The Grand Canyon.
From South Rim near Bright Angel Creek.
Jacob proceeded towards home, taking a Moki, named Tuba, and his wife back with him, so that they might see the Mormon country. Arriving at the crossing of the Colorado Tuba was sad. He said his people had once lived on the other side, and their fathers had told them they never again would go west of the river to live. "I am now going on a visit to see my friends. I have worshipped the Father of us all in the way you believe to be right; now I wish you would do as the Hopees think is right before we cross." Jacob assented, and Tuba, he said,
"then took his medicine bag from under his shirt and offered me a little of its contents. I offered my left hand to take it; he requested me to take it with my right. He then knelt with his face to the east, and asked the Great Father of us all to preserve us in crossing the river. He said that he and his wife had left many friends at home, and if they never lived to return their friends would weep much. He prayed for pity upon his friends the Mormons, that none of them might drown in crossing; and that all the animals we had with us might be spared, for we needed them all, and to preserve unto us all our food and clothing, that we need not suffer hunger nor cold on our journey. He then arose to his feet. We scattered the ingredients from the medicine bag into the air, on to the land, and into the water of the river."
When they were all safely over Tuba gave thanks that his prayer had been answered.[26]
The last white men to be killed by the Navajos in the Kanab region were Dr. Whitmore and his herder at Pipe Springs, twenty miles west, five years before in the winter of 1865-66. The raiders were pursued by a strong party, and some of them, turning down the Kanab Canyon, perhaps thinking the river could be crossed there, were surprised and fired on at dawn. Some escaped, though wounded. Jacob kept a close watch on all the passes, and especially at El Vado. Several raiders were intercepted and shot. In 1869 a raiding band successfully drove off twelve hundred head of horses and cattle from northern settlements, and the winter of 1869-70 was one of the worst, requiring Jacob's presence in the field almost constantly. He was accompanied by friendly Pai Utes, who hated the Navajos. One Navajo was shot in a band who had stolen cattle, but the others were allowed to leave on giving up the stock. The shot did not kill the Navajo, and they followed to see what became of him. He was carried along by his friends to where another raiding party was encamped. The Pai Utes then killed two of this party, scalping one, but refraining from taking the scalp of the other because he had sandy hair and looked too much like a white man. Later three more Navajos were killed in a fight, but the rest escaped with ten horses. Jacob grew heartily sick of this kind of work, and made the resolve to appeal to the Navajos, with the result stated. He also visited the Red Lake Utes to the north, and all the Indians along the Sevier. Beginning with the band of Navajos under Agua Grande, which we had met at El Vado, they came north in numerous parties with perfect confidence that the Mormons would receive them peacefully. But they continued to despise the Pai Utes, considering them beneath notice.
In September of the year 1870 the Major, by Brigham Young's advice, had engaged Jacob to go with him to Mt. Trumbull in the Uinkaret region adjoining the Shewits country. Jacob, wishing to see these Indians himself, was very willing to go. They made a camp by a spring, and finding some natives near, Jacob asked them to bring in some of the party who had taken part in the killing of the Howlands and Dunn the year before. Twelve or fifteen finally came, and they had a talk.
"I commenced [said Jacob] by explaining to the Indians Professor Powell's business. I endeavoured to get them to understand that he did not visit their country for any purpose that would work evil to them, that he was not hunting gold or silver or other metals; that he would be along the river next season with a party of men, and if they found any of them away from the river in the hills, they must be their friends and show them places where there was water if necessary."
They replied that friends of theirs from across the river had declared the men were miners and advised killing them, for if they found mines it would bring great evil among them. The men were followed and killed while asleep. They declared that had they been correctly informed about the men they would not have killed them. Kapurats ("No-arm," meaning the Major), they said, could travel and sleep in their country unmolested and they would show him and his men the watering-places.[27]
On December 19th we moved our camp from Eight Mile Spring to a place below the gap in the Chocolate Cliffs south of Kanab and not far below the Utah-Arizona boundary; the 37th parallel. Bonnemort and I remained behind to gather up the last articles and it was dark when we reached the new ground. Our large tent was pitched in the creek bottom with the others not far off, making quite a settlement. The weather was rainy and cold, but a conical sheet-iron stove heated the tent well and there we had dry comfortable evenings, some of the men singing, some writing letters or plotting notes, others reading and still others perhaps playing a game. Bonnemort was something of a singer and was specially fond of Beautiful Isle of the Sea, but Jack still maintained his complete supremacy as a tenor. His repertory always increased and he was ever ready to entertain us. One of his selections I remember was the ballad: