64. Pesita Is Shot

Long ago, they came to Cimarron for rations. Pesita ¹ and another Indian commenced shooting at each other without the knowledge of the other Indians. The other man was shot in the shoulder with an arrow and was killed. The Ollero came running close to Pesita's tipi from all sides. They shot at each other. Pesita was hit with a musket ball and shot through the thigh. He fell right there. They stopped shooting and the Ollero ran off west to their own country. Afterwards Pesita gave them a good horse and they made friends.

p. 254

They came again for rations and fought with the Americans. One Indian was shot through the flesh of his arm and another was shot through the chest, from side to side. We surrounded the house but the American agent did not want to fight and we did not shoot at each other.

Afterward there was shooting again at the same place. One Indian was killed and another was caught and put in jail. We rode there on horseback. One man rode in front of us by himself. He rode right up where the Americans were in line. When he was near, his horse was killed and he started back on foot. They shot at him. He went slowly but was not hit. He got away from them. We rode up and surrounded them but they did not want to fight. They gave the man they had in jail back to us so we did not fight. When we had gone home the soldiers came to us and made peace.

After that, rations were issued again and the meat was being given out. He gave the bones to two men. One of them struck the Agent with the bone. ¹ They shot him through the flesh of the arm. They shot there inside. Then the Agent ran into his house. After a while, the Agent came out; he had been shot in his hand. They ran toward us and we started toward them. We were going to shoot but they did not attack us.

Footnotes

253:1 A Jicarilla about 65 years old who was the informant for several of the myths.

254:1 This was Juan Julian, at one time a war chief. He was angry because he was given a bone with very little meat on it.