Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1890-11-22
The Ghost Dances .

TIE following la description c!an Indian
ghost dance, as Witnessed by the wife OF
post trader:
One ghost dar ca that | sow vas pastici-
pated in By $50 Indians. La preparing fol
be dance, they cut the tal!est tree they can
End, ard having dragged it to level piece
of prairie, Get it up in the ground. Uldsf
his tree four of the head men S end. The
others form in circle, and begin TO &c
around and around the tree. They begin
he dance On Friday afternoon. II i5 kept
mp Saturday ard Sunday until sundo"n.
During all this time they do rot eat or
driok. They keep going around in one d.
reciiop, until they become so digs tbai
hey can scarcely stand, then turn ard &c
Into the o. her direction, aud Keep it up On
Gil thew swoou fr, m eXheus ior. Ibis Is
what they strive to do, for while they ere in
swoou they think they see and talk with The
neW Christ.
When they regain Consciousness they toll
their experiences to the four wise men I'M
d II the tree. All their tales end with the
same story about The Two mountains hat
are 10 helch forth mCd ard buy the wbi;e
n 70 END the return good old Io6ian t,Lnes
Tncy lose eli ;her senses III the d,nca
They t5ipb they are animals Some get
,ILwa on all fouts ard bob oout like bnEa-
os. When they canBo5 lose their Gems $
rom exhaustion they butt their beaGs 10.
ee he-. beat them upon the ground atd &c
suythiug TO become iDeeusibie, so that tney
MAJ be usher; uto the presence OF the re"
Chris
Ons poor Indian, wben ha recovered BIZ
seus eeiti that Cnrs5 had tod him ne
must return 10 earth, because he had noi
trsugh. his wfa and Child His chi q nae
died Two yeare before, aud the way the po0i
fellow CRED was tae most hehrtrendns
thirg eyer saw. at tie epd Of the dance
thew nave grand feast, the rsvel lasting
alt SUNDAY night. They Kill several steers
soG eat thsm raw, drick nDd gorge iheGi-
selyes 10 make no for tneir fast. Ihs ar
Oval Of the troops thare will make the Ia
diane much worse, and they will surely hsDt.
They have said Il along that nothing should
break up the ghost dance, even ifthey were
killed. But then, if they had hesu al.oW-o
TO continue, l thiok they Wouli hive gone
c.szy, 60 they worli have taken to the @sr-
patti, anyhow. They ere ali we'll pFmed,
and nave nleotY of ammunition.
Al lase Fddsy's dance one of the brsvts
was to go into trance and remain 10 this
coalition four days. at the close OF this
period be was to ccue to lie as ouHalo-
hs would still have the form Ola man, but ne
would he buffilo. They were then to k.ll
the buff 10, and every Indian who did not
eat piece OF him would become deg. The
man who was to turn Into buffalo was per-
f.ctly wiling, end 1 suppose they have
killed sud eaten him by this time.
If the government just le!s them alcne,
there will be no need OF troops; they will
kill themselves dancing. SsVen or eight OF
than died as result of one dance near
Wounded Knee They are nov dancing on
creek shout 6ge miles south CT Wounded
Kuee, and dancing with all their arms.
Every Indian he's abont four clubs made out
of round stopee twistal 10 raw hide. They
throw these around during the dance, strew
the grouad with hem, sDd bsat their heads
agaiuet them. The agent, with bis Iod'sn
police, cannot control them and il 10 necat-
cary to have the troops on the ground.