| Show PERSONAL I INTEREST INHERENT IN IX THE rH VOLUME JAMES BRIDGER o While in iu California guest of Mr E. E V. V Sutton I picked up his volume James Bridger by J. J Cecil Alter and expressed express express- ed my fascination in reading it he lie kindly gave it to me with his compliments with his signature on the fly leaf with sentiments sentiments senti sent ments meats added To say that I am aln delighted in the book is to express il It it mildly The locale is right up my DIY back alley the actors almost acquaintances of my Iny dad I w v WES s born within thirty-five thirty miles of Fort Bridger and imbibed something of Jim Bridger in every every every ev ev- ery conversation of my parents when events of the past were recited Hence TIence it is on my Iny old stamping ground We e all of us have our tastes in reading ordinarily I will not read trashy books s and further I think a book is not worth reading if it is not worth reading three four five maybe six times without interest lagging Such use I expect to make lake of this book and then put it on my shelves as a book of reference exhaustive complete and the best of that time and the man dominant of that time I was too close to the forest to see trees Its It's the same old story story- story story- the local man luan knows nothing Its It's around him all the time and he takes it for granted It is common with him him him- so it was with Jim Bridger his life his fort and all the exciting exciting exciting ing things in his romantic and adventurous experience experience- too close It needed the perspective of years and distance to interpret interpret interpret inter inter- pret its interest Such is 1940 and the removal to Utah Letus Let Letus Letus us now see what interest the book holds holds holds- and if that personal interest can be put over to you as a reader As stated I was born and for thirty years lived within thirty-five thirty miles of Fort Bridger grew up tip on the talk of Old Jim giggled then as now over the tall tales attributed to him and listened with awe when his deeds were vere recited and skirmishes skirmishes skirmishes skir skir- with the red men tHen re I first saw Fort Bridger when my oldest brother drove me over to it in a buckboard two hors- hors ses good goers and traveling light He had to explain to me me that the old original fort had lead been burned and all that was left were the ruins only partly repaired repaired- that was many years ago I remember a part of a stone wall and a standing lone-standing chimney cobble rock no doubt built outside a wall It may not have been a part of the original fort fort fort- or it may Quien sabe I never knew new or saw sav Judge William Carter though my father named a pure-bred pure trotting stallion J Van A. A C. C In honor of J. J Van A. A Carter BRIDGER YARNS My l next nest older brother was born in Echo City Echo Canyon Uta Utah l. l Remarkable echo in that can can- yon Dad would go to bed promptly at ten o'clock he would stop en route at the back door and holler up at the cliffs Get GetUP GetUP GetUP UP Get Up and next morning at exactly seven that echo would clamber through my lllY brothers brother's open and grab him by the shoulder shaking him awake and gently murmur Time for your porridge Sonny Yes a wonderful echo Old Jim always said it was vas I have ridd ridden n a horse down Echo Canyon Canon and seen the huge boulders high on the cliffs above said to been teetered on the edge to roll down on Johnsons Johnson's Army should it try to come though I have ridden lots of times within a quarter of a mile of Cache Cave but too lazy and too thoughtless to take the trouble of riding to it That's the attitude of the local man mantoo malt too often so I wear a scar over oyer my right eye now received d 0 over ov ov- over vel v- v er el fifty years ago when with a boy companion we ve were vere riding our nags bareback at the base of Needle Rocks playing we were Heap Big Indians hanging on with a heel and eyebrow hold on the slippery backs just as I had seen in th the Ned Buntline and Nick Carter Dime Dinie Novel of that period I fell under the horse and his unshod landed full galloping weight weighton on my bean above the eye I was laid up for some time but having a solid ivory dome donle editorship showing thus early I Iguess Iguess Iguess guess the hoss' hoss was the more hurt Needle Rocks was the winter vinter camp of Charles L. L Burton and Daniel Wells to get tiding from messengers as they directed Porter Rockwell Bill Hickman and Lot I Huntington to harass Johnsons Johnson's Army that winter and destroy the supply trains which they did effectively It is at the juncture of Coyote Creek and Yellow Creek about as far west from Myers Myer's Crossing of the Bear River on the old Mormon Trail as it was vas east of Cache Cave Medicine l Butte is mentioned in the book I had only to look out from our back door and there was vas Medicine 1 Butte only eighteen miles away in plain sight The Indians used to retire to it and in solitary vigil get their medicine So to be an Indian Indian Indian In In- dian I rode over alone worked the horse up within about yards of the top and in true Indian style got down on my belly and wormed up slyer than ever red reci man that drew a breath to catch unaware any l lurking enemy side What was vas my astonishment to see a doe deer in all security not having seen me browsing on the taking a nibble here a step forward and a nibble there all the while the great trumpet ears being constantly presented to all points to catch the faintest noise and often stopping entirely to take a lengthy survey of the whole countI country y During my watching she lifted a hind foot and scratched her jaw jav as daintily as milady would readjust a vagrant curl Yes I began early to be an Indian then a scout through the gamut of great general to mighty Indian killer to simmer down as the fires burned lower r to Cheif Mr 11 Alter says says' that Jim Bridger was present at Fort Phil Kearney Kearne when he the e Fetterman n Massacre l occurred my ol of dad was a bull bull whacker carrying freight from Omaha to the various various various var var- ious forts for the contractors he lie said he personally knew Jim Bridger and once in reminiscent mood said to me I was at Fort Phil Kearney when Fetterman and his squad were wiped out I got there the day before the massacre The goods were checked out and I was resting the bull team a day or two before before before be be- fore going back Captain Fetterman was a conceited toy soldier soldier soldier sol sol- sol sol- dier from the east who knew nothing of Indians their wiles their trickery their cunning He lIe boasted openly that he at the head on one company of or blue coats could defeat all the Indian in the west The wood train got attacked a few miles out and Fetterman demanded men to repulse them he got about ninety ninety ninety nine nine- ty cavalrymen but was given strict orders NOT to go over the ridge into unknown country for fear of a trap but to succor the wood train only Especially was this order given him as the guide possibly Bridger himself I might now add felt that abig a abig abig big body of Indians were hid just over the ridge waiting to defeat the soldiers How Dad did the smart officer and laughed in telling of the clumsy ef efforts efforts ef- ef forts of the blue coats to fight the racing red man Fetterman started out a little squad of mounted Indians taunted him pretending attack then hastily retreated as if in precipitate flight and Fetterman the foolhardy galloped in hot pursuit They led him against the strict orders over the ridge and the first thing he knew thousands of Indians rose out of hiding completely hemming him in cutting off retreat o or r any Continued In a narrow column under heading Dad and Jim Bridger |
