The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-12-07
DAY N COURT FOR INDIANS.
Witnesses Against Whiskey Sell
ers Gather in Force.
ATTEND ON =. $. GRAND JURY.
Corridors Of Federal Building n
Throngcd with Lasy Draves,
sauaws and Brisht-Eyed Pa
pooses-Jurors sit In Judgment
ON Strange Concocsions-Do Red
Men Bunco Uncle Sam or Nots

Indians, copper colored wards OF Uncle
Sam, strong in numbers and doubly strong
IN the pungent siwash odor in which are
commingled the characteristic aromas Of
dried salmon. wet buckslxin, smoke, grease
and cheap tobacco. filled the corridors OF
the United States court house on Fourth
evenue and Marion street yesterday The
modest brick building, where nine months
IN tho year peace and humdrum prevail,
was fairly overrun with the aborigines,
representing nearly every tribe In the
northwest. It was their Mecca. and from
miles around they were gathered to attend
the semi-annual session OF the federal
grand jury.
On benches scattered about the building
the husky braves, almost invariably
clothed In the garb of civilization. more or
less dilapidated It Is true, but set on BY
some ornament of gilt or tinsel dear to the
savage heart. lounged. and lazily inhaled
the smoke OF the viliainous cigarette Of
civilization. conversing among themselves
in the cultural Chinook Jargon.
Less numerous were the sQuaws, some
wrinkled and gray. some young and not
uncomely. who sat meekly at the feet OF
their male companions and devoted 6rem
attention to sewing. bead-work. gossip and
the care Of numerous bright-eyed pa
pooses."
The occasion Of the gathering was the
grand jury. which Is now investigating nu-
merous alleged violations OF the law for
bidding the sale Of liquor to Indians that
have been reported to the Federal author
tiles during the past six months.
In a dingy little back room OF the court
house, the locked and guarded door Of
which was regarded with awesome inter-
est by the motley assemblage the grand
Jury was n session. eighteen good men
and true. from the body Of the district OF
washington, assembled about long deal
table and presided over by District Attor-
ney W. r. Gay and his deputy. Col. G. E.
ClaypooL
TO the inquistive lounger who was for
tunate enough to get peep into the little
room 1t was plain to be seen what the In
vestigation involved. Bottles and TASKS
OF various shapes and sizes, filled with
connections of various colors and consist
encies, stood about on the deal table. and
the Indian Witnesses one by one, were adj
mitted to smell, taste and identify their
contents, and to tell the investigators the
names Of the alleged 1awbreakers. A large
number Of liquor selling cases are under
investigation. 1t Is probable that today
the grand jury will report several indict-
ments. None was reported yesterday, how
ever.
strong "Raspberry Wine"
Thero are some queer cases to be In
vestigated by the jury. One is that Of
white man who sold to Indians living on
Bellingham bay a mixture he called "rasp-
berry wine." upon which, the govern
ments witnesses allege, a whole siwash
tribe-men, women and children-proceed-
ed to get gIoriously drunk during the prog
ress Of an aboriginal assembly ball.
j ss~Sx.,. &x~,I.A h
and sold the raspberry wine alfege, how
ever, that the stun was absolutely nonin-
toxicating, and that II the Indians got
drunk on 1t they fortified 1t by strong
waters procured elsewhere. chemical
analysis of a large flask of the turbid red
fluid confiscated by the Indian agent after
the orgie will probably be necessary to
determine whether 1t contains alcohol.
| Sometimes 1t don't take SO ALFRED
much alcohol to make siwash drunk"
remarked grizzled attache of-thc Fed
eral court yesterday during discussion
of the raspberry wine case. Just after
the war / was in the regular army sta
toned out West near the reservation OF
the Crow Indians. The government sent
out a young NJ D. from Washington
to practice on the Indians and pull down
O salary as Indian doctor. One day 1t
struck the young Teller that he had
fine chance to see just how much alcohol
It took to get a man drunk who had
never tasted 1t.
"In them days the Crows had never
tasted liquor of any kind. So this young
sawbones gets half dozen of the
young bucks up to his cabin and gives
'em a little dispensary whisky. Well,
you can hang me for a horse thief II
some of them boys didn't get drunker'n
lords on a teaspoonful of that rcd rye.
Some Of the young bucks that had got
O taste Of the liquor got away and told
the others, and they came by the dozen
and hollered for drink. Doc. was wise,
enough to know that he dassent give
them booze SO he loaded everyone up
with pepper sauce-just plain, everyday
pepper sauce.
''And the funniest thing about 1t is
that when them siwashes felt that good,
hot feeling in their insides they most Of
them reckoned they was drunk, too.
"A while after that them Crows got
to be crazy for whisky and they'd buy
and drink every kind of connection that
had alcohol In 1t. A favorite tipple was
extract of ginger. They would give a
buffalo robe, worth IS then, for four
bit bottle. Other things they drank were
lemon extract, vanilla extract, Florida
water, Cologne and even liniment."
THAT reminds me-" said a jolly-faced
deputy marshal in the group, "of the story
they tell over In the Yakima valley. They
say over there that the siwashes won't
drink the good, sweet cider that the white
farmers make by the hogshead, but will
buy 1t and swill it by the gallon when 1t
is doctored up with cayenne pepper
In recent years the semi-annuaI meet
ings of the Federal grand jury in the vari-