The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1896-06-20
PRACTICE CREMATION.
indian Tribes That Rurn Tnoir Dead with
I-rtynrh.-. .-.:nt Cercrnonies.

| indian IcsDeS Jsf1G kuTn IlsSir Dead with
I-xtIava...:nt Ceremonies.
| All thc Indian tribes living along the
| Colorado river cTcIiItc their dead. TIE
cremation of Subj aicf Postaqual, car
| Iv in 1871, may serve as Il description
81 the usage among Iunas. y GLy *.
| two before the old mans death, aft, r
il was Known To a cyI tainty that the
| cnl was near. the Indians OF both sexes
selected an oren space facIng the SUI
| chiefs wici.iup, ana cEcayatcd q deep
hole, in which dry -; s. were arranged.
| Between them bed of tWiEs AID b.Ilshi
we're hcapcd to the su. face ard coy-
cred with larger billcts Of wood. Scv-
craI hours after the old Indian was
dead, his body, tightly wrapped in Il
heavy blanket, was laid upon the pyre,
aud short, thick pieces of wood o.
| ranged upon it until total height
of seven feet was attained. TO this
nryc were added the personal effects
| If the dead man, to accommodate his
spirit wherever il might go.
Several hundred Yumas of both sexes
gathered abont the pryc, and set up
walls. Every Yuma Indian kept up for
two hours a constant series of shricIc5
| and cries. The disconsolate and grief
stricken faces were stained with tears.
regret and dependency were plainly
| depicted, and speeches we're delivered,
| ending in n moaning refrain. Two
horses, caparisoncd in red and blue
| ilanncI and waving feathers, were led
10 deep holes dug near either side OF
me body. After the two horses were
lilled with axes, they were thrown into
the graves and covered with dirt, to
insure carrying the good old chief in
| his future wandcrings.
Twenty young bucks, with faces
painted white and red, strangely y
dressed in curious cloalls and cowls of
many colors, and holding bows and ar
rows in their hands, stepped forward.
Grasping the sub-chiefs old shotgun,
one of them fired it. into the air to
notify the Great Spirit that Ylnla
had begun his journey to Paradise.
Instantly another applied the match,
and tongues of fire darted up, envelop-
ing the remains.
The mourners, squatting in a circle
around the pyrr, now seemed moved
| by uncomfortable excitement. Spring.
| ing to their feet. they separated into
two bodies, the mon On one side and
the women on the other, to allow the
| passage of the spirit between them.
breaking from the ranks, they threw
their personal possessions into the
flames. Strips Of calico, pottery, weap-
ans, beans, playing cards, beads and
trinllcts of every desert ption followed
| each other in rapid succession. Several
mon and women deHuded themselves of
their clothing piece by piece. Ore
Young buck threw Il small alarm clock
in the flames and another a brierwood
pipe.
\ daughter of the dead man, carrying
a child IN her arms, walked around
The fire and, holding bundle of arrow
weeds to the blaze, touched the infants
cheeks to prevent the chiefs spirit from
haunting it. \ tall brave, nearly nude,
and provided with n sharp knife, cut oft
more or less hair from the relatives in
accordance with the degree of ldnshiP,
each softly muttcring invocations.
| The medicine men, with their
| hair over their faces. tore large cotton
cloth into small fragments and made
another pile of the pieces, which they
l.urned. In fact, every individual
seemed actuatcd with entirely differ
mt motives. known only to himself.
As the flames grew ficrcer they dug
Ip dust ar:I dirt aud threw it over their
ycrspirirg and almost nude bodies.
| They pulled burning sticks from out OF
tnc fire ard thrust them for a second
against one another's flesh. They
icapcd ana danced alternately. When
even. the fire burned low it was quickly
rcrlcnishcd with mesquite wood. After
al had been consumed the ashes were
ral,cd into a pit and covered in such y
Ilanrer as to prevent discovery of the
&rot unless special search was made.
The indscriminate destruction of
property at cremation is a source of COZ
>inut poverty. The Yuma's consider
uothing too valuable for saccificial pur-
poses.
Thcy believe that their paradise is
N a rcautiiu, valley away of in the
r-oiintains. II includes Sonora, in New
>ie"ico, and good slice of southern
;.iiI1rria. This cop-lah-pahl is COW
r:rd with luSmious grass and thou
and; OF trees. There are no quarrelS.
80 disscutiors, diseases or pain in this
PARADISE. 1t will be II perpetual rest
Year after year. except for the bad In
ans, who will have to work for many
;cars until the great celestial chiefs
IDEAS are satisfied. TIE tribal and fam
i'y relations are the same there as on the
,rr-hallcd harSs of the Colorado, only
there is good, powerful chief who is
cmaipntcnt. No white man will be
found in cop-lah-pahl.-N. y. Sun.