| Show san juan utah by albert R lynn lyman A hundred years ago ut as san juan was the undisputed unexplored dominion of a snarl of flutes who had defied the rest of the world for generations san juan was more remote from the three ahree year old salt lake city as we ve reckon urns time today more far away than from here to australia its jagged rims beginning with comb reef and stretching in irregular parallels one after aate r another anether to the colorado river formed the impregnable walls of a wage huge fortress from which no piute diute had ever been dislodged nol by an enemy they loved it it was their life its splendid solitudes and its 1 s ab safety was the perfect gift of their almighty shinco its wild and formidable areas gave coar answer to the undisciplined vall call of their hostile natures their In mothers others had brought them forth in these canyons and mountains and bid them to grow up fres free from all man made precepts in contradiction with the call of the I 1 forests and the of the big rocks they were the legitimate children of the wilderness as sweetly in accord with its creeds as the lizards scampering over its sands or ar the coyotes howling their delight from its hillsides hill sides no enemy had ever broken the hush of their inner solitudes for genne rations from the junction of the moaning san juan with the turbulent flood of the colorado in the bald echoing walls of their sauth west the whole rock ribbed region was theirs through the glorious remoteness of the paga an forit it on over windy clay hill pass and through the cedar forests and quiches and timbered niota mountains ins to la sal or farther it was a region of more extent than the smaller states of the union with indefinite but generous limits not too big for them to hold not too ismall small for their fantastic way of life to the south of them across the san juan river lived the numerous and enterprising navajos cavajos Nava jos themselves a nation of inveterate robbers though always having something valuable of which to be robbed they outnumbered the aiutes two to one yet the pirtea had a factor more potent than numbers with inbred indolence they imposed all of their essential toll toil on their women giving themselves to the alluring art of reaping unearned benefi its from their neighbors by their premeditated hit and run raids they carried away their plunder with all the safety of rats vanishing into a stack of lumber they sallied forth at the unexpected moment to spring suddenly on their unsuspecting prey according to their story they always returned in glory to dance and sing their wil tation in the security of their san juan the old men of both tribes used to tell of at fierce battles they fought along the river the aiutes insist that their cunning and prowess always made them victorious over the navajos cavajos Nava jos and they returned with sheep and horses women and children having ambushed all who ventured to pursue them the old navajos cavajos countered these tales by pointing out the rocks and ledges where they waylaid the invaders sinking arrows in them clear up to the fc feathers athers it la Is related that they fought at peak city on the north side of the san juan near the four corners A heavy shower came up in the afternoon and the cavajos navajoa withdrew to their own side of the river just in time to miss misa the flood As night camo came on an the drift loaded water still roared by a stream too furious for anyone to cross the navajos cavajos secure in laying their weary bodies down to rest not so the impetuous aiutes they watched the stream as its waterline water line fell and at midnight when it had sunk to its ita wonted wanted level they crossed to surprise the sleeping cavajos navajos Nava jos make a glorious killing and h back with livestock and ZW to their impregnable def defenses e anses y |
