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.But Yellow Bird would not let go.He wrestledwith the officer, and while they were wrestling, the gun went off and killed the officer.Wasichus and some others have said he meant to do this, but Dog Chief was standingright there, and he told me it was not so.As soon as the gun went off, Dog Chief told me,an officer shot and killed Big Foot who was lying sick inside the tepee.Then suddenly nobody knew what was happening, except that the soldiers were allshooting and the wagon-guns began going off right in among the people. Many were shot down right there.The women and children ran into the gulch and upwest, dropping all the time, for the soldiers shot them as they ran.There were only abouta hundred warriors and there were nearly five hundred soldiers.The warriors rushed towhere they had piled their guns and knives.They fought soldiers with only their handsuntil they got their guns.Dog Chief saw Yellow Bird run into a tepee with his gun, and from there he killedsoldiers until the tepee caught fire.Then he died full of bullets.It was a good winter day when all this happened.The sun was shining.But after thesoldiers marched away from their dirty work, a heavy snow began to fall.The wind cameup in the night.There was a big blizzard, and it grew very cold.The snow drifted deep inthe crooked gulch, and it was one long grave of butchered women and children andbabies, who had never done any harm and were only trying to run away. CH 24: The Butchering at Wounded KneeThat evening before it happened, I went in to Pine Ridge and heard these things, andwhile I was there, soldiers started for where the Big Foots were.These made about fivehundred soldiers that were there next morning.When I saw them starting I felt thatsomething terrible was going to happen.That night I could hardly sleep at all.I walkedaround most of the night.In the morning I went out after my horses, and while I was out I heard shooting offtoward the east, and I knew from the sound that it must be wagon-guns (cannon) goingoff.The sounds went right through my body, and I felt that something terrible wouldhappen.When I reached camp with the horses, a man rode up to me and said: "Hey-hey-hey! Thepeople that are coming are fired on! I know it!"I saddled up my buckskin and put on my sacred shirt.It was one I had made to be wornby no one but myself.It had a spotted eagle outstretched on the back of it, and thedaybreak star was on the left shoulder, because when facing south that shoulder is towardthe east.Across the breast, from the left shoulder to the right hip, was the flamingrainbow, and there was another rainbow around the neck, like a necklace, with a star atthe bottom.At each shoulder, elbow, and wrist was an eagle feather; and over the wholeshirt were red streaks of lightning.You will see that this was from my great vision, andyou will know how it protected me that day.I painted my face all red, and in my hair I put one eagle feather for the One Above.It did not take me long to get ready, for I could still hear the shooting over there.I started out alone on the old road that ran across the hills to Wounded Knee.I had nogun.I carried only the sacred bow of the west that I had seen in my great vision.I hadgone only a little way when a band of young men came galloping after me.The first twowho came up were Loves War and Iron Wasichu.I asked what they were going to do,and they said they were just going to see where the shooting was.Then others werecoming up, and some older men.We rode fast, and there were about twenty of us now.The shooting was getting louder.Ahorseback from over there came galloping very fast toward us, and he said: "Hey-hey-hey! They have murdered him!" Then he whipped his horse and rode away faster towardPine Ridge.In a little while we had come to the top of the ridge where, looking to the east, you cansee for the first time the monument and the burying ground on the little hill where thechurch is.That is where the terrible thing started.Just south of the burying ground on thelittle hill a deep dry gulch runs about east and west, very crooked, and it rises westwardto nearly the top of the ridge where we were.It had no name, but the Wasichus sometimes call it Battle Creek now.We stopped on the ridge not far from the head of thedry gulch.Wagon guns were still going off over there on the little hill, and they weregoing off again where they hit along the gulch.There was much shooting down yonder,and there were many cries, and we could see cavalrymen scattered over the hills ahead ofus.Cavalrymen were riding along the gulch and shooting into it, where the women andchildren were running away and trying to hide in the gullies and the stunted pines.A little way ahead of us, just below the head of the dry gulch, there were some womenand children who were huddled under a clay bank, and some cavalrymen were therepointing guns at them.We stopped back behind the ridge, and I said to the others: "Take courage.These are ourrelatives.We will try to get them back." Then we all sang a song which went like this:"A thunder being nation I am, I have said.A thunder being nation I am, I have said.You shall live.You shall live.You shall live.You shall live."Then I rode over the ridge and the others after me, and we were crying: "Take courage! Itis time to fight!" The soldiers who were guarding our relatives shot at us and then ranaway fast, and some more cavalrymen on the other side of the gulch did too.We got ourrelatives and sent them across the bridge to the northwest where they would be safe.I had no gun, and when we were charging, I just held the sacred bow out in front of mewith my right hand.The bullets did not hit us at all.We found a little baby lying all alone near the head of the gulch
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Tematy
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John Norman Gor 04 Nomads of Gor
John Norman Gor 01 Tarnsman of Gor
John Norman Gor 23 Renegades of Gor
John DeChancie Castle 07 Castle Spellbound
John Norman Gor 12 Beasts of Gor
John Dalmas Farside 01 The Lion of Farside
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