Page 31 - Sorrow of the Earth: Buffalo Bill, Sitting Bull and the Tragedy of Show Business

Oh! they weren’t the same men of course, but it was the same outfit, steeped

in the same tradition. The regiment cut off the escape route for a convoy of
dying Indians. One of the Indians waved a white flag, a piece of cloth on the
end of a pike. Someone asked the soldiers for milk and something to eat; the
soldiers promised to distribute basic supplies at Wounded Knee River.

They set off again, escorted by the cavalry. Once they arrived, an officer
ordered the Indians to make camp for the night. Big Foot, who was worse,
was taken to the infirmary. He wore only a shirt and a scarf, and he was cold.
Very cold. The Indians put up shelters for themselves as best they could, and

the soldiers distributed flour and bacon. Families clustered around small
braziers. They cut slices of bacon, which they held over the flames. The bacon
sizzled and the fat ran. The smoke stank. The children stared at the fire; their
faces glowed as the pine logs blazed. A little water rolled around and lapped
in the bottom of the cooking pots. Then, night fell. The wagons creaked in the
wind. The men remained standing for a while, until they were cut down by

exhaustion. And once again it was cold, even colder.

IN THE MORNING OF 29TH DECEMBER, a bugle sounded. The warriors were
summoned and ordered to hand over their firearms. But fearing that there
were still some hidden weapons, the soldiers searched the tents. They barged

their way into the wagons looking for knives, hatchets, anything they could
lay their hands on. Anger mounted. A squadron kept their guns trained on the
Indians from the top of the hill. Suddenly, a shot was fired. There was a
skirmish; no one knows where it started; and then there was a terrible
rumbling which immediately drowned out all other noise. It was four
Hotchkiss mountain guns. Easily reloaded, manoeuvrable, exceptionally

accurate at a range of two kilo metres, they were positioned on the hilltop
above the encampment.
Then everything changed. A few Indians who had managed to get behind
the line of rifles launched themselves at the soldiers. There was violent hand-
to-hand fighting. Bayonets slashed arms, bounced off skulls. Orders were
bawled that no one could hear. The mountain guns fired at random on the
tents. The wooden frames collapsed in cinders. People were running

everywhere. Wagons gave way under the weight of the bodies in them. Then