Letters from Weir to Elizabeth Custer

[Nape Sintekiya Mani]

In his book "Son of the Morning Star", Evan S. Connell writes referring to two letters from Thomas Weir to Elizabeth Custer: “From St. Louis he wrote to Custer’s widow: “You know I can’t tell you now but will sometime tell it to you.... I have so much to tell you that I will tell you nothing now....”

A month later he wrote to her from New York: “I know if we were all of us alone in the parlor, at night, the curtains all down and everybody else asleep, one or the other of you would make me tell you everything I know....”



Can someone please tell me the source of these words?

[herosrest]

^Ducemus

I can't locate the source at the moment but, life being the 'what the way' that it is, I knew where to locate another letter written to Mrs. Custer by...... Fred Whittaker.

^Source

Tuesday Nov 28/76

Dear Mrs. Custer,

Do you remember I said that I felt I should come on Col. Weir before it was too late. I have just done it at last and by a chance almost so ludicrous in its simplicity when I think of the anxiety with which we have both searched for him.....

..... Reno is also in New York, on a leave. I do not know how long it is, but I doubt not that I shall see him pretty soon.

...

Yours sincerely

Frederick Whittaker

[Nape Sintekiya Mani]

He supposed it could come from Frederick Whittaker. T. Weir helped her on his book. But if weir's original letters don't appear, this may be a Whittaker invention. This letter is dated November 28. Eleven days before Thomas Weir died.

[herosrest]

^Ducemus

Elizabeth Custer Library & Museum of Frontier Women of the West is located at...... Garryowen Town Hall, P.O. Box 200 Garryowen, MT 59031. Almost precisely 2 miles from Ford B, Little Bighorn River.

Garryowen is on the market and available.

Elizabeth B. Custer collection [microform]

George A. and Elizabeth B. Custer papers

G

[herosrest]

^Ducemus

You may find what you seek, HERE at Frontier Valor. Then again, you may not. I can't say what, i'm a duck. I can however quack.

Quack! quack! Quack!

[logan]

I’m convinced that Weir not only wrote but also intended to say in front of witnesses a ‘Dying Declaration’ of what he knew of the events at a Little Bighorn, not only during the engagement itself, but before and afterwards, about the discussions and actions of the main participants, present at the battlefield, but senior commanders/authority elsewhere, that he was prohibited from stating under pressure from above and in the military establishment itself.

Many compare Little Bighorn and Isandhlwana as battles, plus Custer and Durnford as I do myself, but I go beyond the battlefields and anything that someone says or done that is ‘out of sync’ with everything else, either by anything they did that others didn’t or comments they made that didn’t match with the ‘official’ conclusions..

LBH is a comparative study I use, but not for the fighting aspects, Im interested in the aftermath, which, unexpectedly I see identical patterns in both that has caught my full attention.

My opinion doesn’t count due in part to LBH I use as an intriguing side-interest, but seeing discussions here and information obtained from books that I have read, the similarities are too great for me to ignore, as, in the words of my hero ‘Columbo’ there was always ‘just one more thing’ that brought me back to these points.

My evidence....none of value....but experiencing the same aspects that made me uneasy in the study of my main interest, there isn’t just smoke but some fire too.

Weir, amongst other instances, is pivotal to the actual reality of events before/during/after LBH, affecting him so much it made him ill as unable to share important facts.

Weir disobeyed orders and rode away from Benteen and Reno, he is stated as having details he felt compelled to expose as death approached, dying a broken man a short time later, which is truly tragic, as this officer could’ve given so much crucial news, it could’ve given the study of LBH a whole new direction in its understanding.

On a lighthearted note, when questioning and investigating a subject I use what is known as ‘The Columbo Method’ which is an actual thing, details available on the net, but also in a book I acquired subtitled - ‘A Rhetoric Of Inquiry With Resistant Responders’, one thing in his investigation toolbox is the point if someone does something out of the norm from their usual self (example - a good officer disobeying orders) then that would be highlighted in his reasoning of ‘Why’.

I’ve recently gave definite proof that documents/files/papers can still be discovered over a century later, that clarify points of importance, which may be in similar circumstances been suppressed but not destroyed, Ill be paying full attention to this regarding LBH, as primary sources don’t need to always be found by those actually hunting them, but by accident, if observed by someone who actually understood their significance in history.

[herosrest]

^Ducemus

I heartily agree and wish you luck because stuff just pops up outside focus, all the time, and understanding that brings a world of hurts. Deeds are buried by facts. The single show stopper which I stumbled upon is Benteen unsaddling his command on Reno Hill, before Weir's sortie onto the ground bearing his name today. True or false, it is a huge pause for thought.

You survived the epidemic - well done.

[logan]

With so much being written about LBH it can be quite difficult to find important points, unless they are repeated almost scripted. I’ve always found it puzzling that Benteen and Reno, both professional soldiers with experience, seem to claim there was no real plan or clear orders, yet they rode away with their men on what they said were vague instructions. Why did they not insist on clarity instead of moving off apparently without a clue what they were supposed to accomplish in close contact with the Indians.

I doubt very much they were afraid of Custer, so why ride off likely knowing it would play out badly and inevitably fail, with loss of many lives ?

Could it be to claim something like ‘plausible deniability’ afterwards, as then it couldn’t be considered their fault as they had no idea what was going on, yet their lack of commitment to what they were informed to do showed they had no desire nor compelled to fulfil even these roles.

Weir in my opinion grasped the situation quickly of not immediately, but apart from moving off against orders, could not hope to break through hundreds of warriors with his few men.

In some military tactics Ive read of, horsemen in few numbers can make themselves visible to a hostile force, to draw some of the latter after them, leading them away, or even into a waiting firing line of infantry/dismounted cavalry, with the intention of easing pressures elsewhere on a battlefield, in this case, Custer’s stand.


As an aside, though still connected to the above, are there any military law books that existed back at the time of LBH in 1876, either in the possession of a law or Judge Advocate’ department, possibly even in the library of military commanders, when dealing with summary court martials and the likes ?

Are they still available and pleas can you list their titles ?

Ive approached even my own interest(s) as a lawyer might making a case, acquiring more modern military law and court martial procedure books, court panel selection and so forth.

Sometimes you need to look at the battlefield using a legal angle, rather than other military instruction manuals dealing specifically with military duties, tactics, etc., the US Cavalry in 1876 apparently referring to military manuals from around the time of the ACW, adapted to fighting Indians in more fluid engagements, rather than regiments or battalions of soldiers facing each other on a battlefield.

[AZ Ranger]

Apr 21, 2021 11:01:51 GMT -6 herosrest said:

^Ducemus

Elizabeth Custer Library & Museum of Frontier Women of the West is located at...... Garryowen Town Hall, P.O. Box 200 Garryowen, MT 59031. Almost precisely 2 miles from Ford B, Little Bighorn River.

Garryowen is on the market and available.

Elizabeth B. Custer collection [microform]

George A. and Elizabeth B. Custer papers

G

FAKE NEWS It's not there, and the Crow's own Gerryowen
Regards

AZ Ranger

[herosrest]

^Ducemus

My husband's portraits and photographs, his arms, accoutrements, uniforms, souvenirs of war or frontier, books and illustrations, trophies or the chase, and each and every article of personal property owned by me, which is or may be considered in any way a souvenir of my late husband, General George Armstrong Custer....I give to my Executor with instructions to deliver the same over to the Public Museum or Memorial which may be erected on the battlefield or the Little Big Horn in Montana.

I guess it's time to Sioux. You haven't heard yet, have you.

[logan]

After a bit of searching the net, it seems this was the main military law book around the time of LBH, first edition published in 1866 -

Military Law And Precedents. By William Winthrop

It’d be interesting to acquire this publication as a basis on how military lawyers may have conducted a trial/court martial in the LBH aftermath

[herosrest]

^Ducemus

Inquiry such as that at Chicago were informal and King basically made it up as they went along, subject to 'argument' and request of Lee, Reno and his advocate. Within that vein, Reno was his own accuser and the cause of the inquiry for recommendation, could not include Whittaker as accuser or in any role try so to do, though he did.

The army had no difficulty with Reno at LBH - by 1879 it was all smoothed over and being quietly forgottenbut for burials and monument, etc.. which was already commissioned by then. Technical censure by military remit was expired and Chicago was Reno's hope to clear his tarnished name. It all went rather well.

W.A. Graham got into the technicalities of it all whenhe decided to counter the work being done on the Court records by Ghent. Some of it is online in the various books, the later transcripts work published in the 1950's. Hathi have it in full access - search Marcus A. Reno and do Graham's foreward which is quite a few pages of his mellow ego. I dropped off even though it is riveting stuff. He certainly had his finger on a pulse.

It was highly likely, also, that besides negating Whittaker, Reno was avoiding Bell until hecould get him posted far away from...Ft Meade or where ever Reno would return to duty. Bell may have intended to use the good major as target practice.

Isn't life strange. A significant purpose behind Courts of Inquiry was to negotiate Officer's away from duelling matter's of honour. Too many were being rubbed out in fetid petty squabbles. Of course there was nothing petty about the incident with Bell's wife and surviving that to return to duty, set him up for what followed. That was a straight Court Martial and you're out. Even then, he was offered resignation rather than dishonour but simply wasn't bright enough to stop being a nasty little perverted PITA.

Truly unlucky guy, was Marcus.

James Montgomery Bell www.geni.com/people/Brig-General-James-Montgomery-Bell/6000000042065288998