[2][3] On March Chief Muguara brought in some trade articles and horses as well as an abused and tortured 14-year captive white girl named Matilda Lockhart that they had kidnapped and hoped that they would fetch a better price for her ransom, than what they received from nine year old, James Putnam/Putman just two weeks before.

The men left their rifles with their horse handlers out front and unstrung their bows and walked in as a procession and sat on the floor facing the table of Texian representative including judges and Colonels.

Article 10 of the treaty required that the Comanche stop their hundred mile long raids down the Colorado River and put an end to their murdering defenseless settlers and stealing their horses.

Miss Parker, Webster, Matilda Lockhart, Warren Lyons, Thomas Pierce and several others were still captive among them as were scores Tonkawa women and children.

Jose Franciso Ruiz, who lived among the Comanche for eight years wrote that, "among them they had hundreds of prisoners of both sexes, estimating the total being over 900 among the nation, which did not include those who had successfully made their escape...The worst treatment were those of the young girls as he would write, “Their lot [disposition] is most pitiful.”[13][2] In an attempt to prevent further raids, the fledgling Texas government funded volunteers farmers to patrol the perimeters of the settlements.

[15] In response, Col. Henry Wax Karnes, with Col. Juan N. Sequin led an expedition against the attackers with a force of 108 volunteers and friendly Indians.

[10] The government of Texas had no solution to the Comanche lightning, hit and run raids, and just like the Mexicans, and Spanish before them, they hoped that gifts in the form of tribute would buy them safety from kidnapping, murder and theft.

[3] Already, Texans had between 1823 and 1839, buried three hundred and fifty civilians, murdered by Indians of all tribes, Kickapoo, Keechi, Tawakani, Waco, Cherokee and Caddo most recently.

As one contemporary wrote of the proposed treaty: "This was not the first time the Comanches had feigned friendship and expressed a desire to cease hostilities towards the whites in order to throw the settlers off their guard so that they might more effectually raid the country, commit murders and then suddenly return to their mountain homes, carrying into captivity women and children and driving off all the horses they could conveniently carry with them.

Captain Howard was in a camp nearby and sent some Mexican interpreters on horseback to demand the release of recently kidnapped Texans or, they must prepare for a fight.

[4] James Putnam relayed to Howard that his sister, Rhoda had been killed by the Comanche during her captivity, along with her Indian master and his principal wife after his death, a ritual typical of early native Americans in order that they serve him in the afterlife.

[5][4] Just two years before, in 1838, the Putnam children were picking pecans along the Guadalupe River with a neighbor, Matilda Lockhart (13) when Comanche warriors abducted them.

Buffalo Hump, still reeling from the Bird Fight, and Yellow Wolf, and Santa Anna, did not attend and remained at Enchanted Rock with Dolly Webster and other captives.

As shown in the adjacent sketch, it was a one-story stone building with adjoining the jail on the corner of Main Plaza and Calabosa (Market) Street.

[19] Outside, Judge Thompson approached some of the Comanche boys and spent the morning playing target practice with them, setting up silver coins on a wood fence some distance away while the children showed off their skills.

[25][26] "No man who had seen Miss Lockhart, her scars, her burns, her bruises, every hair torn by the roots from her head, would hesitate to concur with this decision [to take the Comanche as captives] remarked the editor of Houston Times.

[25] This practice was common at the time and typically done by the Indian women when their people failed to return or came back injured from a kidnapping and horse stealing raid.

[28] Just as the Comanche had contingency plans for treachery, so too did the Texians, they secreted two companies of soldiers in an adjacent building waiting for signs of foul play.

Mukwarrah followed up with, “How do you like the answer?” [28] No reply was given as Texan Secretary of War Col. Cooke, treaty Commissioner whispered to Colonel Fisher to send the two companies of soldiers that were hiding from a nearby building to guard the doors and prevent the chiefs from leaving.

While the captain was summoning the soldiers, Colonel, McLeod in his official report to President Mirabeau Lamar remarked that, "The order was now given to march one company into the council room, and the other in the rear of the building, where the warriors were assembled.

[7] These braves and horse handlers outside had been carefully watching as several citizens gathered around the courthouse to get a peek at the proceedings, but they became alarmed at the approach of the troops who filtered out of a nearby barn.

Screams and panic now filled the courtroom and the people outside as the second Indian, Ebawatschouchimachussen (7-headed wolf) a large and muscular chief, seeing his comrade die, rushed for the door wielding his tomahawk and was run through with Howard's sword.

Captain Fisher, sword in hand began slashing and ordered, “Fire!” and twelve principal chiefs and another woman were shot and killed inside the courtroom.

At least two women, a girl and a boy were held in San Antonio until about the first of February 1844 when the Comanche finally came in for more peace talks and more prisoner swaps.

Pahyayuco, however was on a long hunt and the civil chief, Mopechucope (Old Owl) wrote back to Houston via an interpreter "We thank you for the way you have treated this old woman that has been to see you.

[34] Leaving the bulk of the warriors outside the city, Chief Isanaica (Howling Wolf) and one other man rode into San Antonio and yelled insults.

The citizens told him to go find the soldiers if he wanted a fight, but the garrison commander, Captain Redd, declared that he had to observe the 12-day truce.

[35] Of the 16 hostages the Texians were determined to recover, 13 were tortured to death as soon as the news of the Council House Fight reached the outraged Comanches.

Booker told them that the other captives had been tortured and killed when the Comanche woman had returned to camp with news of the Council House Fight.

In his book Los Comanches, historian Stanley Noyes notes, "[a] violation of a council represented an almost unthinkable degree of perfidy.