We went right past Albuquerque and by night found ourselves in Tucumcari. There the car actually did die. It wasn’t recharging the battery, so when I put the headlights on as it got dark, the battery weakened and died. With no money, and a bad battery ( it was an old one, so we figured it had stopped holding a charge) it seemed as though we might get to know Tucumcari pretty well. The town is in an empty section of the New Mexico desert, demarked by a single mountain protruding from the otherwise flat tableau.
THE LEGEND
The Legend of Tucumcari Mountain has been handed down from mouth to mouth by Indian tribes.
"Wautonomah, Chief Apache, knew that he would soon die and was troubled over the matter of who his successor would be. His two finest braves were Tonopah and Tocom, enemies and deadly rivals for the hand of Kari, the daughter of Wautonomah. But Kari loved Tocom and hated Tonopah.
So, Wautonomah called Tonopah and Tocom to his side and said: "Soon, I must die and one of you must succeed me as Chief. Tonight you must take your long knives and meet in combat to settle the matter between you, and he who survives shall be Chief and have for his squaw, Kari, my daughter."
So the two rivals met and hurled themselves upon one another in deadly combat; but unknown to either, Kari had concealed herself nearby, and as the knife of Tonopah found the heart of Tocom, she rushed from her hiding place and plunged her knife into the heart of Tonopah. Then, taking Tocom's knife, she stabbed herself in grief.
When Wautonomah was led to the scene, he was heartbroken. Seizing Kari's knife, he plunged it into his heart, crying in agony, "Tocom-Kari." The old Chief's dying utterance lives on today with a slight change to "Tucumcari," and the scene of the tragedy is now famous legendary Tucumcari Mountain."