Navajo Long Walk (8 page)

The man ahead of them called out to Long Earrings as they passed him, “Why are we being forced into this corral? Are we to be penned up like sheep?”

“Don't worry,” Long Earrings called back. “This is the only way the army can learn how many Indians they must feed and supply with tools. When we are all counted, they will let us camp outside the corral.”

As the people went back through the gate, each family told a soldier the father's name. Long Earrings translated it and another soldier wrote it down and gave the family a ration ticket. When Gentle Woman received hers, Long Earrings told her, “Be sure you take good care of it. You have to have it with you when you go to the fort to receive food.”

As they walked past the adobe barracks built for the soldiers, Kee asked his grandmother, “Where are the hogans you said would be built for us?”

Wise One shrugged her shoulders. “I think there is a mistake, child. I have looked up and down as we walked here, but I see nothing.”

“Perhaps that is good,” Kee said. “Maybe they will not keep us in this ugly place for a long time.”

Now they would have to find a place to camp, just as they had while traveling. No shelter of any kind had been provided for the Navajos. Strong Man's family walked about a quarter of a mile downstream and a short distance away from the river to set up camp. It was an unhappy time for everyone.

Kee walked to the river and brought back a bucket of water for drinking. When his mother tasted it she spit it out and made a face. “We can't drink that; it's bitter.”

“About as bitter as being held prisoners and ordered around by white soldiers,” Wise One answered.

“And being away from our own hogan and red rock canyons,” Gentle Woman added.

Up and down the Pecos River from Fort Sumner, the United States government had set aside forty square miles for an Indian reservation. Each Navajo family was expected to make some kind of shelter near the fort. The rest of the land would be used for farming and grazing. But there were no materials to build hogans.

“What are we going to live in?” Gentle Woman asked. “There's no wood for hogans.”

“I saw some people coming from the fort with tents,” Kee said.

“Maybe we can get one,” Gentle Woman suggested and she and Kee left immediately to try. But when they got to the fort, all the worn out army tents had been given away. Some Navajos had gotten pieces of canvas, but for Kee's family there was nothing.

The next morning soldiers came by giving each family a shovel.

“We can try digging a hole in the ground to make a hogan,” Wise One suggested.

Hasba laughed. “We can pretend we are prairie dogs.”

Kee looked at her in disgust. “Who wants to be a prairie dog?”

His anger helped him dig furiously for a few minutes. Then his mother and grandmother insisted he let them take turns digging. It was hard not having a father in the family. He had begun to believe that his father was dead. He tried to push the thought from his mind, but it kept returning. Surely his father would have found them by now if he were still alive.

When they were completely tired out from digging, the sandy sides of the hole began to cave in. Gentle Woman sighed, “It's no use to dig deeper. But this hole
will do if we can find something for a roof. Our blankets are all in rags.”

“If we had some poles or tree branches, we could cover them with brush,” Wise One said. “But we must have something to hold up the brush.”

“Hasba, let us see what we can find along the river bank.” Kee said.

Hasba tied Small Lamb's rope around a rock so she could not follow. Gray Dog went with the children. Walking toward the fort, they passed many Navajos building makeshift shelters.

The children hunted along the river's edge, picking up a few small tree branches. They watched some soldiers swimming in the river. One of the soldiers came out of the water toward them. Gray Dog growled as he placed himself between the soldier and the children. Kee recognized the soldier as the one who had saved his grandmother from the Rio Grande. He put his hand on Gray Dog's head, speaking quietly to him. The dog stopped growling.

The shivering soldier picked up his heavy coat from the river bank and threw it around his shoulders. “How is the Tiny Grandmother?” he asked, making a sign for a small person.

Kee recognized that he was talking about his grandmother and his face lit up.

The soldier smiled back and motioned for them to follow him. Kee had to almost drag Hasba along as he followed the soldier.

Hasba had tears in her eyes. “Let us run back to Mother.”

“He is the one who saved Grandmother. He will not hurt us.”

When they came to a building where the soldier lived,
the soldier put his hand on Kee's shoulder and pointed to the ground where they stood.

“He wants us to wait here,” Kee told Hasba when the soldier went inside. Hasba wanted to run away, but Kee held onto her hand and said, “Wait.”

The soldier came back out carrying a large piece of canvas. Kee smiled and thanked him in Navajo. Once more he wished he knew the white man's words for “thank you,” but he was sure the soldier understood.

As the children walked away, Kee looked back. The soldier was watching and raised his hand in a farewell gesture. Kee returned the gesture, and hurried toward the dugout.

Held down by rocks, the canvas proved a good roof for the dugout. The next day Kee and Gentle Woman grubbed out weeds and brush to cover the canvas. Hasba helped Wise One gather grass from which her grandmother made rough mats to line the walls of the dugout. Now they had a place to sleep, with protection against the rains and strong winds that blew across the open plains.

Long Earrings and one of his friends walked by. They stopped to look at the shelter. Long Earrings told Wise One, “They are giving us a reservation—only ten miles along the river and four miles wide!”

Kee didn't know what a mile was. There were no such words in Navajo. “Is that big?” he asked.

“Big? Ha! It would be enough for no more than five families to raise their crops and their sheep back in Navajoland. And they think we can grow enough food for all the Diné on it!”

Soon the men were ordered to use the shovels they had been given to dig irrigation ditches from the river to the fields that would be planted to raise food for the tribe.

Gray Dog carefully herded Small Lamb to join Eagle Feather's little flock each day. “What a big herd of sheep we own,” Kee said with bitterness. “A herd of one.”

When the fields were ready for planting, Kee and Hasba spent many days with other children, helping to plant corn, wheat, beans, and pumpkins. The soldiers insisted everything be planted in rows. Kee could not understand why the white man always wanted things different from the Navajo way. They made a hole and planted seeds anywhere in the field.

By now most of the Indians were in rags. About the time the crops were planted, a shipment of bolts of material for clothing arrived at the fort. As soon as they were told it would be distributed, everyone hurried to the fort with the ration tickets. Kee went with his family. They were passing the officers' quarters on the way to the store when Kee saw the wonderful gray horse tethered to the hitching rail. He ran to the horse. Admiring the animal from all directions, he wondered if the horse would allow him to touch it. He was stretching out his hand to pat the horse's muzzle when someone said “Oh, so you like Smoke, too. He is the most beautiful horse at the fort.”

Kee whirled around, expecting to see a Navajo. He saw the Mexican who interpreted Navajo for the soldiers. Kee smiled. “So that is his name. It is a good one. His color looks like smoke. Will he let me pet him?”

“I think so. I have never tried. He belongs to Captain Harris.”

During Kee's lifetime, his father Strong Man, had owned many horses. Kee had learned to ride almost as soon as he learned to walk. He had a gentle, confident way with animals, and they quickly learned to trust him. He patted Smoke's neck, then slowly ran his small brown hands underneath the silky black mane. The horse twitched his ears and pointed them forward when Kee quietly spoke Navajo words of endearment to him.

“Smoke likes you, I think,” the Mexican said.

When Captain Harris came out of the officers' quarters, Kee dropped his hands and backed away. Smoke stepped forward and nuzzled his shoulder wanting more attention. Captain Harris smiled at Kee, then began talking with the Mexican. The Mexican turned and told Kee, “He says he has been watching you through the window. He thinks you have a way with animals. He wants to know if you can ride. I told him all Navajo boys learn to ride very young.”

Captain Harris spoke again to the Mexican. Again, the Mexican turned to Kee. “He says he needs someone to take care of Smoke, someone to feed, water, groom and exercise the horse when he is too busy. He wants to know if you would like to do it. There might be extra rations if you do a good job.”

Kee could scarcely believe his ears. Imagine being with Smoke every day. It was the best thing that could happen, except, of course, to own such a horse and be free to ride him in Navajoland.

Captain Harris smiled down at Kee and talked to him. The Mexican translated. “He says he can see that you would like the job. He wants you to come to the parade grounds early tomorrow morning when there isn't a mob around like tonight. He wants to be sure you can handle Smoke.”

As the captain walked back to his quarters, Kee put both arms around Smoke's neck, whispering, “You and I will be the best of friends, my beauty.”

Happiness filled the tiny, dugout hogan that night. Wise One had received blanket strips large enough to make Gentle Woman and herself new dresses. Gentle Woman would make Hasba a new dress and Kee some trousers from the flowered calico.

Kee was not interested in woman-talk about new clothes. All he wanted was for morning to hurry and come so he could ride Smoke.

Captain Harris had only to see Kee astride Smoke to know the boy could handle the horse. Kee soon began spending a good part of each day at the stables and horse corral. His happiest days were when he was told to take Smoke for a run.