The herald., 1893-09-10
HOW WOOLSEY FOUGHT APACHES,
Characteristic Stories Of an
Arizona Pioneer.
He Used Indian Tactics in Fighting
Savages.
His Stronghold was Pow-wows-The
Deadly Eject of strychnine
Mixed With Pinole
Meal.

Yuma Times: All the old residents
OF Yuma county, and in fact Of all Ari-
zona, knew King SIS. Woolsey, who set
tied at Aqua Caliente long before the
war. Many OF them have fought Apaches
side by side with him. and have under
his leadership followed the thieving
bands with their stolen stock into their
very strongholds in the csfions OF the
mountains. Many stories are told OF bis
prowess as fighter and his ability as
trailer and frontiersman, and the case
of the Pinole treaty will be easily re-
called to the recollection of those in the
territory at the time. The affair be-
came matter of history, because the
Indians were 80 badly outwitted, and be-
yauee it broke forever the power OF one
of the most inhuman branches OF the
Apache nation. 1t also raised howl
among the long-haired philanthropists
of the east, because they understood
that in that fight men. women and chill
dren of the redskins met the same fate.
Whether or not Woolsey's men killed
women and children | am unable to say,
but it lie well-known fact that the wo-
men of the Tontos handled rifle and
spear with as much dexterity as their
more masculine companions, and there
is not q case on record where these In
dams spared one of the white race on
secount OF either sex or age.
At this time do not think thc~s is
man in the territory who was liz that
fight, and there are only two or three
living, but Mrs. Woolsey, now Mrs.
Frank Baxter of Phoenix, often heard
her husband relate the particulars of
the battle and its disastrous ending to
the history of that branch of the Indian
nation, and from her the facts were OBJ
tanned.
All through the civil wRr, and in fact
from the time the whites began landing
in the neighborhood of Weaver and
Antelope Hill, the Tonto Apaches per-
sisted in keeping up their stealing and
murderous brutality. They had long
been at war with the Yavapais. who
lived at that time in what ia now Ysva-
pal county, and had almost exterminat-
ed the latter tribe, 30 they ran across
that county when they pleased, killed
such people as they could find unpro-
tected, and drove all the stock into their
eastern strongholds, the location of
which was then unknown to the whites.
Finally Walnut Grove, Weaver, Verde
and all the outlying settlements were go
harassed that the inhabitants either
had to leave or drive the Indians out.
Prior to this time Woolsey had made a
treaty with the Pimas, the hereditary
enemies of the Apaches, by which they
were to make common warfare against
the common enemy.
Woolsey was called upon to organize
and lead the expedition which was to go
into the Tonto basin and either annihi-
late the Indians or give them such
threshing that they would avoid the
white settlements thereafter. With
about 60 white men, all mounted, and
100 Pimas on foot they set out to follow
a band that had raided the Verde settle
ment the night before. They headed
for the Tonic basin and of course
the whites were unable to overtake
them before they reached it. though
their intention was to give them fight
in their own natural fortress.
On the morning of the. fourth day out
they came near one of the Indians tenn
porary camps and had some talk with
them. They denied stealing the stock,
said they did not have it in their pos
session and professed much friendship
for the whites. In numbers they were
so much stronger than Woolsey's band
that the latter decided it was best to
treat with them. Thinking that by
showing much strength they could OBJ
tain better terms, "big talk" was ar
ranged for the next day. Woolsey mis-
trusted that the palaver was only to
gain time, and behind it all lay Indian
treachery and prepared accordingly.
The Tonic chief was to be accom-
panied by 25 of his tribe, unarmed, and
Woolsey was to have like number.
Before it was light, on the morning they
were to meet, the whites and Pimas
were all posted in ambush where they
could get a raking fire over the pow
WOW ground, except 10 who were to ac-
company Woolsey and email number
to keep up appearance in camp.
At 10 O'Clock the two parties proceed
ed to the place agreed upon. All the
Indians present had weapons concealed
under their garments and the whites
soon discovered about 400 more lying in
caionss and arroyas back of the place of
meeting. This convinced Woolsey of
treachery he had suspected before, but
he was equally sure that they wanted to
gain time for some purpose, and he
determined when ready to pay them
back in their own coin and strike the
blow first.
The men who accompanied him were
armed also, though they kept the fact
concealed, and at signals from him his
line OF ambushed followers drew closer
and closer, until, protected by the brush
and rocks, they were within few yards.
All the while he had been giving the
Indians presents, and they had together
been eating OF the meal of the mesquite
bean, called pinole; hence the name of
the fight, or treaty, as it WAS supposed
to be.
About l O'Clock Woolsey saw more
Apaches arriving, and thinking that the
time to strike had come, he gave his
men the signal previously agreed upon,
and from only few yards distant they
poured in fire that swept every Indian
off the hill. At the first fire the eoldiers
left in the camp came to the assistance
of their friends, and altogether the
whites with their rifles and the Pimas
with their bows and clubs met the
charge of the Apacbes, who had to ad-
vance some distance from their ambush,
with such slaughter that they turned
and fed up the basin. seeking shelter
behind rocks and bushes like band OF
hunted rabbits.
The pursuers kept up the chase until
nearly night, killed over 200 Apaches
and recovered much of the stolen stock.
They then retraced their way to the set
Elements, but the power OF the Tontos
was broken, and they never troubled