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Show GENERAL. I II F. It L A I K II 1 1. IS Description ol tlie Supposed On Id f-H-ld I'll " Muuuluiu Chicago, -. Tiiu fullowing letter will im published to-morrow: hi. 'arm art era Military Division of the Missouri, Chicago, March 25, 187.3. Ti Ut.'U. W. T. riherman, Headquarters Head-quarters ol the Army, ril. Louis, Missouri. General: In reply to your question, ."Wriat do you know ol the Black Hills?" I respectfully submit tho following fol-lowing remarks: My first knowledge ot the lilack Hills was derived from : interviews with the late Father De ! Si net, the noted Catholic miwicuary, whom I met many years ago on the ! Columbia river in Oregon, from whom heard the Indian romanco of a mountain of gold in the Black Hills, and his explanation of that extraordinary extraor-dinary delusive story of Indians, frontiersmen and explorers. Tbo Black Hills country is much more extensive than that particular locality broiii-hl to tlio nolico of tho public. by the recent explorations of Gen. Custer. It gels its naine from the black, scrubby character of the timber tim-ber which grows on the sides -and tops of the mountains and hills. It comprises tho whole country bounded on the east by longitude 102, on the south by Sweetwater and Laramie j rivers, on the west by Big Horn and Wind rivers, and on tho north by the Yellowstone river. This is really the country of the Black Hills, but embraced in it Hre several localities calkd Black Hills, for iutance: Lilack Hills of Laramie, Black Hills of l'owder river, and Black Hills ot Cheveune river, tne latter being the locality in which Gen. Custer made the rcconiioisiince last summer, and about which there is so much speculation specu-lation now, and within tbo bounds of which it is supposed by a lare number num-ber of people is to be found the Father I De Smet's mountain of gold. De iSmet's story was that while living with the Sioux he was shown by them 1 nuggets Of guld, whicQ they informed 1 him were obtained at different points in the . Black Hills, supposed to be from the beds of Bit; Horn, Rosebud and Powderrivers and from the branches of Tongue river, and on representing that such yellow metal was of the greatest value, they told him they knew where there was a mountain of it. Subsequent investigation, inves-tigation, however, proved the Indian mountain ot gold was nothing more than a formation or yeliow mica, such as may be found in a number of places in the above described country. I had scarcely given the atory a thought alter this until about three vears ago, when I happened to be in "New York, and it was there brought to my recollection by a prominent gentleman who asked me were iv.i'ner De Smet was to bo found, and iu-isted that some one should be sent at once to get from him the secret of the gold mountain, which would pay the national debt, etc. After I had informed him that it was an old and exploded story, his ardor cooled aud the excitemont about the mountain of gold again subsided. It so happened, hap-pened, howover, that the Black Hills country was embraced in my military command, and two years ago it became be-came apparent to me that a military post in tlio Black Hills of Cheyenne would soon become necessary for the proper protection of the settlements in Nebraska Irom the raids of Sioux warriors, who always before they commenced com-menced their depredations on the frontier secured a safe place for their families and u village in the locality mentioned. Believing these Indians would never make war on our settlement? settle-ment? so long a we could threaten their families aud villages in this remote locality abounding in game and all that goes to make Indian In-dian life comfortable, and with this purely military object in view an order was given for the Custer recon- noisancc, and the .discovery of particles par-ticles of gold by alluvial washing near Harney's Peak, on the eastern slope of the Black Hills of the Cheyenne, Chey-enne, followed and brought to the aunacu mu lainei uuiev nwiy iui the third time. The Black Hills oi the Cheyenne, described by General Custer; are situated between the north and south forks of that river, one oi which is known as theBelle Fourche, the oilier the south fork, and although I have the utmost confidence in the statement of General Custer and General Forsyth of my stall, that gold was found near Harney's Peak, 1 may sately say there has not been j any fair lest yet made to determine its existence in largo quantities. There is not a territory in the west where gold does not exist, but in many of them the quantity is limited to the color, which is as much as has yet been obtained near Harney's Peak. The geological specimens brought back by Custer's expedition arc not favorable indications of the existence of goid m any great quantity, quan-tity, still it may be there, but as the treaty of ISOLt duly ratified, virtually deals this portion of the Black Hills to the Sioux Indians, there is no alternative bat' to keep out tresspassers. tress-passers. But to go back to the Father De Smet information. There is not much doubt ol" there being large quantities of gold in the Black Hills, , but much further west than the Black Hills of Cheyenne, I have seen nuggets nug-gets from the Big Horn and Tongue rivers and many specimens from near ; Fort Stambaugh, in tho upper ft'ind river country, where mininj; has failed Irom want of water for alluvial i washing, aud from hostilities of in-;diaus, in-;diaus, and I have goal reason to be hove, in fact it is quite certain, that 'gold exists in U creek mountains.in iumci i iiiu intj uuu m iiiu neau-quarters neau-quarters of I'owdtr river and Kcsebud, al 1 these localities being under the general meaning in the Black Hills, and outside of the Sher man, Augur and Perry treaty ofb9, except so far as to the privilege to hunt game. It has been my inten-! inten-! tion to communicjEe much informa-itiou, informa-itiou, this coming summer, to govern-j govern-j ment on the above described country, 'and as the Indians have no absolute right to the soil, thero maybe but j little dithculiy iu extinguishing their hunting privileges. I propose, if you ;do notobjebt, to open t;;e Yellowstone ; river by sending General George A. For.-yth and Colonel Grant, of my j stall', un the Yellowstone to the I mouth of Big Horn as soon as the ice : breaks, .which will give the lowest J tide of water, tiavmg already secured : a steamboat to make this exploration. I If General Foisytu is successful I will send General Custer with a command from Fort Lincoln, across the mouth of Powder river, thence up on the south bank of the Yellowstone Yellow-stone and lite crossing of Powder river, Tongue river, Kcsebud, and on j to the mouth ' f Big Horn. This country is as yet entirely unexplored. An expedition may develope a very valuable auiifen us section and make the Fatner de Smet story to some extent ex-tent true, but I am of the belief that tho mountain of Nuica has not changed to gold, I will also send an expedition duwn Wind r ver throun Owl cieeK mountains from Fort Stambaugh, Stam-baugh, via Fort Brown, to the mouth of Big Horn, and w h brin it back through the parks, about the headquarters head-quarters of Powder river, visited by Captain Mills and his command last summer, Tueee parks are, for beauty, lully equal to those eo graphically deecrilxd by General Custer as existing in the Black Hills of the Cheyenne. I may also say from my knowledge that the valleys of the Big and Little Pnpoagie, Little Wind river and Main Wind river, caryjcureely be excelled m beauty and fertility, while the bludeut of nature will Bad them tho most extraordinary upheavals ol the earth's crust probably to be fouud on this continent. I am of the opinion that this country is gold bearing, but of it abundance there can only be a conjecture at present. 1 feel quite contident of our ability to prevent the intended tresspass on the rights of Indians, and the cavalry and inlantry in the department of Dakota are being moved at the present time to the most available points to carry carry out my direction of September 3d, of last year. Were it not for these precautions on the part of tno government, there might be a repetition repeti-tion of the California guld beach and gold lake humbugs, with stili greater suflering, as many of the person now : crazy to go to the Black Hills never s think of how they are to exist after ' they got there, or how they could re-: re-: turn in case of failure. If they will only wait for lurlher information from government, which now seems desirous of making concessions to meet these new interests, there will be no one more willing than myself to aid in ascertaining their value. As far as troops are concerned I will promise activity in the present emergency emer-gency and a conscientious performance perform-ance of duty. Should the points from which miners start be so remote re-mote as to make it impossible for our scanty force to watch them, we can occupy the two or three gaps in the Black Hills and effectually exclude them. Very respectfully, P. H. Sheridan, Lieut. Gen. Comdg. |