In the bosom of the Comanches; (1912) (14597678538)

Identifier: inbosomofcomanch01babb (find matches)
Title: In the bosom of the Comanches;
Year: 1912 (1910s)
Authors: Babb, Theodore Adolphu, 1852- (from old catalog)
Subjects: Comanche Indians Frontier and pioneer life -- Texas Indian captivities Wise County (Tex.) -- History
Publisher: (Dallas, Press of John F. Worley printing co.
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: Sloan Foundation



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arily leavethem behind. In this way the horses became scatteredall over the country. I recall one instance when theUnited States troops captured a band of Indians that hadan unusually large number of horses, and the officers incharge gave orders to kill most all of the horses in thepossession of the captured Indians. In executing theseorders the troops rounded up and killed on this particularoccasion about two thousand horses. During my compulsory sojourn with the ComancheIndians I was not permitted to accompany them on anyof the raids into Texas, but they were glad to have me asone of their warriors on raids into Mexico, and on suchraids I accompanied them twice, each raiding partyconsisting of about seventy-five men. In each exploitthey secured a considerable number of horses, and on thelast raid we killed seven Mexicans and captured twoMexican girls and one boy. These children ranged in agefrom eight to ten years, and were still with the Indians as In the Bosom of the Comaxches 117
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Daughter of Chief I abernanika. now lives near Fort Sill. 118 In the Bosom of the Comanches captives when my release from them was effected. Spacewould not pennit me to depict and relate the circumstancesof the many harrowing Indian massacres of which I hadknowledge during the dark days of the Indian depred-ations, but I will relate one instance, terrible in its crueltyand unusually pathetic in many respects. This particularinstance was that of the massacre of the Russell familythat took place in the year 1868, some four miles south-west of the location now occupied by Chico, Texas. Mrs.Russell was a widow that with her four children had livedalone for several years. She had three sons, about twenty-one, sixteen, and ten years of age respectively, and herdaughter, Martha, was eighteen years of age. In theattack from the Indians all were killed including themother, except Bean and Martha. Bean was absent atwork as an employe of a United States government saw-mill about ten miles from h