Arizona republican., 1901-04-01


 Grief was rampant and universal. The grim reaper had been strictly impartial and each home mourned over an open grave.
 It was shortly after the chiefs re- turn that 1 unwittingly intruded into the village. Asakeeta approached in humble attitude. He was broken and bruised in spirit.
 Me broken winged eagle now all same" he said, striving valiantly to overcome the quaver of pain in his voice. Me leadum young men to slaughter an glut the birds and CO., votes with flesh of braves. Me stickum sharp knife of sorrow In the hearts of my women. They callum now long time and no hear the sweet voice of bucks no moreno more tall. They gone-gone-an' wife she sittum her door at night lone, watch-watch- many moons watch-nobody come out black shadow-nobody tall. She putt tum her ear to ground. all same brave an war path. she hearum no step hearum nothin-nothin tall.
 "Now me want die. Me heap sad that's plenty. Me live too long already now Me go noder country mebby so me catchum some more sense. Great Spirit mebby so he 'pitty Asakeeta- makum big chief gin
 I determined to visit the battle ground so pushed on up the trail and through the forest toward the enchant- ed mountain. Suddenly I was startled to see a human form hanging from the nt,h .fa h,ro mir I cnnnngad | had discovered an example of border jus tice. and went to cut down the victim with th,, intention of giving 1t burial. The mans back was toward me As drew near I was surprised not to see the rope. but a closer inspection show ed the man hanging by his own hair. Was this another Absalom?
 It was the wolf trapper sarcastically called "Gentleman John" As recog- nized him he opened his eyes.
 | "Wall. l reckon yo' got me sure" he began. weakly, before l had recovered from my astonishment. Faint no use t argy. Jest yo cut me down an I'll tell yo whar he is hid
 Where who's hid?" I asked.
 "Ole Graham, a-course. Don't yo' spose I know what you're sneakin' round here fer. Don't know but I've treated tn ole man kinder mean, but twas his own fault. Never seen sich a contrary critter in my hull life. He'd ruther die n give up, SO I jest kep' i'm. But why daon't yo' cut me daown? Think I'm comfort'ble up here?"
 How did you get up there?" asked.
 "Blamed hoss run away: got scared at some 'paches. They must a been skeered too. tn way they $ beatin' time floss run under this ere branch n my hair got ketched n Is pulled outer tn saddle s derned slick it 'ud a made yo' snort"
 After had cut him down, and he was somewhat refreshed I demanded imme- diate fulfllment of his promise.
 Towards noon of the following day we halted by the precipitous side of a deep and narrow canyon, like great crack in the earth. It was so narrow one could almost leap it, and SO deep the sun could chase the shadows from Its bottom only an hour or two each day.
 My guide stepped confidently over it's ragged edge at a point that appeared as perpendicular as the side of a house. His foot settled on a narrow ledge pro- iecting from the sandstone wall. This ribbony trail zigzagged, doubled on it. self and circled and looped in the era ziest of tortuous paths to the far-away rock-strewn bed.
 It took us an hour to descend, and then a rapid walk of four hours more brought us to an abrupt stop before a perpendicular wall nearly five thousand feet high. There seemed to be no pos sible way of egress without balloons or wings tO assist in scalin gthe height.
 The old trapper smiled at my troub- led expression, then lifted a fiat stone from the ground, disclosing a round hole some two feet in diameter. Aided by projections on the sides We clam. bered down this hole some ten feet tc ,, the bottom, when my guide lighted a , rude candle made of bears grease ant . a flannel rag. The dim light from thu
 candle disclosed long, narrow Assure smooth as glass, leading away into tn, , solid mountain. This Assure had beer
 hewn out cons ago by the rush of migh
 ty waters seeking an outlet to the sea. A long shaft of light finally strucl , athwart the glazed walls, followed b! , others in quick succession, until tn
 passage was flooded and the darkness , driven back on itself.
 We emerged at last into the full ligh of day, and stood upon a terrace abou , eight feet in width which ended ab , ruptly in gulch about five hundred , feet deep. This new canyon, or gulch
 was much wider than that by which W, had entered, but scarcely more than mile in length, where it ended as ab , ruptly as the other. At the far end O
 this canyon the wall rose much higher !, possibly reaching an altitude of sever !. thousand feet This was a true "bo' canyon." with no possible inlet or out
 let. other than the narrow Assure b.
 which We had entered.
 A spring seeped from the cracks il the wall at the bottom, crept disconso , lately along for a rod or two and thei . buried itself in the gioating sand.
 This canyon was shaped much lik
 the fguie eight. the walls coming yer!
 close together near the middle, leaving
 passage not more than forty fee !, wide. At this point the long-hairec maniac had built a culvert some fou . feet wide and twelve feet high. Ther
 was a hole in the middle of the bridg on q level with the canyon, which coul' l. n n nv