Sharp County record., 1903-07-10
The Last Of
theTonkawas
By JOHN H. RAFTERY.
ITO BEGIN at the beginning, must

y
Of Sylvester Bafiin until | met him. In
deed, heard Of him quite accidentally
at Chickasaw, where Tom Pepper, one
Of the old-tme "drummcrs" - he's
dead these six years-told me what he
knew, or rather, what he didn't know,
about Baffin. 1t was in the old days
before the government was half ready
TO open up the Kiowa and Comanehc
country, and the few travelling men
who got into the traders had TO drive
IN by wagon. The Rock Island WAS sur
veying think, but there wasn't q mile
pf road west Of the Chickasaw line.
The case that Pepper made out
against Baffin came pretty near being
the prize hard luck story, with Baf-
lin as the victim. Batfin was trader
in those daysS and might have pros
pered if he were not eyerlastingly
"burnng out" What struck me as
singular was that, in spite of the nu-
merous fires which followed his wan
derings, Baflin never carried any in
surance, never whined over his losses,
snd never computed his debts. But
tire was not the only cause Of his mis-
fortunes. Whenever he bought few
cattle they would get string-halt or
manned on somebody's barb wire
fence, IL he put out crop u herd
qf ponies was sure to invade and de-
stroy II. Ill luck, according to Pep
per, seemed TO follow Ballin, till every
white man III the reservation except
himself believed tina, the young trader
bad enemies among the Indians.
\ However as l was looking for
trade, and had a mind to prospect bit
In the Wichita hills, put down Baf-
tn's address and set out on horseback
for Cloudchief, near which Ba tMn was
then running n small post. His place
was about four miles up the dry fork
of the Washita river, and there found
him one March evening about an houv
before suhdowh. In spite OF the de
scriptSons Ia had OF him, was n little
surprised to find him such splendid
booking fellow. He was sitting on "A
keg in front ot his log house, smoking
his pipe and gazing at me steadily as
came slowly out OF the bare timber.
When l got into the clearing he stood
up, the shadow OF smile lowering
across his swarthy face, and said:
"How do, sir. Won't you come in?"
lie was very tall, more than SIX feet,
bis hair and eyes we've very black and
brilliant; he wore thick, dark mus-
tache, and though the evening wa.
cool. he was in his shirt sleeves. A
true frontiersman, he said very little,
though he was hospitality itself and
seemed glad 10 hear me talk. I'm
quite sure that took u great fancy TO
him from the start, and thi1k he
liked me, because he finally laps ed into
an almost talkative mood and told me
few Indian legends of extinct tribes
which l cannot rememt-eY having
heard anywhere else.
was going to bed before he asked
PIE the rather singular question, Did
You stop in any ComaNche villages ON
your way up?" and when said no. T
thought he seemed rather relieved.
We slept in the store that night. | ON
. bale Of coarse duck that made very
good bed, and he on the counter with
his head on a bundle of brown wrap-
ping paper. The only other occupant
of the house was an old Indinu souaw.
very withered and very silent. who
seemed to carry on the simple house
keeping pretty much as it suited her.
l went away In the early moyning,
after coarse but wholesome break.
fast, and n rather cordial hanashake
from Baffn. After three profitlcss
days Of prospecting came back 10
find that the log house IN which
had so lately bsen guest had been
burned in my absence. Nothing buf
few mounds Of yet smoldcrjrr
ashes marked the place. Hafin was
gone, nor was there any trace of life
at hand. In Cioudchief asked about
him. but nobody knew more than tina.
he had been hnrne,i out during the
night. and that he had bought "a cart
from some Wichita Indians and start.
ed for the Canadian river country. I
net him twice after that vt Taloga
once at WatronPa, but though
got along famously together, lie
Ays evaded any questions abont
misfortunSs. He had given up
any idea OK trading FOR the future,
and at that time showed extraordi-
nary interest in mining, | told him
all knew, warning him Of the pre-.
carious chance Of fndiKg any consid.
cradle mines ih the Wichita, where
u had so often failed but advising him
to turn his attention to coal or oil or
even to asphalt, indications of which
had found in many accss sible locali-
ties.