The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1880-09-01
NUMBER 30

can run 90 miles from daylight to dark
going all the time in a long lope. and never
tlrlng or stopping The war-club was in
troduced among the Greeks by Tecumseb
ana MS followers in 1911, at the Greai
0ounclI at Iookabatchie, of which Gen
Daie was witness. The war-club is shaped
| IiAe Suh-stock, made of heavy wood OIL
the bend OF some of them is a steel or iron
spike or inches long. Previous TO tbat
/ tine the Greeks only used the tomabswk
BOWS and arrows, the gun and scalping.
knife Inc scalping-knite Is sometime 49,
the common carving-knife rounded ~ ~
point The real scalp is the crown Of The
mead piece about as big As a dollar
lney take OH larger piece, however. and
| afterwards cut scrape and dry it. They
leave the halr ON 1t, paint the skin and pre-.
serve IL with great deal of care
The Greeks and Cherokees have in win
/ ter, what they call lighthouses Two or
three families club together and build a
hot-house. lhey make it OF logs, cover il
with poles or rafters placed close togstber
ada another coerying of ba rk or boards and
daub the whole thickly with mud. inside
ana outside. The hot-house is a small
square building, with fire in the middle
raised on a hearth. They heat the house
III night rake the ashes over the Goals and
sleep on cane mats round the house. open
ing the fire as the house gets cold towards
day In this house, the children, who are
naked, are kept warm all the winter
Nhle the hot-house is heating, they are at
the nre IN their parents houses. The hot :
house Is only heated in very cold weather.
Tor, unless 1t Is very cold indeed the chill
dren though naked, can stand it, playing
about and running from house to house.
The Greeks and Cherokees always have
nag pole about fifty feet high. planted in
the ground, about thirty yards from their
town square. Upon this pole they gener-
ally raise, in times ofalarm, a flag of white
cloth Around this pole is a circular yard
about thirty yards in diameter nicely
scraped and clean, where they play at foot
ball, in which game they kick with the
foot, and do not touch with the hands
The women and men play at this game.
The ball Is about the size of a large orange.
and to complete the victory, after they get
the ball through the sticks, they must strike
the pole with it. This is the only game
played in this yard
Inc ball-play proper, when. they play
with sticks, (the Indians great game) is
somewhat difficult to describe.
An open, level piece of land is selected.
and four poles are planted some two hun
dred yards apart, two at each end, two feet
apart at their base but inclining outwards
TO a width of three feet at top From twen-
ty to fifty players, on each side, engage in
the game, which never fails to attract a
crowd. The parties, respectively, assemble |
at the pole, and then advance, whooping /
and ieaping, to the centre, where they Law !
their sticks down in two rows. These sticks !
are about three feet long one end fashioned. |
very ingeniously, of basket-work, in the /
form OF hand half open, with which to |
catch the flying ball The object of one /
party was to throw the ball through the
posts, and the business of the other party
was to intercept the ball, and cast it through
the posts at the other extremity. After
depositing their sticks, an interval of about
an hour was allowed for betting Men and
women, old and young, almost without ex-
ceptlon, staked everything they could COM
mand, blankets, leggings, ornaments. moe
easlns on their feet, horses, and money
When two persons make a bet, the stakes
are placed in the hands of stakeholder,
to be delivered to the winner. The PLAYERS
then post themselves along the line, and
one of them, standing in the centre, losses
up the ball. The struggle then to catch the
ball begins between the rivals 1t must be
caught only with the stick. The ball is
about the size of an ordinary trap-ball
stuffed with deer-hair and covered with
ouckskin. Two mingos, one for each side
kept the tally. The ball had to pass twelve
first was the winner. The instant /
a player caught the ball it was his aim to |
cast 1t, with all his might, towards his own |
poles. But it was lucky if it was not snatch /
ed from him before he could throw it, or !
caught in an instant after he ne had
hurled it. Stand from under" and "look (,
out, were the rules in this game. No re-
sPonslbilitY for accident or injuries, even /
should such injuries be fatal No respect |
or nh Il.
opened, the players were supreme. If you 1
got in their way, you were remorselessly run |
'yer If an arm, leg or a rib, head or
neck, was broken in the struggle to catch
II throw the ball, it was all in the game,
nd no one was censured. They ran like a
tampeded herd of wild horses or buffalo.
ver everything in their way, and if one or
more fell the others passed over him. As
he bail would come whizzing by, with the
elocIty OF bullet, a player would spring
our or five feet in the air to intercept it,
nd just as he was in the act of casting it
0 his own poles, or starting to run with it
q that direction, a rival would seize and
url him to the ground, clutch the ball and 8
e, in turn, Overthrown as he was about to
asst it. {
One OF these games, sometimes, lasted all !
ay. Village played against village; clan =
gainst clan tribe against tribe the same '
ules governing in each case :
In all the village facing the public :
luare, Is the town house, devoted to dane | ;
az These houses, among the Greeks and =
'herokees, are circular running up some e
wenty teet in the form Of a cone or sugar :
lat, just before night, fire is made in ;
he center OF this house, and by eight o'clock ;
he dancing begins. The music is a very :
rimitive drum, made of a dressed skin
rawn over the section of hollow tree or
OK, accompanied with a low, monotonous .
rawling chant by the musician The :
eader of the dance chants the same tune, =
nd the dancers keep time with wonderful !
These town dances were intend :
d for amusement but the ball flag dance !
nd the wag dance were eEgious solemnities, :
I'd required long practice and regular drill :,
he step or motion began at one end of the !,
smi-circle, gently rising up and down, upon
heir toes and heels alternately when the 4,
rst was up on tiptoe tho next was on the =
eel, and THIS, from one end of the rank 20 i
e. otner, so that some were up and some a
own, alternately, without any confusion, a
nd moving with the regularity of machin- {
fy obliquely or sideways, so that the circle :,
double or complex movement
] its progFession, and at intervals exhibited =,
general, uniform movement, by each rank h
arning to the right and left, taking each !,
theirs places. These movements were made
18th wonderful alertness, accompanied, oc- /.
with the shrill whoor-
The green corn dance (Loos- ke-ta, ia the i
Iuscogee topg-e,I was celebrated when the q
az pecame ft for roasting. The dAy was =
ppoitited BY the head chief. after solemn ..
noke with his ooansellors. The festival |,
!sted from three to six days The ground .
sprinkled with sand. Four logs of wood -
re brought in, by four appointed warriors, Il
ON the east, west, north, and south en- y
RANGES, and placed in the centge, end to =
nd, in the shape of 2 Greek cross, the outer 4
nds facing tee cardinal points. The new !,
re Is kindled by the friction of hickory Z
ticks, and all the old fires are extinsaished. :,
The first dance-the Pike Dun-gaw, or y
lrkey dance, is by women exclusively, du- =
lg which the black Cor Yopanl drink is :
rewed. Next follows the Tad-pole dance, y
V four women and meR. After this, the ,
len dance the E hon-tun-g aw, or dance 4
f the common people, This continues all e
light,