The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 86, July 1982 - April, 1983 Page: 61
616 p. : ill. (some col.), maps, ports. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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A Woman's View
dians, acting as guides.23 As the Col. desired it I went forward and
looked at the brave red man, but knowing their desire for light haired
scalps I kept at a good distance from them. Not finding plenty of water
at Rock Springs we came on 15 miles farther to this station. "PegLeg"
The Prairie seemed covered with the holes of the Prairie dog, and
these little rat like creatures would sit by their hiding places piping
like a chicken at us as we drove by.2"
About half past three, we arrived here having made a march of
twenty seven miles, and are encamped just on the banks of the beauti-
ful "San Saba" whose banks are covered with a wild and tangled forest,
while the fallen trees and thick undergrowth make it seem as if man
had never been near here-Our Ambulance arrived some little time
before the teams and it was not many moments before Maud, with
shoes and stockings off, was sitting on one of the fallen trees dangling
her feet in the cool clear stream.
We find here very pretty pearl lined shells that seemed as if (in some
mysterious way) they must have come from the far off sea. Wild flowers
grow in profusion among the moss covered rocks, and the trees are
alive with the wild dove-But the picture which presented itself later
in the day, I never shall forget. The day was beautiful in the extreme.
The setting sun threw a glorious brightness up and down the river.
Maud with tumbled hair and brown face, happiness speaking in every
look, still sat bare foot on the bank. The white covered wagons with
their six mules each, were seen winding down the hill among the trees,
while the foremost stood midway the stream watering the thirsty ani-
mals. Above on the bank stood our gallant "brunette" escort25 waiting
2The Tonkawa Indians of Central and South Central Texas were removed to Indian
Territory in 1859, but they were allowed to return to Texas after many of them were
massacred by their Delaware, Shawnee, and Caddo neighbors. Friendly to the whites,
they reestablished themselves at Fort Griffin, and many of the men served as scouts and
guides for the United States army and the rangers. Of the 126 Tonkawas at Griffin in
1872, 24 were employed as scouts. W. W. Newcomb, Jr., The Indians of Texas from
Prehistoric to Modern Times (Austin, 1969), 133, 134, 358, 359; Dayton Kelley, "The
Tonkawas," in James M. Day et al. (eds.), Indian Tribes of Texas (Waco, Tex., 1971),
151; U.S., War Department, Tonkawa Indians at Fort Griffin, Texas, House Executive
Document loa, Vol. 12, 44th Congress, 1st Session, 1876, Serial Set 1689.
24Ranchers and farmers found these small burrowing rodents a nuisance, destructive
of range and grasslands. However, most travelers thought them delightful little creatures,
and many described their colonies or "towns" and "playful antics." See, Webb, Carroll,
and Branda (eds.), Handbook of Texas, II, 405; Walter Prescott Webb, The Great Plains
(New York, 1931), 39-4o. For another woman's description, see Maria Shrode, "Journal,"
Sandra L. Myres (ed.), Ho for California! Women's Overland Diaries from the Hunting-
ton Library (San Marino, Calif., 1980), 265-266.
25The Andrewses' escorts were troops of the Twenty-fifth Infantry, Colonel Andrews's
own regiment. In addition to Lieutenant Landon, the escort included Sergeant John
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 86, July 1982 - April, 1983, periodical, 1982/1983; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101209/m1/81/?q=barker: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.