As fine a crew of killers as you'd ever wanna meet...

In the spring of 1840, a party of Comanche was invited to parley in San Antonio to arrange a captives' exchange. Once the were disarmed, they were escorted into a tent, which was then quickly surrounded by an unofficial militia, consisting of hunters and other frontiersmen who detested the Indians. The militia then opened fire through the sides of the tent, killing a number of the Comanche leaders. It came to be known as the Council House Fight (if you're a Texan; "massacre" if you're a Comanche), in which at least 30 Natives were killed, including women and chilldren. Seven Texans died. The event marked the absolute end of any possibility for peaceful negotiations with the Comanche, and set the tone for the Indians' regard for the trustworthiness of Whites. It was the primary motivation for the Buffalo Hump Raid, in which 600 Comanche and Kiowa warriors descended through the Trinity and Brazos valleys, killing settlers and stealing livestock. The Indians even attacked Austin, killing many, burning buildings and running of stock. Texans are accustomed to considering this an "invasion."

We , the motley band of background artistes pictured above, portrayed the members of that murderous militia (yours truly is standing third from the left). For the record, my costume consisted entirely of ('authentic') leather garments, and weighed about 30 lbs...