Horse as symbol of Comanche power and freedom
The key to the military successes of the Comanche tribes was the ability to travel long distances quickly and unpredictably. With an attack range of four hundred miles, a relatively small group of Comanche raiders were able to terrorize settlers over a vast area, exercising far more control over the territory than their numbers would ordinarily suggest. The horse, therefore, symbolized Comanche power but also Comanche freedom. So long as the Comanche had their horses, they could fight, retreat, or move their camp elsewhere at will.
A Comanche tribesman's wealth was measured in horses. As a preliminary warning, it was customary among rival Indian tribes for young men to sneak up and steal their enemies' horses. This sent a dual message: first, it damaged the mobility of whoever had his or her horses stolen, making it difficult to hunt or to even find water. Second, it demonstrated that the raiders had the power to do damage.
Eagle as symbol of divine message
According to Parker family tradition, while pondering the decision as to whether or not to surrender, Quanah (whose original name may have been "Kwihnai", meaning eagle) went in search of a vision or a sign as to what he should do. While walking about and seeking insight on a mesa top, he saw a wolf run off in the direction of Fort Sill, at which point an eagle swooped down on him several times and then flew away to the northeast. These he took as a sigal that he should surrender and bring as many Comanche people as he could to Fort Sill.
Women as symbol of honor
The idea of a woman, or some virtue possessed by women, as a symbol of honor is chiefly a European notion however it plays a large part in how the settlers and their supporters regarded key Indian war tactics. Most Comanche women did not hunt buffalo or fight, and horse-raiding was generally regarded as a young man's sport, however there were generally a few female fighters among the Comanche warriors seen at the major battles. For the most part, in the Red River War and other wars women were more likely to be targets or captives.
Adult captives were customarily tortured, and rape was one of several weapons of terror used as part of the victory celebration. This was a customary part of war between Indian nations-- it raised the stakes, discouraged people from moving entire families into disputed territory, and encouraged the survivors to leave and to move elsewhere. But due to cultural differences between the Indians and the European-descended settlers, it was not effective in driving away the Europeans and simply increased their anger. In America at the time there was a great deal of stigma against rape victims of any sort. Since women were regarded by Americans as symbols of honor, any sexual insult to them was considered a blight on the honor of her family or of anyone who associated with her. It motivated the Texas Rangers and other fighters to military retribution, but at the same time a former captive who had been raped was considered to have been permanently damaged by her experience. generally rejected by her husband and family even after she was ransomed. (The Parker family was regarded as unique in terms of going to great lengths to find and rescue Rachel and Cynthia Ann.) Perversely, in order to help "protect" the honor of the families attacked by Indian raiding parties, no mention of rape was made in the press and when it was spoken of at all it was generally by euphemism. For that reason, many people were unaware that women and girls were in fact targets of rape as a component of torture.
Buffalo as symbol of Indian tradition
Prior to adopting feathered war bonnets and clothing styles from other tribes, the Comanche rode into battle wearing headdresses featuring buffalo horns. This custom made them easy to identify and to distinguish from warriors of other Indian nations.
The buffalo was a key component of the Comanche economy. Valuable for its skin and its meat, it was also useful commercially because Comanche hunters were able to sell the hides. Competition from the "hide men" or white hunters, who shot large numbers of buffalo with rifles but wasted everything but the hides, was one of the aspects of westard American expansion that had an immediate and severe impact on the Comanche economy and way of life.
One of the first consequences of confinement to the reservation was that Quanah Parker and his followers were unable to hunt buffalo unless a herd happened to come onto the reservation. As a result, there were many hungry periods wherein the Comanche had to rely on cattle instead. Eating beef instead of buffalo was one of the many compromises and departures from tradition made by the Comanche.
With the buffalo gone, some of the other characteristics of traditional Comanche life no longer made sense. Polygamy, for example, was no longer an economically viable way for a hunter to be able to process and sell more hides to traders, so when the Comanche arrived on the reservation there was no longer an economic need for a man to have many wives.
Pipe as symbol of alliance
Sharing a pipe of tobacco is common throughout most of the First Nations as a gesture of mutual alliance. The phrase "peace pipe", while superficially accurate, does not reflect the entire significance of tobacco sharing among people of the First Nations.
Smoking tobacco was a ritual behavior that could be done solo or in groups. The idea was to exhale prayers in the smoke, so that the rising and dissipating smoke could carry a person's prayers to whatever ancestors, spirits, or totems were being propitiated. When two people shared a pipe, they were essentially sharing spiritual essence and prayers. This required that there be not just peace or a cease-fire between them, but an actual unity or alignment of interests. Indeed, smoking with an ally created an obligation to support that ally against his or her own enemies. For this reason, while Quanah Parker was rallying support for his war of expulsion against the settlers, many Indian chiefs and leaders were reluctant to smoke with him.
