b'Jews continued from page 19"When the foe charged on the breastworks, with the madness of despair, and the bravest souls were tested, the little Jew was there. When the weary dozed on duty, or the wounded needed care, When another shot was called for, The Little Jew was there" (Ibid., p. 228; Jewish American Military History internet website).Forsyth too was fulsome in his praise of his young Jewish scoutsoldier, writing to a Rabbi who had inquired about Schlesinger\'s duty and Major George Sandy Forsyth Simpson Everett "Jack" Stilwell courage the following:station made a lead pin cushion out of the doomed"My Dear Rabbi Cohen,Stilwell brother. Jack Stilwell, who too had moved toIn answer to your inquiry of December, regarding Mr. Arizona, learned of the killing of his brother at the handsSigmund Schlesinger, who served in my command of Wyatt Earp, and went gunning for himbut wason the Western frontier from 1867 1868, and who unable to locate him. was with me in my fight with the Sioux Indians in the Arickaree Fork, I have a high admiration of the courage But I digress. At Beecher Island, it was the young Jackand splendid pluck and endurance of young Schlesinger Stilwell who was among the first to see the tall, imposingon the occasion mentioned.Cheyenne chief charging towards him and his fellows. It is said that he, not the other scouts with him, tookHe had never been in action prior to our fight with the careful aim, and perfectly drilled Roman Nose in theIndians and throughout the whole engagement which back. Contrary to artist renditions and other stories,was one of the hardest, if not the very hardest, ever Roman Nose was not killed then and there. Somehowfought on the Western plains, he behaved with great he did manage, perhaps with the help of his fellowcourage, cool persistence, and a dogged determination Cheyenne warriors, to get back to his camp where hethat won my unstinted admiration as well as that of his would last the night in intense pain until he died therecomrades, many of whom had seen service throughout the following morning. the War of Rebellion on one side or the other.Roman Nose was dead, but the troopers weren\'t out ofI can accord him no higher praise than that he was the the proverbial woods yet. Surrounded, thirsty, runningequal in many courage, steady and persistent devotion to out of food and ammunition, the seriously woundedduty, and unswerving and tenacious pluck of any man in Forsyth surveyed his situation, and then called formy command.volunteers to go back to Fort Wallace and seek help. Stilwell immediately volunteered and accompanied by aIt is a real pleasure to state this fact. I especially mention fellow scout named Pierre Trudeau (no, not an ancestorthe pluck and endurance of this young man of Israel and of the future Canadian prime minister) would, underspeak of him as a worthy descendant of King David.cover of darkness, sneak off the island and, after four desperate days of avoiding the Cheyenne war partiesI am, sir with sincere respect,and, according to Buffalo Bill in a tale not quite verifiable,Very truly yours, n ya rattlesnake that had crawled up to them while theyGeorge A. Forsyth oT Pwere hiding in some rocks, the two men would arrive atGeneral, U.S. Army" ehFort Wallace, tired, sore, and quite hungry, blurted out(Letter, Jewish American Military Historythe dire situation of Forysth, Schlesinger, and the restinternet website)of the men they had left behind. They would join theForsyth would later add, in his memoirs, that he2nd Hand Storerelief column who just days later would rescue Forsyth and the survivors of his command. By keeping his witsregarded the young Schlesinger as "that brave and active and staying cool even thoughpainfully and seriouslyyoung Israelite" (Mort, Cheyenne Summer, p.228). We Collect & Deliver wounded, Forsyth would keep his command intact and in doing so avoid the fate of his contemporary and fellowBeecher Island would be, as Andy Warhol might suggest,Your MerchandiseShenandoah Valley veteran Custer. his "fifteen minutes" of fame. Previously apprenticedFREE LOCAL DELIVERY AVAILABLEas a cigar maker during his brief time in Philadelphia,662 W. Wickenburg Way It can be said that all of Forsyth\'s men were heroeshe quit the army, and desiring peace and quiet, went Forsyth himself, the dead Lieutenant Beecher, Stillwell,back east, ending up in Cleveland, where he went intoWickenburgOpen MondaySaturdayTrudeau, First Sergeant William H. McCall, (who hadthe tobacco business, opened up a small store, married,thepony2ndhandstore.combeen a Union Brevet Brigadier General during the Civiland raised a family, and in Cleveland the onetime928-231-2730928-232-2019War, but dint of circumstances had wandered the West,Hungarian Jewish Army Scout and one of the heroes of a drunk, until hoping for a change in fortune, had joinedBeecher Island would die in Cleveland with his bootsWe Carry Quality 2nd Hand Forsyth\'s command, Forsyth, perhaps knowing McCalloff, not quite 80. & New Merchandiseduring the Civil War, make McCall his first Sergeant)Your Home Furniture Supplies Storeand of course Sigmund Schlesinger. It would be interesting to speculate if Schlesinger\'sSpecializing in Appliancescustomers in his small Cleveland store ever knew that The young Hungarian Jew, who had gone west, signed upthe diminutive Hungarian Jew who assisted and waitedJane and Peter Kibblewith the army because he needed a job and there wereon them was a frontier hero.pony2ndhandstore@outlook.com little, if any chances for employment in the overcrowded East would be immortalized in a poem and in the wordsPick up our January issue for Part 7.of his commanding officer, Forsyth.ArizonaRealCountry.com December 2023 21'