The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 29, July 1925 - April, 1926 Page: 263
330 p. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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A Trip to Texas in. 1828
her with him to accompany him to the great buffalo hunting
grounds where they go after death, according to the teachings of
their religion. This is reduced to the worship of the sun as the
creator of all things and to doing no harm to the members of the
tribe. They do all the evil they can to their enemies, and if one
of them falls, unfortunately, in their power they bind him, and
all try to devise the slowest and most cruel way of putting him to
death. Some prisoners they burn by slow fire for several days;
others, they cut piece by piece, applying burning coals to the
wounds; and others they scalp and then put fire on their heads.
They also use other horrible methods. To escape these tortures
an Indian, when he finds himself alone in action and surrounded
by the enemy, fights until he is killed, and only the greatest
superiority of numbers or the weakness from numerous wounds
can overcome him against his will. He is then led in triumph to
suffer the tortures described, but he stands them with the greatest
indifference, thus showing that not the lack of valor but misfor-
tune placed him in the bloody hands of his tormentors. This trait
is common to all warring tribes or nations.
The cruelty practiced by the Comanches and other tribes upon
their prisoners is not used against the Mexicans, who are killed
but not tortured. When in the raids they make they find young
Mexicans, they take them captives, raise them, and permit them
to live with the same freedom as Indians themselves enjoy; if they
wish to marry they gladly allow them to do so, for they wisely
judge that this is a powerful incentive to keep them with the tribe
and thus increase its number. The same desire to increase their
tribe makes the Comanches very considerate of the small tribes
with which they have friendly relations, protecting them, teaching
them their habits and customs, and finally amalgamating them
into their nation. For this reason the Comanches are the most
numerous of those found in Texas.
When they have to go to war at some distance from their camps
or pueblos, they first elect those who must fight, and the others are
assigned to take care of the camp or of the women if they are
going along. The young men who, as a matter of vanity, wish to
take part in the campaign and fight on foot if the occasion arises,
this being considered a very dangerous feat, are assigned posts,
but they are always chosen from among the bachelors. Every-263
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 29, July 1925 - April, 1926, periodical, 1926; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth117141/m1/289/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.