Rensselaer Union, Volume 8, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 July 1876 — The Massacre of Custer and His Men. [ARTICLE]

The Massacre of Custer and His Men.

The With Uta Indian Ktpc<l*Sßf ielegT*«B totliatuwpot the f(tilowitafparti ( ®]an^leanted/>n Uta arrival of flelk Terry’* forces M ÜBaceita' of the carnage: At an early hour the head of the column entered a plain half a mile the left bank of the. Little Big Horn, where had recently been an immenae Indian Village, extending ( throe railea along the at ream, and where were still standing ruderal lodges with lW?£B«laughten:d arppnd them and Bodies or nine chiefs. The ground wa* strewn everywhere with carcasses of horses, cavalry equipments, beside* buffalo robes, packages of dried meat and weapons and utensil* belonging to Indians. On this part of the field were found the clothing ot L<eut«, Sturgis and Porter, pierced with bullets, and a blood-stained gauntlet belonging to Col. Yates. Further on were found the bodies of men, among whom were recognized Lieut. Mdhtosh, the interpreter from Fort Rice, and Reynolds, the guide. Just then a breathless scout arrived with the intclligcncc that Col. Reno, with a remnant of the eventh Cavalry, was entrenched on a bluff near by, waiting for relief. The command pushed rapidly on, and soon came in sight of a group surrounding a cavalry guard upon * lofty eminence on the right bank of the river. Gen. Terry forded the stream, accompanied by a small party, and rode to the spot. All the way the slopes were dotted with the bodies of men and horses. The General approached, and the men swarmed out of the works and greeted him with hearty and repeated cheers. Within was found Reno, with the remains of seven companies of the regiment, with the following named officers, all of whom are unhurt: Cols. Benteen and Wler; Cants. Felix Maylan and McDougal; Lieut*. Godfrey, Mathey, Gibson, Die Rudid, Edgerly, Wallace, Varnum and Hare. In the center of the inclosure was a depression in the surface, in which the wounded were sheltered, covered with canvas. Reno’s command had been fighting from Sunday noon (the 25th) until the night of the 26th, when Terry’s arrival caused the Indians to retire. Up to this time Reno and those with him were in complete ignorance of the fate of the other five companies, which had been separated from them early on the 25th to make an attack under Custer on the village at another point. While preparations were being made for the removal of the wofrnded, a party was sent on Custer’s trail to look for traces of his command. They found awaiting them a sight fit to appall the stoutest heart. At a point about three miles downi the right pank of the stream. Gutter had evidently attempted to ford and attack the village from the ford. The trail was found to lead back up to the bluffs and io the northward, as if the troops had been repulsed and compelled to retreat, and at the same time had been cut off from regaining the forces under Reno. The bluffs along the right bank come sharply down to the water, and are interspersed by numerous ravines all along the slopes ana ridges, and in the ravines lay tho dead arranged in order of battle, lying as they had fought, line behind line, showing where defensive positions had been successively taken iip and held till none were left to fight. Then huddled in a narrow compass, horses and men were piled promiscuously. At the highest point of the ridge lay Custer, surrounded by a chosen band. Here were his two brothers and his nephew, Mr. Reed, Cols. Yates and Cooke and Capt. Smith, all lying in a circle of a few yards, their horses beside them. Here, behind Yates’ company, the last stand had been made, and here, one after another, these last survivors of Custer’s five companies h«d met their death. The companies had suc- , cessively thrown themselves across the path of the advancing enemy, and had been annihilated. Not a man has escaped to tell the tale, but it was inscribed on the surface of these barren hills in a language more eloquent than words. Two hundred and sixty-one bodies have been buried from Custer’s and Reno’s command. The last one found was that of Mr. Kellogg, correspondent of the Bismarck Tribune, ana also, I believe, of the New York Hn-alit. The following are the names of the officers whose remains are recognized: Gen. Custer; Col’s Keogh, Yates, Custer, Cooke; Capt. Smith; Lieut’s Mclntosh, Calhoun. Hodgson and Reilly. All of these belonged to the Seventh Cavalry. Lieut. Crittenden, of the Twentieth Infantry, who was serving temporarily with the regiment. Lieut’s Porter, Sturgis and Harrington and Ass’t-Surgeon Lord are reported missing, as their remains were not recognized; but there is small ground to hope that any of them survived, as it is obvious that the troops were completely, surrounded by a force of ten times their number.