d Trimble 158). The Apache saw themselves differently; they faced constant struggle to survive. When they raided a village, they did so from pure necessity, to provide corn for their familieswhen game was scarce. Most of the time they went their own way, moving from camp to camp in pursuit of deer and buffalo, collecting roots and berries, sometimes planting seeds that they later returned to harvest. Apache lived in extended family groups, all loosely related through the female line. And, each group operated under a respected family leader; settling its own disputes, answering to no higher human authority such as the modern day police or judge. The Elders of the tribe were the judges. The main exception to this occurred during wartime, when neighboring groups banded together to fight a common enemy. Unlike ordinary raiding, where the main object was to get food, war meant lethal business: an act of revenge for the deaths of tribe members in earlier raids or battles. Leaders of the local family groups would meet to elect a war chief, who led the fights. A strict code of conduct governed Apache life, based on strong family loyalties. The most important bond led from an Apache mother to her children and on to herGrand children. Beyond this code of family obligations, the Apache shared a rich oral history of myths and legends and a legacy of intense religious devotion that touched every part of their lives. "In 1874, U.S. authorities forcibly moved some 4,000 Apaches to a reservation at San Carlos, a barren wasteland in east central Arizona" (Powersource). Deprived of traditional tribal rights, short on rations and homesick, they turned to Geronimo who led them in the fight for freedom that plunged the region into turmoil and bloodshed Within a few months three other tribes agreed to join them on the warpath. They traveled silently and swiftly on foot. Horses would leave a trail; and on foot they could dodge and twist around the mountains...
