Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1892-04-21
AN INDIAN MOTHERS GRIEF.
A Touching Incident Related BY q From
fferSmau,

A Touching Incident Related BY q From
tiersman.
In the rounds of duty incident to the
business of stock raising, camped one
night on little creek within the Dor
ders of the great Nez Perces Indian
reservation 1t was cold evening in
early spring, and no notes were taken
of the surroundings before darkness
settled over the sheltered little plat Of
wild iS,.eadow and brought to close a
day of haro work. There were Indian
cabins of dingy. HnEainted boards, and
smoky old log horses hr and down the
river, but the peaceful owners We're not
astir, and I heard not sound to denote
the presence of mankind. This silence
and inactivity Is not unusual In the set
Elements OF the native redmen- Poor
shaggy saddle ponies were feeding
about ON the scanty grass The dogs
were barking in answer to the slIrill
notes of the bowling, hungry coyotes
and the echoes played from side to side
of the rocky canyon. The river, too,
sent mp changing rumble, rising and
falling like signs from troubled heart.
But my loneliness did not keep me
from sleep. 1 was tired and slept
soundly fog several hours, when i was
aroused by the beating Of rain drops in
my face. The wind had wtiFiea down
into my sheltered cove and carried away
the blanket that formed my teat. The
calza, cold evening had become blns-
tering, stormy night ! gathered my
blanket about I'VE for psotectioR from
the storm as best i could and tried to
sleep again. As the wind hiled
L heard a strange noise. It was
the voice of seine oIe-a; child,
thought-in distress. It was,
dark and. it would be impossible in that
storm for-me to prepare light tried
to resist the impulse that urged me 10,
60 to the relief of the one in.diStresss.
but again and again heard the cry
some one weeping and wailing in dis
tresss 1 hastily p.S on my clothes and
started in the direction from which
came the pitiful cry. Iclambered over
stiff, unyielding brush and cragged
rocks till /. reached a bare knoll that
stood out from. the mountains like a
mound. L came in contact, with what 1
knew to be the fence around an Indian
grave. The strange cry came to me
more distinctly. 1t was the pathetic wall
of an Indian woman. 1 had heard the
same sad cry of hopelessness before. 1
was within. a few.f feet of her: She must
have beeAiaware of my approach, but SO
intense was her grief that she was not
startled to such an extent that it called
her mind for one instant from the dead
1 turned away and left her to bear her
burden withconly the darkness of night
and the fury of the wind to help her
When daylight came I went again to
the grave. 1t was that of a very small
child. Its heartbrolzen mother was
the mourner whom all tie world
could not comfort. There was a rude
fence around the little new-made grave
and there We're little flags waving above
it to frighten the Wild beasts that
howled SO ghoulishly the evening be-
fore. The storm that came so suddenly
that night was the first to beat upon
the lonely resting place of the little
one, and the mother came from her
house near by and threw herself upon
the grave because it in some way re-
ieved her to protect all that remained
for her of her hearts ACKNOWLEDGMENT
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