Latest edition of True West has an excellent piece by Doug Hocking with a new look at the infamous 1861 encounter between Cochise and Army Lt. George Bascom at Apache Pass. In the popular histories, Bascom generally comes across as an arrogant and inexperienced fool. Hocking somewhat mitigates that judgment, although he doesn’t challenge the accepted version of the key event: Bascom violated the rules of parley (as recognized by both the whites and the Indians) by attempting to seize Cochise and his companions after inviting them to attend a conference under a flag of truce. What’s worse, his treachery was so inept that he allowed Cochise to escape the trap.
Following the trail of one very tough old man through New Mexico’s back country
Tracking Nana 