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Show CHIEF JOSEPH. Chief Joseph of the Nez Perces tribe, who died on Thursday night of last week, was a very great man, though a savage; he wanted to be friendly with the whites and was for many years. But when the Government insisted upon him and his ' people going upon a reservation, he took the war- ",W"B"" ' ' paj& and for throe months gave the United States soldiers in the northwest and north as lively live-ly a game as thoy ever had. He came down through Washingtqn and Oregon, struck and nearly near-ly nannihllated Gibbon and his command at Big Hole, Montana, crossed to Lemhi, over tremendous tremen-dous mountains, carrying his wounded and his women and children with him, then bent to the northeast, crossed the great range, went around one. fort and garrison and broke lor British territory- He would have won out, too, but General Miles was notified and by swift work got in his front, brought him to bay in the Bear Paw moun-tains moun-tains where Joseph gave final battle, was de- feattfd and surrendered. His running battle was fifteen hundred miles long. He wore out General Howard and thirty companies of United States soldiers, nearly maden parallel of the Custer massaqre in his Gibbon's fight, and military men have ever since declared that this performance was one of the most remarkable re-markable in military records, that in -generalship, in handling his warriors, and in the skill with which he carried on his long retreat, he was the foremost of Indians and worthy to rank as a great captain anywhere. Since then he has been dreaming, dream-ing, of a final return to his beautiful valley of Wallola. On Thursday night, as he sat by his camp fire he suddenly fell over dead. His royal heart had ceased to beat, his soul sought its final reservation. He was a poor, unlettered savage, but he was a captain among men all the same. He has gonei to join King Phillip, Pontiac, Logan, Teoumseh and the rest who, each in his turn, made a heroic stand against civilization and went down in the storm. May the final calm be his, may the pipe of peace never grow cold in his wickiup beyond be-yond the stars. |