Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1895-07-04
ELECTRICAL STONE.
IT STAYS AS BY LIGHTNING ALL THOSE
WHO GO UPON IT.
The death Trap" Known to Indians For
Hundreds of Years and Recently Dis
covered by White Men-The Medicine

one OF the most recently discovered In
explicable phenomena is an immense cleo
| trical stone which crops out above ground
in an almost inaccessible mountain pass
some 80 or 60 miles north of The Needles,
in Arizona.
I In u multitude of witnesses there is safe
ty, and it appears that the natives were
for years acquainted with the stonc spd
its peculiar properties, long before its gin
covery by party of hunters recently.
Among the Indians the stone goes by the
name of the death trap, and the peak
whercOn it is located is called Death Trap
mountain. They say that their fathers
and grandfathers before them knew of
the stone, and it is only an old and expe-
rienced guide who will venture to take q
party in the ncighborhood of it, lest by
some unlucky chance too daring hunter
will lose his life by suddenly coming upon
it in an unguarded moment.
Tho stone itself is described as being
rough, jagged outcropping, bursting up
through the shalc of its surroundings
reaching up the mountain side to the
height of about seven feet when a sharp
projection shelves over again making
three sided tunnel perhaps nine feet long
and five feet wide. Ordinarily the rock is
of blue metallic lustcr and shows traces
of volcanic action, being scanned and rib
bed as if by melted lava In the heat of
the day, when the sun shines squarcly
upon it, the stone assumes II faded, pale
blue hue at which times the Indians de-
clare it to be perfectly harmless. AS the
sun leaves the gorge, however, the stone
begins gri dually to deepen in color, and
when night comes and there is no moon it
glowS with all the brilliancy of a molten
mass. This Illumination may be distinctly
seen for u great distance when there are
no intervening mountains to obstruct the
view.
Now, as to the peculiar death giving
power of the stone, 1t is said that moth
ing great or small can set foot upon it and
live So powerful are the volts which 1t
gives out at even tho slightest contact
that it is impossible for even the largest
animals to withstand their strength.
Recently the party of hunters referred
to vcnturcd without u guide into some of
the moro dangerous mountain passes in
the up country, and by chance found their
way into Il narrow gorge, having come in
hot pursuit after little fleet limbcd noun
tain goat which they managed To start
from the rocks below suddenly, while
they were all some 20 or so feet away, they
were astOniShrd beyond measure to SEQ
the goat fall dead in his tracks, although
not u shot had been fired. They were
making ready to climb up tho ledge and
secure the little creature, when M old In
dian high up on the cliff behind called to
them to stop. So frantic WAS his manner
and so persistent his admonitiOnS that
they waited till he scrambled down to
them, and then for the first time came to
light the story of the electrical wonder.
The hunters expressed the deepest graft
tudc to the old Indian for saving their
lives, but regretted no little the loss of
the goat, whose species is almost extinct
now, whcrcupon the old man unwound q
RATA from his waist and flung it up UNI
der the rocks. His aim was unCrring, and
presently the goat was dragged down into
IA place of safety, whence the hunters re-
moved him.
The sun was almost down and had quito
! left the gorge, SO mt the request of the In
dian the hunters accompanied him to his
mountain pcrchcd cabin, and from there
beheld the lighting up of the stone when
the moon was gone. AS they all sat about
the fire watching the phenomenon their
old host told them many marvellous Sto-
RIGS of the wonder, among others the leg
end of it's discovery by the tribe hundreds
of years ago The legend runs about rs
follows:
Once upon time there came into the
midst of the tribe asking food and shelter
q stranger with u marvelously beautiful
face His body was little and mean and
puny, and his back was bumped, but his
face was fair beyond all description and
strangely beautiful His eyes We're large
and luminous, like twin stars and, al
though he seemed to know nothing of
herbs or their properties he possessed the
marvellous faculty of healing the sick by
laying his hands upon them or even by
looking hxcdly at them with his great eyes.
Even dumb animals would flock around
him if he chose to have them do so, and
the chief held him in such reverence that
by and by he adopted the stranger in the
tribe and made him u medicine man.
Many years passed, during which the
stranger still fingered, and in the mean
time the chiefs son had grown to man.
hood and 1t became time for him to take
wife, The comclest maiden of the tribe
was selected rs his bride and preparations
were made for the nuptials, When tho
wedding day arrived, however, the maiden
was missing, and an old woman declared
tnAt the nlculClnc man nau spirited nef
away A diligcnt search failed to disclose
her whereabouts. and the chief reluctant
" consented to believe the friend VI his
adoption guilty. A company of II Of the
bravost warriors We're ordered to drive the
medicine man out of the tribe, for no one
would consent to see him killed outright,
so great was the love Of the people for him.
Early in the morning the warriors set
out to chase him beyond the mountains,
the medicine man running swiftly on be
fore So that they could just scarcely keep
him in sight Finally it became evident
that he was leading them on after him in
! stead of fleeing before them, and at last
though the chief sent messengers to order
the men to return. 1t was impossible to get
them to heed the command. On and on
they followed, climbing the mountain side
and looking neither to the right nor to the
| left, but keeping their eyes fixed desperate
| ~ upon the medicine man before them
The chiefs messengers followed rs close as
they dared, and at last beheld with con-
sternation the warriors fall one by one
dead in their tracks between the parted
| lips of great blue stone.