Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1875-10-21
An Indian Sun Dance and Dog Supper.

A CORRESPONDENT of the IOaoG State
Reqister writes from Red Cloud Agency
as follows:
The most brutal sight one can witness
in the Indian country is only afforded
when the "Sun dance" occurs, and its
brutality is such that one only cares to see
it once, and would then gladly forget its
hellish orgies. For several days the
Sioux, Cheyennes and Arapahoes have
been making grand arrangements for this
dance, and yesterday came the finale.
For twenty -four hours previous general
dance and singing had been going on at
the camp, five miles above here; at times
as many 5 200 warriors were in the hap
ply circle, while three big drums gave out
noise enough to start three or four pande-
moniums, with the not very musical
voices Of a large number of squawS
thrown in to add an additional feature of
the horrible The object Of the "Sun
dance" is to test the courage Of the young
warriors to endure physical pain, under
the most trying circumstances, the one
enduring most coming out with the bar
barrie honOrs. At ten o'clock seventeen
young warriors, stripped nearly naked,
came into the circle and were operated
upon. The operation was performed by
a Medicine Man, horribly rugged out. The
first one to come up was magnificent
looking fellow from the Cheyennes, all
bone and muscle, and in glorious health.
The Medicine Man first cut four gashes
about three inches long on the shoulders,
near the point With a smooth stick of
hard wood he made hole underneath the
Sits he had cut, each taking in an inch or
more in width, and through which hole he
passed buffalo thong, and tied it tightly.
Then the breast was served in the same
manner, after which one thong was
fastened to Il fOurteen-feet pole. To the
other thong was tied a large beefhead-a
long-horned Texan, with about ten feet
of thong between the back and the head.
The young warrior then jumped into
lively dance, singing song OF some sort
in keeping with the performance, jerking
that bull-head around so fast that at times
il was four or five feet above the
ground-all the time pulling as best
he could at the thong fastened to the
pole by jumping back and swinging upon
it. AT times the flesh on back and breast
seemed to stretch out about eight or ten
inches, and when let up would close down
with pop. The ropes in the breasttasten-
ings were the first to break, one breaking
at the top Of the cut, the other at the
lower end The top one hung down full
four inches, and this the medicine-man
cut off deXterously. 1t was put through
an incarnation, when the bloody, sweaty
warrior was put through race OF about
forty wards with that bull-head hanging to
his back. At one bound the horns stuck
well in the ground, and with vigorous
pull the thongs broke, and a warrior was
made. He was a terrible looking object,
and so nearly exhausted that he had to be
helped away. During the last half OF his
torture he Uttered not word, nor did he
open his mouth nor even vince. His
wounds were washed and bound up, pres
ents made to him OF horses and robes, and
he recognized as brave man. There were
sixteen more performances OF like nature,
save that no other ones took the double
ties on back and breast Thirteen were
tied by the back, the others by the breast.
The fat fellows got away with the business
very quickly, but the lean, lank and more
muscular fellows had long and tough jobs
with it. One fellow, breaking in fran
tic effort fell under the heels of horse,
resulting in peeled head for the Indian
as well as a sore back. | confess that L
only remained to see two OF the victims
go through the ordeal, gaining from my
companion, half-breed interpreter (who
had enough Indian in him to stomach the
whole of the bloody brutality, the status
tics concerning the fat and lean fellows.
The warriors who went through the ordeal
were all from the NOrth-thOse who have
but little to do with the whites, and that
little mostly in TIE way of scalps and
horsestealing The more civilized fellows
have learned better than to make such
COMPOUNDED fools of themselves.
On Saturday friendly Indian who had
conferred the pleasure upon me OF smok-
ing cigars quite generously invited me to
come to his tepee up the canon that night,
as he was going to have feast, and he
desired that Col Beauvais and Capt. Ash
by, of the Treaty Commission, should
also come Sword is the name of the en-
tertaining party, and the "invite," while
not presented on salver, nor even print
ed or written on tinted paper, was accept
ed entirely for the novelty and not for the
boiled dog. We were bid to come early,
and at shutdown were at Swords canvas
mansion. A multitude of children, with
double number of dogs, welcomed us
in truly aboriginal fashion. Sword imme-
diately designated to his squaw the par
ticular dog that was his choice for the
pot. The same was caught and tied by
short rope to a stake, and the female
went for'' the dog with aclub. Striking
at the head she missed and hit him on
the nose He filed his objections to that