I had been mining in California Gulch, Colorado, and became acquainted with a physician who had lived with the Crow Indians. He gave me a description of the country, as to fur trading, etc., near Benton, Missoula, Ft. Owen and the Deer Lodge. Also told of the rich mines that had been discovered at Florence on the Salmon river. He proposecl to escort a company to that place. The mines were very poor where we were at work, so we decided to go to Washington in the spring.
In May, 1862, I went to Denver and met some persons who were going to Florence as soon as a company could be formed sufficient for protection. Fourteen of us, including in that number one woman and a girl about ten years of age purchased a good outfit and started. Our wagon beds were made water-tight so they could be used to ferry over swollen streams. The first stream was the North Platte, very high and rapid.
The ferry was owned by a Mr. Baker. I interviewed him in regard to his price for taking us over. He was very considerate (?). He only asked us $10 a wagon! I told him we were miners and had but little money, and that was more than we could afford to pay. We would build a raft and ferry ourselves over. We began to cut down trees, pretending to build a raft. He came to us and told us he was about out of provisions and if we would let him have some he would ferry us over, we to swim our stock, for $7.50 the whole outfit.
About ten o'clock one morning we came across a mountaineer camped with his Indian family, who told us of a massacre of stock tenders and stage drivers, and the burning of stations and coaches, and killing of horses the day before. We told him our objective point was Florence and he seemed familiar with the country, saying it was wild and dangerous, and our company too small to travel with safety, but if we would wait for a few days he would act as our escort and protect us from the Indians. We had a consultatiou and concluded he wanted our protection more than we needed his, as squaw men were no pets of the Indians. We went on our way and reached Green River station about dark and found things as represented by the squaw man; dead men, station and coaches burned and dead horses. We camped, arranged our wagons for best protection if attacked. We did not build any fire. We did not dare bury the dead.
None of us slept that night. No words can describe our feelings. In the morning we started on and passed other stations with scenes too horrible to describe.
My recollection is we had three nights and two days of the suspense, and about nine o'clock in the morning of the third day we saw horses grazing on a bench in the distance and felt that our fate was sealed, as it must be Indians, waiting for us. No use in stopping. We must go on. We soon saw tents, which we supposed were teepees, but as we came nearer we saw they were in regular position and discovered men in uniform. On reaching camp we found they were soldiers from Salt Lake, who had arrived the night before.
We had been under such a strain for so long that some of our company dropped to the ground and were asleep in an instant. I went to the commander and asked if he would let some of the soldiers look after our camp, to which he consented. We had to put some of our men to bed. All went to bed without eating. None of us awoke until four o'clock the next afternoon. This was near Ft. Bridger. From there we went to Salt Lake, where we supplied ourselves with provisions.
We were advised to go via Ft. Lemhi and Missoula, as being the most direct route. No maps were known, so people had but a poor idea as to places or how to get to them.
Arriving at Snake River we found a good many waiting for the putting across of a rope for a ferry by Meeks. Some had been there ten days, expecting to cross each day, believing that to be the nearest road to Florence. Some had gone down the river. Some by the old road to Deer Lodge and Missoula.
We arrived in the forenoon, and saw them waste the whole day in trying to put the rope across. The Woods Brothers of our train thought they saw the mistake of the other fellow, and said they could put it over. I hunted up Meeks and told him that we had men that could do the,job. He replied that he had a man that could do it. We waited two days, when Meeks came to us and wanted to see the men of our party who could do the work. I told him I was the mouthpiece of the party, and whatever arrangements I made would be carried out; that if we undertook the job we must have complete control. He did not take kindly to that so tried again without success. He then came and wanted to know our terms. I introduced him to the Woods boys and he asked them their terms. They told him that whatever Lott said would be agreeable to them. So I told him all I would ask was that we were to be ferried over first. We were anxious to go because we were afraid all the good claims would be gone. Our first attempt put the rope across. The next day we were on our way to Lemhi, on a branch of the Salmon River, which was an abandoned settlement of the Mormons, they having been called in by Brigham Young. The fort was built of adobe and was about three hundred feet square, with walls eight or ten feet high. Inside were a number of houses and a rude grist mill on the outside.
We found quite a quantity of wheat that had been buried in the ground. We found several people here who had passed us on the road from Snake River as they had horses and mules and we had only oxen. This place seemed to be the end of the wagon road and the only way to proceed was to pack over an Indian trail. Some turned back to Snake River and some started back to take the old road to Deer Lodge and Missoula. Some cut up new wagons to make pack saddles.
We did not know what to do. We went down the Salmon River and up the north fork, getting some indication of quartz, and some small prospects.
We got an idea that the east side of the mountains would be the best place, so six of us packed ourselves with grub, picks, pans and shovels, and walked up a very steep Indian trail and on to the eastern slope. About one mile from the main range we found a small stream, a tributary of the Big Hole river, with a few paying claims, about six feet to bed rock at discovery, and called it Pioneer, supposing it to be the first discovery of gold, in paying quantities, found in the country.
Leaving one of our party to dig a train ditch the rest of us went to Lemhi for our wagons. From Lemhi there was a very large Indian trail crossing the main mountain range east to Horse Prairie. Knowing that the Indians took the lowest passes, I thought we had better follow their trail. The boys had an idea it would be too rough. I told them that "where there was a will there was a way," so we started. We put both hind wheels on one side of the wagon, and in that way kept from upsetting. At last we were on the Horse Prairie side. We passed within three miles of where the Jno. White party found the rich diggings on Grasshopper Creek, July 28th. Crossing over a low range from the Grasshopper to Big Hole, we found the remains of an old wagon, showing that we were not the first people to take wagons into that section. We reached our claims, as near as I can recollect, about noon, July 12, 1862.
I brought a whip saw with me and that afternoon Mr. Dunkleburg and myself erected a sawmill and put a log on the carriage ready for work the next morning. Dave worked in the pit. By hard work and long hours we sawed 200 feet per day. After we sawed what we needed we sold some for $80 per hundred feet, making $60 per day.
On July 16th we were sluicing out gold. A Mr. Miller and family and Joseph Smith, who came from Colorado, with our party, went back from Fort Lemhi and over the old road to Deer Lodge and over the Mullan road to Missoula and settled there. Smith went up to the Bitter Root. Of the rest of our party, that mined in Pioneer Gulch, there were Charles and Hiram Wood, James McCabe, George McCormick, Fred Miller and Dave Dunkleberg. H. Conley, James Kennedy and myself were partners in discovery claim. When sluicing we took out from $25 to $75 per day. We had to strip the ground and could not sluice every day. We worked the claim out, taking out several hundred dollars.
I remember an amusing incident. Mr. Farlin, and partners, Mormons, who came on with us from "Lemhi" were out of tobacco. When they got to taking out gold they were overheard making out a list of supplies. First was tobacco, and each atlernate item was tobacco, and the last item was ''some more tobacco."
Our sawmill was near the Indian trail. They used to stop and watch us. Some of them could speak a little English. One Indian said: ''Indian heap big fool."
The latter part of August a Bitter Root ranchman packed over some potatoes and sold to us for thirty cents per pound. He seemed to think we were the only miners in the country.
That winter I spent in Bannack. I told Fairweather and Edgar what the doctor had told me of gold in the Stink Water, and that may have been the reason for going on to the Yellowstone and of. the discovery of Alder.
Sam Harper and Judge Lott went to Utah for provisions and got back to Bannack day before Xmas, 1862. They had been advised that a train would leave on Sunday morning for Salt hake and that they could join by having two men to a team. The Judge said: "We got up before day; yoked our cattle and pulled for Bannack, which we made some time before the next morning, over 50 miles; a remarkable day's journey for an ox team. While passing through the Big Hole prairie we saw Indians signal fire or smoke, in various places, and hardly knew what to do. We continued on, however, and arrived within two miles of Bannack when, finding good feed we turned our oxen out, and having hidden our stuff in the brush started to go into Bannack. All at once we ran into o band of about a dozen Indians, who began to form a circle around us. They had their bows and arrows. I made a friendly talk and as they came near pushed them away asking them if they were Bannacks, or of what tribe. They at last allowed us to go.'' They had stolen 200 head of horses out at a corral and were anxious to get away with them or might have done Lott and his partner some harm.
The Judge tells the following incident:
In the spring of 1863 a young man had killed his partner, who was much older than he. The young fellow was tried for murder, and sentenced to death. Judge heard the young fellow crying and went down to comfort him. lie asked him what he could do. The young fellow answered that he was a Catholic, and needed a priest. The Judge didn't know of any one who filled that position and thinking any Irishman might do, went and got Jerry Sullivan, a jeweler. Jerry was a sympathetic fellow and he went to render what comfort he could to the poor fellow who was soon to meet his Maker. He said: ''Young man, you have committed a most fearful crime. You killed your partner, an old man for whom all had respect. You have been tried by your peers and found guilty, and sentenced to be hung. Don't cry; be brave. Get down on your knees aud ask God to forgive your sins, and I'll be d--d if I don't believe the old fellow will do it.'
After Lott's party left Pioneer they went to Bannack, where Judge got a claim on Jimmie's Bar, for which he paid $2,800, getting the money from the Woods Brothers, who were to go in part- nership with him. They took out over $13,000.
The Judge tells that Walter W. Debacey and another party found a quartz claim on the north fork of Salmon; went to Oregon and sold it to a party for a good price ''unsight and unseen."
Judge left Bannack in July, 1863 with about $4,000. He had a splendid horse, the fastest in the country. He thought himself safe when he got near the spring in Spring Gulch, but the horse appeared uneasy; he turned his head and saw some men coming down a side gulch toward him as fast as their horses could come. The Judge did not wait for company, but putting spurs to his horse raced ahead of them to Rattlesnake ranch as he recognized Buck Stinson and Steve Marshland.
In Bannack the first meeting for law ance order was held in January, 1863, so Judge says. A few had banded together for mutual protection. Hiram Conley, Lott's partner, had been elected captain. It seems that Asel Stanley's wife had a claim which had been jumped by some of the toughs. Stanley came to Conley for help, but he said they had not banded to make a general fight against bad citizens.
The Lotts went to Nevada City, just below Virginia and started a store. At the time De Vault was killed by Geo. Ives, Old Man Burchy, Elk Morse, Wm. Clark and 25 of them left their store to arrest the persons that had done the deed. They did not know who it was when they started, but they brought back Ives and others.
When the murderers were brought to Nevada, Judge Iott stopped the party as they were about to go on to Virginia. There was a dry goods box in front of the store. The Judge got upon this and addressed the crowd, which consisted of about 1,000 men, and told them that there must be some motive if they intended to take them to Virginia. He made a motion that the men be tried at Nevada. He told them they could use the room in back of their store for the jail. Motion was carried and the prisoners were put in there for safe keeping. Probably 100 men stood guard, Jim Williams as captain. It was in this room that John Lott wrote the oath when it was signed by 24 men. (I think that there is some mistake as to the time in the judge's mind, as this oath is dated December 23rd, 1868, and Ives was hanged December 21st, so the men must have not signed the oath until about the time the Vigilance Committee was formed). John Lott was secretary and treasurer of that Committee.
Judge Lott said that he never threatened Slade bodily harm. That Slade, when drunk, would ride into other places, and that generally all doors were closed whenever he came to town in that condition.
A man came to Lott one day and told him that Slade was in town drunk, and that he had better close his store. The Judge said: "I am running this place and probably Slade will not come in." He even opened both doors but Slade was too wise to come. It is quite probable that Slade knew M. H. Lott, and knew that he would not stand any joking of the kind he liked to play. Slade had freighted for the Lotts and was well acquainted and had much respect for them, though they never carried guns.
In March, 1864, Judge Lott, Meeks, and others took up two miles square at Twin Bridges, where Meeks built the first cabin. They believed they would always have all the range they would need.
The Lott brothers built three bridges, one on the Big Hole, one on the Beaverhead, where the town of Twin Bridges is, and one at the Point of Rocks.
They gave the land to the State for the Orphans' Home.
The Judge is living and is well at the age of 87, this year of our Lord, 1915. He has found that the range is eaten out and that all the land is taken. He is no longer "Monarch of all he surveys."
Note: George Lovell says the word is De Vault not Tbalt as given by Dimsdale and Langford.