CHAPTER XXVIII.
INDIAN BEAUTIES.
Shortly after the occurrence on Turkey Creek, I was sitting one afternoon in the verandah before my house and drinking coffee, when I saw a long way down the prairie a cloud of dust coming down the river. Curious as to who it could be, I went into the house and fetched my telescope. I saw three Indians on horseback, a man in front, and two squaws following him. They rode very fast, in spite of the great heat, and soon came up the hill to the Fort. I went out to them, and all three came through the palisade gate, and pulled up in front of my house. The warrior leapt from his horse, while the two girls remained seated on theirs. He told me in English that a tribe of Indians wished to make friendship with me, and the chief had sent to inquire whether he would be allowed to pay me a visit with his people. I asked him to what nation they belonged, which question appeared, as it seemed, to be disagreeable to him, and he passed it over in silence. He then said something to the two girls which I did not understand, and then told me they were Mescaleros, but not of those who made the attack on Mrs. White. The chief of the latter was no good friend of the white men; but the father of these two girls was a very good friend, and hence he wished to come and tell me so himself. I replied, that I should be glad to see him here, and invited the girls to drink coffee with me, which invitation they did not at once accept, but, with their elbows resting on their horses' necks, gazed at me curiously, and then took side glances through the open door of my house at the interior. I offered them cigars, and took a lucifer match out of my box, the lighting of which surprised them immensely. I lighted my cigar at it first, and then handed it to them, and they loudly expressed their satisfaction at the excellence of the tobacco. I then took a drink of coffee, and handed the cup to one of the girls, who first examined it curiously all round, and then raised it to her lips to taste the contents. She had scarce tasted it, however, when she emptied the cup at a draught, and gave it back to me, with an intimation that I should give her sister some. I gave her a full cup, too; she emptied it at a draught and asked for more, so that in a few minutes my whole supply of coffee was expended. I gave them cakes, which they ate with equal appetite, and then went into the house to fetch a bottle of sweet Spanish wine. I poured out a glass, tasted, and handed it to one of the Indian girls, but she declined it, and after saying a few words to the man, their glances lost the calmness and merriment which they had gradually assumed.
I emptied the glass and placed it on the table, without again offering them wine, but handed them a light for their cigars, which had gone out. After a while the man asked me whether it was fire-water the bottle contained, and when I replied in the negative, and assured him it was capital wine, he said that one of the girls wished to taste it. I filled the glass, put it to my lips, and handed it to her on the horse: she raised it to her lips rather timidly, but drank the wine off at a draught so soon as she had once tasted it. Her eyes beamed with joy, and as she sat up on her horse, and passed her hand from her neck over her breast and stomach, she said, with an expression of delight, "Bueno," and handed me the glass back with a sign to give her some more. I filled it again, but gave it to her sister, who was looking on silently but eagerly. She, too, liked the wine, and emptied the glass, which I set on the table. At this moment both girls leapt from their horses, gave the bridles to the Indian with a disdainful gesture, while one of them told him imperiously to take the horses to graze; I at least concluded so from the gestures with which she accompanied her words, and from his at once going off with the horses. The speaker then turned to me with a most gracious smile, and, after throwing a contemptuous glance at the man, said to me "Mexicano," and now it became clear to me that he was a slave, probably stolen by this Indian tribe when a boy.
The two young savages now ran up to the verandah in front of my house, and I saw for the first time properly what remarkably pretty visitors I had; for both girls had been so crouching on their horses that but little of their figure could be seen. The one who seemed to me the younger, was very tall, slim, and most beautifully formed; her shape was elegant, but round and full, and her bones so delicate, that the comparison between horse and deer involuntarily occurred to me; her hands and feet, like those of all Indians, were very small, and so gracefully shaped that the white colour was not missed. On proportionately broad shoulders and a plump, round neck, she carried her head freely, and her demeanour proved that she was perfectly well satisfied with herself. Her glossy black silky hair hung, fastened together on the left side of her head with a strip of vermilion leather, for a length of four feet over her shoulders, and on the top of the red fillet floated by the side of her head a round bush of countless feathers of the most brilliant colours, which heaved up and down at every movement. Her fine lofty forehead was adorned by sharply-cut, glistening eyebrows, beneath which black eyes flashed; but their wild expression was toned down by the shadow of long eyelashes, and only in moments of excitement did the passionate look return to them. The small, pretty nose turned up slightly at the end, and gave a saucy look to the face, while the laughing, fresh, half-parted mouth, with its full cherry lips, cut in the shape of a Cupid's bow, heightened the expression. When the laughing lips parted they displayed the most beautiful and regular teeth, and in the peach-coloured cheeks were two deep dimples. At the same time her mien was elegant, her movements were rapid but graceful, and her whole appearance was full of young life, unchecked and wild, but attractive and pleasant. Her dark colour passed easily from light brown to olive, and announced that under it dwelt those warm feelings which are only born under a hot sun.
Though the interpreter was absent, our conversation now went on better than before, as the eyes of the Indian girl and her gestures rendered a dictionary quite unnecessary. She quickly disposed of another glass of wine, and would certainly have drunk a good deal more, had I not filled the glass again and handed it to her sister, and then locked the bottle up in a cupboard. The sister displayed less of the passionate Indian blood; she was quieter in her movements, and though she, too, frequently opened her mouth to smile, she did not burst into a loud laugh, and while the former looked all around, the eyes of the quieter girl were fixed the more firmly on the object she was surveying. She was shorter than her younger sister, but much plumper, more of a Titian's beauty, had also splendid hair, arranged in the same fashion, coal-black, but smaller flashing eyes, a graceful aquiline nose, and a smaller mouth. Her colour was rather darker than that of her sister, and it was doubtful whether a dazzling white or this transparent brown was the more beautiful colour for the skin.
The name of the elder sister, who was about nineteen years of age, was Cachakia (sparkling star), while the younger was called Pahnawhay (fire), and had not seen more than sixteen summers. The costume of these two savage beauties was much alike. Over their shoulders hung a handsomely painted, costly dressed deer-hide, in the centre of which was a long slit, through which they thrust head and neck. This mantilla was ornamented all round with a fine long leathern fringe, to whose ends glistening stones and shells were attached; it hung lower down before and behind, and left the pretty round arms at liberty. Round their hips was a petticoat, also of leather, adorned with long fringe, and handsomely painted in colours, while the leathern trousers were also decorated at the sides with similar fringe. Their little feet were thrust into deer-hide shoes, also ornamented with, stones, shells, and fringe.
Pahnawhay was the first to run up into the gallery; at each step she rose on her feet as if walking on whalebone, while Cachakia came on with a quieter but scarce audible step. Both sate down at the table, and the younger sister took the wine-glass and drained it, while making me signs to give her more wine. I made her understand that she had better not drink any more, as it might send her to sleep; but I would give them some more before they rode away. Pahnawhay had looked for a long time curiously at my room; at last she jumped up and ran to the door, and leaning against the lintel, thrust her head in as far as she could. With a loud cry of amazement she sprang back several steps, clapped her hands, and, with a beaming face, said something to her sister, and then ran back to the door. I went into the room, and made her a sign to follow me; but she only took one step across the threshold, looked around her in amazement, and then cried to her sister to come, who, however, did not obey her. I now went to Cachakia, took her by the hand, and led her into the room, where I made her sit down in my large rocking-chair. The admiration and surprise of the two girls were extraordinary; they remained for a long time motionless and silent, looking from one object to the other, until Pahnawhay first found her speech again. Running to my bed, she drew a red blanket from under the jaguar skin, that served as counterpane, and hung it proudly over her shoulders. As she had not yet noticed my large looking-glass, I led her in front of it, and a loud cry of surprise burst from her pretty mouth. She turned round before it, and at last ran up and from it with the most graceful movements, while Cachakia looked at her in silence, but showed by her flashing eyes that she would like to be in her place. I now led her in front of the mirror, took a bright silk handkerchief from a chair, bound it round her thick hair under the tuft of feathers, and made her understand that it was hers. I then took another blue and yellow one out of the chest of drawers, and fastened it round Pahnawhay's hair, for I knew if I did not it would be all over with her good temper.
Everything in the room was now examined, and if possible handled, and I had to explain its use. Cachakia too became gradually more animated and took a greater share in the conversation, always trying to make me understand that her sister knew too little and her chatter was not worthy of attention. Everything pleased her, and when she saw anything she wished particularly to have, she made me understand that we would swap, but never said what she intended to give me in exchange. Still I could not help giving both a number of trifles, such as knives, thimbles, needles, cotton, and sewing-silk, and I was very glad when the negroes came and announced that the dinner I had ordered for my guests was on the table, through which their desires took a different direction. I conducted them to the dining-room, and was obliged to dine with them again in order to show them the use of knife and fork, which they, however, soon laid aside and employed their little fingers instead. They liked everything, but the pudding most, and when coffee and cakes were again served, it seemed as if they intended making a separate meal of them. After dinner I gave them cigars and intended to keep them in this room till they rode off, but they soon got up, and after pointing round the room and saying with a dissatisfied expression, "no bueno," they walked off straight to my house. Whether I would or no, I was obliged to admit them, and Cachakia was now the first to nestle up to me and point with her little hand to the wine-glass, while she looked up at me with her sparkling black eyes and laughingly displayed two rows of pearly teeth. I could not possibly refuse her, and when I had filled the glass to the brim she raised the golden liquid to her lips and drank it to the last drop. Pahnawhay also drank a glass, but then I locked the bottle up again, and in spite of Cachakia's languishing looks and her sister's more stormy requests I did not take it out again.