The Tonkawa Spy

# "The Tonkawa Spy; or, The Comanche Foray"

Edward Willett's frontier tale, set during the Texas Revolution, opens with a devastating ambush at Agua Dulce in 1835. A Texan expedition under Colonel Grant, pursuing horses captured from Mexican forces, is surrounded by dragoons under General Urrea. During the subsequent slaughter, dying Major Morris whispers to Placidor, a Tonkawa Indian companion, that Mexican Colonel Aguerra has stolen crucial land-grant papers. Placidor survives by feigning death, kills a Mexican soldier, and escapes north across the Nueces River despite pursuing cavalry fire.

Four years later, the narrative shifts to peaceful Texas. May Morris, the major's orphaned daughter, teaches school at Linville, where she attracts suitor Tom Labar. May reveals that her father's stolen papers—establishing rightful land claims—remain in Mexico. The Indian Placidor prepares to undertake a dangerous expedition to recover them, motivated by loyalty to the deceased major and affection for May.