The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1891-02-17
FEm.iLE INDIIN SLIrEs.
The Women ofAn Tribes Doomed TO Hope
less bondage.

The women of an Indian tribes, doomed toa
hopeless bondage If slavery, th" fate of t.e.r
sex IN every savage race. have hu few muse-
mrnts. says o writer m thu Kansas CITY Sur
They accept then condition -fnleallE. however
hy the uurrug law of ler,d.ty through ayes
OF abuse and ~rrSlle obedience. Tire lower tlc
tribe iu the scale ~ humanity the mlre de-
graded are tic women. Among tht D.Igcrs ot
Oregon and Ma-ln -tuu, with which -atages
passed three or four years. tAe poor -quaN, Are
% Doe uflrd. Living GA root. ami mise. f-
which The women must furnish, thr,rtN.attl."
~ tribe may We'll uc Imagined tu br a. ferF
prrcaiOu- one. j. the eama-. a Iu.. growing
deep IN the ground uno very sweet. should
fail. COP the acorn and "blaek cricket crop Doe
NOT plentiful ia any year. thcir winter +, Liable
% bee olr ot piuchug poverty and starvation.
have often looked with profound pity upon
troops ot their Old and young Squiw- under
the hot sumner sun wandering dag after day
over the prugirs. the mothers with their little
ones strapped To their backs, armed with 3
long iron, with which they dug tie sometime
hard soil fog the roots. which furnish large
portion OF THEN support. haggald broken
down. but never complaining ~ thcir wtarl-
some task
Among many of the tribes. however. the
women are allowed % have some utIu-rglent.
but 10 Is generally when their lords aIe halt
drunk. The Dakotahs frequently permitted
their women 10 indulge IA 70 game %! DAHL
which. however. differed entirely from that
PLAYED by the men When the men had Worn
themselves out With their own games. and
were in a maudhn state from to- much whisky
but wanted To have . little more tuu. they
would notify every one that the squaW- We're
going 90 have a game Of ball o. their own;
Then when the game began the bucks would
roll over on the ground and laugh az Oh,
curious antics Of their squaws in their awkward
playing.
Frequently. when the men had been very
lucky in their trapping or had been successful
in making good trades with the whites they
would open their hearts and donate piles of
gaudy goods such az calIooes, ribbons and
strings If beads besides many other bright
c0lorrd things known only to the Indian trader
and found only IN the stores of the traders
These things which were 10 be- the prizes con-
tended for, would be put on "a stick. which IT,
self rested on two crotched poles upright
IN the ground and over which an old
man kept guard The old man was
also umpire of the game. The women
We're then divided into two equal par
ties and the ball-0r rather two. for they play
with two fastened % the ends of string
eighteen or twenty inches long. Every squnw
engaged in the game holds in each hand q
small stick on which she must try % catch
the string to which Is attached the two balls
aud when she succeeds in doing this she
throws them 10 and over the goal II the side
she "a playing. IL is remarkably cOmical
sight 10 see tie women roll over IN the dust
aud dirt In the frantic efforts 10 catch the
string on their sticks. while the men lie Dat
on the ground and roar with laughter AT them
Notwithstanding the women are kept so de-