Victorio and the Mimbres Apaches

For one year, 1879-80, Victorio, the Mimbres Apache leader, outwitted, out-maneuvered, and outfought both Mexican and American armies. At last, however, he was trapped, in Mexico. He died, and the Mimbres Apaches were virtually destroyed as a people. This first comprehensive account of the Mimbres from their first American contacts in 1849 until the tragedy of 1880 is likewise the first accurate biography of Victorio, one of the greatest and most vigorous of America's Indian leaders. It fills a large gap in the Apache story, for heretofore the spotlight has been on chiefs Cochise and Geronimo and the Chiricahua and Mescalero groups. Of all the Apaches the Mimbres perhaps suffered most from the arrival of white settler in their homeland. They were no more eager than other Apaches to be confined to a reservation, but in their case the location of reservation became a critical problem. They were driven from the first one by a gold rush. The next was barren and crowded; the one following that distant and cold; the next had to be shared with enemies. Finally, Victorio's persistent efforts to have his people resettled in their home area of New Mexico met with success. At last it was arranged--then Victorio learned that he was to be arrested for murder and theft. Accordingly, he led the Mimbres away in the final flight that was to result so disastrously. The author has based his account of Victorio and his people on primary sources in both the United States and Mexico, and has inspected countless spots connected with Mimbres history, almost every important battle site, and other pertinent areas. His story of the Mimbres' abrasive melancholy, and ultimately tragic relationship with the whites is told with integrity and compassion and with justice for all concerned, red and white.--Jacket flap