Latest / Story of Geronimo / 12 - Story of Geronimo by Jim Kjelgaard

Transcript

12 - Story of Geronimo by Jim Kjelgaard · Story of Geronimo

• 0:01
  Speaker 1: Chapter twelve of the Story of Geronimo. This is a
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: librevox recording. All Libravox recordings are in the public domain.
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: For more information or to volunteer, please visit librevox dot org.
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: Reading done by Jules Harrelic. The Story of Geronimo by
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: Jim Cagilgard. Chapter twelve, Flight into Mexico. The lowering sun
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: scorched Camp Goodwin, the United States Army fort on Saint
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: Carlo's reservation. But despite the sun, Geronimo had been sitting
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: near the fort all day, as he had sat for
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: the past six days, with an Avajo blanket draped about
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: him and his fastest pony near at hand. He wanted
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: the Indian agent at Camp Goodwin, a man name Hoge,
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: to become accustomed to his sitting, thus, so that Hog
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: would pay no attention to him. On this seventh day,
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: plans that had been more than a year in making
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: were at last as perfect as they ever would be.
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: Swift action lay ahead. Geronimo's blanket hit a Winchester repeating
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: rifle and bullet filled belts. He watched a little group
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: of apaches, all mounted, riding southward. Nobody else paid any
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: attention the group might have been going hunting or wood gathering.
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: Geronimo returned his attention to Camp Goodwin. Two Apache chiefs
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: named Loco and Nana, with most of their people, were
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: gathered near the building. They all knew that Geronimo and
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: another leader, Woa, were about to make a break for
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: Mexico with sixty warriors and one hundred and sixty women
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: and chill. Loko and Nana wanted to be sure that
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: the agent could see them near the fort and know
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: that they were taking no part in this break. Geronimo
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: wanted to make sure that neither chief told Hoaje of
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: the forthcoming flight. If there was any sign that they
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: intended to betray his plans for escape, Geronimo would shoot them,
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: and Loco and Nana both knew it. Planning the flight
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: had not been easy, and when the plans were made,
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: it had been necessary to choose the right time for
• 2:34
  Speaker 1: the break. It would never be a better one than
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: this afternoon. Many of the soldiers usually stationed at Camp
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: Goodwin were away. Some were campaigning in New Mexico, some
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: were hunting outlaw Apaches who had been reported near the
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: Arizona Mexico border. Woa had left early this morning to
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: wait in a dry wash some miles to the south.
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: All day long, Apaches had been quietly drifting out to
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: join him. They intended to start just before dark, so
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: that they would have all night before the soldiers still
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: in Camp Goodwin could take their trail. Geronimo's eyes narrowed.
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: Loco and Nana and their followers had done nothing, but
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: the man named Sterling, chief of San Carlo's police, now
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: rode up with some Apache policeman. Had someone betrayed the
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: careful plans, or had Sterling intended to bring his Apache
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: police to Camp Goodwin. Anyhow, the sun told Geronimo that
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: it was a little past four o'clock. He rose, still
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: keeping the rifle hidden under his blanket. He walked to
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: his pony and was preparing to mount when the man
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: named Sterling shouted, hey, you wait, Pretending he did not
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: know that he was being addressed. Geronimo did not look around.
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: Sterling shouted again, I mean you, Geronimo, stop or I'll shoot.
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: Geronimo sprang to the saddle, dropping his blanket as he
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: did so. Sterling's rifle cracked, and a bullet sang close,
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: leveling his own rifle from the back of the already
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: running pony. Geronimo flung a shot at Sterling. He bent
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: low on his pony's back to make a smaller target
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: as bullets from Sterling's Apache police whistled past. Then he
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: galloped over a hill and was hidden. Geronimo raced into
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: the dry wash, where the rest awaited him. All the
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: warriors were on foot and holding their horses. The women
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: and children were mounted, and some of the women held
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: tightly to babies not yet old enough to ride alone.
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: Most children, often with three on the same pony, managed
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: their own mounts. Woa, an Indian so big that he
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: dwarfed the wiry little pony he rode, came to meet Geronimo.
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: What news do you bring, Woa, asked Geronimo said, The
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: man named Sterling came with his Apache police. He shot
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: at me, and I shot at him, but I do
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: not know if I hit him. The soldiers must know
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: soon that we are gone. Come The warriors, mounted, with
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: a an advance and rear guard, and scouts on either side. Men,
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: women and children rode on at a fast trot. Night
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: fell and they were safe until the sun rose again.
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: But sunrise might find soldiers hot on their trail, so
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: there could be no thought of sparing horses. The only
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: sleep they dare allowed themselves was such snatches as might
• 5:52
  Speaker 1: be had in the saddle. From time to time they
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: nibbled a bit of the parched corn or jerky sun
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: dried beef that they carried in pouches. With daylight, Geroniuo
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: reined in on top of a hill and looked behind him.
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: There were no soldiers in sight, and no cloud of
• 6:12
  Speaker 1: dust to indicate that they were coming. Geronimo turned and overtook. Woa.
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: Nobody comes from the rear, he said, But we shall
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: be in trouble soon. Our mounts reel from weariness. Yes,
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: Woa grunted. Neither said more. Both had known that they
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: and their people must travel fast, and both had also
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: known that their horses and ponies could not run all
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: the way to Mexico. They did not know yet what
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: they would do when the animals were played out. Some
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: apaches were asleep in the saddle, and now the fastest
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: must suit their gait to the slowest. A pony stumbled,
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: almost went down, then found his balance and pounded on. Suddenly,
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: Geronimo pointed ahead and exclaimed, look, Usain has smiled upon us.
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: A long pack train with some horses and mules bearing packs,
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: and many more running loose, was making his way up
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: the valley. Knowing how to get the last burst of
• 7:22
  Speaker 1: speed from his tired pony, Geronimo whooped and sped to
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: the attack. He began to shoot as soon as he
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: was in range, and he heard the rifles of the
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: rest of the warriors blasting behind him. The white men
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: and Mexicans with them were outnumbered six to one. They
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: fired a few hasty return shots and spurred out of danger,
• 7:47
  Speaker 1: leaving their pack train and loose horses behind them, Letting
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: the fleeing men go. Geronimo rode in ahead of the
• 7:55
  Speaker 1: frightened horses and turned them. The warriors surrounded the herds.
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: There was a quick exchange of saddles and bridles, a
• 8:04
  Speaker 1: swift rummaging through all the packs for priceless rifles and bullets,
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: and most of the apaches rode on. Freshly mounted, Geronimo
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: returned to the top of a hill for another look
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: at the back trail. He could see neither soldiers nor
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: the telltale dust cloud to indicate anywhere coming. Geronimo hurried
• 8:26
  Speaker 1: to catch Woa no soldiers are near enough to cause
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: trouble from the rear, he reported, So rather than go
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: on at full speed, it would be wise to ride
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: these fresh horses at a pace they can maintain. Wise, indeed,
• 8:43
  Speaker 1: Woa said, but let us not forget that some soldiers
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: are elsewhere, and even now maybe returning to camp Goodwin.
• 8:52
  Speaker 1: We must be alert for whoever approaches from the front.
• 8:56
  Speaker 1: Geronimo said, you speak wisely, Alternately walking and trotting their mounts,
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: they rode steadily towards Mexico that day. They stopped only
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: long enough to let the thirsty Apache horses drink from
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: a water hole. A herd of range horses was already
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: drinking there, and they took those horses with them when
• 9:21
  Speaker 1: they went on into the night. They traveled and stopped
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: again for two hours at another water hole. The horses
• 9:30
  Speaker 1: drank and grazed. Some of the weariest people slept. Geronimo,
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: who often had been afield a full week with only
• 9:39
  Speaker 1: such sleep as he could get in the saddle, climbed
• 9:43
  Speaker 1: a hill to look for danger on the back trail.
• 9:47
  Speaker 1: The next day, riding as advanced scout, Geronimo saw soldiers
• 9:52
  Speaker 1: coming a moment before they saw him. There were two companies,
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: about sixty men of the fourth Cavalry, and they were
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: directly in the path of the Apaches must follow. Geronimo
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: waved his rifle as a signal that enemies were sighted,
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: and the warriors whooped to join him. This was Apache country,
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: a land in which they were familiar with every rock
• 10:18
  Speaker 1: and crevice, and to the west was a bypass around
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: the soldiers, driving the loose horses at full run. The
• 10:26
  Speaker 1: women and children raced toward that bypass, yelling but not
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: shooting because they had no bullets to waste. The warriors
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: swooped down on the soldiers. It looked as though they
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: intended to have a hand to hand fight with them. Again,
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: Geronimo could not help admiring American soldiers, who never ran
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: as Mexicans so often did, but always stood their ground. However,
• 10:55
  Speaker 1: the Apache charge was a trick. Suddenly, the racing Indians
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: swerved east towards some rocky hills. They rode up a
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: narrow cleft, the only one around which horses could climb.
• 11:10
  Speaker 1: The soldiers shot, but the range was so long that
• 11:13
  Speaker 1: they hit no one. Reaching the summit of the cleft,
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: the Apaches took their horses behind some rocks, where they
• 11:21
  Speaker 1: would be safe from bullets. Then they scrambled back to
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: take up positions in the rocks themselves. The soldiers launched
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: a spirited attack, but they could not advance under the
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: withering fire reined down upon them. They retreated, reformed, and
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: attacked again. The Apaches shot slowly and carefully, for they
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: wanted neither a fierce battle nor close quarter fighting. Their
• 11:49
  Speaker 1: only purpose was to delay the soldiers until the women
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: and children had had time to reach a place of safety.
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: Two hours after the soldiers first open fire, the Apaches
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: began to slip away. Each mounted his own horse, and
• 12:07
  Speaker 1: each took a different path to rejoin the women and children. Finally,
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: only Geronimo and a dozen others were left. They fired
• 12:17
  Speaker 1: at the soldiers and drove them to cover in the rocks.
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: Then all the remaining Apaches rose and ran to their horses.
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: On their next attack, the soldiers took the hilltop. There
• 12:29
  Speaker 1: was not an Apache left to resist them, but there
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: were sixty different trails that led in sixty different directions.
• 12:38
  Speaker 1: Forty eight hours after they had left San Carlos, the
• 12:42
  Speaker 1: Apaches crossed the Mexican border and were safe in the
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: Sierra Madre Mountains end of chapter twelve,