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Seven and Nine years Among the Camanches and Apaches An Autobiography, a non-fiction book by Edwin Eastman |
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Chapter 19. A Strange History Continued |
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_ CHAPTER XIX. A STRANGE HISTORY CONTINUED "The hacienda of Don Rafael was a stone building, or rather a collection of buildings, forming a square. Like nearly all Mexican dwellings it was but one story in height, but covered a large extent of ground. It was flat roofed, with a parapet, breast high, running around the edge. There were few external windows, and these were mere slits in the wall, guarded by heavy iron bars and massive wooden shutters. The interior of the square formed a large court-yard, entrance to which was gained by two archways, one at each extremity. These were closed by great jail-like doors--in fact, the whole structure had some resemblance to a fortress, a style of architecture peculiar to this region, and rendered necessary for security against the annual raids of the Indian warriors. "On entering the patio or court-yard, you saw the real front of the house. Here the windows had glazed sashes reaching to the ground, and opening on curtained verandahs. The surface of the patio was paved with brick, and in the center stood a fountain, surrounded by orange trees. "Since the attack which had resulted in my becoming an inmate of the hacienda, more care had been taken to guard against future attempts of a like nature. The great gates were closed at sundown, and some attempt was made at keeping a regular watch or guard during the night. At first the sentinels were tolerably vigilant, but the lazy rancheros soon wearied of their unaccustomed duties, and before long the detail of a guard was omitted, and affairs subsided into their accustomed quiet. "The American trappers had departed, and all seeming favorable for the accomplishment of my plan, I was not long in putting it into execution. I had taken pains to become familiar with the internal arrangements of the mansion, and knew exactly where the different members of the household slept. Selecting a night when there was no moon, I picked out two of the fleetest mustangs from the corral, and secured them, fully prepared for flight, among a clump of trees at a short distance from the hacienda. "During my residence among the Camanches, I had become familiar with a certain herb possessing strong narcotic properties. This I had searched for and found without difficulty, and with it I had managed to drug a portion of the food prepared for the evening meal, so that at a comparatively early hour, the entire household was wrapped in profound slumber. My preparations were all completed, and when I deemed that the proper hour had arrived, I descended from the azotea, where I had been lying in wait; and noiselessly entered the apartments of the family. Reaching that occupied by Don Rafael, I sought his bedside, and placing one hand over his month, I stabbed him to the heart, and he died with scarcely a struggle. Quickly transferring his scalp to my belt, I proceeded with my bloody work, passing from room to room, until eight victims had perished beneath my blows, and eight bleeding scalps garnished my waist. "Knowing that I had but little time to spare, I now prepared for flight. Hastily collecting such articles of use or ornament as would be likely to seem of great value in the eyes of the Indians, and such as I could easily carry, I made them into a pack of small compass, and returning to the azotea, I lowered them to the ground with a lariat, which I had previously placed there. I then sought the apartment of Guadalupe. Entering it without noise, I beheld her, by the dim light of a night lamp, reclining upon her couch, buried in profound sleep. I quickly bound her hands and feet, and gagged her in the Indian fashion, with a pear-shaped piece of wood secured by a strip of leather. I then raised her to my shoulder, and bore her to the roof, and by the aid of the lariat, which I had secured to the parapet, I easily descended with her to the plain below. A few seconds rapid walking enabled me to gain the horses, and a few minutes later I had fastened her to the saddle, and we were riding at full speed to the northwest. Knowing the route well, I lost no time, and at daybreak had nearly reached the point at which I intended to cross the Rio Grande. "Day was just breaking when I rode through a belt of chaparral, and emerging upon the prairie beyond it, came suddenly upon a horseman, whom I at once recognized as one of the Mexican hunters attached to the hacienda d'Echeverra. Before he could recover from his astonishment at our unexpected meeting, I had literally ridden him down, and brained him with a single blow of my steel mace, one of the weapons which I had taken from Don Rafael's armory, and the same one you have frequently seen me carry. Adding his scalp to those I had already taken, and rifling his person of whatever of value he possessed, I resumed my flight, and traveling steadily all day, found myself by nightfall practically beyond pursuit. "My fair captive had long since recovered consciousness, and I had removed the gag from her mouth. I will spare you a recital of her prayers and entreaties when she realized her position. Suffice it to say that, after a perilous and wearisome journey, I reached this village in safety with my prize, and was greeted as one returned from the dead; for the survivors of my party had brought back the news of my fall, and I had been mourned by my wives and my poor sister as dead. Now all was rejoicing; a feast was made, the scalp dance was performed, and I found that by my bold exploit I had fully recovered my standing among the warriors of the tribe. "Guadalupe was added to the number of my wives, and until her death three years later, remained my favorite. About a year after my return my sister sickened and died, during my absence with a war party, thus leaving me without ties, save such as I had made for myself in my tribe. "I was now completely Indianized, and began a series of expeditions which resulted so successfully as to cause my advancement to the position of a sub-chief, and to my being frequently entrusted with important enterprises. In fact, the more desperate an undertaking, the more certainly would I be called upon to achieve it. To this state of affairs I made no objection, for I coveted the sort of distinction or notoriety it gave me, and as I rarely failed of success, I steadily gained in prestige and influence. But I have never been able to attain a seat in the council, or to reach any higher rank than that I now hold. This I attributed to the influence of Tonsaroyoo and Wakometkla, both of whom regard me with ill-concealed dislike, although they are compelled to acknowledge me as one of the best warriors of their nation. "I have led my chosen band in many a daring adventure, and have never returned without some trophy of my prowess. Among the many scenes of this nature through which I have passed, I will recount the following, which will prove to you that in what I have said of myself I have made no idle boast. "On one occasion Stonhawon, the second chief, went with about two hundred warriors into the Utah country, with a view of replenishing our stock of horses, as we had lost a large number through the polite attentions of the Utahs and Arapahoes. His party was gone some fifteen days, and returned with only eight horses, and with the loss of five men. This was considered a terrible disgrace, and many of the young warriors begged me to lead them, and by a successful raid remove the shame they felt at the defeat of Stonhawon's party. "Selecting barely fifty men, but those the most daring braves of the tribe, I left the valley by the eastern entrance, and crossing the desert, struck southward into the Lipan country. With this tribe we were at the time at peace, but I cared little for that, and the warriors of my party were equally unscrupulous. I sent forward a dozen spies, and moved forward cautiously with the main body. My reputation was committed to my present success, and I took more than ordinary pains to sustain it. Every man of my band was well armed and mounted, and I had full confidence in our ability to overcome double our number. One of the spies now returned and informed me that they had discovered a Lipan village of seventeen lodges, situated on the banks of a small stream. I directed them to return and watch them closely, and to apprise me of any movement they might make. The spy went back, but soon returned and informed me that they had moved down the creek, which was a tributary of the Pecos, had passed through a small canyon, and were encamped near its mouth. I ordered him to send in all the spies except three, and direct these to keep a sharp look-out. "I then determined to follow them down the canyon, and attack them at its mouth, thus cutting off all chance of their retreating into the canyon; but a spy now brought me word that they had moved further down and encamped on the edge of the timber, with the evident intention of remaining there. I then made a wide circuit, and crossed the ridge lower down with the largest division of my party but left about twenty warriors ambushed in the canyon. "From the summit of the hill I had an excellent view of the enemy's position, and my plans were quickly formed and executed with almost equal rapidity. Under cover of the timber I led my party until we gained the rear of the encampment. Then spreading out widely, we advanced to the edge of the timber, and shouting our savage war-whoop, rushed upon the Lipans. They were so completely surprised that we were among the lodges before they could make scarcely a semblance of defense, and many of them were cut down as they emerged from the lodges. "Those who escaped the first attack retreated towards the canyon, but on attempting to enter it were met by my detached party and repulsed with considerable loss. They then retreated to the west and gained the shelter of the woods, while we hastily collected our plunder and prisoners and retraced our steps towards our village, our spoils consisting of thirty-nine scalps, forty-eight captives, women and children, and over two hundred horses; and this notable victory was gained without the loss of a warrior, although we had twenty-three wounded. "The Lipans gathered reinforcements from other bands, and followed our trail, but did not succeed in overtaking us before we reached our village; and here we are too strong to be attacked. Great was the rejoicing upon our return; the scalp-dance was performed, feasts prepared in our honor, and I found myself looked upon as a greater brave than ever. "This expedition was but the prelude to a series of similar ones, and as my luck did not desert me, I soon found that more than half the tribe were anxious to accompany the war parties which I led. It suited me better, however, to operate with comparatively small parties, say of fifty or sixty men, and to take only those who would render unquestioning obedience to my authority. For this reason I selected men of no great prominence in the tribe, but whom I knew to be good fighters, to accompany me on these expeditions, so the victories we achieved might redound mainly to my credit. "One day I started out to hunt, accompanied by only five young warriors. After five days journey, during which we found no game, we ascended a slight eminence, and saw before us a large prairie. At some distance out a party of about thirty Indians were engaged in killing buffaloes. We could also see their village at about four miles distance. Here was an opportunity not to be lost. We passed along behind the crest of the hill until we had gained a position between them and their village, and then passed through a gully and concealed ourselves in the path they must necessarily take. We were able to discover by their costume that they were Pawnee Picts, a tribe with whom we were generally at peace, but I considered that fact of no importance. "The unsuspecting hunters, having finished butchering and dressing the buffaloes they had killed, began to approach us in straggling parties of four or five, their horses loaded with meat which they were bearing to the village. When the first of them came abreast of us, I made a signal, and five of them fell before our arrows. As the next party came up we brought down three more, and then rushed from our hiding place, and some began scalping the dead, while the remainder were cutting the lashings of the meat in order to secure the horses. Having taken eight scalps, we sprang upon the horses we had freed from the packs, and retreated precipitately, fearing to be overpowered by numbers. We made direct for the timber, and having secreted our horses, took refuge in a rocky place in the mountain, where we felt protected for a while from their attacks. To attack us in front they had to advance right in the face of our fire, while to reach our rear they had to take a circuitous route of several miles around the base of the mountain. "The enemy had now gathered in force, and displayed the utmost bravery, for they made repeated assaults nearly up to the position that sheltered us. Their arrows showered around us without injury, but we could bring one man down at each shot. To scalp them, however, was impossible. One of the enemy, who seemed to be a great brave, charged right into our midst and inflicted a severe wound on one of my party. Before he could retire, I cut him down with one stroke of my battle-axe, and added his scalp to those we had already taken. By this time the enemy had nearly surrounded us, which led me to believe that retreat would be our safest course; so when night came we evacuated our fortress unperceived by our enemies. "They, deeming our escape impossible, were quietly resting, intending to attack us with their whole force in the morning, and take our scalps at all hazards. Moving with the stealth of the cougar, we proceeded along the summit of a rocky cliff until we came to a ravine, through which we descended to the plain below, which was here covered with heavy growth of timber. We reached the spot where we had concealed our horses without difficulty, and made the best of our way home. In order to avoid hostile war parties we were obliged to take a roundabout course, and it was not until the eighteenth day after our departure that we reached the village. The tribe had given us over for lost, but when they saw us returning with nine scalps and with but one of our party hurt, their grief gave way to admiration, and we were greeted with shouts of applause. "The years I have spent among the Camanches are filled with such exploits as these, but their recital would weary you, and I will not further prolong my story." As the renegade finished his narrative, we sat and smoked for some time in silence. Then a sudden thought struck me and I said to him: "Hisso-de-cha, I have often thought that I should like to go on the war path. Why can you not take me with you when you next go forth with a war party?" "That I would willingly do," he replied, "but it would never be permitted; or at all events, I never could gain Wakometkla's consent to such a thing; but perhaps you can induce Stonhawon to let you accompany him, and I think he could manage it. He is now preparing to go on an expedition of some sort, as he is anxious to surpass my recent success against the Arapahoes. But come, it is time we were asleep, and if you are not tired of listening to me, I am decidedly tired of talking; so permit me to bid you a bueno noche;" and so saying, the renegade arose and retired to his lodge. I was not long in following his example, but sleep did not close my eyelids until nearly dawn. Reflecting upon the strange story of my still stranger companion, and seeing in imagination the many bloody scenes through which he had passed, my mind gradually turned to the subject which had so long lain dormant--the hope of escape from my hated bondage. At last there seemed a chance that my intense longing for freedom might be gratified; and I determined to spare no effort towards inducing Stonhawon to consent to my forming one of his war party. Hastily formed plans and wild schemes of all descriptions chased one another through my brain, and it was nearly morning before I fell into a troubled sleep, haunted even in my dreams by visions of blood and slaughter. _ |
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