New Orleans daily crescent., 1858-11-12
Indian Life.

The chief of band of Cananches usually makes
talk to his people very eatly in the morning. mpart
ing the and discussing its purport this is
eeeded by his orders.
When change of camp is contemplated, the
women gather the animals, saddle and pack them.
The lodges are taken down and placed animals.
The men and women ride after the same fashion.
Very young children are on horseback at an age
they would not be suffered to manage horse with
us in an incosure. The point Of destinations known
to ALL The families leave as they get ready, except
some extraordinary occasion or when danger is
apprehended. In any event they have number Of
warriors look.outs every side. Tt is almost i'm
possible to approach Camanche camp without being
discovered.
When moving with their women and children
party of Camanches exhibit scenes of lveliaesS-the
women talking, laughing, and running pack animals
to keep them in place children with bow and arrows
in hand beating thickets for small game, shooting
snakes aud running heltersketer in every direction;
mules going at half speed over rocky places, with
long lodge poles trailing on either side, making
noise louder than SO many empty wagons young
warriors with gaudy trappings roicking and gliding.
When all these things are Jumbled together into
dscOrdant mass, then is 1t really exciting to be trE
cling with the red children OF the forest Sometimes
a stampede occurs to give additional variety to the
scene On such occasion the dogs OF the cee-
brated chief Buffalo Hump felt called upon to do
something. They gave chase to the running horses.
Buffalo Hump became furious; with strong bow and
ready arrows he followed the dogs. The race was
over undnating prairie kind of country, and
! dog and stopped his horses. The cunning Of the
| animal eluded the impending harm. The cid chief
with all bis subtlety, long time tOiled by his
canine companions. The scenery, the stampede, the
| chase the maGdened Indian, made panorama worth
seeing but hardly paying for the trouble OF reading
| halt being made, the women arrange everything
take Of the horses set up the lodges pack the
wood and the water, and cook. The warriors lounge
about gather in groups, and talk over matters and
things in general. In things they cannot properly
comprehend and account for in some way they pos
sess considerable iucredulity. They deny the tales
| they hear OF the speed OF railway locomotive.
| When some Of them were informed steam could
run from the Colorado to chihuahua, in Mexico, in
less than day, they declared it impossible "a horse
could not run that far in a day."
They have game which may be called 'Hunt the
| bullet. The players sit down in circle and sing
curious kind of song one takes a bullet, changes it
from hand to hand, throwing his arms in every pos
sibe direction. When he thinks his manipulatfens
have sufficiently mystitied the man appointed fer
that purpose, he holds out both hands and lets him
guess in which the bullet is. Every guess counts on
one side or the other. The number constituting the
game is, we believe, matter Of agreement the tai
lies are kept with arrows. In this way great many
articles change hands. They play also a game with
painted sticks, counted by the way they fall so
many sticks or spots falling in certain way counting
so much. We never could understand the game.
/ While this is going forward the women get resting
spell They talkative, great augheTs, aud seem
to enjoy bit Of scandal with much gusto as their
more civilized neighb0rs. The children are roaming
about, examining every thicket and every hole,
bathing shooting arrows and making all those inter
estng noises incidental to promising juyenility
The Camanches formerly owned large droves Of
horses They have thinned them greatly within the
last few years by being compelled to kill them for
food They live, as our phrase is, " from hand to
mouth they have little providence. When pro
visions are plenty they consume enormous quantities
/ They do not bear the pRngs of hunger with the
stoical resignation one would suppose Ia this par
ticuar as in almost every other, the Deawares are
infinitely superior to them.
The Camanche enjoys modicum of real pleasure.
His rowing devmaycare kind OF life has attractions
even to the white man.