On one occasion an Indian near the fort after losing his favorite child deliberately killed his wife, his two remaining children, his horses and dogs, and then blew his own brains out. In all this the Indians behaved extremely well toward the whites, although aware they brought the disease among them, yet nothing in the way of revenge took place, either at the time or afterwards. Being obliged to be all the time with them, helping as much as possible to save a few, they had plenty of opportunities should they have wished to do damage. Every kind of treatment appeared to be of no avail, and they continued dying until near the ensuing spring, when the disease, having spent itself, ceased. The result was that out of 1,000 lodges and upward of the Assiniboin then in existence but 400 lodges or less remained, and even these but thinly peopled. Relationship by blood or adoption was nearly annihilated, all property lost or sacrificed, and a few very young and very old left to mourn the loss. Most of the principal men having died, it took years to recover from the shock. Young men had to grow up, new leaders to be developed, remnants of bands to be gathered together, property to be had—in fact, under all these adverse circumstances, so slow has been the increase that during the interim of 17 years but 100 lodges have accumulated. In times like this no leader can be effective. All counsel was rejected; their chiefs and divining men shared the fate of the others. With the Mandan the disease was even more destructive. Before it they numbered 600 warriors and inhabited two large villages where the Arikara are now stationed, and when the disease ceased about 30 men remained, from which remnant have since sprung about 25 lodges. All this time an Assiniboin chief named The Gauche, or by the Indians “He who holds the knife,” was the principal man in the band which bore his name, consisting of 250 lodges.