262 EI.DORADO 



beholding the submission of the Comanches, the latter 

 would surrender, and lay down their arms. 



Viscarro very foolishly allowed himself to be made 

 a victim of this weak strategem, and no sooner had the 

 foes whom the Indians so greatly dreaded, retired out 

 of sight, than the treacherous savages poured a de- 

 structive fire into the Mexican ranks at such close 

 range as to kill and wound many of the ofhcers and 

 men. The escort, taken completely by surprise, was 

 entirely at the mercy of the Indians, when Bent, hear- 

 ing the firing and suspecting treachery, gathered to- 

 gether his mounted men, and flew to the relief of the 

 Mexicans. 



Enraged at the peculiar infamy of the savages, Bent 

 and his men burst upon them with fierce yells and 

 oaths, and delivered a deadly volley right in their 

 faces. Their rifles were then discarded, and having 

 next emptied their pistols, they followed up their at- 

 tack with tomahawks and clubbed rifles, and soon 

 had the Comanches in full flight, the field thickly 

 strewn with their dead and wounded. 



An action worthy of record was here performed by 

 a Pueblo (or village) Indian, of the San Pablo com- 

 munity. Being near General Viscarro, and under- 

 standing the language of the hostiles, he heard one 

 of the latter exclaim, in his native tongue, "Now for 

 this General," and calling out at the top of his voice 

 "homhres quedado" (look out men) he then threw 

 himself before Viscarro and received in his own body 

 the bullet intended for the commander, and fell to the 

 ground, as noble a hero as the lists of chivalry record. 



On the return of the caravan to the Arkansas river, 

 it was still under the protection of Viscarro, who 



