Show ADVENTUROUS US AMERICANS By Elmo Scott Watson Smith FOR pOR an example of chilled steel nerve consider the case of Thom Thom- Thomas as L. L L Smith He and his partner Jim im Cockrell were trapping in the Green river country of Wyoming in inthe inthe the he when Smith fell over a cliff and broke his leg It was not an ordinary fracture The bone was vas shattered and a piece of it pro- pro protruded protruded through the flesh Prompt action was necessary to prevent blood lood poisoning Guess well we'll have to cut er off Jim said Tom Smith calmly Their only instruments were a three cornered file and their hunting knives Cockrell used the file to tomake tomake make nake a saw of Smiths Smith's knife Then Smith took his partners partner's knife cut through the flesh tied up the ar- ar arteries arteries teries eries sawed the bone seared it with a red-hot red iron and sewed up the he stump When the wounded leg healed Smith made a wooden leg for himself and thereafter he was known as I Smith Before the accident acci- acci accident dent lent he had been a famous horse horse- man Now there was all the more I reason eason for going mounted and the wooden leg apparently made little difference in his horsemanship At any rate he became the most successful horse thief on a large scale cale in the history of the West He spent pent most of his time organizing expeditions into California to rob the Spaniards He and the famous Jim Beckwourth made one foray into the theand theland theland land and of the dons that netted them head of horses But when California came under the he Stars and Stripes it changed the habits of I wont won't never steal teal from my fellow Americans he declared virtuously Temperance however was not among his newly acquired virtues He ended his days lays a victim of strong drink in San Francisco in 1866 e aA a A Perilous Journey CAPT APT RANDOLPH B. B MARCY halted with his party of 40 sol sol- soldiers soldiers soldiers diers and 25 mountain men at the junction unction of the Uncompahgre and Gunnison rivers on his way to Fort Union N. N M. M in 1857 Me no guide you over San Juan mountains in winter vinter time declared the old Ute Indian chief Capt Marcy had orders to join the forces of Col Cot Albert Sidney John ohn- Johnston J Johnston ston near Salt Lake City with ani ani- animals animals animals mals and supplies The orders said to proceed without delay so there was vas nothing for Captain Marcy todo to todo todo do except proceed In spite of the Indian warning that none of themen the themen themen men would get through pass ass alive the party left December 11 1 for Fort Massachusetts near the present Fort Garland Four days later when they reached the mountains winters winter's fiercest storms were raging Snow swirled and beat against their faces It t piled in deep drifts and hung heavily on the legs leg of animals and men The cold became intense Captain Marcy's detachment pushed on although animals fell dead in their tracks and men had to abandon equipment Before they reached even the summit of the pass their rations were exhausted and they had to eat the flesh of the mules as s the animals died On January 12 couriers from a relief party arrived and announced that help was close at hand Short Short- Shortly ly thereafter aid i came ca e. e So o starved were the men men that Captain Marcy issued strict warnings to eat spar spar- His orders evidently were only partly obeyed as one man died from overeating the overeating the only fatality in one of the most trying adventures of American history e The Scholar-Builder Scholar IN I N 1798 Gabriel Richard a French priest arrived in Detroit whose muddy streets were lined with log huts and shacks housing its 1200 inhabitants But most shocking of ot all to Pere Richard who had been beena a teacher in France was the utter lack of educational opportunities for forthe forthe the children of the village With what funds he had he found found- founded founded founded ed private schools and began a cam cam- campaign campaign campaign to establish public schools Music was lacking so he gave the people their first organ brought piece by piece on pack horses almost al al- almost almost most 1000 miles through the wilder wilder- ness He succeeded in getting De De- Detroit Detroit Detroit troit its first public library He made a journey to Washington to get federal funds for other projects projects projects and brought a printing press with him when he returned With it he established the first newspaper in Michigan In the election of 1823 Pere Rich Rich- Richard Richard Richard ard was chosen delegate to congress from the Michigan territory which Included all of Wisconsin and Iowa part of Minnesota and a small strip of Ohio When the Asiatic cholera swept swep the city In 1832 Pere Richard vis vis- visited visited visited the sick and dying without thought of himself He died Sep September 12 the last victim ol of the th epidemic and leaving behind him h many monuments of ment mente 9 Western Newspaper Union |