Davies afterwards wrote an interesting account of this hunt and published it in a neat volume of 68 pages under the title of Ten Days on the Plains I would have inserted the volume bodily in this book were it not for the fact that the general has spoken in a rather too complementary manner of me However, I have taken the liberty in this chapter to condense from the little volume and in some places I have used the identical language of General Davies without quoting the same In fact, to do the general justice, I ought to close this chapter with several lines of quotation marks to be pretty generally distributed by the reader throughout my account of our Ten Days hunt Soon after the departure of General Sheridan's party we returned to Fort McPherson and found General Carr about to start out on a 20-day scout not so much for the purpose of finding Indians but more for the object of taking some friends on a hunt His guests were a couple of Englishmen whose names I cannot now remember and Mr. McCarthy of Syracuse, New York who was a relative of General Emery The command consisted of three companies of the Fifth Calvary one company of Pawnee Indians and 25 wagons Of course I was called on to accompany the expedition One day after we had been out from the post for some little time I was hunting on Deer Creek in company with Mr. McCarthy about eight miles from the command I had been wishing for several days to play a joke on him and had arranged a plan with Captain Lute North to carry it into execution I had informed North at about what time we would be on Deer Creek and it was agreed that he should appear in the vicinity with some of his Pawnees who were to throw blankets around them and come dashing down upon us firing and whooping in true Indian style while he was to either conceal or disguise himself This program was faithfully and completely carried out I had been talking about Indians to McCarthy and he had become considerably excited when just as we turned a bend of the creek we saw not half a mile from us about 20 Indians who instantly started for us on a gallop firing their guns and yelling at the top of their voices McCarthy shall we dismount and fight or run said I He didn't wait to reply but wheeling his horse started at full speed down the creek losing his hat and dropping his gun away he went never once looking back to see if he was being pursued I tried to stop him by yelling at him and saying that it was all right as the Indians were Pawnees unfortunately he did not hear me but kept straight on not stopping his horse until he reached the camp I knew that he would tell General Carr that the Indians had jumped him and that the general would soon start out with the troops so as soon as the Pawnees rode up to me I told them to remain there while I went after my friend I rode after him as fast as possible but he had arrived at the command some time before me and when I got there the general had as I had suspected he would do ordered out two companies of cavalry to go in pursuit of the Indians I told the general that the Indians were only some Pawnees who had been out hunting and that they had merely played a joke upon us I forgot to inform him that I had put up the trick but as he was always fond of a good joke himself he did not get very angry I had picked up McCarthy's hat and gun which I returned to him and it was some time afterwards before he discovered who was at the bottom of the affair when we returned to Fort McPherson we found there Mr. Royal Buck whose father had been killed with his entire party by Pawnee Killers Band of Indians on the Beaver Creek he had a letter from the commanding officer of the department requesting that he be furnished with an escort to go in search of the remains of his father in the party two companies of cavalry were sent with him and I accompanied them as guide as the old squaw which we had captured and of which mention is made in a previous chapter could not exactly tell us the place on Beaver Creek where the party had been killed we searched the country over for two days and discovered no signs of the murdered men at last however our efforts were rewarded with success we found pieces of their wagons and among other things an old letter or two which Mr. Buck recognized as his father's handwriting we then discovered some of the remains which we buried but nothing further it was now getting late in the fall and we accordingly returned to Fort McPherson a short time after this the fifth cavalry was ordered to Arizona a not very desirable country to soldier in I had become greatly attached to the officers of the regiment having been continually with them for over three years and had about made up my mind to accompany them when a letter was received from General Sheridan instructing the commanding officer not to take Cody with him and saying that I was to remain in my old position in a few days the command left for its destination taking the cars at McPherson station where I bade my old friends adieu during the next few weeks I had but little to do as the post was garrisoned by infantry awaiting the arrival of the third cavalry end of chapter 24 chapter 25 of the life of Honorable William F. Cody this LibriVox recording is in the public domain recording by Barry Eads the life of Honorable William F. Cody by William F. Cody chapter 25 hunting with a Grand Duke about the 1st of January 1872 General Forsythe and Dr. Ash of Sheridan staff came out to Fort McPherson to make preparations for a big buffalo hunt for the Grand Duke Alexis of Russia and as this was to be no ordinary affair these officers had been sent by General Sheridan to have all the necessary arrangements perfected by the time the Grand Duke should arrive they learned from me that there were plenty of buffalos in the vicinity and especially on the Red Willow 60 miles distant they said they would like to go over to the Red Willow and pick out a suitable place for the camp they also inquired the location of the Spotted Tail Sue Indians Spotted Tail had permission from the government to hunt the buffalo with his people during the winter in the Republican River country it was my opinion that they were located somewhere on the Frenchman's fork about 150 miles from Fort McPherson General Sheridan's commissioners informed me that he wished me to visit Spotted Tail's camp and induce about 100 of the leading warriors and chiefs to come to the point where it should be decided to locate the Alexis hunting camp and to be there by the time the Grand Duke should arrive so that he could see a body of American Indians and observe the manner in which they killed buffalos the Indians would also be called upon to give a grand war dance in honor of the distinguished visitor next morning General Forsythe and Dr. Ash accompanied by Captain Hayes who had been left at Fort McPherson in charge of the Fifth Calvary Horses taking an ambulance and a light wagon to carry their tents and provisions sufficient to last them two or three days started under my guidance with a small escort for Red Willow Creek arriving there at night the next day we selected a pleasant camping place on a little noel in the valley of the Red Willow General Forsythe and his party returned to the post the next day while I left for Spotted Tail's camp the weather was very cold and I found my journey by no means a pleasant one as I was obliged to camp out with only my saddle blankets and besides there was more or less danger from the Indians themselves for although Spotted Tail himself was friendly I was afraid I might have difficulty in getting into his camp I was liable at any moment to run into a party of his young men who might be out hunting and as I had many enemies among the Sioux I would be running considerable risk in meeting them at the end of the first day I camped on stinking water a tributary of the Frenchman's Fork where I built a little fire in the timber but it was so very cold I was not able to sleep much getting an early start in the morning I followed up the Frenchman's Fork and late in the afternoon I could see from the fresh horse tracks and from the dead buffaloes lying here and there recently killed that I was nearing Spotted Tail's camp I rode on for a few miles further and then hiding my horse in a low ravine I crawled up a high hill where I obtained a good view of the country I could see four or five miles up the creek and got sight of a village and of two or three hundred ponies in its vicinity I waited until night came and then I succeeded in riding into the Indian camp unobserved I had seen Spotted Tail's camp when he came from the north and I knew the kind of lodge he was living in as I entered the village I wrapped a blanket around my head so that the Indians could not tell whether I was a white or a red man in this way I rode around until I found Spotted Tail's lodge dismounting from my horse I opened his tent door and looked in and saw the old chief lying on some robes I spoke to him and he recognized me at once and invited me to enter inside the lodge I found a white man an old frontiersman Todd Randall who was Spotted Tail's agent and who had lived a great many years with the Indians he understood their language perfectly and did all the interpreting for Spotted Tail through him I readily communicated with the chief and informed him of my errand I told him that the warriors and chiefs would greatly please General Sheridan if they would meet him in about ten sleeves at the old government crossing of the Red Willow I further informed him that there was a great chief from across the water who was coming there to visit him Spotted Tail replied that he would be very glad to go that the next morning he would call his people together and select those who would accompany him I told Spotted Tail how I had entered his camp he replied that I had acted wisely that although his people were friendly yet some of his young men had a grudge against me and I might have had difficulty with them had I met them away from the village he directed his squad to get me something to eat and ordered that my horse be taken care of and upon his invitation I spent the remainder of the night in his lodge next morning the chiefs and warriors assembled according to orders and to them was stated the object of my visit they were asked do you know who this man is yes we know him well replied one that is Pahiaska that being my name among the Sioux which translated means long hair that is our old enemy a great many of the Indians who were with Spotted Tail at this time had been driven out of the Republican country that is he said Spotted Tail I want all my people to be kind to him and treat him as my friend I noticed that several of them were looking daggers at me they appeared as if they wished to raise my hair then and there Spotted Tail motioned and I followed him into his lodge and there upon the Indians dispersed having the assurance of Spotted Tail that none of the young men would follow me I started back for the Red Willow arriving the second night there I found Captain Egan with a company of the second cavalry and a wagon train loaded with tents grain provisions etc the men were leveling off the ground and were making preparations to put up large wall tents for the Grand Duke Alexis and his suite and for General Sheridan his staff and other officers and invited guests of the party proceeding to Fort McPherson I reported what had been done there upon quartermaster Hayes selected from the five or six hundred horses in his charge seventy five of the very best which were sent to the Red Willow to be used by Alexis and his party at the coming hunt in a day or two a large supply of provisions liquors etc arrived from Chicago together with bedding and furniture for the tents all of which were sent over to Camp Alexis at last on the morning of the 12th of January 1872 the Grand Duke and party arrived at North Platte by special train in charge of a Mr. Francis Thompson Captain Hayes and myself with five or six ambulances 15 or 20 extra saddle horses and a company of cavalry under Captain Egan were at the depot in time to receive them presently General Sheridan and a large fine-looking young man whom we at once concluded to be the Grand Duke came out of the cars and approached us General Sheridan at once introduced me to the Grand Duke as Buffalo Bill for he it was and said that I was to take charge of him and show him how to kill Buffalo in less than half an hour the whole party were dashing away towards the south across the South Platte and towards the medicine upon reaching which point we halted for a change of horses and a lunch resuming our ride we reached Camp Alexis in the afternoon General Sheridan was well pleased with the arrangements that had been made and was delighted to find the spotted tail and his Indians had arrived on time they were objects of great curiosity to the Grand Duke who spent considerable time in looking at them and watching their exhibitions of horsemanship sham fights etc that evening the Indians gave the Grand War Dance which I had arranged for General Custer who was one of the hunting party carried on a mild vertation with one of spotted tails daughters who had accompanied her father thither and it was noticed also that the Duke Alexis paid considerable attention to another handsome red-skinned maiden the night passed pleasantly and all retired with great expectations of having a most enjoyable and successful Buffalo hunt the Duke Alexis asked me a great many questions as to how we shot buffaloes and what kind of a gun or pistol we used and if he was going to have a good horse I told him that he was to have my celebrated Buffalo horse Buckskin Joe and when we went into a Buffalo herd all he would have to do was to sit on the horses back and fire away at nine o'clock next morning we were all in our saddles and in a few minutes were galloping over their prairies in search of a Buffalo herd we had not gone far before we observed a herd some distance ahead of us crossing our way after that we proceeded cautiously so as to keep out of sight until we were ready to make a charge of course the main thing was to give Alexis the first chance and the best shot at the Buffaloes and when all was in readiness we dashed over a little knoll that had hidden us from view and in a few minutes we were among them Alexis at first preferred to use his pistol instead of a gun he fired six shots from this weapon at Buffaloes only 20 feet away from him but as he shot wildly not one of his bullets took effect writing up to his side and seeing that his weapon was empty I exchanged pistols with him he again fired six shots without dropping a Buffalo seeing that the animals were bound to make their escape without his killing one of them unless he had a better weapon I rode up to him gave him my old reliable Lucretia and told him to urge his horse close to the Buffaloes and I would then give him the word when to shoot at the same time I gave old buckskin Joe a blow with my whip and with a few jumps the horse carried the Grand Duke to within about 10 feet of a big Buffalo ball now is your time said I he fired and down went the Buffalo the Grand Duke stopped his horse dropped his gun on the ground and commenced waving his hat when his sweet came galloping up he began talking to them in a tongue which I could not understand presently general Sheridan joined the group and the ambulances were brought up very soon the corks began to fly from the champagne bottles in honor of the Grand Duke Alexis who had killed the first Buffalo it was reported in a great many of the newspapers that I shot the first Buffalo for Alexis while in some it was stated that I held the Buffalo while his Royal Highness killed it but the way I have related the affair is the correct version it was thought that we had had about sport enough for one day and accordingly I was directed by general Sheridan to guide the party back to camp and we were soon on our way thither several of the party however concluded to have a little hunt on their own account and presently we saw them galloping over the prairie in different directions in pursuit of Buffalo's while we were crossing a deep ravine on our way to camp we ran into a small band of Buffalo's that had been frightened by some of the hunters as they rushed past us not more than 30 yards distant Alexis raised his pistol fired and killed a Buffalo cow it was either an extraordinarily good shot or a scratch probably the latter for it surprised the Grand Duke as well as everybody else we gave him three cheers and when the ambulance came up we took a pull at the champagne in honor of the Grand Duke's success I was in hopes that he would kill five or six more Buffalo's before we reached camp especially if a basket of champagne was to be opened every time he dropped one general Sheridan directed me to take care of the hides and heads of the Buffalo's which Alexis had killed as the Duke wished to keep them as souvenirs of the hunt I also cut out the choice meet from the cow and brought it into camp and that night at supper Alexis had the pleasure of dining on broiled Buffalo steak obtained from the animal which he had shot himself we remained at this camp two or three days during which we hunted most of the time the Grand Duke himself killing eight Buffalo's one day Alexis desired to see how the Indians hunted Buffalo's and killed them with bow and arrow so spotted tail selecting some of his best hunters had them surround a herd and bring the animals down not only with arrows but with lances the Grand Duke was told to follow upon the heels of one celebrated Indian Hunter whose name was two lands and watch him bring down the game for this chief had the reputation of being able to send an arrow through and through the body of a Buffalo upon this occasion he did not belie his reputation for he sent an arrow through a Buffalo which fell dead at the shot and the arrow was given to Alexis as a souvenir of his hunt on the American plains when the Grand Duke was satisfied with the sport orders were given for the return to the railroad the conveyance provided for the Grand Duke and General Sheridan was a heavy double seated open carriage or rather an Irish dog cart and it was drawn by four spirited cavalry horses which were not much used to the harness the driver was Bill Reed an old overland stage driver and wagon master on our way in the Grand Duke frequently expressed his admiration of the skillful manner in which Reed handled the reins. General Sheridan informed the Duke that I had also been a stage driver in the Rocky Mountains and there upon his Royal Highness expressed a desire to see me drive I was in advance at the time and General Sheridan sang out to me Cody get in here and show the Duke how you can drive Mr. Reed will exchange places with you and ride your horse all right General said I and in a few moments I had the reins and we were rattling away over the prairie when we were approaching Medicine Creek General Sheridan said shake them up a little Bill and give us some old time stage driving I gave the horses a crack or two of the whip and they started off at a very rapid gate they had a light load to pull and kept increasing their speed at every jump and I found it difficult to hold them they fairly flew over the ground and at last we reached a steep hill or divide which led down into the valley of the medicine there was no break on the wagon and the horses were not much on the hold back I saw that it would be impossible to stop them all I could do was to keep them straight in the track and let them go it down the hill for three miles which distance I believe was made in about six minutes every once in a while the hind wheels would strike a rut and take a bound and not touch the ground again for 15 or 20 feet the Duke and the General were kept rather busy in holding their positions on the seats and when they saw that I was keeping the horses straight in the road they seemed to enjoy the dash which we were making I was unable to stop the team until they ran into the camp where we were to obtain a fresh relay and there I succeeded in checking them the Grand Duke said he didn't want any more of that kind of driving as he preferred to go a little slower on arriving at the railroad the Duke invited me into his car and made me some valuable presents at the same time giving me a cordial invitation to visit him if ever I should come to his country General Sheridan took the occasion to remind me of an invitation to visit New York which I had received from some of the gentlemen who accompanied the General on the hunt from Fort McPherson to Hayes City in September of the previous year said he you will never have a better opportunity to accept that invitation than now I have had a talk with General Ord concerning you and he will give you a leave of absence whenever you are ready to start write a letter to General Stager of Chicago that you are now prepared to accept the invitation and he will send you a pass thanking the General for his kindness I then bade him and the Grand Duke goodbye and soon their train was out of sight end of chapter 25 chapter 26 of the life of Honorable William F. Cody this LibriVox recording is in the public domain recording by Barry Eads the life of Honorable William F. Cody by William F. Cody chapter 26 sight scene General Ord commanding the Department of the Platt at the time and who had been out on the Alexis Hunt had some business to attend to at Fort McPherson and I accepted his invitation to write over to the post with him in an ambulance on the way thither he asked me how I would like to have an officer's commission in the regular army he said that General Sheridan and himself had had some conversation about the matter and if I wanted a commission one could easily be procured for me I thank General Ord for his kindness and said that although an officer's commission in the regular army was a tempting prize yet I preferred to remain in the position I was then holding he concluded by stating that if at any time I should wish a commission all I would have to do to secure it would be to inform him of my desire having determined to visit New York I acted upon General Sheridan's suggestion and wrote to General Stager from whom in a few days I received my railroad passes obtaining 30 days leave of absence from the department I struck out for the east on arriving in Chicago in February 1872 I was met at the depot by Colonel M. V. Sheridan who said that his brother the general had not yet returned but had sent word that I was to be his and the Colonel's guest at their house while I remained in Chicago I spent two or three days very pleasantly in the great city of the west meeting several of the gentlemen who had been out on the Sheridan hunt in September General Stager Colonel Wilson editor of the journal Mr. Sam Johnson General Rucker and others by all of whom I was most cordially received and well entertained I was introduced to quite a number of the best people of the city and was invited to several swell dinners I also accompanied General Sheridan who meantime had returned to the city to a ball at Riverside an aristocratic suburb on this occasion I became so embarrassed that it was more difficult for me to face the throng of beautiful ladies than it would have been to confront a hundred hostile Indians this was my first trip to the east and I had not yet become accustomed to being stared at and besides this the hundreds of questions which I was called upon to answer further embarrassed and perplexed me according to the route laid out for me by General Stager I was to stop at Niagara Falls Buffalo and Rochester on my way to New York and he provided me with all the necessary railroad passes just as I was about to leave Chicago I met Professor Henry A. Ward of Rochester for whom during the previous year or two I had collected a large number of specimens of wild animals he was on his way to Rochester and kindly volunteered to act as my guide until we reached that point we spent one day in viewing the wonders of Niagara and I stopped one day at Rochester and was shown the beauties of that handsome city by Professor Ward and I had the honor of receiving an invitation to dine with the mayor on arriving at New York I was met at the depot by Mr. J. G. Hecksher who had been appointed as a committee of one to escort me to the Union Club where James Gordon Bennett Leonard W. Jerome and others were to give me an informal reception and where I was to make my headquarters during my visit in the Great Metropolis I had an elegant dinner at the club rooms with the gentleman who had been out on the September hunt and other members of the club after dinner in the company of Mr. Hecksher who acted as my guide I started out on the trail of my friend Ned Buntline who we found at the Brevard Place Hotel he was delighted to see me and insisted on my becoming his guest he would listen to no excuses and on introducing me to Messers Overton and Blair proprietors of the Brevard they also gave me a pressing invitation to make my home at their house I finally compromised the matter by agreeing to divide my time between the Union Club the Brevard House and Ned Buntline's quarters the next few days I spent in viewing the sights of New York everything being new and startling convincing me that as yet I had seen but a small portion of the world I received numerous dinner invitations as well as invitations to visit different places of amusement and interest but as they came in so thick and fast I soon became badly demoralized and confused I found I had accepted invitations to dine at half a dozen or more houses on the same day and at the same hour James Gordon Bennett had prepared a dinner for me at which quite a large number of his friends were to be present but owing to my confusion arising from the many other invitations I had received I forgot all about it and dined elsewhere this was a bad break but I did not learn of my mistake until next day when at the Union Club House several gentlemen among them Laurence Jerome inquired where in the world I had been and why I had not put in an appearance at Bennett's dinner they said that Bennett had taken great pains to give me a splendid reception that the party had waited till nine o'clock for me and that my non-arrival caused considerable disappointment I apologized as well as I could by saying that I had been out on a scout and had got lost and had forgotten all about the dinner and expressed my regret for the disappointment I had created by my forgetfulness August Belmont the banker being near said never mind gentlemen I'll give Cody a dinner at my house thank you sir said I I see you are determined that I shall not run short of rations while I am in the city I'll be there sure both Mr. Jerome and Mr. Hector told me that I must not disappoint Mr. Belmont for his dinners were splendid affairs I made a note of the date and at the appointed time I was promptly at Mr. Belmont's mansion where I spent a very enjoyable evening Mr. Bennett who was among the guests having forgiven my carelessness invited me to accompany him to the leader crayons masked ball which was to take place in a few evenings and would be a grand spectacle together we attended the ball and during the evening I was well entertained the dancers kept on their masks until midnight and the merry and motley throng presented a brilliant scene moving gracefully beneath the bright gas light to the inspiriting music to me it was a novel and entertaining site and in many respects reminded me greatly of an Indian war dance acting upon the suggestion of Mr. Bennett I had dressed myself in my buckskin suit and I naturally attracted considerable attention especially when I took part in the dancing and exhibited some of my backwood steps which although not as graceful as some were a great deal more emphatic but when I undertook to do artistic dancing I found I was decidedly out of place in that crowd and I accordingly withdrew from the floor I occasionally passed an evening at Nibblow's garden viewing the many beauties of the Black Crook which was then having its long run under the management of Jarrett and Palmer who was acquaintance I had made and who extended to me the freedom of the theater Ned Butler and friend Mater had dramatized one of the stories which the former had written about me for the New York weekly the drama was called Buffalo Bill the King of Bordermen while I was in New York it was produced at the Bowery Theater J.B. Studley an excellent actor appearing in the character of Buffalo Bill and Mrs. W.G. Jones a fine actress taking the part of my sister a leading role I was curious to see how I would look when represented by someone else and of course I was present on the opening night a private box having been reserved for me the theater was packed every seat being occupied as well as the standing room the drama was played smoothly and created a great deal of enthusiasm the audience upon learning that the real Buffalo Bill was present gave several cheers between the acts and I was called on to come out on the stage and make a speech Mr. Freelay the manager insisted that I should comply with the request and that I should be introduced to Mr. Studley I finally consented in the next moment I found myself standing behind the footlights and in front of an audience for the first time in my life I looked up then down then on each side and everywhere I saw a sea of human faces and thousands of eyes all staring at me I confess that I felt very much embarrassed never more so in my life and I knew not what to say I made a desperate effort and a few words escaped me but what they were I could not for the life of me tell nor could anyone else in the house my utterances were inaudible even to the leader of the orchestra Mr. Dean who was sitting only a few feet in front of me bowing to the audience I beat a hasty retreat into one of the cannons of the stage I never felt more relieved in my life than when I got out of the view of that immense crowd that evening Mr. Freelay offered to give me five hundred dollars a week to play the part of Buffalo Bill myself I thought that he was certainly joking especially as he had witnessed my awkward performance but when he assured me that he was in earnest I told him that it would be useless for me to attempt anything of the kind for I never could talk to a crowd of people like that even if it was to save my neck and that he might as well try to make an actor out of a government mule I thanked him for the generous offer which I had to decline owing to a lack of confidence in myself or as some people might express it I didn't have the requisite cheek to undertake a thing of that sort the play of Buffalo Bill had a very successful run of six or eight weeks and was afterwards produced in all the principal cities of the country everywhere being received with genuine enthusiasm I had been in New York about 20 days when General Sheridan arrived in the city I met him soon after he got into town in answer to a question how I was enjoying myself I replied that I had struck the best camp I had ever seen and if he didn't have any objections I would like to have my leave of absence extended about 10 days this he willingly did and then inform me that my services would soon be required at Fort McPherson as there was to be an expedition sent out from that point at Westchester Pennsylvania I had some relatives living whom I had never seen and now being so near I determined to make them a visit upon mentioning the matter to Buntline he suggested that we should together take a trip to Philadelphia and thence run out to Westchester accordingly the next day found us in the city of brotherly love and in a few hours we arrived at the home of my uncle General Henry R. Gus the proprietor of the Green Tree Hotel who gave us a cordial reception inviting us into the parlor my uncle brought in the members of his family among them an elderly lady who was my grandmother as he informed me he told me that my aunt Eliza his first wife was dead and that he had married a second time Lizzie Gus my cousin I thought was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen they were all very anxious to have us remain several days but as I had some business to attend to in New York I was obliged to return that day assuring them however that I would visit them again soon I bid them adieu and with Buntline took the train for New York the time soon arrived for my departure for the West so packing up my traps I started for home and on the way thither I spent a day with my Westchester relatives who did everything in their power to entertain me during my brief stay with them end of chapter 26 chapter 27 of the life of honorable William F. Cody this LibriVox recording is in the public domain recording by Barry Eads the life of honorable William F. Cody by William F. Cody chapter 27 honors upon reaching Fort McPherson I found that the third cavalry commanded by General Reynolds had arrived from Arizona in which territory they had been on duty for some time and where they had acquired quite a reputation on account of their Indian fighting qualities shortly after my return a small party of Indians made a dash on McPherson station about five miles from the Fort killing two or three men and running off quite a large number of horses Captain Minehold and Lieutenant Lawson with their company were ordered out to pursue and punish the Indians if possible I was the guide of the expedition and had an assistant TV Omohandro better known as Texas Jack and who was a scout at the post finding the trail I followed it for two days although it was difficult trailing because the Redskins had taken every possible precaution to conceal their tracks on the second day Captain Minehold went into camp on the south fork of the Lupe at a point where the trail was badly scattered six men were detailed to accompany me on a scout in search of the camp of the fugitives we had gone but a short distance when we discovered Indians camped not more than a mile away with horses grazing nearby they were only a small party and I determined to charge upon them with my six men rather than return to the command because I feared they would see us as we went back and then they would get away from us entirely I asked the men if they were willing to attempt it and they replied that they would follow me wherever I would lead them that was the kind of spirit that pleased me and we immediately moved forward on the enemy getting as close to them as possible without being seen I finally gave the signal to charge and we dashed into the little camp with a yell five Indians sprang out of a willow teepee and greeted us with a volley and we returned to fire I was riding Buckskin Joe who with a few jumps brought me up to the teepee followed by my men we nearly ran over the Indians who were endeavoring to reach their horses on the opposite side of the creek just as one was jumping the narrow stream a bullet from my old Lucretia overtook him he never reached the other bank but dropped dead in the water those of the Indians who were guarding the horses seeing what was going on at the camp came rushing to the rescue of their friends I now counted 13 braves but as we had already disposed of two we had only 11 to take care of the odds were nearly two to one against us while the Indian reinforcements were approaching the camp I jumped the creek with Buckskin Joe to meet them expecting our party would follow me but as they could not induce their horses to make the leap I was the only one who got over I ordered the sergeant to dismount his men and leaving one to hold the horses to come over with the rest and help me drive the Indians off before they could do this two mounted warriors closed in on me and were shooting at short range I returned their fire and had the satisfaction of seeing one of them fall from his horse at this moment I felt blood trickling down my forehead and hastily running my hand through my hair I discovered that I had received a scalp wound the Indian who had shot me was not more than ten yards away and when he saw his partner tumble from his saddle he turned to run by this time the soldiers had crossed the creek to assist me and were blazing away at the other Indians urging Buckskin Joe forward I was soon alongside of the chap who had wounded me when raising myself in the stirrups I shot him through the head the reports of our guns had been heard by captain minehold who at once started with his company up the creek to our aid and when the remaining Indians whom we were still fighting saw these reinforcements coming they whirled their horses and fled as their steeds were quite fresh they made their escape however we killed six out of the thirteen Indians and captured most of their stolen stock our loss was one man killed and one man myself slightly wounded one of our horses was killed and Buckskin Joe was wounded but I didn't discover the fact until some time afterwards as he had been shot in the breast and showed no signs of having received a scratch of any kind securing the scalps of the dead Indians and other trophies we returned to the fort I made several other scouts during the summer with different officers of the third Calvary one being with Major Alec Moore a good officer with whom I was out for thirty days another long one was with Major Curtis with whom I followed some Indians from the South Platte River to Fort Randall on the Missouri River in Dakota on which trip the command ran out of rations and for fifteen days subsisted entirely upon the game we killed in the fall of eighteen seventy two the Earl of Dunraven and Dr. Kingsley with several friends came to Fort McPherson with a letter from General Sheridan asking me to accompany them on an elk hunt I did so and I afterward spent several weeks in hunting with the Earl of Dunraven who was a thorough sportsman and an excellent hunter it was while I was out with the Earl that a Chicago party friends of General Sheridan arrived at Fort McPherson for the purpose of going out on a hunt they too had a letter from the general requesting me to go with them the Earl had not yet finished his hunt but as I had been out with him for several weeks and he had by this time learned where to find plenty of Elks and other game I concluded to leave him and accompany the Chicago party I informed him of my intention and gave him my reasons for going at the same time telling him that I would send him one of my scouts Texas Jack who was a good hunter and would be glad to accompany him the Earl seemed to be somewhat offended at this and I don't think he has ever forgiven me for going back on him let that be as it may he found Texas Jack a splendid hunter and guide and Jack has been his guide on several hunts since among the gentlemen who composed the Chicago party were E.P. Green son-in-law of Remington the rifle manufacturer Alexander Sample Mr. Milligan of the firm of Heath and Milligan of Chicago and several others whose names I do not not remember Mr. Milligan was a man full of life and was continually boiling over with fun he was a regular velocities so to speak and was here there and everywhere he was exceedingly desirous of having an Indian fight on the trip not that he was naturally a bloodthirsty man but just for variety he wanted a little Indian pie he was in every respect the life of the party during the entire time that we were out one day while he was hunting with Sample and myself we came in sight of a band of 30 mounted Indians Milligan here's what you've been wanting for some time said I for Yonder is a war party of Indians and no mistake and they'll come for us you bet I don't believe this is one of my fighting days replied Milligan and it occurs to me that I have urgent business at the camp our camp was five or six miles distant on the Dismal river and our escort consisted of a company of Calvary commanded by Captain Russell the soldiers were in camp and Milligan thought that Captain Russell ought to be at once notified of the appearance of these Indians knowing that we could reach camp in safety for we were well mounted I continued to have considerable amusement at Milligan's expense who finally said Cody what's making my hat raise up so I can hardly keep it on my head Sample who was as cool as a cucumber said to Milligan there must be something wrong with your hair it must be trying to get on end it's all very fine for you fellows to stand here and talk replied Milligan but I am not doing justice to my family by remaining Sample I think we are a couple of old fools to have come out here and I never would have done so if it had not been for you by this time the Indians had discovered us and were holding a consultation and Milligan turned his horse in the direction of the camp I never believed that he was half as scared as he seemed to be but that he was merely pretending so that we could enjoy our joke however we did not wait any longer but rode into camp and notified Captain Russell who immediately started with his company to pursue the band while we were riding along with the company Milligan said to Sample now Alec let them come on we may yet go back to Chicago covered with glory we struck the trail going north but as we had not come out on a scout for Indians we concluded not to follow them although Milligan was now very anxious to proceed and clean them out the hunt came to an end in a day or two and we escorted the visiting hunters to North Platt where they took the train for Chicago before their departure they extended to me a very cordial invitation to come to their city on a visit promising that I should be well taken care of soon after this I had the pleasure of guiding a party of gentlemen from Omaha on a buffalo hunt among the number were Judge Dundee Colonel Watson B Smith and US District Attorney Neville we left Fort McPherson in good trim I was greatly amused at the style of Mr. Neville who wore a stove pipe hat and a swallowtail coat which made up a very comical rig for a buffalo hunter as we galloped over the prairie he jammed his hat down over his ears to keep it from being shaken off his head and in order to stick to his horse he clung to the pommel of his saddle he was not much of a rider and he went bouncing up and down with his swallow tails flopping in the air the sight I shall never forget for it was enough to make a horse laugh and I actually believe old buckskin Joe did laugh however we had a splendid hunt and on the second day I larry added or roped a big buffalo bull and tied him to a tree a feat which I had often performed and which the gentleman requested me to do on this occasion for their benefit as they had heard of my skill with the lariat I captured several other buffalos in the same way the gentleman returned to Omaha well pleased with their hunt in the fall of the year 1872 a convention was held at Grand Island when some of my friends made me their candidate to represent the 26th district in the legislature of Nebraska but as I had always been a Democrat and the state was largely Republican I had no idea of being elected in fact I cared very little about it and therefore made no effort whatever to secure an election however I was elected and that is the way in which I acquired my title of honorable end of chapter 27 chapter 28 of the life of Honorable William F. Cody this Lieber vox recording is in the public domain recording by Barry Eads the life of Honorable William F. Cody by William F. Cody chapter 28 an actor during the summer and fall of 1872 I received numerous letters from Ned Butler urging me to come east and go upon the stage to represent my own character there's money in it he wrote and you will prove a big card as your character is a novelty on the stage at times I almost determined to make the venture but the recollection of that night when I stood on the stage of the Bowery Theater and was unable to utter a word above a whisper would cause me to stop and think and become irresolute I feared that I would be a total failure and wrote a font line to that effect but he insisted that I would soon get over all that embarrassment and become accustomed to the stage so that I would think no more of appearing before five thousand people than I would before half a dozen he proposed to organize a good company and wish me to meet him in Chicago where the opening performance would be given I remained undecided as to what I ought to do the officers at the fort as well as my family and friends to whom I mentioned the matter laughed at the idea of my ever becoming an actor that I an old scout who had never seen more than 20 or 30 theatrical performances in my life should think of going upon the stage was ridiculous in the extreme so they all said a few days after my election to the legislature a happy event occurred in my family circle in the birth of a daughter whom we named aura about the same time I received another letter from Buntline in which he requested me to appear on the stage for a few months as an experiment and he said that if I made a failure or did not like the business I could easily return to my old life my two sisters who had been living with us had married nearly to a c jester a cattle man and may to ed bradford a railroad engineer and consequently left us and my wife had been wishing for a long time to visit her parents in st louis taking these and other things into consideration I finally resolved to resign my seat in the legislature and try my luck behind the footlights I informed general reynolds of my determination telling him at the same time that at the end of the month november I would resign my position under him the general regretted to hear this and advised me not to take the step for I was leaving a comfortable little home where I was sure of making a good living for my family while on the other hand I was embarking on a sea of uncertainty having once made up my mind however nothing could change it while I was selling my horses and other effects preparatory to leaving the fort one of my brother scouts texas jack said that he would like to accompany me now as jack had also appeared as the hero in one of ned buntline stories I thought that he would make as good a star as myself and it was accordingly arranged that jack should go with me on our way east we stopped in Omaha a day or two to visit general auger and other officers and also the gentlemen who were out on the judge dundee hunt judge dundee and his friends gave a dinner party in my honor at the leading restaurant and entertained me very handsomely during my stay in the city at Omaha I parted with my family who went to st louis while jack and myself proceeded to chicago ned buntline and mr milligan having been appraised of our coming by a telegram met us at the depot mr milligan accompanied us to the Sherman house where he had made arrangements for us to be his guests while we remained in the city I didn't see much of buntline that evening as he hurried off to deliver a temperance lecture in one of the public halls the next day we met him by appointment and the first thing he said was boys are you ready for business I can't answer that replied I for we don't know what we are going to do it's all arranged that he and you'll have no trouble whatever come with me we'll go and see nixon manager of the amphitheater that's the place where we are to play we'll open there next monday night jack and myself accordingly accompanied him to manager nixon's office without saying a word as we didn't know what to say here we are mr nixon said buntline here are the stars for you here are the boys and they are a fine pair to draw to now nixon I am prepared for business nixon and buntline had evidently had a talk about the terms of our engagement buntline it seems was to furnish the company the drama and the pictorial printing and was to receive sixty percent of the gross receipts for his share while nixon was to furnish the theater the attaches the orchestra and the local printing and receive forty percent of the gross receipts I am ready for you buntline have you got your company yet ask nixon no sir but there are plenty of idle theatrical people in town and I can raise a company in two hours was his reply you haven't much time to spare if you open on monday night sent nixon if you will allow me to look at your drama to see what kind of people you want I'll assist you in organizing your company I have not yet written a drama said buntline what the deuce do you mean this is wednesday and you propose to open on next monday night the idea is ridiculous here you are at this late hour without a company and without a drama this will never do buntline I shall have to break my contract with you for you can't possibly write a drama cast it and rehearse it properly for monday night furthermore you have no pictorial printing as yet these two gentlemen whom you have with you have never been on the stage and they certainly must have time to study their parts it is preposterous to think of opening on monday night and I'll cancel the engagement this little speech was delivered in rather an excited manner by mr nixon buntline said that he would write the drama that day and also select his company and have them at the theater for rehearsal next morning nixon laughed at him and said that there was no use of trying to undertake anything of the kind in so short a time it was utterly impossible to do it buntline whose ire was rising said to nixon what rent will you ask for your theater for next week six hundred dollars was the reply well sir I'll take your theater for next week at that price and here is half of the amount in advance said buntline as he threw down three hundred dollars on the stand nixon took the money gave a receipt for it and had nothing more to say now come with me boys said buntline and away we went to the hotel buntline immediately obtained a supply of pens ink and paper and then engaged all the hotel clerks as penman in less than an hour after he had rented the theater he was dashing off page after page of his proposed drama the work being done in his room at the hotel he then set his clerks at copying for him and at the end of four hours he jumped up from the table and enthusiastically shouted hooray for the scouts of the planes that's the name of the play the work is done hurrah the parts were then all copied off separately by the clerks and handing us our respective portions buntline said now boys go to work and do your level best to have this dead letter perfect for the rehearsal which takes place tomorrow morning at ten o'clock prompt I want to show nixon that we'll be ready on time I looked at my part and then a jack and jack looked at his part and then at me then we looked at each other and then a buntline we did not know what to make of the man how long will it take you to commit your part to memory bill asked jack about six months as near as I can calculate how long will it take you answered I it will take me about that length of time to learn the first line said jack nevertheless we went to our room and commenced studying I thought it was the hardest work I had ever done this is dry business finally remarked jack that's just what it is answered I tricked the bell jack the bell boy soon appeared we ordered refreshments after partaking thereof we resumed our task we studied hard for an hour or two but finally gave it up as a bad job although we had succeeded in committing a small portion to memory buntline now came into the room and said boys how are you getting along I guess we'll have to go back on this studying business as it isn't our forte said I don't we can now bill you'll come out on the top of the heap yet let me hear you recite your parts at buntline I began spouting what I had learned but was interrupted by buntline tut tut you're not saying it right you must stop at the queue queue what the mischief do you mean by the queue I never saw any queue except in a billiard room said I buntline thereupon explained it to me as well as to jack who is ignorant as myself concerning the queue business jack I think we had better back out and go to hunt again said I see here boys it won't do to go back on me at this stage of the game stick to it and it may be the turning point in your lives and lead you on to fortune and to fame a fortune is what we are after and will at least give the wheel a turn or two and see what luck we have said I this satisfied buntline but we didn't study anymore after he left us the next morning we appeared at rehearsal and were introduced to the company the first rehearsal was hardly a success the succeeding ones were not much better the stage manager did his best to teach jack and myself what to do but when monday night came we didn't know much more about it than when we began the clock struck seven and then we put on our buckskin suits which were the costumes we were to appear in the theater was being rapidly filled and it was evident that we were going to make our debut before packed house as the minutes passed by jack and I became more and more nervous we occasionally looked through the holes in the curtain and saw that the people were continuing to crowd into the theater our nervousness increased to an uncomfortable degree when at length the curtain arose our courage had returned so that we thought we could face the immense crowd yet when the time came for us to go on we were rather slow in making our appearance as we stepped forth we were received with a storm of applause which we acknowledged with a bow buntline who was taking the part of kale derg appeared and gave me the cue to speak my little piece but for the life of me I could not remember a single word but line saw I was stuck and a happy thought occurred to him he said as if it were in the play wherever you been bill what has kept you so long just then my eye happened to fall on mr milligan who was surrounded by his friends the newspaper reporters and several military officers all of whom had heard of his hunt and indian fight he being a very popular man and widely known in chicago so I said I have been out on a hunt with milligan this proved to be a big hit the audience cheered and applauded which gave me greater confidence in my ability to get through the performance all right fontline who is a very versatile man saw that it would be a good plan to follow this up and he said well bill tell us all about the hunt I thereupon proceeded to relate in detail the particulars of the affair I succeeded in making it rather funny and I was frequently interrupted by rounds of applause whenever I began to weaken fontline would give me a fresh start by asking some question in this way I took up 15 minutes without once speaking a word of my part nor did I speak a word of it during the whole evening the prompter who was standing between the wings attempted to prompt me but it did no good for while I was on the stage I chipped in anything I thought of the scouts of the planes was an indian drama of course and there were between 40 and 50 supers dressed as indians in the fight with them jack and I were at home we blazed away at each other with blank cartridges and when the scene ended in a hand-to-hand encounter a general knock down and drag out the way jack and I killed indians was a caution we would kill them all off in one act but they would come up again ready for business in the next finally the curtain dropped the play was ended and I congratulated jack and myself on having made such a brilliant and successful debut there was no backing out after that the next morning there appeared in the chicago papers some very funny criticisms of our first performance the papers gave us a better send-off than I expected for they did not criticize us as actors the chicago times said that if buntline had actually spent four hours in writing that play it was difficult for anyone to see what he had been doing all the time buntline as cal durg was killed in the second act after a long temperance speech and the inter-ocean said that it was to be regretted that he had not been killed in the first act the company however was very good and minimum zeal morlachi as paled of particularly fine while miss carfano spouted a poem of some 703 verses more or less of which the reader will be glad to know that I can only recall the words I was born in March our engagement proved a decided success financially if not artistically nixon was greatly surprised at the result and at the end of the week he induced buntline to take him in as a partner in the company the next week we played at the bar's opera house in st lewis doing an immense business the following week we were at Cincinnati where the theater was so crowded every night that hundreds were unable to obtain admission we met with equal success all over the country theatrical managers upon hearing of this new and novel combination which was drawing such tremendous houses were all anxious to secure us and we received offers of engagements at all the leading theaters we played one week at the boston theater and the grocery seats amounted to sixteen thousand two hundred dollars we also appeared at nibblers garden new york the theater being crowded to its utmost capacity every night of the engagement at the arch street theater philadelphia it was the same way there was not a single city where we did not have crowded houses we closed our tour on the sixteenth of june 1873 at port jervis new york and when i counted up my share of the profits i found that i was only about six thousand dollars ahead i was somewhat disappointed for judging from our large business i certainly had expected a greater sum texas jack and myself longed for a hunt on the western prairies once more and on meeting in new york a party of gentlemen who were desirous of going with us we all started westward and after a pleasant trip arrived at fort mcpherson end of chapter 28