Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1895-01-12
THE BOULDER WAS ALIVE.
An Apache Trick That Nearly Cost u
Courier His Life In ArizOnu.

An Apache Trick That Nearly Cost %
Courier His Life In ArizOnn.
"Talking of Indians and their strata.
gems" said ID. A. Marston, lately Of the
United States cavalry. to New York
Sun man. they are past masters of the
arts of skullking and dcceiving. An
Apache will lie behind u soapwccd OH
the open prairie. and you may ride past
two or three hundred yards away and
never have an idea that there IL II red
skin within fifty miles of you. unless he
pass the soapwced he works his body
around so rs to Keep 1t always In line
with the plant AMI you. Even on the
open prairie. with 10 more shelter than
that afforded by some little inequality
of surface. he will sift dust over his
body. ilattcn himself out. face down
ward. against the ground, ana, lying
rs motionlcss us stone. will escape
the observation Of any except sharp
and pructiccd eyes. Sometimes. In u
grove of cactus or Spanish bayonct, his
buckskin garments blending with the
hucs of the plants. his face ana neck
concealed by the head of Spanish
bnyonet. he will stand like Il post. indis.
tinguisliable to the inexperienced eye.
even at close quarters, from tho gro
tcsque plants about him. A queer OK.
perlencc of this kind occurred to me In
my service In Arizona during Gen.
Crooks last campaign against the
AnuHtna Tam Nn,.,,t,. - snS
and myself were detailed to carry dis;
patches from Camp Bowie to Camp
Grant, up on the Rio Bcnito. II was II
dangerous service ut that time, and We
had to keep u sharp lookout and be
ready to fight or run ut moments no.
tlcc, for there was no knowing ut what
point on the route the Apachcs might
not be lying In wait to jump MS rs We
came along. We were on our return to
Camp Bowie and had just crossed the
wooded canon where the cold spring IA
ana were coming out upon the open
prairie that stretches down to the San
Pedro River when through the branch
cs of low tree ! saw what took tn be
an Indian on the plain. about II half
mile ahead. But on squirting my horse
forward SO as to get a better look moth
Ing was to be seen but the bare prairie,
with no sign of man or beast upon its
eNpansc. AS We rode along ] spoke Of
the matter to Tom. who laughed at
what he called my scare. which he said
caused mo to see imaginary Indians.
We came opposite low, gray boulder
upon the prairie 200 PAGES or SO from
the trail.
~ don't remember ever to have seen
that rock before said Tom. who had
been over the route several times. How
In the devil did 1t get there? I'll ride
over and take a look at It! And he
refined his horse and rode toward the
object. l followed him, a few yards
behind.
Ellis horse had scarcely taken dozen
steps when the seeming gray rock
moved slightly upward and there came
from Its lower edge fash ana report
with the scream Of big caliber ball
that Tapped Toms coat with Its wind
and caused his horse to plunge so sud
denly that Tom. one of the best riders IN
the troop, not being on the lookout fol-
such Il happening, was thrown. At the
same instant an Apache lcapcd from
beneath the gray blanket that had
served him to masquerade rs Il boulder
and ran like deer for the canon, leap
ing to left and right rs he went to avoid
the shots that Tom and sent aftcr hin
from our repeating carbincs. We knock
ell up the dust about his feet ana mad,
him do some tall lodging to the whist
ling of our bullets. but that was all. fOl
we didn't hit him. To have chase,
him would have been folly. first. be
cause we We're bearing dispatches II
haste and needed the last ounce of TO
serve force In our horses. and. secondly
because with the start he had we SHOULD
not have Overhauled him In his run fol
the canon, into which we could not hav,
followed him. So We took the tral
again ana rode our way with another
wrinkle added to our experience of In
dian trlckery ana cussedness."