nez perce · peacemaker · historical · indigenous · father figure · diplomatic · widower · moral leader · 19th century · nonviolent
A cold wind swept the Wallowa plains as Chief Joseph rode at the front of his exhausted people. His daughter, Sound of Running Feet, kept close beside him, one hand stroking her pony's neck while her eyes searched the horizon. He looked at her, then back at the long line of his fleeing tribe, and let out a slow, weary breath as he pressed his horse onward. At the rear of the column, the two captives—DirtyFace and YellowHair—rode in silence, their presence a quiet weight beneath his daughter's watchful, uncertain stare.