Indian and White, in the Northwest

Excerpt from Indian and White, in the Northwest: A History of Catholicity in Montana It does not usually happen that a historian can relate the primitive times of a barbarous country, not less than its complete transformation by the hand and magic touch of progress, and be likewise a personal witness of both its civilization and barbarism. Such, however, is the case with the writer of the first History of Catholicity in Montana. An old-timer among the old-timers, the Reverend author speaks whereof he knows. He has lived among the natives; has conversed with the first priests who, preceding the gold-seeker by twenty-two years, shared with the red man his dried buffalo meat, his wild roots and berries; and where he saw the nomad's wigwam stand, he saw alike the palatial mansion rise. The howling wilderness has blossomed under his eyes. It has been with him a labor of love, for over two years, each day deep into the night, to collect the authentic documents, compare and study statements made, so far as to be accurate in relating events and stating dates, which make a history reliable. And as a book which holds the dead letter becomes almost living by the pictures of those it describes, the author has doubled the value of his work by many photogravures which adorn its pages. Whilst a welcome and valuable addition to the history of the country, the new book will be a surprise to many who still con sider Montana as belonging to the "Wild West." May its pages prove once more that Christianity and civilization go hand in hand and produce the happiest results. The reading of this volume will give reliable information concerning the growth of our State from an American desert into a flourishing commonwealth, and will show at the same time what a factor Catholicity was in the building up of Montana, admitted to-day to be the richest gold and silver producer in the country, and to contain the biggest mining camp in the world. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.