The times., 1899-10-01

| 10 Steep Win ner pistol by her side
with no companion but faithful dog. in
an old adobe in the heart of a hostile In
dian country; to lie in her clothes night
after night, while her husband watched be-
side her. rifle in hand, ready for attack
10 know that within rife shot there were
1900 Indians armed with Mausers who
might make an assault at any minute; to
be stuck all night in a small river steamer,
hung up on a sand bar, between banks OF
| which the red men were committing hour
ly depredations-such has been the expe-
| rience of Mrs. w. w. Percival, of this city
She accompanied her husband to the lit
tie town of Potam, on the Yaqui River,
in the state of Sonora, Mexico. some ten
months ago. 1t was their honeymoon trip.
| Mr.. Percival had accepted a contract TO
manage a flour mill owned by wealthy
Mexican at Potam, and as there was no
thought of danger from the Indians at
that time he took his wife with him.
Potam is short distance below Guaymas.
| The latter place they left in a small steam
er, which makes the short stretch down
the Gulf of California TO the mouth of the
| Yaqui River, or which Potam is situated,
! about ten hours inland.
| When the Percivals arrived the Yaquis
and Mexicans had been at peace over a
year. They had signed treaty of peace,
the Indians had been given Mauser rifles
and stores of ammunition and $500 a man.
and there were no indications of the war
now raging in and about Sonora. But the
Indians were disconnected; they had the
same old story to tell about the seizure OF
| their lands and the breaking of tie articles
of the treaty. They took counsel among
| themselves; their rifles and ammunition
were counted up, war dances were held,
strongholds in the adjoining mountains
were fortified, and finally, on July q last,
came the outbreak which precipitated the
war.
| Mrs. Percival was in Potam at the time.
Her experiences We're such as fall to but
] few American women in these days. Her
! tale reads like one from the sto-y of some
| pioneer. The shots and shouts OF the saw
! age Yaquis disturbed her waking hours
| and pursued her in her dreams. When the
dangers increased her husband insisted on
her return to civilization. Size went three
| leagues overland from Petam to a place
called the Medano, where she boarded the
small steamer that took her to Guayrnas.
Only a short time before the Indians had
captured launch at the Me3ano and mur-
dered it's occupants; they also overlook
and killed parties on the Potam roa1.
1t was with no little trepidation, there
fore, that Mrs. Percival undertook her trip
! home. Her anxiety was increased shortly
after leaving the Medano, when the steamer
grounded on a sandbar and stuck fast. For
tunately she escaped without mishap, and
reached Guaymas in safety. She arrived in
San Francisco few days ago, and is now
with her mother, Mrs. A. Buckelew. Mrs.
Percival shows the effects of her brief resi-
dence in the Yaqui country. She has lost
much iiesh and looks weak, and i'll. But
that she is a brave little woman, her mod
estly-told story testifies:
N;.aI, Dot
months ago. she said. 1T was our we'd
ding trip. He had good opportunities Of
fered him down there IN the flour mill
business, and SO we went. Potam has about
LOCO inhabitants. 1t is situated on the
bank of the Yaqui River. a narrow stream
that runs into the Gulf of California, a
short distance below Guaymas. Across the
river-not more than half a block away-is
a Yaqui pueblo. There were about l 900
Indians when l arrived, but when l left
there were fully 5000.
THE Indians own all the best land along
the river. 1t is very rich, for the stream
overfiows it's banks and gives the land am
pie irrigation. Anything will grow there.
The Indians raise wheat mostly. Before |
left l heard some talk Of a raising
project, in which English capital was in
terested. But while the Indians have rich
land and are able TO raise two crops year,
have TO depend upon irrigating wells for
the rainfall is insufficient for the crops.
The trouble between the Yaquis and the
Mexicans arose from the seizure of the
rich Indian lands by Mexicans who squat
ed on it, and from the confiseation of In
dian cattle.
ION July 21 young man named Lau-
rencito Torres, the nephew of General Tor
res, of the Mexican army was across the
river in the Yaqui settlement On business,
when he was attacked and murdered. His
body was terribly mutilated. When his
friends went to look for him the Yaquis
shouted that they had killed him and ad-
ded Come over and eat him..
THE Indians were, OF course, plainly
visible from our side of the stream. We
heard their tom-toIns beating and their
fierce shouting.
LAS soon as news of the murder became
| known the town was at once put under
guard, and so it remained up to the time 1
left, on August 10. Fontes. who was
mayor, chief of police, and everything else,
issued arms and ammunition to everybody
who asked for them. He also impressed
lot of men and posted them around the
| town and along the river as guards They
were paid 60 cents a day.
THE patrol was maintained day and
night. All people living on the outskirts
of the town packed their beds and bed
ding and moved inside to get within pro-
lection. There were 900 soldiers in the
cuartel under Colonel Martinez, but not
one was turned out to guard the town.
That will strike you as curious, OF course,
but they do strange and euriosu things in
Mexico. The soldiers in the cuartel were
all convicts. They are called Pieone, to
distinguish them from the Nationales, or
volunteer troops. These convict troops are
never let out alone. Why, every day be-
fore the trouble, they were taken out in
dividually and given drink.
During the excitement | was taken
sick. l suffered greatly from the heat
which is simply terrific. l tried TO get
some OF the Mexican women to wait on
me. but, do you know. though they were
nearly starving, they refused to become
servants / could get woman TO- a day
or two, but no longer. They won't take
orders. Besides, all the Mexicans in Potam
are terrible towards.
Being unable to get any of the women
to stay with me and my husband being on
duty at the flour mill all night, slept all
alone in my abode when | was sick. | had
dog and a pistol, but it was a very un-
ting frightened but | must confess / was
somewhat uneasy. Afterward | S, ept in
the mill. Everybody went 10 bed with his
or her clothes on. My husband was on the
cot beside rae, and his rife AMI pistols
were within easy reach. The Indians were
only across the river ali this time their
numbers were constantly increasing, and
we could not tell when they might attack
the town When ! went to Potam there
were only coo indians there When | left
there were fully 1900 Yaquis across the