Geronimo Essay, Research Paper

I was born in No-doyohn Canon, Arizona, June, 1829.

In that country which lies around the head waters of the Gila River I

was reared. This range was our fatherland; among these mountains

our wigwams were hidden; the scattered valleys contained our fields;

the boundless prairies, stretching away on every side, were our

pastures; the rocky caverns were our burying places.

I was fourth in a family of eight children– four boys and four girls. Of

that family, only myself, my brother, Porico, and my sister,

Nah-da-ste , are yet alive. We are held as prisoners of war in this

Military Reservation (Fort Sill).

As a babe I rolled on the dirt floor of my father’s tepee, hung in my

tsoch (Apache name for cradle) at my mother’s back, or suspended

from the bough of a tree. I was warmed by the sun, rocked by the

winds, and sheltered by the trees as other Indian babes.

When a child my mother taught me the legends of our people; taught

me of the sun and sky, the moon and stars, the clouds and storms.

She also taught me to kneel and pray to Usen for strength, health,

wisdom, and protection. We never prayed against any person, but if

we had faught against any individual we ourselves took vengeance.

We were taught that Usen does not care for the petty quarrels of men.

My father had often told me of the brave deeds of our warriors, of the

pleasures of the chase, and the glories of the war path.

With my brothers and sisters I played about my father’s home.

Sometimes we played at hide-and-seek among the rocks and pines;

sometimes we loitered in the shade of the cottonwood trees or sought

the shudock (a kind of wild cherry) while our parents worked in the

field. Sometimes we played that we were warriors. We would practice

stealing upon some object that represented an enemy, and in our

childish imitation often perform the feats of war. Sometimes we would

hide away from our mother to see if she could find us, and often when

thus concealed go to sleep and perhaps remain hidden for many

hours.

When we were old enough to be of real service we went to the field

with our parents: not to play, but to toil. When the crops were to be

planted we broke the ground with wooden hoes. We planted the corn

in straight rows, the beans among the corn, and the melons and

pumpkins in irregular order over the field. We cultivated these crops

as there was need.

Our field usually contained about two acres of ground. The fields were

never fenced. It was common for many families to cultivate land in

the same valley and share the burden of protecting the growing crops

from destruction by the ponies of the tribe, or by deer and other wild

animals.

Melons were gathered as they were consumed. In the autumn

pumpkins and beans were gathered and placed in bags or baskets;

ears of corn were tied together by the husks, and then the harvest

was carried on the backs of ponies up to our homes. Here the corn

was shelled, and all the harvest stored away in caves or other

secluded places to be used in winter.

We never fed corn to our ponies, but if we kept them up in the winter

time we gave them fodder to eat. We had no cattle or other domestic

animals except our dogs and ponies.

We did not cultivate tobacco, but found it growing wild. This we cut

and cured in autumn, but if the supply ran out the leaves from the

stalks left standing served our purpose. All Indians smoked—men and

women. No boy was allowed to smoke until he had hunted alone and

killed large game–wolves and bears. Unmarried women were not

prohibited from smoking, but were considered immodest if they did

so. Nearly all matrons smoked.

Besides grinding the corn (by hand with stone mortars and pestles)

for bread, we sometimes crushed it and soaked it, and after it had

fermented made from this juice a tis-win, which had the power of

intoxication, and was very highly prized by the Indians. This work was

done by the squaws and children. When berries or nuts were to be

gathered the small children and the squaws would go in parties to

hunt them, and sometimes stay all day. When they went any great

distance from camp they took ponies to carry the baskets

I frequentLy went with these parties, and upon one of these

excursions a woman named Cho-ko-le got lost from the party and was

riding her pony through a thicket in search of her friends. Her little

dog was following as she slowly made her way through the thick

underbrush and pine trees. All at once a grizzly bear rose in her path

and attacked the pony. She jumped off and her pony escaped, but the

bear attacked her, so she fought him the best she could with her

knife. Her little dog, by snapping at the bear’s heels and distracting

his attention from the woman, enabled her for some time to keep

pretty well out of his reach. Finally the grizzly struck her over the

head, tearing off almost her whole scalp. She fell, but did not lose

consciousness, and while prostrate struck him four good licks with her

knife, and he retreated. After he had gone she replaced her torn scalp

and bound it up as best she could, then she turned deathly sick and

had to lie down. That night her pony came into camp with his load of

nuts and berries, but no rider. The Indians hunted for her, but did not

find her until the second day. They carried her home, and under the

treatment of their medicine men all her wounds were healed.

The Indians knew what herbs to use for medicine, how to prepare

them, and how to give the medicine. This they had been taught by

Usen in the beginning, and each succeeding generation had men who

were skilled in the art of healing.

In gathering the herbs, in preparing them, and in administering the

medicine, as much faith was held in prayer as in the actual effect of

the medicine. Usually about eight persons worked together in make

medicine, and there were forms of prayer and incantations to attend

each stage of the process. Four attended to the incantations and four

to the preparation of the herbs.

Some of the Indians were skilled in cutting out bullets, arrow heads,

and other missiles with which warriors were wounded. I myself have

done much of this, using a common dirk or butcher knife.

Small children wore very little clothing in winter and none in the

summer. Women usually wore a primitive skirt, which consisted of a

piece of cotton cloth fastened about the waist, and extending to the

knees. Men wore breach clothes and moccasins. In winter they had

shirts and legging in addition.

Frequently when the tribe was in camp a number of boys and girls, by

agreement, would steal away and meet at a place several miles

distant, where they could play all day free from tasks. They were

never punished for these frolics; but if their hiding places were

discovered they were ridiculed.