"Winnetou : Het opperhoofd der Apachen" by Karl May is a novel written in the late 19th century. Set in the American West, it traces a young German newcomer who grows into “Old Shatterhand” and forms a profound friendship with the Apache chief Winnetou amid surveying missions, frontier peril, and cultural conflict. The tale blends high adventure with a passionate critique of the injustices done to Native Americans. The opening of the
novel begins with a heartfelt preface mourning the decline of Indigenous peoples and announcing the story as a memorial to Winnetou. It then follows a self-styled “greenhorn” in St. Louis who impresses a gruff gunsmith, Mr. Henry, with extraordinary marksmanship, subdues a vicious horse, and—thanks to a discreet “examination”—is recruited as a surveyor for a railroad expedition, receiving a gifted rifle and mount and meeting the guides Sam Hawkins, Dick Stone, and Willy Parker. On the Canadian River section, the work stalls under a drunken chief and lazy guards while the narrator quietly does the real labor; a visiting engineer, Mr. White, exposes the mismanagement. A heated confrontation ends with the narrator flooring two bullies and earning the nickname Old Shatterhand, after which White warns of Indian danger. A brief scouting ride concludes with the discovery of a fresh footprint near a stream, foreshadowing imminent contact. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
