A HAND-TO-HAND FIGHT.
In order to explain thoroughly to our readers the sudden attack on the
Comanche village, we are compelled to return to Red Cedar.
Black Cat had left the council to proceed to the pirates, who were ready
to follow him; but as Red Cedar had noticed that the agitation
prevailing in the camp on his arrival had increased instead of
diminishing, he could not refrain from asking the chief what it all
meant, and what had happened.
Black Cat had hastened to satisfy him by narrating the miraculous flight
of Doña Clara, who had disappeared with her companions, and no one could
imagine what had become of them. Since the morning, the most experienced
warriors of the tribe had been on the search, but had discovered
nothing. Red Cedar was far from suspecting that the maiden he had left
in his camp was the one so eagerly sought by the Apaches. He reflected
for some moments.
"How many white men were there?" he asked.
"Three."
"Was there no one else with them?"
"Yes," the chief said, frowning, and his eyes flashing with fury. "There
were also two redskin warriors, one of them a cowardly Coras, a renegade
of his nation."
"Very good," Red Cedar answered. "The chief will lead me to the
council, and I will tell them where the prisoners are."
"My brother knows it, then?" Black Cat asked, quickly.
Red Cedar threw his rifle on his back, whistled softly, but gave no
answer.
They reached the council lodge. Red Cedar, taking the responsibility on
himself, undertook to answer the questions addressed to him by the
Indians. Since Black Cat's departure, not a word had been uttered in the
council. The Indians were patiently awaiting the result of the promises
made by the chief. The latter resumed his place at the council fire;
and, addressing the other sachem, said--
"Here are the white hunters."
"Very good," an old warrior answered, "let them speak, we hear."
Red Cedar advanced, and, leaning on his rifle, he took the word, at a
sign from Black Cat.
"My red brothers," he said, in a clear and marked voice, "are all as
wearied as ourselves by the continual attacks of that coyote who belongs
to no nation, or no colour, and who is called the Son of Blood. If they
will allow themselves to be guided by the experience of a man who has,
for many years, been thoroughly acquainted with tricks and villany of
which that man is capable, before long, in spite of the imposing force
he has at his command, they will have driven him disgracefully from the
prairies, and compelled him to recross the frontier, abandoning forever
the rich hunting grounds over which he pretends to reign as a master."
"We await till our brother has explained himself more clearly, with
frankness, and without equivocation," Black Cat interrupted him.
"That is what I am about to do," the squatter went on. "The prisoners
you made were precious to you, because there was a white woman among
them. You allowed them to escape, and must capture them again. They will
be important hostages for you."
"My brother does not tell us where these prisoners have sought shelter."
Red Cedar shrugged his shoulders.
"That is, however, very easy to know. The prisoners had only one spot
where they could obtain a refuge, before reaching the frontier."
"And that is?" Black Cat asked.
"The great summer village of the Comanches of the mountains, the most
faithful allies of Bloodson, the sons of Unicorn, that nation which has
renounced the faith of its fathers, to become completely dependent on
the whites, and to whom you ought to send petticoats. Hence you need not
seek your prisoners elsewhere, for they are there."
The Indians, struck by the correctness of this reasoning, gave
unequivocal marks of approval, and prepared to listen with greater
interest to what the hunter had still to say to them.
"My brother must, therefore, do two things," the squatter continued;
"first, surprise the Comanches' village, and, secondly, march
immediately against Bloodson."
"Good," Stanapat said, "my brother is a wise man; I have known him a
long time; his advice is good; but the Teocali inhabited by Bloodson is
well defended. In what way will my brother set about seizing it?"
"My brother will listen," Red Cedar continued. "I have ten bold hunters
with me; but I have left eighty, all armed with good rifles, on an
island of the endless river where they are encamped, which are awaiting
my return. The detachment intended to attack the Teocali will invest it
on all sides, though the warriors will not let themselves be seen;
during that time I will accompany Black Cat and his tribe to the
Comanche village. As soon as the prisoners have fallen into our hands, I
will go and fetch my young men from the island where I left them, and
return with them and Black Cat to help my brother in seizing the
Teocali, which cannot resist us."
This promise, made in a loud and firm voice, produced all the effect the
squatter expected. The Indians, dreaming of the immense pillage they
could indulge in, and the incalculable wealth collected at the spot,
had only one desire: to seize the Teocali as soon as possible. Still,
through the Indian stoicism, none of the passions boiling in their veins
were displayed in their faces, and it was in a cold and calm voice that
Black Cat thanked Red Cedar and told him he could withdraw while the
chiefs deliberated on what he had brought before them. The squatter
bowed and left the council, followed by his companions.
"Well," the Gazelle asked him, "what do you fancy the redskins will do?"
"Do not be uneasy, señorita," the squatter answered, with a most meaning
smile, "I know the Indians; the plan I have submitted to them is too
simple, and offers too many advantages for them to decline it; I can
assure you beforehand that they will follow it exactly."
"Is it far from here to the Comanche village?"
"No," the other said, emphatically; "by starting at once we should reach
it this evening."
The girl gave vent to a sigh of satisfaction, and a vivid blush suffused
her charming face. Red Cedar, who was watching her aside, could not
refrain from muttering to himself:
"I must have the solution of the enigma ere long."
They returned to the tent.
In the Council of the Chiefs all happened as Red Cedar had foreseen:
after a short deliberation, referring more to the mode of execution than
to the plan itself, it was adopted unanimously.
An hour later, all was movement in the camp; the warriors rose to join
the detachments and form squadrons; there was an indescribable
confusion. At length, calm was gradually restored, the two war parties
started in the directions proposed by Red Cedar, and soon, of the crowd
of warriors who had been yelling and dancing in the camp, only thirty
remained to receive the warriors as they arrived.
Black Cat placed himself at the head of his band, followed by the
Pirates. The Apaches started for the Comanche village in Indian file, at
their peculiar pace, which a trotting horse finds difficulty in keeping
up with. The greatest silence and caution prevailed in the ranks, and it
seemed as if the Apaches did not wish to be heard even by the birds.
With extraordinary dexterity, of which the Indians alone are capable,
each marched in the other's footsteps so exactly that it looked as if
only one person had gone along the path, carrying their care to such an
extent as to stoop for fear of grazing the branches, and avoiding any
contact with the shrubs. They marched as far as was possible on broken
earth or rocks, that their traces might be less visible, making detours
after detours, and returning a dozen times to the same spot, for the
purpose of so thoroughly confusing their trail that it would be
impossible to discover it.
When they reached the bank of a stream, instead of crossing it at right
angles, they followed or went up it for a considerable distance, not
landing again till the soil was hard enough to take the marks of their
footsteps. They did all this with exemplary patience, without checking
their speed, and still advancing to the object they had chosen.
They found themselves at about half past six in the evening at the top
of a hill, whence the summer village of the Comanches could be perceived
scarce two miles distant. The sound of the songs and chichikouis reached
the Apaches at intervals, thus telling them that their enemies were
rejoicing and celebrating some ceremony without any suspicion of a
sudden attack. The Indians halted and consulted as to their final
measures.
The Comanches have two sorts of villages, summer and winter. The latter
are built with care, and some regularity. Their houses are of two
stories, well arranged, light, and even elegant. But the Comanches are
birds of prey, continually exposed to invasions, and menacing their
enemies with them: hence they construct their villages on the point of
rocks, exactly like eagles' nests, and seek all means to render them
impregnable. The most curious village we have seen is formed by two
lofty pyramids, standing on either side of a ravine, and connected by a
bridge some distance up. These pyramids are about four hundred and
twenty-five feet long by one hundred and forty-eight wide; as they rise
this width diminishes, and the total height is about eighty-six feet.
These two villages, divided into eight floors, contain five hundred
inhabitants, who are enabled to defend themselves against a swarm of
enemies from these extraordinary fortresses.
In the Comanche winter villages the door is not on the ground floor, as
in Europe and civilised countries. The Comanche, when he wishes to enter
his house, places a ladder against the side, mounts on the roof, and
thence descends by a trap to the lower floors. When the ladder is once
drawn up, it is impossible to enter the house.
The Pueblo of Aronco is situated on the summit of a scarped rock, over a
precipice several hundred feet in depth. The inhabitants only enter by
means of ladders, as is the case in some Swiss villages; but in time of
war the ladders disappear, and the pueblo can only be reached by notches
cut at regular distances in the rock.
The summer villages are only constructed for habitation in fine weather,
or peace times, to facilitate getting in the crops and the chase; so
soon as the first frost arrives, or a sound of war is heard, they are
immediately deserted.
All the summer villages are alike; the one to which we allude here was
surrounded by palisades and a wide ditch, but the fortifications, which
had not been kept up, were in a complete state of dilapidation; the
ditch was filled up at several spots, and the palisades, torn down by
the squaws to light fires, offered, at many places, a convenient passage
for assailants.
The Apaches wished to descend into the plain, unnoticed by the
inhabitants; which would have been difficult, almost impossible, for
European troops; but the Indians, whose wars are only one succession of
surprises and ambushes, know how to surmount such difficulties.
It was arranged that the band, divided into three detachments, the first
commanded by Black Cat, the second by another chief, and the third by
Red Cedar, should crawl down the hillside, while the few men left to
guard the horses would come up when the village was invaded.
This settled, Black Cat had torches prepared. When all was ready, the
three detachments lay down on the ground, and the descent of the hill
began. Assuredly, a man standing sentry in the place could not have
suspected that more than five hundred warriors were marching on the
village, crawling in the lofty grass like serpents, not even making the
branches or leaves under which they crept oscillate, and keeping such
order in their march that they always formed front.
The descent had lasted more than an hour, and as soon as the plain was
reached the greatest difficulty was surmounted; for owing to the height
of the plants and bushes, it was almost impossible for them to be
perceived. At length, gaining ground inch by inch, after surmounting
enormous obstacles and difficulties, they reached the palisade.
The first to arrive was Black Cat, who imitated the barking of the
coyote. Two similar signals answered him, uttered by the chiefs of the
other detachments, who had also arrived. Black Cat, now confident of
being vigorously supported by his friends, seized his war whistle, and
produced from it a shrill and piercing sound.
All the Indians rose as one man, and, bounding like tigers, rushed on
the village, uttering their formidable war cry. They entered the village
by three sides simultaneously, driving before them the terrified
population; who, taken unawares, fled in every direction, howling with
terror.
Some of the Apaches, as soon as they got in, lit their torches, and
threw them on the straw roofs of the callis. The huts immediately
caught, and the fire spreading around, served as the vanguard of the
Apaches, who excited it with everything they could lay hands on.
The unhappy Comanches, surprised in the middle of a ceremony, surrounded
by a belt of fire, and attacked on all sides by their ferocious enemies,
who were killing and scalping women and children, suffered from the most
profound despair, and only offered a weak resistance to this fierce
assault. In the meanwhile the fire spread further. The village became a
burning furnace--the heated air was oppressive to breathe, and masses of
sparks and of smoke, driven by the wind, blinded and burnt the eyes.
The hunters, on the roof of the calli, defended themselves vigorously,
not hoping to escape, but wishing, at least, to sell their lives dearly.
They were already surrounded by the flames which met over their heads,
and yet they did not dream of giving ground.
Still, when the first moment of terror had passed, a band of Comanche
warriors had succeeded in uniting, and offered a most obstinate
resistance to the Apaches. All at once, White Gazelle, with flashing
eye, suffused face, clenched teeth, and blanched lips, rushed forward,
followed by Red Cedar and the Pirates, who followed at her heels.
"Surrender!" she cried to Valentine.
"Coward!" the latter replied, who took her for a man; "here is my
answer!"
And he fired a pistol at the girl. The bullet passed through Orson's
arm, who uttered a yell of pain, and rushed madly into the medley.
"Surrender! I say again," the girl went on, "you must see that you will
be killed."
"No! A hundred times no," Valentine shouted. "I will not surrender."
The Gazelle, by a prodigious effort, reached the wall of the calli, and
by the help of her hands and feet, succeeded in reaching the roof before
her intention was suspected. With the energy and fierceness of a tiger,
she bounded on Doña Clara, seized her round the waist, and put a pistol
to her forehead.
"Now, will you surrender?" she said furiously.
"Take care, Niña; take care," Sandoval shouted.
It was too late: Curumilla had felled her with the butt end of his
rifle. The pirates rushed to her aid, but Valentine and his friends
repulsed them. A horrible hand-to-hand combat began over the body of the
girl, who lay senseless on the ground.
Valentine took a scrutinising glance around him; with a movement swift
as thought he caught up Doña Clara, and, leaping from the calli, he fell
into the midst of a detachment of Comanches, who welcomed him with
shouts of joy. Without loss of time the hunter laid the maiden, who was
half dead with terror, on the ground, and placing himself at the head of
the warriors, he made so successful a charge, that the Apaches,
surprised in their turn, were compelled to give ground. Don Pablo and
the others then rejoined the hunters.
"By Jove! It is warm work," said the Frenchman, whose hair and eyebrows
were scorched. "Our friend, Red Cedar, has brought this on us. I was
decidedly wrong in not killing him."
In the meanwhile the Comanches had recovered from their terror; the
warriors had found arms and assumed the offensive. Not only did the
Apaches no longer advance, but at various points they began falling
back, inch by inch, it is true but it was already a retreat. The
pirates, rendered desperate by the wound of their darling child,
surrounded her, and tried in vain to recall her to life. Red Cedar alone
fought at the head of the Apaches, and performed prodigies of valour.
Night had set in, and the combat was still going on by the sinister
glare of the fire. Valentine took Pethonista aside, and whispered a few
words.
"Good," the chief answered; "my brother is a great warrior: he will
save my nation."
And he straightway disappeared, making some of his men a sign to follow
him.
Doña Clara was not long despondent; when the first effect of terror had
passed she rose and seized a pistol.
"Do not trouble yourself about me," she said to Valentine and her
brother. "Do your duty as brave hunters: if I am attacked, I can defend
myself."
"I will remain by your side," said Shaw, giving her a passionate glance.
"Be it so," she answered with a kind smile; "henceforth I shall be in
safety."
The Comanches had entrenched themselves with their squaws in the great
square of the village, where the flames did not affect them greatly.
Indeed, the wretched callis had not taken long to burn; the fire was
already expiring for lack of nourishment, and they were fighting on a
heap of cinders.
Valentine, while fighting in the first ranks of his allies, contented
himself with holding the positions he had succeeded in occupying, and
did not attempt to repulse the Apaches. All at once the war cry of the
Comanches, mingled with a formidable hurrah, sounded in the rear of the
Apaches, who were attacked with incredible fury.
"Bloodson! Bloodson!" the Apaches shouted, attacked with extraordinary
terror.
It was, in truth, the stranger, who, followed by Don Miguel, General
Ibañez, Unicorn, and all his comrades, rushed like a whirlwind on the
Apaches. Valentine gave vent to a shout of joy in response to the hurrah
of his friends, and rushed forward at the head of his warriors. From
this moment the medley became horrible: it was no longer a combat, but a
butchery, an atrocious carnage!