During the Reno Inquiry, Captain Edward S. Godfrey provided testimony. At a rather important point in his testimony, he made some comments that some might find difficult to understand. Fortunately, an explanation has at last been found for these comments. This allows important information to successfully be gained from this part of his testimony.
During the Battle of the Little Bighorn, Edward S. Godfrey was a Lieutenant in the 7th Cavalry. He was in command of company K.
After the 7th Cavalry crossed the Wolf Mountains, Godfrey was sent off to the left with Captain Benteen and his battalion. Custer and the rest of the 7th Cavalry would continue on straight ahead following a Native American trail.
About a mile from the river, one trail would lead to the left and another would lead to the right. Major Reno and his battalion would take the trail to the left, while General Custer and his battalion would take the trail that lead to the right.
Reno would engage the Native Americans and then take his men eastward across the river and up the bluff. This movement would result in Reno and his battalion generally disengaging from the Native Americans. During this movement, Reno's battalion would suffer relatively high casualties.
Benteen's battalion would meet up with Reno and what was left of his battalion on top of the bluff they were climbing. Godfrey himself would arrive on the bluff around the same time Reno's men were climbing them. In Godfrey's Reno Inquiry testimony, he would discuss what happened after he arrived on the bluff.
The following is a short exchange between the Reno Inquiry Recorder and Godfrey during his Reno Inquiry testimony. It begins with the Recorder asking Godfrey a question.
Q. What disposition was made by your company when you joined Major Reno, and by whose order?
A. I was ordered by Capt. Benteen to dismount my company and put it in skirmish line on the bluff towards the river (Reno, 428).
A little while later in his testimony, Godfrey would be asked about what he saw when he reached the hill. This part of Godfrey's testimony may seem a bit confusing. The exchange begins with the Recorder asking Godfrey a question.
Q: Were the Indians making any
demonstrations against the
command when you joined it on
the hill?
A: There was some firing.
Q: Describe that firing and
from how many Indians and how
near they were.
A: I could not see many
Indians - they were in the
ravines. The most I saw were
in the bottom.
Q: Describe those you saw
there.
A: I judge there were
probably not less than
six or seven hundred
Indians in that bottom,
that I saw there - a
great many starting up
on our left, that is,
going up the Little
Bighorn above us. They
soon came back and went
down the river, till
finally the bottom was
nearly cleared and I
saw none at all
(Reno, 429).
What may seem a bit confusing about the exchange is that Godfrey states at one point: "I could not see many Indians" but then later states that he saw around 600 or 700 in the valley bottom. These two statements may seem contradictory.
If Godfrey was speaking in general when making these statements, they would certainly seem to be contradictory. However, it has been discovered that Godfrey was not speaking in general when making these statements. Further, it has been discovered that these statements are not contradictory.
When Godfrey said "I could not see many Indians", he did so after he was requested to speak about the Native Americans that were firing upon the command at the time - not after he was requested to speak about the Native Americans in general. This demonstrates that Godfrey was not speaking in general when he made this statement, but was speaking specifically about those that were firing on the command at the time.
Then, when Godfrey spoke about "six or seven hundred Indians", he did so after he was requested to speak about the Native Americans that he saw across the river in the valley bottom. This demonstrates that he was not speaking in general when he made this statement either, but was speaking about the Native Americans across the river in the valley bottom.
We have then Godfrey providing two different descriptions of two different groups of Native Americans. This makes the meaning of the statements perfectly clear and demonstrates that the statements are not contradictory. Under this explanation, confusion regarding these statements dissolves.
Godfrey's testimony during the Reno Inquiry contains one of the most important exchanges in the entire Inquiry. In it, Godfrey discusses what happened during a critical period of the battle.
Unfortunately, some of Godfrey's statements in the exchange may have seemed a bit confusing. Thus, important information may have been unable to be obtained from the exchange - information that could tell us what happened to General Custer and his men.
Thankfully, an explanation has at last been found to clear up this possible confusion and these statements can now be fully understood. We can now receive the important information Godfrey was trying to relate.
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