Sharp County record., 1903-07-10


told me ill later, | MAS already surs
that be had never been in the states.
but he was so keen for Information.
80 ambitious for work, SO apt in
grasping ideas, that / never could
make up my mind to believe that he
had any Indian blood in him.
When lcft him that time his mind
was fully made up to go prospecting
for asphalt, and sorry as | felt for
him, couldn't help hut admire the
splendid optimism which seemed 10
surmount all his strange i'll luck and
lead him always on to new enter
prises. | gave him two or three ad-
dresses, where letters might reach
me during the next year, and prom
ised in case hp should find cOnsid-
cradle deposit of asphalt, to rcjo'n
him, and if possible unite with him
in the business Of acquiring leases
and developing the property.
| was in Pittsburg late that sum
mer, when | got letter from Baflin.
dated at Ardmore, in the Chicltasaw
country, telling me that he had found
a great and hitherto unknown depUS-
IL Of asphalt in the black hills above
T0iln, ari seven miles TO the north
west by the trail. 1t was nearly six
weeks later, after a days mean rid
ing, that | got well up into the rocky
hills into which the trail had led me.
had pack mule, besides my saddle
pony, for / didn't know how Batiin
was situated, and Lad stopped with
the intention of frying some bacon
for my dinner when | heard rife
shot sound ACROSS the valley, reyer.
herating against the nigh rocks with
a roar that fingered like recediuc
thunder. locked about and at last
SAW Bafiin standing ON n point of
rock far above me, his rifle ON his
arm and eyes searching across the
deep canyon called his name, and
was astonished to see him drop fiat
on his face like a man pursued, ami
peer over the edge of his hiding.
place,
scrambled into my saddle and was
soon within speaking distance of him
He came out with a glad smile, but
| noticed that there was hunted
look in his wide, black eyes. and some
nr ha iru al III Il
had not noticed before. lie asked
me if | had heard che shot. "Of
course" said |, what were you shoot
ing at7' But he said that he didn't
shoot at all, that it was somebody
else, and SO led me up the narrow
passageway between the rocks tin
we came into little clearing at the
top, l saw that he had built 9 good
shanty there, and | also saw that the,
old sGuaw was yet with him, f0r She
was sitting there by the front door
rs II doing in the westering sum
light.
But l was not prepared for the
sudden change that came over Rafiin
when he saw her. With an awful
oath he stopped me, and when !
looked at him his face was ashen
and his fiery eyes were fixed upon the
old hng. was afraid he was liz,
and asked him. but he said no, and
then, becoming quite calm, he sat
down on shady rock and said:
Ibid you ever hear that story, what
you might call legend, about the
massacre OF the Tonkawas?"
l thought 1t a queer, irrelevant
question, but / sat down and said
had not.
"I never believed it," he resumed
and never heard it before, but Ia
rather you heard it from me than
from someone else. 1t is said that
in the old days the Tonllawas ate
their prisoners. They were cannibals.
as you can them. 1t must be lie,
But the ApachCs and the lowas, as
well as the Comauchcs, wish to be-
hcve IL. don't know how long age,
but some time when the Tonkawas
were at war with the C0ruanchcs.
they stole baby from the Comanche
village that was in the West Cache,
near the foothills of the Nashita,
and cooked it for the Tonkawa chief.
1t was two nights later that 6JO III
owas ard Comanches fell upon the
Tonkawa camp in the rock gorge Of
Bloody mountain and massacrcd the
whole tribe. Whey slew and bmrmcd
tIl there was mot Tonkawa hi;,
and when they had counted the
scalps they knew that every fighting
man was dead, But when they came
hack into the valley they found that
one woman and her baby had es-
capped"
There were tears ia his eyes when
ne looked across the sunlit clearing
toward his shanty, and, pointing his
big, brown hand at the old squaw,
said:
There she sits. She was the last
of the Tonkawas, unless can be
called Tonkawa."
"You?" | said, not understanding;
but he went on: "She was my moth.