St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1892-08-06
DIGGER INDIAN SURGERY.


The poor Digger Indians, Of California,
who. prior to emigration there, in ls49,
lived upon spontaneous production, such
rs they could kill with bow and arrow.
and grasshoppers, which I have seen
there, which they captured by hun.
dreds Of bushels 1t q single capture.
During my travels there from saw-mill
to saw-mill, when I fitted and inserted
my saw teeth In circular saws at the
mills, met with gentlemen who
related curious incidents Of these Dig
gers, rs they are called. and among
this exceedingly interesting and curious
method they had in dealing with . coua-
pound fracture:
Twas inserting teeth in . saw for .
Mr.. Wilcox, in q mining town then
called Fiddletown. in Sierra county.
Most Of the yellow metal was obtained
by running tunnels under steep bluff
and washing it in . brook. At the head
Of the town was their saw-mill. and
about five or six miles from there was
an Indian campudia q camp), where
several hundred Of these Diggers lived.
A saw mill, to them, was a great cu-
riosity then. and nearly every day some
Of this tribe would visit this mill.
One day about twenty of them were
there, and. it being chilly. most of them
stood in front of the fire under the
double-flue boiler, when . very sad acci-
dent occurred by the collapse Of tho
hucs. scalding Mr.. Hoxey, one Of tho
owners, 70 that the poor man died about
four days after the accident, and il
burned several of the Indians, and blew
one poor old mohalie (squaw) some
twenty feet into an old miners prospect
hole. and broke one Of her legs below
the knee, it being what surgeons call =
compound fracture. The Diggers shoul.
dered her and went to their campudia,
the only physician there being kept to
take care Of poor Mr.. Hoxey. About
four days after the misfortune several
hundred Diggers appeared on the high
bluff overlooking the town, with bows
and arrows and in war paint. Soon down
came . tall chief, who walked up in
front Of the small hotel, and said:
"Whar saw mill men?" Some men at
the hotel pointed to Mr.. Wilcox, then
coming over small bridge. The chief
walked up to him. saying: "You saw
mill MANI" Mr.. Wilcox said: ''YeS."
"Wcll. Indian came down to see saw
mill, do no hurt, then white men shoot
of saw mill, burn Indian, break mo-
halle leg; Indian want to fight saw mill
men,"
Mr.. Wilcox was puzzled TO know just
what to do; but there was . gentleman
in town who had been an Indian agent.
and they sent to him. who came at
once. The agent asked how Mr.. Hoxey
was, and was told that he was very
low and not expected to live through
the day.
So they went to the sufferers room
with the Indian chief, and showed the
poor mans wounds. and explained, in
Indian language: ''Nointendi acidenti. :"
When the old chief replied: me safe.
No iite all wano." Which is: II un-
dcrstand it was not intended; it was ac-
cidcntal; we don't fight" And the In
dians soon disappeared.
Now comes the interesting and scien-
tific part of this story. In a day or SO
after Mr.. Hoxey's burial the surgeon
went to the campudia, and there sat the
poor broken-lcgged mohalie. The ply
sician told me that the Diggers meas
ured around the leg in several places,
then cut q piece out of = slippery elm
tree, near the size and shape of the leg,
took the bark off. shaved of the out
side and made as fine splint Is he ever
saw, and fitted it around the broken
limb. leaving the space open about one
quarter of an inch on the top, and were
pouring in a little water to keep down
the fever heat, and that in . few weeks
the squaw was limping around town
again.. +. Emerson, in Scientific
American,