CHAPTER XVII. -- SATANTA, CHIEF OF THE KIOWAS.

WITHIN plain view of Fort Larned lay a large camp of Kiowas and
Comanches. They were not yet bedaubed with war paint, but they were as
restless as panthers in a cage, and it was only a matter of days when
they would whoop and howl with the loudest.

The principal chief of the Kiowas was Satanta, a powerful and
resourceful warrior, who, because of remarkable talents for
speech-making, was called "The Orator of the Plains." Satanta was short
and bullet-headed. Hatred for the whites swelled every square inch
of his breast, but he had the deep cunning of his people, with some
especially fine points of treachery learned from dealings with dishonest
agents and traders. There probably never was an Indian so depraved that
he could not be corrupted further by association with a rascally white
man.

When the Kiowas were friendly with the government, Satanta received a
guest with all the magnificence the tribe afforded. A carpet was spread
for the white man to sit upon, and a folding board was set up for a
table. The question of expense never intruded.

Individually, too, Satanta put on a great deal of style. Had the
opportunity come to him, he would have worn a silk hat with a sack-coat,
or a dress suit in the afternoon. As it was, he produced some startling
effects with blankets and feathers.

It was part of General Hazen's mission to Fort Larned to patch up a
treaty with the outraged Kiowas and Comanches, if it could be brought
about. On one warm August morning, the general set out for Fort Zarah,