Standing Bear Continues:
“We could see the women coming over now in a swarm,
they were all making the tremolo. We waited around there
awhile, and then we saw soldiers coming on a hill toward
the south and east[a detachment of Reno’s command
had set out to help Custer, and the rest of the command
followed. They were driven back to the hill to which they
had retreated after the disastrous fight in the valley at the
southern end of the village]. Everybody began yelling
“Hurry!”, and we started for the soldiers. They ran back
toward where they came from. One got killed, and many
of us got off and couped him. Then we chased all the
soldiers back to the hill where they were before.
They had their pack mules and horses on the inside and
they had saddles and other things in front of them to hide
from bullets, but we surrounded them, and the hill
we were on was higher and we could see them plain. We
put our horses down under the hills so that they were safe.
We all kept shooting at the soldiers and their horses. It
was very hot, and there were some soldiers who started
down the hill with kettles to get water from the river.
They did not get far, and what was left of them went
running back up the hill. I heard that some soldiers did
get some water later, but I did not see them. Once a
Lakota on the other side charged alone right up to the
soldiers to show how brave he was, but they killed him,
and we could not get his body.
By now it was nearly sundown. I had not been feeling
hungry because there was the smell of blood everywhere;
but now I began to feel hungry anyway. The bravest of the
braves got together and talked over what we should do
that night. They decided that some of us should go home
and eat and bring back something for those who stayed
to watch the soldiers. We could not get at the soldiers,
so we were going to starve and dry them out.
I went home with the others, and it was sundown then.
At first I thought they had broken camp, but they had not.
They had only gathered all the camps together in one solid
village. I did not go back to the hill with the others that
night. We built fires all over the camp, and everybody was
excited. I couldn’t sleep because when I shut my eyes I
could see all those horrible sights again. I think nobody
slept.
Next morning early the crier went around and said “The
remainder of the soldiers shall die today!” So after we had
eaten, we all got ready. This time I was dressed and had
my moccasins and leggings on. The day before I had only
a shirt. This time I had my saddle too. I was prepared
to fight.
We all rode over there, and the party that had watched all
night went home. We were scattered all around the
soldiers, with our horses under the hill; but it was harder
to hit the soldiers now, because they had been digging in
the night. The day was very hot, and now and then some
soldiers would start crawling down toward the river for
a drink. We killed some of these, then the others would
run back. Maybe some got water. I do not know.
We kept shooting at each other. Once I heard someone cry
“Hey-hey!” I crawled over there, and a Lakota had been
shot above the eyebrow and he was dead.
After a long while we heard that more soldiers
were coming[General Terry was coming up river to the
scene of the battle from the mouth of the Little Bighorn].
Then everybody started back home, and there the people
were saying: “We will leave this and let it go!” If those
soldiers had not come, we would have rubbed them
all out on the hill.”
Excerpted from “Black Elk Speaks”,
as told through John G. Niehardt, author.
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press,
Lincoln and London.
To Be Continued:
Islander.