Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-09-22

civilized warfare to the methods Of
scouting used by the ndian the more
nearly we reach the ideal.
AS an instance of this remarkable
aolllty OF the Indian, we may take the
Apaches of Arizona and New Mexico,
During the various u%prisings of these
WHY. savages which finally eliminated
IN the capture of Geronimo in 1885
riendly Apaches were employed exclu-
sively as the scouts and guides of our
troops. IT is interesting to note their
methods of procedure.
THE Apaches, unlike many of the
more northern tribes, never fight mount
ed, though they are excellent horsemen.
They use their horses merely as a means
OF transportation from place to place.
Q their lighting and scouting are en-
tirely done on foot. This may be ac-
counted for to a considerable degree by
tn echaracter of the country where they
reside. which on account of its rough
ness and barrennesS is not suited to
warlike movements on horseback.
The Apache may therefore be said
to sepresent the Indian type of nifan-
try scouting. On the march the scents
were always up an on the alert before
dawn, for dawn is the time when the
hostile indians were most likely to at
tack
"a peculiar characteristic of the
Apache is that he never wants to be
alOne. and in consequence, If a scouting
party Is ever reduced below three men,
bers. the remainder join themselves at
once to some n~eighboring party. for if
not. n of the remaining scouts might
be obliged to go to the real to report
something he had observed and the other
would thus be left alone.
The scouts would then start out in
parties of three or four. forming a fam
shaped screen o the head of the
shaped screen about the head of the
column, and nothing more would be
heard from them until the site for the
mex camp was reached except when
anything of Importance was noted by
them, in which case one of the scouts
would be sent back to report.
THE scouting would be carried on to
a distance of four or five miles on either
side of the road, and so thoroughly was
1t that nothing would escape the vigil
ant eyes. and yet, withal. they maintain
ed so much secrecy themselves that
enemy. They would pay particular at
tentin to tracks, broke branches, sites
of former camps and anything that
would give them a clue to the where
abouts of the enemy, or the length of
time since he had left.
The Apache gives us the best exam
pie of infantry scouting while in the use
of cavalry for this important duty we
look to his northern brother, the Sioux.
The Sioux, unlike the Apache, uses
his horse for fighting as well as for
transportation, n is probably the best
type of mounted Indian. He is always
wide awake and in feat may be said to be
all eyes and ears land yet he is so care
full of his own ~concealment that he is
never seen.
One of the most remarkable cases on
record of the great vigilance accompanied
by utter concealment of themselves, in
fact, of ideal sci vice of security and in
formation, is given by the Sioux cam
paign of 1876. When Gen. Crook left
Fort Fetterman it is positively known
that there were from 5000 to 10, 1000 hos
march of more than two hundred miles
he did not see a single Indian. while all
of his movements were known to the
enemy"
The Sioux scouts resemble more
nearly a cavalry screen than an ad-
vance guard, for they generally operate
a long distance, sometimes as much as
twenty-five miles. and even more, in
front of the main body, with which COM
munication is maintained by mean of
signals, in which the Sioux are very ex-
pert.
con account Of their faculty for con
cealing themselves the Sioux scouts
usually hover about the flnaks Of The
enemy, rather than in front. for they
arc thus enable to observe more clearly
and certainly his strength, position, i'm
pedilnnta, and other important details.
In scouting the Sioux is never at a
loss for a mode of concealment Of him.
self. He always selects the highest
ground available from which to make
his observations, and pickets or lariats
of the eminence on which he stations