Apache Campaigns - Fort Huachuca - U.S. Army

98
the dead scouts, which had followed us, after I had taken my carbine and knocked a little
sense into them, telling them to go to Lordsburg, and then I picked out a good position on
which to build rifle-pits, when suddenly the young Mojave scout called my attention to some
Indians running towards us through some mesquite-bushes. We first thought them hostiles,
and were about to fire, when, to our delight, we saw that they were some of our own Indian
scouts.
The old medicine-man, our oldest Mojave scout, was almost paralyzed with fear, and
as the six scouts reached us he made the sign dead and continued to talk to them for a few
seconds, and then these scouts, who had come to our rescue on hearing the firing, went all to
pieces with fear, and began running around in the wildest excitement. Seeing that it would not
take many seconds for them to become demoralized beyond control, I set in cursing roundly
and abusing them for cowards, telling them to fight and kill the Apaches and not behave like
squaws. Suddenly the largest Indian stripped off his blouse, and, naked to his gee-string,
ejaculated, in stentorian tones, “I fight and kill Apache Chiricahua!” Instantly the others
seemed to come to themselves, began to strip for battle, and in another moment were building
rifle pits at the places pointed out to them, with all possible energy. This big Indian told me
that the command was away from the mountains, well out in the plain. I then mounted Quaday-lay-thay-go
on Jumping-Jack, our troop race horse, which I had with me, and told him to
find the command and tell General Forsyth our situation and bring the troops to our aid.
Then I rearranged my Indians in their rifle pits and had them build me one.
Meanwhile the hostiles, having despoiled and mutilated the bodies of the dead scouts,
brought them out to where Yuma Bill lay dead, and building a hot fire of dead amole-bushes,
proceeded to have a wild dance around the roasting bodies of their enemies, occasionally
running towards us, yelling and taunting us, and daring us to come out and fight them. I
made a little speech to my scouts on the folly of being scared, and told them, holding up a
single cartridge, that in case the Apaches attacked us after their dance, I wanted them to make
sure each cartridge told on one of their enemies. I wound up by saying that I believed I could
whip off the Apaches myself, and ordering them not to fire unless I should get up and run
towards them, I crawled out 300 yards towards the Apache high carnival, and lying under a
low-spreading mesquite bush, very quietly and cautiously laid up a low breastwork of flat rock
that was lying near me. Presently two Indians rode out from the group, which was not a
thousand yards from where I lay, to a point 800 yards from our rifle pits, and began pointing
at them, talking and gesticulating, evidently about us. Raising my sights to 500 yards, I took
deliberate aim at the one sitting still, looked up at the sky to see that my vision was clear, and
once more scanned my sights, and seeing that I still held my gun exactly on him, I pulled the
trigger slowly and steadily. A puff of smoke, a sharp report, and an Indian leaping up out of
the saddle with a bounding motion similar to that of my three scouts killed at the big rock was
the result, while the other one wheeled his pony and ran back at full speed, followed by the
pony of his companion. My scouts saw him fall out of the saddle, and set up a perfect din of
ear-splitting war-whoops as I walked back to them. In the meantime we could see a great
commotion and excitement among the hostiles. As we could as yet see nothing of the troops,
the scouts seemed to have made up their minds that Quah-day-lay-thay-go had either been
ambushed or run away, and begged me to take the corporal and bring up the cavalry,
promising faithfully that if attacked they would defend themselves from the rifle pits, and not
retreat and be shot down like a band of antelope. The location of the rifle-pits was a good
HUACHUCA ILLUSTRATED