Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1903-10-17

| The bloody events which the yeal
1893 closed on the site OF Santa Fe
had become the signal of partial
but still very formidable uprising OF
the Pueblo Indians of New Mexico
The storming of the Indian village
which the Tanos had constructed on
the ruins of the old palace and over
the Plaza" of the capital of New Mex
leo, the city of Santa Fe, had been a
military necessity. Captain General
De Vargas. in delaying compulsory
measures against the treacherous Ia
nos, only made matters worse. His
leniency towards the Pueblos, while
being fully aware of their hostile in
tentons and warlike preparations,
proved to be great mistake.
The Tehuas, in the several villages
north of Santa Fe, had been repulsed
in their attempts to relieve their kin
dred from the pressure which the
Spaniards brought to bear upon them
during the last days of December,
1893 They had tried in vain to raise
the siege Now that the Tanos were
not only subdued, but nearly obliter-
ated as a tribe, the Tehuas aban-
doned the village of Tesuque, as well
as the Pueblos of Nambe, Pojuaque,
Tacoma, Cuyamungue, San Ildefonso,
and the Tanos settled near Santa
Cruz, twenty-five miles north of Santa
Fe, followed their example. All these
Indians congregated on the summit of
the Tuyo, or what is known to many
inhabitants of New Mexico as the
BLACK Mesa OF San Ildefonso" on the
Rio Grande. There remarkable
resistance was offered to the Spanish
forces in the course of the year 1894.
The Tehuas of the Pueblos of San
Juan and Santa Clara partly joined
the occupants OF the Black Mesa.
Partly they withdrew to the Jemez
region. Of the Queres Pueblos those
of Cochiti, Santo Domingo, and the
remnants of the same stock south of
Santa Fe from San Marcos and the
Cienega (where they had lived to-
gether with the Tanos) scattered also.
The Indians from the Cochiti retired
to the summit of the "Potrero Vie
jo,' seven miles northwest of their
pueblo, the Pueblos of Santo Domingo
joined the Jemez, the Pueblos of Taos
and Picuries remained inactive in so
far as they sent but few reinforce
ments to the tribes near Santa Fe.
Rr1t thov AicnotOho1 fo %
Pecos Pueblos with messages to rise
in arms against the Spaniards. These
runners were unsuccessful in their
OF the distant western pueb-
los like Acoma, Zuni, and the Moquis,
a few young men may have joined the
hostiles, but the tribes as such re-
NAMED neutral or at least preserved
a quiet attitude. Captain General De
Vargas had therefore against him
properly but the Tehuas, Taos, Picu-
ries. Jemez and a portion of the Quer- /
es. Had those pueblos united, they |
could have opposed to the Spanish |
commander and his small forces, at
least one thousand warriors in one
body. But of concerted action there
was no thought. Each group acted in
and thus exposed itself
to the danger of defeat in detail.
Still it must be acknowledged that
the strategy Of the Indians, which con-
sisted in occupying several formidable
defensive positions by small bodies
which could always retreat to the COW
ar of natural fortresses, was by no
means ill-devised. Had Captain Gen
eral De Vargas not possessed auxiliar
es of the same kind as his opponents,
t is not impossible that he would
nave been driven out of New Mexico
or crushed His soldiery consisted of
lot over one hundred and fifty men,
Ind he could place in the field besides,
lbout hundred armed settlers. Had
he hostile Pueblos presented them
selves in one body they would have
tood but slight chance against so
many European warriors who, in addi-
ion to their superiority in fire arms I
# small size, could bring to bear up {
m them six small pieces of artillery. {
n the open field, the Indians un- &
would have been routed and ,
weakened at the out /
et BY compelling De Vargas to take t
he offensive against several positions {
istant from each other, the Indians
to certain extent for !,
heir own weakness by compelling the
panish commander to divide his 5
mall forces. They knew that De Var f
as could not afford to wait, and pa r
ent waiting, in order to gradually ex- a
enuate the foe, is one of the most r
angerous tactics to which the Indian t
vas wont to resort. f
The Pueblo rebels knew that the t
paniards lacked food. AS for them Y
elves they had provided abundantly