Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-01-05

was to proceed by land. Instructions were
given to kill every man, woman and child
in the tribe-for that is the Mexican way
of doing things. But the soldiers finally
returned with report to the effect that
they had not been able to find any of the
Indians. OF course, the fact was that they
did not try to find them, being too afraid
of them
so it came about that 1 went into the
country of the Serbs with a very small
party, consisting. besides myself, of Mr..
Dinwiddie of the bureau of ethnology, a
young Mexican engineer named Alvemar-
Leon, white driver and one Papago inter-
prefer. We went to the rancho of certain
Senior Encinas, who is very remarkable
man. as may be judged from the fact that
he has kept stock farm in the territory
or these bloodthirsty savages for many
years. During that period he has maintain
ed himself in warfare against the Serbs and
has finally compelled therc to cease hostil-
tiles against him. At present the old man
Is about eighty years of age and nearly
blind from cataracts in both eyes, but he
is feared and respected by the Indians.
while life is made terror by the latter
Tor all other rancheros in that part OF
Sonora.
Policy of Reprisnl.
Senor Encinas was the pioneer in that
| region. He found good grazing countrs'
in the territory claimed by the Serbs, and
so established his stock farm there. He
savages, and caught a couple of the lat
ter to educate as interpreters The plan
for clvilizng the Indians proved a failure.
They did not care to become Christians,
and they killed the senor's stock. So, final
ly. the senior decided to adopt a new course
Oh procedure. He summoned the Indians
to council, as many of them would
come, and informed them that from that
time on he and his vaqueros would Stay
an Indian for every head of cattle that
he ha
away the priests and engaged an addi-
tioral number of vaqueros.
1.-The Indians paid no attention to the
warming A few days later they killed
senior and his men corraled and killed
corresponding number of the Serbs. Then
there was war. The savages made am
bushes, but they had only bows and
rows and the vaqueros fought bravely with
their guns Every ambush turned out dis
astrously for the Indians. Finally, the
Serbs mace great ambush, and there was
battle which resulted in the killing of
siXty-five savages That lesson proved suf-
fcient, and the IndiarS We're glad to con-
clude permanent peace, agreeing that
no further depredations against the senior
or his property should be attempted. From
beginning to end the fighting lasted for
ten years.
After the killing of the two Americans
last spring the Serbs were very much
afraid of reprisals For good while
they did not dare to come to the ranch
of Senior Encnas. At length one old wo-
man came for the purpose of seeing if she
would be killed. She was we'll treated and
went away. Eventually confidence was re-
stored. and, when l reached the stock
farm about sixty of the SavageS were
visiting on the premises. l succeeded in
cCnciliating them to some extent by Civ
ing them a lump of sugar apiece, and
some of them consented to sit for their
photographs. l paid 10 cents to each male
sitter and 20 cents to each woman. One
man had sick wife. and asked me to
prescribe for her. l did So but the senior
told me that l had made a big mistake.
Ii the woman got better, it was all right.
But if she grew worse, or storm should
come up, or anything else out of the or
binary happened, the Serbs would leave in
body and 1 would have no further oppor-
tunity to study them. Fortunately the
health of my patient improved
They Eat Carbon.
mo other people in North America have
so few conceptions of civilization as the
Serbs. They have absolutely no agriculture
AS we'll as I could ascertain they never
put a seed into the ground or cultivate
plant. They live almost wholly on fish,
| water fowl and such game as they kill on
the mainland. The game includes large
deer, like our blacktailS. an eXquisitely
graceful species of dwarf deer, about the
size of a three-months fawn, peccaries,
wild turkeys prairie dogs, rabbits and
quail. They take very large green turtles
in the Gulf of California. Mesquite beans
they eat both cooked and raw. The mes
quite is small, spreading tree, that bears
seeds in pods.
''These Indians are fond of carbon 1t
makes difference to them whether a
horse has died a natural death a week or
a month ago: they devour the flesh greed
lily. The feet of the animal they boil until
those parts tender enough to bite. The
Serbs are among the very dirtiest of saw
ages. Thor habits in all respects are
filthy. They seem to have almost no
amusements. though the children play with
very rude dolls. Before the whites came
they used pieces of shell for cutting in
strumants. I ought rot to forget to say
that they are accustomed to catch deer
by running and surrounding the animals
No traditions worth mentioning appear to
exist among them. The most interesting
ornament l saw worn by any of them was
a necklace of human hair adorned with the
rattles of rattlesnakes."