Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-07-13

I
CITING CONTESTS OF sPEED-A GREAT YEAST
AND ALL sATIsFIED-A MEMORABLE DAY FOR
THE RED MEN, ALL OF WHOM WERE SOBER.
PINE RIDGE AGENCY Sd, July g.
STAFF Correspondence of The Evening Star
Several years before this beneficent govern
ment fell into the habit of supplying the Sioux
| nation with bacon and coffee and sugar and
hard tack-the benefcent government before
mentioned having so manipulated things as to
make the Indian painfully dependent upon
what some people are pleased to term Its
bounty'-the colonies decided to declare them
selves free and independent citizens of a coun-
try that acknowledged trne manhood as the
only sovereignty. The anniversary of this dec
laration. so boldly made, has always been the
occasion of more or less noisy enthusiasm and
powder-burning patriotism throughout the
civilized length and breadth of the land, eau
casian and Ethiopian alike joining in the great
national chorus that never fails to make itself
heard on the Fourth of July, but up to this
time the Indian seems to have been a minor
feature, although he was the original American
citizen. His backwardness is at least excus-
able, for a more completely dependent being
than he would be hard to find, even with the
assistance OF a search warrant and Jack-the-
Ripper detective.
hENEbslN6 THE USUAL ORDER
Heretofore it mas been customary for the In
dams who draw rations at Pine Ridge agency to
visit the little towns which lie on the railroad
and just south of the Ogalalla reservation and
In these places to watch the white men bear
exuberant testimony to the joyful nature of
the occasion. Sometimes the Indian would be
so impressed by the evident superiority of the
white mans way that he would try it himself.
and when he did he invariably got into
a of fhaCs4 Ia. hrrre he
are run in consonance with strict prohibition
ideas drunken Indian is a very quarrelsome
and dangerous man After awhile public sem
timent commenced TO crystalline and the aver
age white man saw how foolish and suicidal a
thing 1t wGs to provide the Indian with even a
small quantity of whisky. so that for the past
three or four years great many Ogalalias
have been annually entertained at ChadrOn,
Rushville. Hay Springs, Gordon and other
small towns without those alleged aids
to enter COMMUNICATING liquors. In
the ordinary course of events the Pine
Ridge Indians would have been scattered
along the parallel lines of civilization and rail-
road on the Fourth which has just passed. but
the presence at Pine Ridge of the Sioux COM
mission anu number of army officers resulted
In the reversal of long-established custom. A
subscription paper was started around the
agency and IL SoOdly sum of money was at once
secured Then program was formulated and
generally approved. Mysterious orders were
inside shook their heads sagely and requested
anxious inquirers to wait patiently until the
Eou- should arrive. Runners went out to the
camps and notified every band that the greatest
dag In the history of the tribe would start in
on the morning of Saturday, for there were
promises of races for man and beast, with a
whole afternoon in which to feast, and an en-
tire evening devoted to dancing and fireworks.
The Idea OF races captured good many who
were about TO wander off in the direction of
the railroad and few others surrendered to
the fireworks, but the general capltulation did
not materiaiize until tine doctrine of big feast
was fully made known. Indians are very much
like white men; You can appeal to them more
successfully through their stomachs than
through any other avenue.
THE OFFICIAL PROGRAM.
Who ran the machine? Here they are:
Presiding officer of the day, Capt Chas. G.
Penny, sixth United States infantry, acting
Indian agent.
First vice president, Mrs Chas. G. Penny.
Wee presidents. Capt. c. VI. Bailey, eighth
United States infantry; Capt. Matthias ". Day.
ninth United States cavalry; Lieut.. john kinzie
second United States infantry; Lieut.. E-Hubert.
eighth United States infantry; Lieut. Ashton
Il. Heyl, assistant surgeon; Lieut. ". ID. Me-
Ananey, ninth United States cavalry; Lieut..
Pershing, sixth United States cavalry: Lieut..
q. NJ. Williamson, sixth United States cavalry:
Lieut. Guy Henry Preston, ninth United States
Cavalry.
Executive committee-Capt. Charles G. PEN
E. Pearce; commissioner, a. II. Appieman;
Commissioner Geo. ii. Harries, Capt Z. VI.
Bailey, l. ). Special Agent J. 4. Cooper, Capt.
j. ID. Brown, Col. J. \. George.
Orator of the day. Gen. Cyrus Bussey. assist
ant secretary of the interior.
The judges were selected from among the
vice presidents the executive committee. the
permanent residents of Pine Ridge. the soldiers
and scouts stationed here and the Indians
Post Traders Finiay and Claymore. Agency
Chief Clerk Iomer. Assistant Postmaster Clark
Z. r. Wells, Harry y. Price. Frank White, Red
Shirt. Chas. Finlay and First Sergeants Iron
Crow and Thunder Bull being most active.
PERFECT DAY.
MeteoroloSieaiy speaking. no one knows
what al hour will bring forth in South Dakota.
but the atmospheric eccentricities that have
marked this spring and summer have all been
forgiven because the great national holiday at
Pine Ridge was, SO far nature could assist a
decided success. The sun rose from a cloudiess
horizon and made luminous a landscape that
was at times almost beautiful. Away to the
northwest were visible the dark outlines of a
portion OF the Black Hills ard some faint idea
could be secured of the majesty of Harney's
Peak. ninety miles distant The nearer eleya-
tons were varied in their tints. ranging from
deep purple, through hues of russell and green,
W NtI4ON VI suIlHOHer
1epees dotted the plsteaus and fringed the
creeks, while ponies were scattered. SO to speak
from Dan to Eeersheba. Indians are not as a
rule. early risers, but a good many Of them
were up with the sun tina. morning. for before
the civilized residents OF Pine Ridge had
swallowed their incipient chickens and dis
posed of the nlatutinal coffee there were
lengthy strings ot wagons approaching the
agency from three or four different directions
The invitation TO celebrate was being accepted.
PREPARING FOR THE FOOT RACES.
Ten o clock was the hour at which the field
sports were to commence, but consistently
procrastinating was the Indian that it was fully
IL before there any thing like a reasonably
large crowd on the bar just above W of creek
and a trife north of the agency. The Judges
and starters and many others of the white per-
suasion were on hand in good season and waited
with more than Job-hke patience for the COM
ing OF their guests. Capt. George Sword. chief
of the agency police and one of the best Indians
anybody ever knew, moved around on q milk
white cayuse stirring up the spirit OF emulation
among the youngsters and warning the care
less 10 keep Oft the track. That track was as
crude an affair as man ever over. When
the call was sounded for the assembling of those
who desired to win two dollars by covering 100
yards OF prairie IN less time than ant one else
the track was nothing more than two dark
streaks in the soil where wagon wheels had ef-
fectually discouraged the growth OF grass or
weeds. Ten minutes later and the sunhowers
vrb al vrnN,. tall hatuaer tn. wbaaI T..