The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1897-07-29

DlHerent dates are assigned to the
coming OF the millennium From the
Cheyenne and ArapahO delegates Mr..
7 Mooney obtained letter containing
message or statement of doctrine de-
livered to them by Wovoka in 1891,
and written down on the spot by one
of the Arapaho delegates. Casper Ed
son, a young man who had acquired
some English education at the govern
ment Indian school at Carlisle. Mr..
Mooney highly extols the moral code
inculcated as pure and comprehensive
in it's simplicity, and states that the
prophet has given these people bet
ter religion than they ever had before,
taught them precepts which, if faith
fully carried out, will bring them in
better accord with their white neigh
bors, and has prepared the way for
their final Contamination.
He has traced the progress of the
doctrine through the various tribes of
the United States, and gives an approx
innate statement as to the area of the
dance and the number of Indians in
volved. According to the latest Off
cial reports, there are about 146, 900 In
dams west of the Mississippi river, ex-
elusive of the five civilized nations in
Indian Territory. Probably all of
these tribes heard of the new doctrine,
but only a part took an active interest
in it. Some thirty or thirty-fiye tribes,
more or less concerned, have an ag-
gregate population of about 10000
souls. A number were practically
unanimous in accepting the new doc
trine, notably the Paiute, Shoshoni,
Arapaho, Cheyenne, Caddo and Paw
nee, while of others, as the Comanche,
only a small minority ever engaged.
Only about one-ha lf of the $4,000 Sioux
took an active part in it. 1t may be
safely said, however, that the doctrine
and ceremony of the ghost dance found
more adherents among our tribes than
any other similar religious movement
within the historic movement, except
possibly the crusade led by the Shaw
ano prophet in 1905. Among most of
these tribes the movement is already
extinct, having died a natural death,
| excepting in the case of the Sioux:
The Sioux probably discontinued the
dance before the final surrender, as
the subsequent events convinced even
the most fanatical believers that their
expectations of invulnerable ability
and supernatural assistance were de-
ceptive.
The Paiutes were yet dancing year
ago, and as their dream has received
no such rude awakening as among the
Sioux, they are probably still patient
ly awaiting the great deliverance in
spite of repeated postponements, al
though the frenzied earnestness of the
early period has long abated. The
Kiowas have recently taken up the
dance again and are dancing as reli-
giously as ever under the leadership
of the old men, although the progress
sive element in the tribe is strongly
opposed to it. -...
Among the other tribes in Oklahoma
the ghost dance has become a. part OF
the tribal life, and it is still performed
at frequent intervals, although the
feverish expectation of few years ago
has now settled down into something
closely approaching the Christian hope
of reunion with departed friends in
a happier world at some time in the
unknown future. AS to Wovoka, the
great Messiah, when last heard from
he was on exhibition as one of the at
fractions of the Midwinter Fair in San
Francisco.