The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1894-12-06

Obarles NJ. Holton, Col. Ii. ID. Cock,
Samuel Chappell and host of other pio-
neers we'll remember), was recently shot
in the abdomen, heavy A Colts ball
passing entirely through his body. A
physician proclaimed him no better than
a corpse yet medicine man, two squaws
and constant tattoo upon drums in
their hands, beaten to the tune Of dis
cordant yells and bowls, in which the
victim was the most vociferous, (he con-
tinually whooping, while the blood
poured from his wound, 81 amt goin'
TO die! amt goin' to die y brought
him to his feet and sent him to his usual
haunts IN just two hours of time; and
he is yet alive.
A young Indian boy was bitten by q
rattlesnake, and despite all the efforts OF
the reservation physician, proceeded to
announce that he was going to die. His
arm and hand we're swollen to twice their
natural size and were black as black
could be. His parents could stand the
agony no longer, and begged for an In
dian medicine man. Agent Erwin gave
his permission, and when the doctor"
arrived on the following morning the boy
was almost dead. The instant the medi-
cine man entered the patients tent the
latter's face was one blaze OF hope and
belief; and in one hours time the old
medicine man had reduced the swelling
in the arm, having hypnotized the boy
and his watching parents into the belief
that he had extracted the teeth Of the
snake just before they had reached the
heart (the Indians affirm that snakes
teeth are left in the wounds inflicted,
and that they start fer the heart immedi-
ately, causing death upon the instant
they reach it, by the simple rubbing of
certain spots where he said he felt the
teeth, with the back Of his thumb nail.
Cases OF this character are most nu-
nitrous, and each demonstrates that it is
but the belief OF the sick or "witched"
Indian which causes his illness, and the
faith he has in his medicine man alone
cures him. Who 80 foolish as to main
tair that the beating Of drums and inane
bowling could in two hours cure and heal
bullet hole clean and clear through the
abdominal cavity? There is but one
power this side of infinity which can ac-
complish such feat; that is simply the
absolute belief Of the patient that he is
cured because he knows his medicine
man can cure him.
To attain this power" the Indian will
do anything but kill himself, and he
might be persuaded to that. A case in
point is that OF Captain John, who was
on Saturday last brought home from
Walla Walla in box. his head and face
mashed to jelly and his chest caved in.
There is no clue to the perpetrators, but
that fact does not cause half so much
reserve as does the knowledge that he
could possibly die from any cause. Agent
Erwin says it has simply demoralized
them. For, in the presence of nearly al.
Of his people, during period extending
over several weeks, Captain John got the
power" which was to give him immu-
nifty from danger, ability to heal, and life
everlasting. "a Caucasian would never
suffer what the captain suffered to be-
come doctor" Suffering pur;fies,
even with the Indian, and the captain
certainly became, or should have become,
remarkably pure. The first thing he did
was to have the flesh drawn in great
fold from the small OF his back, knife
run through it and the bleeding wound
cauterized with red-hot irons; then a
rope WAS passed through the great bleed
ing hole and Captain John was drawn off
the floor and swung to and fro many
minutes, waving his arms and legs and
crying: 1--WE got the power I've got
the power" After being let down he
took knife and cut mass of flesh from
his chest, ate it, bathed his face in tha
blood and again cauterized the wound
with irons. Then he barred his feet and
legs and danced till exhausted in bed
OF burning Goals, which WAS replenished
from time to time as the flames died and
the charred embers grew cold, by his
wondering and awe-stricken attendants.
That finished his test of strength, and
every Indian on the Yakima reserve,
from that time on until Saturday last be-
leved him to be immortal That is
where the trouble arises The founda-
ton OF their belief has crumbled to the
dust since the captain died, because he
could die. Their faith in the power"
is wavering, and it may cause trouble.
1t will take several Mahatma revelations
to bring these children of the stream and
forest back to the sublimity of their
fcrmer firm faith, and all the world
knows that the Mahatmas are being
huEted from their abiding place in In
dias inaccessible mountains, their exist
ence questioned (strange as that may
seem), and the esoteric few becoming
more and more limited in numbers. II
the Indians be not soon initiated, il Isis
be not completely unveiled, there will be
strange chronicles soon to be told in THE
HERALD concerning the woes and deeds
of the disconsolate redskins.