The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-11-27
LEGENDS OF THE ozARKS.
Nv oSAGE MEDICINE MANS PRoPH-
AND ITS FULkJLMENT.

lstEcuuhTy CrcHlhtOTy VI botb SNoNSs
JOPLIN. Mo-. Nov. 24.--That remarkable re-
gion known comprehensively as the Ozarks
has n charm peculiarly its own. II Is not
known 30 we'll rs IL should be. and It has been
neglected. BY the very people who would most
appreciate les natural beauties and be most
moved by the fascination Of It's weird and Won
derful pioturesaueness. In the heart OF this
rugged country one may find himself as en-
tirely removed from the precincts OF man as
though he we're In the wild region OF the Sierra
Madre. 1t Is a wonderland OF hills and noun
tains, Wild. lonely gorCes and beetling bluffs.
clear. sweet springs and swift, shallow rivers,
with many q green fertile valley tucked snugly
in between. Immense wealth in rich ores lies
hidden beneath It's finty rocks and countless
caves Of onyx yawn from the hillsides or lie
darkly hidden In the gloom OF some lonely
gorge. The sportsman often seeks It's fast
ness for assessor OF outing. for among these
hills the deer vet fingers. the turkey sounds
his weird call and the trout disports himself in
TEN pting defiance Of the angler. Many years
have passed since the crack OF the bald XXI
ber's rifle was heard and the people who find
a livelihood In the narrow pent-in valleys have
their latch string constantly hanging ready to
the strangers hand. 1t is not surprising that
such a region should be rich In legend and
story. tales and traditions. 1t has its own pc
culiar kind. tinctured with a certain charm
that cannot be mistaken by those who are
familiar with It's character. Its people and its
past.
The Usage Indians chung to their hunting
grounds in Missouri with the same tenacity
that characterized the Indians OF other tribes
who fingered even after the paleface had
usurped their lands and built his cabin on the
site OF their villages. A pretty legend at
taches to the story of the repatriation OF the
Usage tribe. II Is told among themselves that
medicine man who lived even before tho time
OF the great waters had proclaimed that the
Usage people would live in the happy enjoy
ment OF their hunting grounds until a time
when an arrow made OF q human bone should
be hurled into the heart Of their greatest chief
by the hand Of the Great Spirit. And so after
many ages there arose among the 0sages a
chief who was renowned for his courage In
battle. for his skill as a hunter and for his
great strength and beauty. His brother was
a young brave as courageous. as skilful and as
handsome as the chief and he had won the
heart of a beautiful princess Of his tribe and
had brought her to his wigwam, They vera
very happy until one day the eyes of the great
chief were attra ,ted by her charms and he
longed to have her for his own. 1t was said
that he tried to kill his brother and when he
failed in this he boldly set about to steal her
love from him.
The head OF the Princess was turned by his
batteries. his tales of the unfaithfulness OF his
brother. his rich gifts, and the attention Of so
great q man. and often at night they met under
the shadow OF a great oak near a high bluff
which overlooked a swift flowing stream. The
young brave said never a word, but eacn day
for many days he went into the forrest and did
not return until the stars told that 1t was long
| past midnight. One night when the harvest
moon was high the chief and the woman
sought their trysting place by the oak. AS
they stood there Death stalked that way. The
Great Spirit had looked down and discovered
the degradation OF the Osages. and his mes
senger Of destruction was hurled to its home.
! And so when q hunter passed by the great oak
early the next morning on his way to the
stream to find what luck his flshtrap had
brought during the night he saw that the
curse had fallen upon his tribe. The hearts
OF the guilty lovers we're cleft and bound to-
gether by an arrow whose head was made
from a human bone. and at the foot Of the clif.
with a ~scalping knife hard and fast In his
heart. lay the body Of the chiefs brother. The
next day a party OF ~paleface hunters came into
the village. and, foot by foot. the Usage gave
| ground until he found his final home In the
Indian Territory. far from the streams and
woods which he loved so we'll.
Even at the present time there are old men
living in southwest Missouri who remember
from their early youth old Gideon Sims. a great
trapper and pioneer. who hunted in every hill
and fished in every stream in the country OF
the Six Bulls. He was a welcome visitor in
the rude homes of the early settlers. and. while
enjoying the juicy sweetness Of a tender and
we'll broiled steak Of venison with a hot corn
dodger. the grizzled 'rapper would dilate upon
some hair-raisinZ adventure with the redskins
or hold his audience open-mouthed over some
weird legend Of n departed race. Among the
traditions handed down through the medium.
ship OF old Glide on Is that Of the Great Fire
Spirit of the Neosho In dians.
Early after his advent among them he heard
OF this mighty deity. The Indians told the
most surprising stories Of the Spirit. and the
intrepid pioneer resolved to see it. but as the
red men maintained a profound silence In re-
gard to its habitation he was compelled to use
subtlety to discover it. He soon found that Al
each new moon the red men sent out a dele,
cation to carry offerings OF flesh and corn tc
the Fire Spirit for its Precipitation. He there.
fore left the Indian village a few days before 6
new moon. and set out. ostenslbly on a hunt tc
the northward.. He did not go far, but huns
about the vicinity With the purpose Of follow,
their fiery god with the sacrificial offerings
And 80 it fell about that in this way old Gideon
l ulSCONtIcul utlI 5CslCl. III lOilOWtu JlcH nut
north fora night and a day. and toward even,
ing they came to a big spring. where they
stopped to rest and cook their suppers OF veni,
son and pigeons. This spring is undoubtedl,
identical with that which Is even now the pride
OF Neosho. the pretty and picturesque county
seat Of Newton county.
Dusk had hardly fallen. and the pale crescent
OF the new moon was. Just visible over the hills
to the southwest. when the Indians started
again on their journey to the northward. Ole
Gideon still at their heels. 1t was. well-nigf
midnight, according to the trapper's calcula,
tion by the stars. when he noticed a faint
glow directly ahead. His praeticed, ear TOLD
him that the Indians were advancing more
cautiously. and his quick instinct INFORMED
him that they were near the abode of the
spirit Of fire. Upon nearer approach the glow
grew brighter and the trapper distinctly fell
a pulsation as though the heart of the eartf
we're beating beneath his feet The party
the hills. and skirting a thicket OF perSimmon
trees to the right. penetrated a thick growth
Of scant oak and sassafras. The Great Fire
Spirit appeared before them in all his flaming
majesty. The Indians cast, their offerings
into the pillar Of Are and fell PROSTATE upor
the ground. utterinG strange gutteral eries
Old Gideon wns not much less affected. HI
gazed in amazement. at the fiery tongue, dart
ing out from the rocky mouth OF the hillside
and he was ready then 10 believe all tho mar
yellous stories he had heard The Indians re