In 1852, a militia captain named Ben Wright rode into Modoc country, raised a white flag, and invited the Modoc to talk peace. For five days they ate his beef and flour. On the morning of the sixth, he walked into their sleeping camp with two revolvers under his cloak and opened fire. Between 30 and 90 people died. Wright rode back to Yreka with their scalps, the town cheered, and the State of California paid him $744 for his trouble. The Modoc never forgot what a white man's