THE COMANCHE CHIEF.
I felt very comfortable in my pretty house, and Tiger informed me with
great satisfaction that no one had been in his tent during our absence,
in accordance with a promise I gave him when we set out. For some days
we hardly left the fort, but enjoyed a rest. Tiger tanned the skins we
had brought home. I stuffed my condor, at which my young friend was
greatly amazed, and firmly declared that I restored the bird to life.
After this we rolled cigars, made new clothes, repaired our saddles and
bridles, and employed ourselves with the thousand domestic jobs which
gather even during a short absence. But after we had attended to the
chief matters, several wants became visible which we could only satisfy
on the prairie. Thus, among others, our substitute for sugar, honey, was
expended, and at the supper table we resolved on going out on this hunt
the next morning, if it was fine.
The morning dawned bright and calm, and both conditions are required for
a winter bee hunt, as at this season the bees only work in warm weather,
and their course cannot be watched when the wind is blowing hard. We got
ready immediately after breakfast, Tiger and I, armed as usual, but
Antonio and one of my colonists provided with heavy sharp axes and
buckets, while Jack carried two empty casks, a copper kettle, large
wooden spoons, and a tin funnel. Thus we trotted over the spangled
prairie across to Mustang Creek, crossed it and its thick wood by a
broad buffalo path, and then rode down the prairie to a fork formed by
the forest on an affluent of the Mustang, joining that on the latter
river.
Here we halted, stuck a long pole, on which a small tin frying-pan was
fastened, into the ground, lit dry touchwood in it, and laid on the top
a piece of comb in which some honey remained. Not far from this we put
up another pole with a paper smeared with honey upon it. The smoke of
the boiling wax and honey serves the bees cruising over the prairie as a
guide to the paper, and soon the busy gatherers arrive from all the
bee-trees in the neighbourhood, load themselves as heavily as they can,
and then go straight home in a direct line. The hunter now observes in
which direction the greatest number of the insects swarm, because this
leads him to expect a richer tree as well as a shorter distance to go.
When he has decided on his route, he follows the swarm with his bait as
far as he can see it, then puts up the pole again and waits till they
settle, or the honey ones move and then fly home. Thus he follows the
industrious insects, till by their restless activity they show him the
spot where their treasures, collected during many years, are concealed,
and he then disturbs the colony with cruel hand, robs it of its
laboriously gathered stores, kills thousands of the colonists, and
drives the rest away homeless.
We, for our part, behaved no better, except that we had brought sacks in
which to carry the shelterless bees home, and give them an abode. A very
large swarm went toward the Leone and another to the affluent on the
left. We decided for the former, however, and in less than half an hour
found ourselves in front of a gigantic maple that grew on the skirt of
the forest, in whose long trunk, between the lowest branches, the
orifice of the tree was completely covered with the insects. We hobbled
our horses some distance from the tree, lit a fire near it, and two of
us set to work with the axes to cut it down. Tiger and I had the first
turn, and when we were tired the two others took our place, till we thus
working in turn made the proud tree fall with its whole weight on the
grass, where its splinters flew a long way around.
Each of us seized a firebrand and ran with buckets, spoons, and knives
to the cracked part of the trunk, where the honey was exposed while the
bees circled high above us in the air in a dense swarm. The firebrands
were laid on the ground near the honey, old damp wood was laid on them
to increase the smoke, and we hurriedly cut out the comb, and poured the
liquid honey into a bucket which we emptied into the kettle which was
slightly warmed by the fire. Honey runs from the cells with a gentle
heat, and when it is liquid enough, the latter are pressed between two
boards, till all the honey runs out, after which it is strained through
a coarse sieve into the cask.
By the time we had secured our booty it was noon, and we recovered from
our fatigue over a cup of coffee and maize cake, then we went back to
the spot we had started from and followed the swarm to the small
affluent, where we found the bees in another old plane close to the
prairie. We also robbed this tree; it was even richer than the first,
and contained layers of honey probably fifteen years old, the oldest of
which were nearly black. When we had finished this job our two casks
were full, and the bucket loaded with quite fresh comb.
Evening had arrived, and the bees had collected in a dense mass on a
branch of the felled tree. We held an open sack under them, shook them
in, and then rode back to the first tree, whose colony we also took. We
returned home with our sweet stores, emptied our sacks into two hollow
trees, and placed them on a scaffolding near the fort. The honey was
conveyed to the storeroom, and the wax melted and laid by when cold in
plates. The Indians keep their honey and bear lard in fresh deer hides,
which they slit as little as possible in skinning; they cut off the neck
and legs, sew the openings up very tightly with sinews, fill the skin,
and close the last opening in the same way, into which they thrust a
reed and squeeze the honey as they want it through the latter. The honey
keeps in this way very well, and is easier to carry on horseback than in
hand vessels. We employed the honey in every way sugar is used in the
civilized world. We sweetened our coffee and tea with, it, employed it
in cooking various dishes, in preserving fruit, such as grapes, plums,
mulberries, &c. In a word, it fully took the place of that expensive and
hardly procurable product of civilization, and could always be obtained
in such quantities that we never ran short of it. When hunting in the
neighbourhood we very often found bee trees, which we marked in order to
plunder them as we wanted.
Our table was now enriched by a fresh delicacy which we enjoyed during
the winter months: it consisted of wild ducks and geese. These birds
visited our river at this season in great numbers, and spread in flocks
over the water. The very lofty banks, the numerous sharp turns, and the
insignificant breadth of the stream rendered it extraordinarily easy to
kill heaps of these birds in a short time. I usually took with me two
guns and a man with a pack horse, who followed at some distance and
placed the dead birds on the saddle. I followed the steep river bank,
every now and then creeping down to the incline, and could then see from
one bend to the other where the birds were resting on the water. I
generally contrived to creep through the wood exactly over this spot,
without the birds perceiving me. I then whistled, while holding the
muzzle of my very large gun over the bank, and the birds in their fright
drew closer together. Then I sent a charge of shot among them, and fired
the other right among the rising flock. Then I took the other gun and
sent the contents of both barrels after the flying ducks or geese. I
frequently shot in this way twenty in one flock. The remainder generally
joined the next flock farther down the stream. Trusty and some spaniels
accompanied me on this chase and fetched the shot birds.
Most of the ducks and geese that visited us were very like the European,
though rather larger; both are very fat and well tasted, which is
probably caused by the splendid acorns they find among us. We generally
carried a whole load home, from which we merely cut the breasts, legs,
and livers, and boiled them into a jelly.
One afternoon, when Tiger had ridden off at an early hour in pursuit of
game, I took my gun to go after geese down the river, which I heard
croaking from the fort: I went out without calling a dog, and ran down
to the water; I passed the garden and the ford, where the river winds to
the north in the wood, and went into the bushes in order to approach the
geese, which I had seen about a hundred yards farther on. All at once I
heard something like the footfall of a horse echo through the forest on
the opposite side. I listened, and convinced myself that I was not
mistaken. Tiger had gone southward in the morning to Mustang Creek, and
I could not imagine how he was now returning from the north. I lay down
among the bushes, so as to keep an eye on the ford: the noise drew
nearer, till a mounted Indian appeared on a path on the opposite side,
who stopped there and looked cautiously around.
After a while the Redskin crossed the ford, ascended the opposite bank,
and taking his long rifle in his right hand, he led his horse into a
thick bush about forty paces ahead of me. There he fastened it up, laid
his rifle across his left arm, and shook fresh powder into the pan from
his horn. What could the Indian intend, and to what tribe did he belong?
These questions occurred to me simultaneously with the suspicion that he
might probably have hostile designs. My gun was loaded with not very
heavy shot, but it carried as far as the Indian's rifle, though it did
not kill so certainly. I had, however, some slugs in my hunting pouch,
and while he was repriming, I, as I lay flat on the ground, pulled out
two of the largest bullets that fitted my gun. I thrust them both into
the barrels, and then slowly drew the ramrod, pressed two paper wads on
the bullets, and returned the ramrod to its place.
During this the Indian had returned his powder-horn to its place, taken
his tomahawk from the saddle and thrust it through his belt, woven
several large leafy branches of evergreen myrtle and rhododendron under
his saddle, so that they concealed the colour of his light horse, and
then, leaving the path, went in a stooping posture through the wood
toward my garden. I cautiously followed him at a distance of about one
hundred yards, bending down close to the ground, continually keeping
behind the bushes and disappearing in the grass when he stopped or made
a movement as if to look round. He seemed, however, only to keep his eye
on the garden, and bent lower the nearer he got to it. Suddenly he fell
into the tall grass between the evergreen bushes, and disappeared from
my sight. Had he heard me or seen me fall down? The point now was which
of us should see the other first. The grass in which I lay was not very
high, but green bushes hung down to the ground in front of me, too close
to be seen through by my foe, but still leaving me sufficient gaps
through which to peep, while the bushes round him were scrubby and the
grass alone concealed him. If he had seen me he would certainly not
remain lying, as he would have the worst of it.
I had raised myself sufficiently to survey his place, and after a while
noticed the grass waving a little to the left of the spot where I had
last seen him. Everything became still and motionless again, and we lay
thus for nearly a quarter of an hour, when I saw the Indian raise his
head out of the grass and look about him; he had not noticed me yet, or
else he would not have exposed himself so recklessly to my fire. He rose
slowly and glided towards the garden; he got close to the fence, which
was made of ten logs placed in a zigzag over each other, and on the
outerside were heaped up the branches of the trees from which the wood
for the palisades had been cut. I had put this up to prevent the
buffaloes and deer from forcing their way into the garden.
The Indian now stepped close to the wall of dry branches, while I lay in
the bushes about a hundred yards behind him. He stopped, looked into the
garden for a long time, and then round the wood; he then stooped and
crept under the brushwood up to the fence, seated himself crosslegged
close to the latter, and laid his rifle across one of the logs. While he
was working his way through the branches and brushwood, I crept on
all-fours nearer to him and remained behind an oak about forty yards
from him. Just as I reached the tree, I broke a thin dry branch with my
hand, and the very slight sound scarce reached the savage's ear, ere he
started round and gazed intently in my direction. I did not stir, but
held my gun firmly, with the determination that he should not leave the
spot alive.
He looked towards me for nearly a quarter of an hour, still trusting to
the sharpness of his ears, when suddenly one of my men, who was coming
down from the fort with two buckets to fill at the spring, could be
heard whistling on the other side of the garden. The Indian started
round, thrust his rifle through the fence, pointed at the spring, and
knelt down behind its long barrel. At the same instant I sprang out from
behind the oak, raised my gun, and sent the charge of the right-hand
barrel between the savage's shoulders; he leapt up, and while doing so,
I gave him the second charge, after which he fell backwards into the
brushwood. I shouted to my man who, in his alarm, was running back to
the fort, and rushed to the Indian, who was writhing in his blood and
striking around with hands and feet. My comrade hurried through the
garden, and clambering over the fence, gazed down at the shot man in
horror. I explained to him in a few words how accident had preserved his
life, as the savage had been lying in wait for him and had his rifle
pointed at him, and I then buried my knife in the heart of the quivering
savage. We took his rifle and medicine bag, fetched his horse after I
had reloaded, and took it up to the fort, where we fastened it inside
the enclosure.
I impatiently waited for Tiger to obtain an explanation from him, as I
feared lest the shot man might be a Delaware. The evening came and Tiger
was not back yet. A thousand suppositions, a thousand suspicions
involuntarily crossed my mind. Could Tiger be a traitor? could the
Delawares have broken their long-tried friendship with the white men?
We drove our cattle in earlier than usual, rode them down to water,
laid our weapons ready to hand, and prepared to oppose any possible
attack. I went to the eastern turret and gazed over the wide prairie,
when I suddenly noticed far on the horizon a black point that seemed
strange to me. I looked through my glass, and to my great delight
recognised the large white spots of Tiger's piebald.
I now felt lighter at heart, ran down and waited for him at the gate. At
length he rode up to me from the last hollow, loaded with deer and bear
meat, and the hide of a small bear, leapt from his horse and heartily
shook my hand. I told him what had happened, and he listened most
attentively. His eyebrows were contracted and his usually pleasant eyes
flashed savagely. He said nothing but "kitchi kattuh," made me a sign to
enter the fort, and when we reached the dining-room where the dead man's
hunting-bag lay, he cried, "Kitchi," placed two fingers of his right
hand before his mouth, so that they seemed to be emerging from it, and
repeated "Kitchi," _i.e._ two tongues. He then led me out of the fort,
when he stopped, and said to me that the false kitchi had laid watch for
him in the garden and intended to take his life, so that the Delawares
might fancy we had killed him and take their revenge on us. It had
indeed gradually grown a custom in the fort that Tiger, when he was at
home, fetched fresh water from the spring before supper, and his
supposition appeared to be well founded; still the unexpected appearance
of one of my men seemed to have turned the kitchi from his original
purpose, because he was on the point of sending the bullet intended for
Tiger through the chest of the latter.
We now helped to hang up the meat brought in by Tiger, and sat down to
supper, when the occurrence naturally became the sole subject of
conversation, and was regarded from every side. We agreed to bury the
Indian, and I went, accompanied by Antonio and Tiger, with a spade and a
cedar-wood torch, through the garden to the dead man. Tiger drew him out
of the brushwood, took off his beads, armlets, and leathern breech
clout, and then dragged him with Antonio's help nearer the river, where
we dug a deep hole and buried the corpse.
We soon forgot this incident, and went on with our winter avocations as
before. We slightly enlarged our field, which was a fatiguing job, as it
lay in the wood, and the bushes grew very close together there. These
and the smaller trees were cut down and piled up round the larger ones,
after the latter had been out into the wood. After they had dried for a
week, they were kindled, which dried the bark of the large trunks, and
thus killed the tree. We then set to work with a heavy plough to turn up
the ground: this operation is always performed twice or thrice through
the winter, before the seed is put in the ground in spring. It may be
asked why we did not lay out our field in the prairie, as we should thus
have saved this labour? The reason is that the prairie soil is
remarkably difficult to plough, because it consists of a black hard
earth, in which the delicate young plants have unusually large roots, as
hard as glass. I afterwards cultivated land of this sort, and at the
first breaking up had six or eight draught cattle fastened to the
plough. Then again, this land, owing to its hardness, produces scarce no
crop in the first year, in the second a very poor one, in third a
moderate one, and not till the fourth a full crop. It is always much
more difficult to cultivate than the forest land, as the heavy rains in
the winter season always more or less restore its firmness, while the
forest soil bears prolifically in the first year.
In the garden we had plenty of work too; the potatoes were laid in beds,
in order to grow the tap roots, which are cut off in spring and planted
out in the field. Then the tobacco beds were put in order, from which
the young plants were transplanted in February. The same plant produces
among us three or even four crops, as we always leave a young shoot to
grow, when the leaves are ripe enough to cut. Then there were vegetables
to sow, vines to prune, fruit-trees to graft; in short, we had our hands
full, and I only went with Tiger away from the fort to hunt bears,
whose fat we were obliged to collect at this time, as it is not nearly
so abundant at other seasons.
One morning I resolved to go to Mustang Creek, and choose a suitable
spot where I could build a carriage bridge across it, as I frequently
had meat to fetch from the prairies on the other side, and I also
intended to make, by degrees, a passable road to the settlements. I rode
away at an early hour, accompanied by Trusty, but at some distance from
home I noticed that Milo, an old bear-finder, was running after me,
which was a bore, as the good old dog, if he by chance hit on a fresh
trail, would be sure to follow it, and I had not intended to hunt bears
on this day. The dog was much too slow and deaf, and I only gave him
food for the many faithful services he had rendered me: I did not care
to ride back, and hence called him closer up to my horse, and continued
my journey.
I soon reached the river and was busy examining the banks, when suddenly
old Milo gave tongue, and had run too far into the bushes for me to
check him. I was sorry, for if the old fellow had a row with a bear by
himself, it would be all over with him. I heard his bark going farther
and farther, and though I felt grieved, I was obliged to leave him to
his fate. After a while I fancied that I heard him continually barking
at the same spot. I listened, and it seemed more than probable that he
had attacked a bear. I must hurry to his assistance, so I rode as far as
I could into the bushes, tied up my horse, and forced my way through the
thicket.
I soon leaped through the last bushes, and to my surprise saw Milo
sitting in front of an old cypress and barking up at it. I examined the
gigantic trunk, and clearly saw on its bark the traces of a bear which
had climbed up it. In the first fork the tree was hollow from top to
bottom, and I did not doubt for a moment but that Bruin was having his
winter sleep in it. To cut down the tree was a heavy task, as it was
above eight feet in diameter, and then, too, it stood among a number of
other giants, against which it might easily lean in falling, when we
should not be able to get at its occupant. I tapped round the tree to
see whether it was hollow far down, but I could not settle the point
satisfactorily, as I had no axe with which to hit hard enough.
I quickly formed my resolution, caught up Milo, carried him away from
the trail, and hastened to my horse, which speedily bore me home. Tiger
was at the river washing deer hides, when I arrived on the bank and
informed him of my discovery: he quickly packed up his skins, ran to his
tent, and hurried to the prairie to fetch the piebald. In less than half
an hour we were _en route_ for the bear, accompanied by Antonio and one
of the colonists armed with axes, while Jack followed us with a large
pack saddle, and Trusty leaped ahead of us. We soon reached the river,
led our horses some distance down it, and tied them up in the thicket;
then we went to the cypress in which our sleeper was. We examined it and
found it quite sound for over eight feet from the ground, but from that
point hollow, and more so on the western side.
We soon raised a framework of thin branches round the tree, on which one
of us was raised by turns, and cut an opening in the trunk at the spot
where the hollow began. While one was engaged in this way, the others
brought up dry wood, which we piled up against the opening like a
bonfire. We then lit it, and ere long the flames crept up the stem, and
the dried bark fell off with a cracking sound into the fire. We arranged
ourselves round the tree at some distance in such a way that we could
cover it pretty well from all sides, and expected every moment to see
the bear quit its winter quarters. We had been standing there, however,
for above an hour, and the gentleman did not make his appearance, though
the smoke was rising from the hollow. The bear probably lay below the
hole, and the smoke passed over it without annoying it.
All at once I saw sparks flying out of the tree, which proved that it
was beginning to catch fire inside. I shouted to the others to look out,
and just after I heard a crash, and with it appeared the black form of a
very old bear between the first branches. The fright and embarrassment
of my gentleman were extraordinary, when he looked down into the fire
under him, and moved backwards and forwards undecided what path to
choose. I had told my men not to fire so long as the bear was over the
fire, but to let it advance on the long branches far enough not to fall
into the flames, which would have deprived us of its splendid skin.
Master Bear had by this time selected a very stout branch and crept
cautiously along it, looking down first on this side and then on that at
the flames, and was on the point of making itself into a ball to have a
drop, when I fired at it, and in falling it clutched the branch with its
claws in order to drag itself up again. At the same moment, however,
four more bullets flew through it, and it came down with an enormous
blow. I ran up with a revolver, and shot it through the head, whereupon
it became quiet. It was one of the finest bears we had killed during
this year, and gave us a large quantity of fat and a splendid skin. We
broke it up, packed on Jack as much as he could carry, and distributed
the rest among our horses. We then went home heavily laden, and sat till
late in the kitchen, busied in melting down the grease, after enjoying
some roast bear ribs for supper.
At times there were slight domestic annoyances. A pig or a calf was torn
by the wolves, a few hen's nests plundered by the racoons, a dog killed
by the snakes, or a horse ran a thorn into its foot. However, up to the
present we had preserved our health, we knew naught of sorrow, and the
thousand passions which civilized life entails, and which become the
source of endless suffering, were entirely lulled to sleep among us. On
the other hand we were deprived of many enjoyments which social life
affords, but at the same time had countless pleasures, which must be
given up there. The hardest thing to me was that I could not obtain
books without great trouble and expense, while events in the civilized
world were more or less unknown to me. At times I received a packet of
old newspapers, whose fragments, however, only helped to render my
confusion worse confounded. To tell the truth, I was beginning to yearn
for a nearer connexion with the world and a little more society.
One morning the dogs barked in an unusual manner, and one of my men ran
up to me and told me that one of my buffalo calves, which I had captured
in the last summer, and of which I possessed eight, had leapt into the
river, because the dogs were tormenting it. I ran down to the river, and
after considerable exertions we succeeded in getting the animal out,
uninjured, but very fatigued. These calves were remarkably tame, more so
than those of our cows, and never went far from the fort. In spite of
their terrible appearance they were very comical; all had names to which
they answered, and caused us much fun. I intended to train them for
working, and to breed a mixed race with my cattle, which, however, only
offers an advantage in meat and size, as the buffaloes yield much less
and worse milk than our domestic kind. It is not possible to produce a
breed between our tame cow and the buffalo, as the cow cannot give birth
to the calf owing to the hump on the shoulders, and almost always is
killed by it; but the opposite breed flourishes and is capable of
further procreation. Buffalo oxen are excellent for work, as they grow
very tame and possess enormous strength; the only fault is that when
they are thirsty, no power on earth can restrain them from satisfying
their thirst. I knew a planter on the Rio Grande, who employed a couple
of these animals, that ran away once with a heavy cart to the river, and
dashed over its steep bank to satisfy their thirst, but he got them out
again all right.
Just as we were taking the saved buffalo up to the fort, the sentry came
to me and announced that five white men were riding down the river, upon
which I went to the turret and saw that the new arrivals were three
white men, a negro and a mulatto. About half an hour later the strangers
rode up to the fort and dismounted at the gate, while the coloured men
took their horses and unsaddled them. A fine looking man of nearly sixty
years of age advanced to me, shook my hand and introduced himself to me
as a Mr. Lasar, from Alabama, one of his young companions as his son
John, and the other as his cousin Henry, of the same name. The old
gentleman had something most elegant and attractive about his
appearance, which evidenced lengthened intercourse with the higher
social circles; over his high bronzed forehead shone his still thick
though silvery hair, while long black eyebrows overshadowed his light
blue eyes, and his fresh complexion seemed to protest against his white
hair. Though fully six feet high he carried himself with the strength of
a man of thirty, and his bright merry eyes proved that his mind was
still youthful. He was an old Spaniard, had settled when a young man in
Alabama, and though the blue eyes contradicted his origin, it was
manifested in all the rest of his countenance. His son John was shorter
and lighter built, with black curling hair and very dark, but pleasant
eyes, a nice looking youth of seventeen, and cousin Henry a young man of
twenty odd, of middle height and narrow between the shoulders, showed by
his auburn hair and grey eyes, that his blood was mixed.
I conducted the strangers to the parlour and set before them a
breakfast, among the dishes being one of duck's breast in jelly. The old
gentleman was greatly surprised, and said that he had not expected to
find anything at my house beyond very good game and roasted marrow
bones. When I treated them to French wine and cigars, and they surveyed
the ornaments of my room, they expressed the utmost surprise at the
amount of comfort they found, and John said that I had everything
precisely as his father intended to have it when he settled here. The
old gentleman now informed me of his intention to come into my
neighbourhood and requested my advice and aid. He had a cotton
plantation in Alabama, but the number of his negroes had increased so
considerably that he could not employ them all on his estate, and must
hire out the majority at very low wages; land was too high in price
there, so he preferred taking up Government land here and submitting to
the privations and dangers of a life on the border. He now proposed to
inspect the land, then return and send on John with fifty negroes, so as
to get a maize crop ready, while he would follow in autumn with his
family and five hundred slaves. I was very glad to have such neighbours,
so I gladly offered him my services in showing him as much fine land as
he wanted close to mine.
My guests rested for a few days and amused themselves with inspecting my
farm and arrangements, and making small hunting trips in the vicinity,
in which old Mr. Lasar eagerly joined. It is true that he shot deer and
turkeys with his large fowling-piece loaded with swan shot, through
which many a head escaped him, and I reproached him for doing so, as I
considered this shameful butchery. He allowed his fault, but said that
no other weapon was employed in shooting where he came from, but when he
came out to join me, he would also introduce the rifle.
After my guests had rested sufficiently, I rode with them over to the
Mustang river, passed through its woods and followed its course
southward to its junction with the Rio Grande. Here we turned back up
the stream, and rode along the forest to our morning track, so that the
strangers had ample opportunity for examining the land on both sides of
the river. Mr. Lasar was much pleased, and at once decided on this land,
as it fully satisfied all his wishes. We reached home at a late hour,
and Lasar was so perfectly contented that he proposed returning home at
once; but I urged him to look at other land to the north of me, for
which tour we made our necessary preparations on the next day. On the
third morning we rode up the Leone to the spot where my border line
crossed it two miles from the fort. From this point to the source of
the river lay very fine land too, although the woods were not so
extensive as lower down it.
We spent the night at the wellhead, and then rode northwards to Turkey
Creek, in which tour we found a great deal of land well adapted for
ploughing, although the smaller quantity would have rendered it better
suited for small settlers. Still the country here aroused Mr. Lasar's
admiration, and he declared that before two years had passed it should
be all occupied by friends of his from Alabama. I reminded him of the
human skulls and bones, which I had shown him at the sources of the
Leone, belonging to settlers murdered by the Indians, who had come from
Georgia, and only enjoyed the pleasures of a border life for a few
months. He said, however, that so many families must arrive
simultaneously as would hold the Indians within bounds. For his own part
he decided on Mustang River, and on reaching the fort again, he rested
two more days with me, which we employed in talking over and settling
everything. On this occasion I proposed to hire of him twelve negroes
whom he could send with his son, for I wanted to begin cotton planting.
He agreed most willingly, as, when he settled, he would require a good
many things of me, such as maize, pigs, cows, fowls, tallow, bear's
grease, &c., and we could deduct their value from the rent. On the third
morning I accompanied my guests some distance and then rode home with
the brightest prospects for the future.
A most unexpected event brightened my hopes for the future even more. A
few days after Lasar's departure a party of seven Comanche Indians came
riding up the river, armed with unstrung bows, and no lances. They rode
up to the fence, and one of them shouted--"Captain, good friend," and I
went out to them and asked what they wanted. One of them spoke English
very well, and appeared to me a Mexican, who had probably been stolen by
them in childhood and had since lived among them. He said that the chief
of all the Comanches, Pahajuka (the man in love) had sent them to ask
me whether he might come and make a friendship with me? He had heard
that I was a good friend to other Indians, and wished me to become his
friend as well. The message greatly surprised me, as hitherto, when I
had come in contact with men of this nation, we had used our weapons. My
first feeling was a suspicion that they wished to effect by treachery
what they had not been able to do by arms: still I would not entirely
repulse them, and said that if they were speaking to me with one tongue,
and desired my friendship, I would readily give it to them; but if they
were double-tongued I would become still more their enemy, and in that
case they would not be able to sleep peacefully in these parts.
I told them at the same time that I should expect their chief on the
next morning, on which their speaker intimated that their tribe were
encamped a long way off, and Pahajuka had sent them down from there, but
when the sun rose for the tenth time he would be here. I promised to
wait for him on the appointed morning, and then the savages rode away
and soon disappeared behind the last hill on the prairie. Whatever might
be the results of the impending conference, I was resolved to make every
effort to produce, if possible, more pleasant relations between myself
and the Comanches, as by far the greater number of Indians who visited
our country belonged to this nation, and the incessant hostilities with
them became the more annoying to me in proportion as my cattle and
property became augmented.
It was now winter, and in addition to our domestic tasks, we principally
employed our time in hunting bears, as I greatly needed their grease on
the arrival of the expected new settlers and could sell it very
profitably. For the sake of fun we also went out singly at night to
shoot deer by the system of pan-hunting, so usual in the Eastern States,
but which I rarely employed, although it is remarkably productive. This
hunt is effected on horseback: the sportsman carries over his left
shoulder a stout stick about six feet in length, to the upper end of
which a frying-pan with a high rim is fastened. In this pan he lays some
small-cut pieces of pine-wood, which, when kindled, burn for a long time
with a very bright flame, and allow him distinctly to see every object
for a long distance, while himself seeing nothing of the fire behind his
back.
Deer, antelopes, and other animals when they see the moving fire, hurry
up to it in order to satisfy their curiosity. The hunter can see the
animal's eyes glistening at a distance of eighty yards, while he is
scarce visible himself. He rides nearer up to distinguish the body more
clearly, but generally contents himself with the eyes, which he takes as
his mark, and discharges his rifle at them. Owing to the light which
falls from behind on the barrel and the back of the sight, a most
careful aim can be taken, and as a rule you can ride up to within thirty
or forty yards of the animal. Even after the shot I have seen the unhit
animals only run a few yards and then stop curiously, so that I have
been able to give them a second barrel. Over the horse's hind-quarters a
large wet blanket or hide is laid to protect it from the sparks or coals
that might fall out of the pan. It is the easiest way of killing game,
and in places not thickly covered with wood this mode of hunting
promises an extraordinary charm, through the wondrous illumination which
the fire produces on the green, flower-clad foliage. A whole forest may
be depopulated in this way, and hence I regard it as quite unworthy of a
true sportsman.
For all that, we now and then went pan-hunting for the sake of the fun,
but never shot till we could plainly distinguish the animal, which
prevented any butchery. In the old States, where people only care about
killing the game, this mode of hunting is almost exclusively employed,
and in those regions where game still exists, you rarely enter a
planter's house without seeing a pan behind the door. Very frequently,
though, in those inhabited districts, the nightly sportsman is
disagreeably undeceived by the yell of agony from his own steer, mule
or horse, which he has attracted from its pasture by its fire, for the
flashing eyes do not tell the nature of the animal. I remember going one
night on foot, with the pan on my shoulder, round my field to check the
deer, which were doing great damage to my beans. Suddenly I saw a pair
of large eyes gleaming before me which slowly approached and constantly
became larger and more fiery. They came slowly along the fence to me,
and seemed such a height from the ground that I could not imagine to
what fabulously large animal they belonged. They stopped, but I did not
know whether at a distance of twenty or fifty yards. I fired, heard
something dash across the field, and the eyes disappeared. The next
morning I went with Trusty to the spot where I had fired, and we soon
found a dead lynx, which had come toward me in the darkness walking on
the fence. In those parts, where the cattle graze at liberty, this sport
is consequently most dangerous, as you run as much chance of killing
your best horse as a deer or tiger-cat.
We also had great fun this winter in destroying the wolves, which we
pursued in every possible way, as they were very dangerous to my cattle.
The easiest way of killing them is poisoning with strychnine, but I did
not employ it near my house through fear of hurting my dogs. For this
object we always rode some miles away, threw a fresh deer-paunch on the
ground, and trailed it after us by a long rope. Thus we rode past the
wood out into the prairie, where we pulled up the paunch at a spot which
displayed little grass, and then scattered the little lumps of poisoned
meat. This was always done in the evening, and on the next morning we
rode back to the spot, where we found the dead wolves lying about, which
rarely went a hundred yards from the spot where they devoured the meat.
It caused us greater pleasure, however, to capture them in traps, a
quantity of which we always had set round the fort. They were made in
the following way:--Four stout posts were driven into the ground,
forming a square of about four feet, and inside of them other longer
posts were laid till they formed walls about three feet in height: we
then drove four more posts into the angles of the walls, and fastened
them securely to those outside. In these chests we placed a flooring, so
that the captured animal could not escape by scratching up the ground,
and on the top of the cage a cover, weighed down in front by large
stones. The other end of the cover was fastened to the trap with very
strong withes, and the forepart was raised, a prop was placed under it,
which fell at a slight touch, and caused the cover to shut. At night we
trailed a fresh deer-paunch from a long distance to the trap, threw meat
in, then dragged it to the next trap, and so on till all were baited. We
caught a great many wolves in this way, which we often took home alive
and let the dogs hunt them to death on the prairie. In order to take
them alive out of the trap we used an iron fork, which we struck into
the ground over the wolf's neck, and then pressed its head down till we
had fastened its feet. It is remarkable what an innate dislike dogs
entertain for these animals. Frequently when I had killed one of them,
whose skin was not worth taking home, I merely cut off its nose and
threw it on the ground near the fort, upon which all my dogs gathered
round and kept up the most fearful barking for hours.
At length the day arrived on which the chief of the Comanches had
appointed his visit, and at about 7 A.M. three of these savages came up
to the fort to inform me that their leader was encamped half-an-hour's
distance off in the woods of the Leone, and expected me there. I asked
Tiger's advice, and he advised me to ride out, as the Comanches meant
honestly. I therefore saddled and rode, accompanied by Tiger, one of my
colonists, and Trusty, out to the Indians, and told them they could ride
on and I would follow. We soon reached the spot where Pahajuka was
encamped, and I noticed to my satisfaction that only a squaw and a
single man were seated at his fire.
I dismounted, left my man with the horses, and walked up to the chief,
who now rose and folded me in his arms twice. Then his squaw came to me
and evidenced her friendship in the same way. Pahajuka was a man of
about sixty years of age, of middle height, plump, and possessing a very
pleasant, kindly appearance. He was entirely dressed in deer-hide, had
very fine beads round his neck, and in his raven black hair he had
fastened a tail of plaited buffalo hair five feet in length, on which a
dozen round silver plates, four inches in width, were fastened. He wore
this tail hanging over his right arm, and it seemed to me as if this
ornament was only worn on solemn occasions, as I never saw it again,
though I met this savage frequently. The squaw was a powerful, stout,
extremely pleasant matron, who appeared to take a great interest in
establishing friendly relations between us. She was very talkative, and
the interpreter could scarce keep pace with her tongue.
After the first explanations why they desired my friendship, the squaw
fetched several sorts of dried meat in leathern bags, spread them on a
buffalo hide, and begged me to take the meal of friendship with them.
Tiger, too, sat down, and my other companion was obliged to do the same.
It tasted very poor to us, whose tongues were spoiled by the culinary
art; still we did our best, and the same with the pipe, which Pahajuka
sent round afterwards. When these forms had been gone through, the old
squaw packed up her traps again on her mule, and mounted it, while the
chief seated himself on a similar animal, which was of very rare beauty.
We now rode, followed by the Indians, to the fort, where the latter
camped outside, while Pahajuka and his squaw sat down in our parlour. I
had coffee and pastry served up to them, both of which it seemed they
had taken before, and they disposed of them heartily. Then I gave them
both a pipe and tobacco, and then the conversation began, in which the
interpreter's services were greatly called upon. They told me that
before I came into these parts, the Comanches had always been able to
sleep here quietly, and their children and cattle had grown fat; but
since I had been here, their hearts had always beaten with terror, and
they were unable to sleep at their fire at night. They now wished to
make peace with me, and when they came to me, carry their weapons into
my house, and fold their arms, so that their cattle might graze in
peace, and their children grow fat.
After this affair had been long discussed, and all possible assurances
of friendship given on both sides, I turned the conversation to my
guests, and heard that Pahajuka was supreme chief of the whole Comanche
nation, and his wife a person of importance in all consultations. The
old lady was very sensible and really amiable. She moved with a great
deal of gracefulness, and was constantly in the merriest temper. She
laughed and joked with her husband as if she were a young girl, and if
he reproached her for it by a serious look, she turned laughingly to me,
and asked me if she looked so old as not to be allowed a joke? At dinner
the two old people behaved very properly, although they could not quite
manage to eat with a knife and fork, and frequently helped with their
fingers. They enjoyed everything excessively, and said they would take
with them a bit from each dish. I was curious whether they would sleep
in the fort or prefer the camp of their people. The evening came, and
after we had supped, and food had been given the Indians outside, I
prepared a bed for the old couple in the parlour, put up two tallow
candles for them, and told them when one was burnt out to light the
other, as candles delighted them uncommonly. Then I intimated to them
that I always closed the fort at night, as they must tell their Indians.
They were quite satisfied and lay down on the unusual bed, laughing and
jesting.
I chained up all the dogs during the night to prevent any disturbance of
the peace, and was awakened at a very early hour by my new friends
rapping at my door. They had both slept famously, and assured me that
ere long all the chiefs of their nation would come to make friendship
with me, and wherever Comanches lived, I could now ride and lie down to
sleep in safety. The old people had something so honest in their manner,
that I no longer doubted the truth of the sentiments they expressed; and
though I never carelessly trusted to the honesty of isolated Indians of
this tribe, the assurance of the couple was confirmed, and I was never
again engaged in hostilities with these people.
My guests remained three days with me, after which I dismissed them with
numerous trifling presents, consisting of articles of clothing, coloured
handkerchiefs, tobacco, a couple of blankets, small hand-glasses, &c. I
accompanied them on their first day's journey, slept with them that
night, and then took leave with promises of a speedy meeting. Afterwards
they visited me regularly several times a year, and as they had
predicted, all the tribes of their nation came in turn to make peace
with me, and their example was followed by others, such as the
Mescaleros, Kioways, Shawnees, &c.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]