The Meeker herald., 1897-09-18
rvs zUnls TO BE PUNISHED.
HasAassc Ostr.gss by Asasslas Nos o
the TFibs to Ds userDsA

1asAAsse Ostr.ges by Asdseins Mes Of
the Tribe TO Ne sseEDsA
AAnta Fe, n. NJ. Sept. 6.-Major
Nordstrom, u. S. A.. acting agent In
charge Of the Pueblo Indians In New
Mexico, returned to-day from the Zun
Indian village. where he has been Of
hcially investigating an extraordinary
affair. In February last an Indian of
some influence In the tribe was taken
SICK, and despite all efforts OF the med
icine men, death resulted. A. 10 Gus
tomary with the Zunis the medicine
men sought q scapegoat upon which
to place the blame for tho failure of
their herb teas and fantastic ceremon
ies to save the life Of the deceased, and
they proclaimed to the tribe In solemn
council that their medicines had been
bewftched and all their efforts counter
acted by the baneful influences of a
certain old Indian woman. In order to
strengthen their hold upon their su-
perstiuous followers, the priests Of the
Bow, the most powerful religious or
ganiaadon among the Zuni people, de
creed that the woman should be pun
tshed and made to confess.
Accordingly six of the leading mem
bers of the priests of the Bow visited
the woman at night, kicked her from
her d1ngy mud house on the nfth door
of the pueblo and dragged her to the
guard house, where. In the presence
OF the assembled priests. she was sus-
pended by her wrists and tortured un-
I'll she made full confession Of the
charee that she had bewitched the
medicine mems nostrumS.
Ni0 II. A. De Settle, the United
States Indian school teacher at the
pueblo, interfered early next morning
and through her nursing the woman,
whose age Is IS year,, has survived
the ordeal. This ID the third barbarity
Of the kind that has occurred at Zuni
within the past ten years, and Major
Nordstrum has resolved to put a stop
to 1t and punish the offenders as les
son for all future time. 10 this end
he has been in correspondence with the
Indian department since he assumed
the duties OF agent In March nst, and
over the telegraphic announcement
from waahington that the Intsrtor De
partment had adopted his suggestion.
and called upon the war ofllce to con-
centrate four troope Of cavalry at
Zuni to aid the civil authorities of
Bernalillo county In effecting tie ar
rest Of the Indians responsible for this
and similar barbaric outra9es.
The troops will arrive on the scene
on Wednesday next, and will probably
BE- placed under the personal direction
Of Major Nordstrum, who hopes to
take the accused men Into custody and
deliver them over to the sheriff with
out bloodshed. but II is by no means
improbable that serious trouble may
ensue, since on former occasions the
government has dealt 30 leniently with
these Indians 20 as to encourage them
in Independence and insolence, and even
when enforcing Its orders by military
force has made the blunder Of sending
small details Of troops, who have been
subjected to all manner OF indiRnaties
at the hands Of the Zuni populace.
The Inhabitants of this pueblo number
about 800. and their strength of fight
ing bucks ID over 200. They are well
armed and their village Of mud houses.
towering hve stories high, and far
above the adjacent valley, stands as
almost an impregnable fortress.