I wondered when you'd bring up the Lehmans! Awesome story.
And indicative of an important truth... that being we only get a bit of the whole story.
Fer example, earlier in this thread the Kiowas was brung up... and the famous three... Satanta, Settank and Big Tree, oughtta throw in Lone Wolf too.... FOUR GUYS, collectively taken by us as representative of Kiowa history when there were like what? one thousand OTHER Kiowas quietly going about the business of survival in those years.
I'd guess their history might read different then ours.
This crops uo with Hermann Lehmann too. Weren't he roaming alone and desperate for months on the Texas Panhandle after leaving the Apaches? No longer safe with the Apaches, alientated by years of captivity from returning to the Whites.
Finally in 1875 (??) he walks up one night on a Comanche camp. It should be understood this was AFTER Palo Duro Canyon, By this time the whole Comanche universe was collapsing, NOWHERE on the Plains was safe for them, and they were subject to attack by cavalry patrol or buffalo hunters at any time.
This skinny White youth walks in on their camp one night, and after almost getting killed in the original alarm, becomes the subject of curious interest when it becomes apparent he spoke bad English but fluent Apache.
Getting a guy in camp who could speak Apache, they hear Lehmann out. Finally concluding with a good-natured and merciful (as Fehrenbach puts it)
"You'd better come with us".
Not how Comanches generally come across in popular Texas lore.
Birdwatcher
