San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1890-07-30
LIFE FOR LIFE.
The Queer Workings of a Law OF
the Natives of Alaska.

The Queer Workings of a Law of
the Natives of Alaska.
From the Lewiston Journal.
An Androscoggin county lady, who
recently returned from Alaska, where
her husband was employed by tine
United States government as q teach
or among the natives, gives some In
teresting particulars of the country
and people. While at Chilcott the
lady Witnessed q tragedy and it's con-
sequences, which illustrates the Pc
culiar code of justice among the ma
tives.
A party of white miners were at
the supply agency preparing to start
of on a prospecting tour to the Yukon
or some other distant mining locality.
Several Indians wanted to accompany
them, but objection was raised by
others. Liquor had been freely
drunk, and bad blood was in the as
cendant. An old chief, much respect
ed by the whites, excited the ire of a
chief Of another tribe, and the latter
sought to vent his wrath by striking
the others son, who CHANGED to be
| present. The father retaliated by
knocking the aggressor down. The
latter thereupon drew his revolver
and fired, the bullet penetrating the
| old chiefs lungs.
Knowing that the custom If his
countrymen demanded a life for a
life, he at once darted from the scene
of the ARRAY and fed directly for the
house in which the white lady was
stopping, If he could once gain an
entrance, to be able to secure i'm
munity from punishment. She stood
in the doorway as he approached,
but he was destined never to enter.
1t appears that his dissipated, quar-
relsome habits had already placed
him in bad odor with its own tribe,
and one of the fieet-footed young men
intercepted him when almost at the
threshold, and with q terrible cut
with a huge knife almost severed his
body in two.
Now comes the singular part that
justice had to take in the affair. In
stead of the actual murderer paying
the penalty of the crime, according
to their judicial code the life of the
old chief, as the assumed prime cause
of 1t, was TO be forfeited, notwith.
standing he had at first acted mainly
on the defensive, and had already
been perforated with the bullet of
his enemy. He sought protection
from his white friends, but, while
they were heartily in sympathy with
him, they did not deem it prudent to
interfere in the matter. Seeing no
hope in that direction, he turned
from them with the remarks: me
show white man how brave Indian
die" and gave himself up to be shot.
After his wife had adjusted q black
cap to his head q dozen or so men of
his own tribe drew themselves up for
the execution, but their hands tremb-
led SO, or they so disliked TO shoot
their beloved chief, that in the firing
the bullets that entered his person
only mangled him, and did not at
once prove fatal. He begged them to
kill him outright, but they desisted,
and he was carried to his hut to
slowly die from his wounds. Thus
he fingered for nearly two weeks,
suffering the greatest agony. His
wife would go to his bedside night
after night and plunge a knife into
his side to hasten death and his re-
lease, which seemed so long a time
coming. During his suffering the
lady visited him almost daily, and he
seemed very grateful for her solicit
tude. Finally he died, aud "justice"
was satisfied.