El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-01-18

In the spring of 1882 I was in COM
maud of six troops of the Fourth Unit
ed States Cavalry in the field. on the
line of the Southern Pacific Railroad,
between the stations of Separ and
Lord sburg, In the Territory OF New
Mexico.
Word had come to us that the rene
eade Apaches in Mexico were known
t. be contemplating a movement that
might and probably would eventuate
in their trying to enter the Apache re-
servation at San Carlos, Arizona, and
compel the reservation Indians to
break and go back to Mexico with
them. This the authorities wished to
prevent; consequently we lay close to
the border-line and kept watch and
ward along the Mexican frontier as
we'll as we we're able. for it is q line OF
country easily crossed, and there 1s no
difficulty in q lone Indian scout keep
ing an eye on IN organized force, un-
seen by it, and at night h%urrying back
to warn his war party to ware danger;
AND the Apaches are all good scouts,
and, as past masters in the art of de-
ception, something more. For some
years prior to the date of which 1 write
the White Mountain Apaches had
been waging q desultory but bloody
warfare upon the ranchmen OF the
Territories of New Mexico and Ariz-
ons and SO many times had they ap-
parently accepted peace, only to break
out again into open hosti!ities at the
first favorable opportunity, that the
e~xasperated settlers almost unanimous
ly demanded their extermination; and
from their standpoint much could
have been said to justify such an K
IRENE measure. Cruel, crafty, wary,
quick to scent danger, equally active
to discover q weak or exposed place
within his reach, tireless when pur-
sued. patient in defeat. and merciless
In success, always seeking the maxim
um of gain at the minimum of risk, the
Apache was we'll named by the late
General George Crook "the tiger of
the human Species"
Reckless to temerity in pursuit of q
flying foe, should his enemy turn at
bay, his pursuer instantly sought COW
or, and took no avoidable risk for
to bay himself, he gave no evidence of
fear. and dying like . warrior, only
ceased fighting at his last gasp.
An Apache, once having shed the
blood of q white man, whether in
battle, in a foray against the ranchers.
the capture of q stage-coach or freight
ers' train, or by the cowardly murder
of some lone prospecting miner, SEEM
ed to develop an unquenchable desire
"P A
forward grew moody, restless, and I'M
easy within the limits Of his reserva-
tion, and sooner or later disappeared
from it, and joined the renegades who
in the times I write of roamed at will
among the rugged Businesses of the
Sierra Madre Mountains from twenty
to fifty miles within the borders of old
Mexico. This range Of mountains
varies in width from forty to one hun
dred and sixty miles. and in places is
almost entirely uninhabited. From
the comparative safety of this vantage
ground the renegade Apaches patient
ly waited an Opportune moment to
move quietly up to our line, avoiding
the few Mexican mountain towns and
outlying ranches and well-known
trails, rarely or never following or
even crossing q beaten path, but creep
ing through the unsettled stretches of
the mountains and ~traversiug the in
~tervening valleys at night, concealed
themselves well up in some canyon in
the mountains, within striking distance
of the border, and lay concealed, rest
ing, and waiting the return and report
OF their individual scouts; then cross
ing our border at night, they halted in
unfrequented spot till early
dawn, when, stealing closely to some
lone ranch, they lay In ambush until