The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 26, July 1922 - April, 1923 Page: 246
324 p. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Southwestern Historical Quarterly
the San Francisco Bulletin, October 26, 1866. The account states
that about this time (between 1825 and 1828, but unfortunately
the exact date is not given) "Smith and Le Duke organized a
party of five for a trapping expedition to the Gila River. All the
party were well armed, and after two or three weeks' travel they
found good trapping grounds and began to find beaver. They had
been engaged about a fortnight when they were discovered by a
band of Apaches, who came into their camp and made all sorts
of manifestations of friendship. After being feasted they took
their departure, but on passing where the trappers' horses were
picketed one of the red rascals shot an arrow into an animal.
This was regarded as a declaration of hostilities, and the trap-
ping party concluded that it was best for them to leave that part
of the country. They packed up and started. Smith and Sub-
lette determined to take up their traps, and in attempting to do
so were fired upon, a perfect shower of arrows falling about them.
Sublette was hit in the leg, and it was only by the aid of Smith
he managed to escape; the party lost their traps, but saved their
scalps." The narrative says nothing at this point about a return
to Santa F6. But if their traps were all lost there was likely
nothing else for them to do but to return for a new supply. "A few
months later," the account continues, "when encamped in another
part of the country, they were visited by a band of twenty Apaches,
who were very arrogant. One of the trappers prepared a hearty
meal for them, and as soon as the red skins were seated around
the mess, Smith gave a war-whoop and opened the battle. He
says 'none of them fellows ever returned home to tell of that
event; we fixed them all.'"
The similarity of the two accounts leads one to conclude that
they both relate to the same expedition. The five men in the
Smith and Le Duke group and the eleven hired to Young under
the command of Wolfskill taken together, if we may add the
names of Young and one other who may have dropped out, check
with the eighteen for which the passport was issued in the name
of Joaquin Joon (Ewing Young) by Narbona in the latter part
of August, 1826.
Still a third account which clearly relates to the same expedi-
tion is the statement of George C. Yount. Yount also, came to
New Mexico in the summer of 1826 in the caravan in which246
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 26, July 1922 - April, 1923, periodical, 1923; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101084/m1/252/: accessed April 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.