Six Years with the Texas Rangers, 1875 to 1881Gillett, James B.
History
Six Years with the Texas Rangers, 1875 to 1881
Gillett, James B.
Frontier and pioneer life -- Texas; Gillett, James B., 1856-1937; Texas -- History -- 1846-1950; Texas Rangers
Worn out and weary after traveling more than fifty miles on foot and
with not a wink of sleep for thirty-six hours, they made the old stage
stand and found their dummy sentinels still on guard with the faithful
shepherd dog at his post. He was overjoyed at the return of his
masters. At the old adobe station Andrews and Wiswall were in a measure
safe, for they had water and grub and the walls of the stand, five feet
or more high, would shelter them. Since the Apaches had made no attempt
to kill the dog or rob the ambulance, the miners were satisfied that
the Indians, after stealing their horses, had kept on their way to the
Mescalero Agency, near Tularosa. This stage station was on the highway
of these murderous, thieving rascals, who were constantly raiding Texas
and Chihuahua, and in their raids they had made a deep trail leading
north from Crow Flat or Crow Springs, as some call it, toward the
Sacramento Mountains.
After the fugitives had rested they decided they would pull out after
dark and hoof it for Ysleta. The fifty miles' walk over a rough country
had pretty well worn out their shoes, so they used gunny sacks to tie
up their sore and bleeding feet. Again giving Shep his orders, with
heavy hearts Andrews and Wiswall turned their faces to the Cornudos
Mountains, with the next stage station twenty-five miles distant
without one drop of water on the way. They were so tired and foot-sore
they did not reach Cornudos until late the next day. Here they hid in
the rocks, among the shady nooks of which they found cold water and
sweet rest. After several days the two men dragged their weary bodies,
more dead than alive, into Ysleta and to the ranger camp.
Lieutenant Baylor ordered me to take eight rangers, and with two mules,
proceed to Crow Flat to bring in the ambulance Andrews and Wiswall
had abandoned there. The first day we made the Hueco Tanks. Hueco is
Spanish for tanks, and in the early days travelers spelled it Waco.
Many wild adventures have occurred at these tanks--fights between the
Mexicans and the Comanches. During the gold excitement this was the
main immigrant route to California. Here, too, the overland stage route
had a stand. The names of Marcy, General Lee, and thousands of others
could be seen written on the rocks. The Indians themselves had drawn
many rude pictures, one of which was quite artistic and depicted a huge
rattlesnake on the rock under the cave near the stage stand on the
eastern side of Hueco.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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