Omaha daily bee., 1898-10-08
FOOT RACE AND GHOST DANCE
Novel Intermission in the Round of Sham
Battles by Indians.
PECULIAR RELIGIOUS CEREMONY ENACTED
Members of Several Tribes Join i'm
the Strangely Wierd Dance that
Led Up to the Pine
Ridge War.

A foot race, participated in by twenty
four of the swftest runners of the Indian
congress, and ghost dance in which fifty
men and women from the Apache, Chey-
enne Wichita and Sioux tribes Joined, were
the attractions at the Indian village yes
terday afternoon. Neither Of these features
has been presented before and they made
a pleasing variation to the sham battles
which have been enjoyed by so many during
the last three weeks. They represented two
new and distinct phases Of the Indians fife.
The one showed him in his natural and
native sport, the other in his religious
ceremonial The arrangements for both OF
these exhibitions Of the Indian at peace
were In charge of Prof James Mooney, the
government chronological expert, who has
spent the last twelve years among the In
dians and especially among the Arapahoes.
Owing to the small space in the enclosure
the track for the foot race was limited to
100 yards. This distance was determined
upon as an experiment and was not expected
to develop the quality for which the Indian
is most famed-endurance. The Pueblos,
Apaches, Navajoes and other tribes of the
extreme southwest are long distance run
ners and can follow a trail for hour after
hour without diminishing their speed. The
Wichitas have religious festival every
wear in which foot races for a distance OF
one or two miles form a part and the meni-
bers OF this tribe are trained especially for
this distance. The tribes of the plains are
horsemen and, although they have a few
runners. are not swift on their feet.
To bring these various competitors down
to a short distance was the difficulty eX-
perienced. But when the Sioux chief, His
Horse Looking, called the competitors to the
start twenty-four we'll -muscled. trim -lmbed
braves answered the blast Of the bugle
They were divided into three groups OF
eight competitors each, each group to run
one heat and the three winners to appear
in the final The three heats were wen
contested, the first going to Sam, Chrica-
hua Apache, the second to Crow and third
10 a Sioux. After a short rest the three
winners toed the mark for the championship
of the congress. Each was bare headed.
bsre-footed and bare-legged. The Apache
wore a white, the Grow a red and the
Sioux a black shirt. The shot was fired,
away sped the Crow and the Sioux, leaving
Sam, the Apache. standing at the post. The
red-shirted Crow won by a foot. Sam
wanted the race run over, claiming that
the start was not fair. But they refused
10 go into another heat. So the question OF
championship was left to be debated around
the fires in the tepees.
Ghost Dance Comes On.
Just as the shadows were beginning to
lengthen across the clearing in the center OF
the village the men and women OF the con-
gress trooped out from their wigwams to
give a rendition OF the famous Indian re-
ligious ceremonial-the ghost dance. This
differs from all other Indian dances. 1t is
the basis OF a religion originated twelve
years ago by prophet of the Piutes OF
western Nevada called by his people Wovoka
and known to the whites as Jack Wilson.
He declared that he had had vision in
which he was carried to heaven and saw