Distinctly Montana Magazine

61 w w w. d i s t i n c t l y m o n t a n a . c o m O N OR AROUND AUGUST 23, 1823, NEAR THE FORKS OF THE GRAND RIVER IN NORTHERNMOST SOUTH DAKOTA, HUGH GLASS EXPERIENCED THE NIGHTMARE SCENARIO FOR ANYONE TRAVEL- ING IN GRIZZLY COUNTRY. In a thicket, he unexpectedly came into close-quarters contact with a sow, one accom- panied by cubs. Combat erupted almost immediately. James Hall, who published the first account (1825) of Hugh's harrowing encounter, reported that his assailant was so close that, when Glass first became aware of its presence, Old Ephraim charged and caught him "before he could set his triggers." Philip St. George Cooke (1830), on the other hand, asserts that Glass fired one well-target- ed round that ultimately proved to be fatal; its immediate effect, however, served only to "raise to its utmost degree the ferocity of the animal." When his comrades in arms rolled the enormous bear off of Glass, they were astonished by the number and severity of his wounds. Edmund Flagg (1839) emphasizes that Glass received "not less than fifteen wounds, any one of which under ordinary circumstances would have been considered mortal." Cooke's graphic description indicates that the bear's claws literally scraped flesh from the bones of the shoulder and thigh. George C. Yount's narrative strong- ly suggests that another wound perforated the windpipe, which spurted a "red bubble every time Hugh breathed." Biographer John Myers Myers enumerates lacerations to Hugh's scalp, face, chest, back, and "one shoulder, arm, hand, and thigh," based on specific details in various ac- counts. Overnight, his condition teetered precariously between life and death. Glass, however, would not surrender to the Grim Reaper, so a makeshift litter was constructed to carry him. According to Flagg, Glass was transported thusly for two days "and a bit." At a well-watered grove, Andrew Hen- ry informed his men that this was a good place to stop, risk- ing the entire party for one man who almost certainly would by DOUGLAS A. SCHMITTOU illustrations by ROBERT RATH the of O dyssey H ugh G lass A BICENTENNIAL TRIBUTE

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