The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1901-1903, 1902-12-14

Indian habits and Indian tactics and
throughout the fight danced around
from spot to spot hoping to make a
difficult target Of himself exactly in
the manner Of the ignorant reds them
selves who felt safer when moving
about, not knowing that to q white
shot there is after all little difference
whether a target move or stand still
SO long as it presents reasonable
mark. BY the way it was in that fight
that I was shot here through the
check. The missile just grazed me but
laid part of the cheek open to the bone
IS neatly as if cut with surgeons
knife.
In 1858 l had worked up the line
to captaincy ana was then with the
frontier battalion of state troops with
a headquarters camp at Deer Fork on
the BRACES. The Comnaehes had been
particularly active. They would swoop
down en- the white settlements ana
after working stealthily within the
white lines would run off, driving sto-
len stock and killing and burning all
within range. So we decided to give
them dose of their own medicine
and we took a wagon loaded with SO
rangers, followed by similarly load
ed one and about a 100 friendly
Tahuahuacan Indians.
I'VE camped that evening, conceal
in
Our enemy, the scouts reported. were
hunting buffalo, and their camp was
just few miles ahead. We moved
during the night. and at daybreak
came within sight of the Comanchs
lodges. Eighty of these We counted,
which, allowing four male fighters to
a lodge, brought up the lighting force
to something like 800 braves. Just at
sun up a hostile Indian on horseback
appeared and at once excitement
broke loose among my own Indians,
and they yelled and gave the whole
scheme away, for the solitary rider
of course, heard them. Tie Tahuahua.
we could keep the rangers as q sort
of surprise Then we charged, rails.
ing the Texas yell and bearing down
ON the Comanches like a living ava,
lanche. The fight proved one sided.
About those days the mere veil OF tho
rangers was enuogh to strike terror
to the heart OF a small band of Indi-
ans, and here though the enemy was
in sufficient numbers to make resis-
lance there seemed a thousand rang
ers the way they We're spread out The
Comanches cut and ran. deserving
everything and spreading fanlille SO
that it was impossible almost to fol-
low any one band. So we decided to
come back, having slain more than SO
of them. All about us we could make
out Indians skulking at a safe distance
in the hills. and we were just ready to
proceed 10 proper looting OF the
place to recover stolen goods when
second and much larger outfit of In
dams hove UP out of nowhere and pre-
pared to give us a fight.
Zone huge Indian on the opposite
side dared any Indian on our side to
come out to fight him single-handed,
and five Of the rahuahuacans went
down in single combat before we
turned the rangers loose. After all, the
fight made was more spectacular
than bloody The instant the rangers
were. released the Indians fed for dear
life. and only those that blundered in
to range were killed or dropped.
But | think III have to ask you to
leave, young man, said the old colo
mel kindly When | get on my favor
tie topic there is no telling where III
stop. and / have work to do this morn
ing. It's like living life over again 70
rehearse the stirring days Of the pas,
and-what time good lively insnr-
ance agent could have had on the
plains in those days working on 10th
sides-re and white and hustling
policies back to New York - Kew
York Commercial Advertiser.