Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1899-07-01
SHE SUBDUeS INDIANS.
Woman Physician Employed by the Gov.
erninent Compels Moquis to SUBJ
nit to Vaccination.

WASHINGTON, d. C.-The smallpo,
is so bad among the Moqui Indians
in Arizona and is spreading so fast
that there is fear that the whole tribe
may be exterminated. In order to
stop the plague Miss Mary Mckee,
the agency physician, with the assist
ance of Mr.. Shoemaker, the farmer
employed by the Government to
teach the Indians the science OF agri
culture and the use of modern imple-
ments, undertook to vaccinate the Ell.
tire tribe, fumigate their houses and
burn the effects of those who have
died or were suffering from the dis.
ease.
The Indians made q stubborn re.
sistance. They are fatalists. Their
religion teaches them that sick per.
son is under the ban of the evil spirit,
who can only be driven away by in
carnations and the use of the magic
arts. Therefore it is not only diff
cult, but almost impossible to con.
vince them that smallpox can be pre-
vented by the use of simple and ordi.
nary precautions. Miss Mckee de.
cided to take matters into her own
hands, and she ordered mp the entire
tribe for vaccination. The agent of
tho Moqui Indians, a man named
Hazlett, also has the Navajos under
his charge, and lives with the latter
tribe. But he readily gave his per-
mission for this brave little woman
doctor to use her own Judgment in
stamping out the plague.
The Indians did not take the vac.
cination seriously. They are accus-
toned to good deal of self-torture.
and little scraping Of the skin and
soreness OF the arm was not matter
of much consequence to them, but
when Miss Mckee invaded their
houses and drove them out and put in
her pans OF sulphur they made de.
cided remonstrance. Then when she
seized the clothing, bedding, furni-
tnre and other things that had been
in the rooms Of smallpox victims the
relatives who expected to inherit the
property objected. But neither this
nor anything else stopped her until
she had thoroughly cleansed and
fumigated two of the seven villages
and vaccinated every one Of their in.
habitants.
BY that time an account o. her per-
formances had reached the other
pueblos. and when she and Mr.. Shoe
maker arrived at the third one morn.
ing to begin Their work the head Chief
appeared and refused them entrance.
Behind them were ranged the ca
ciques, or priests, the medicine men
aud the warriors of the village, armed
with guns, bows and arrows and other
weapons. The chief explained that
they were willing to give the Govern
ment medicine to the sick whenever
Miss Mckee prescribed it, but they
could not allow her to come into their
houses and burn their furniture and
sting the arms of their women and
children.
Miss Mckee tried to explain the OBJ
ject of vaccination and the benefits to
be derived from disinfecting, and she
warned them that unless they per-
mitted her to have her way the whole
tribe would die Of the plague. Her
words had no effect. The inhabitants
OF this and the five other villages alb
solutely refused to allow her to enter
them. She Immediately sent for Mr..
Hazlett to come over from the Nav
ajos, and persuaded him to telegraph
to Washington for the assistance of
troops. Secretary Hitchcock pre-
scented the matter to Secretary Alger,
and the commanding officer at Fort
Wingate was instructed to send q
company OF men Immediately to Mo-
qui to defend Miss Mckee and enforce
her orders. They should have arrived
there by this time, and it is pity
that Kipling could not go with them
to describe the scene that is occurring
about now, with delicate little wom-
an as the hero instead of the British
officer, in the thrilling tale that he
tells of the attempt to enforce vaccina.
ton among the natives of India. The
Government is going to stand by Miss
Mckee if it takes every soldier left in
our territory, and the Moquis have
got to be vaccinated.
1t would have been blessing if
Miss Mckee had undertaken this
duty twenty five or thirty years ago,
for smallpox is almost always epidemic
among the Pueblo Indians, and no
attempt has over been made before
to vaccinate them or fumigate their
houses.
There are twenty-six other pueblos
in Arizona and New Mexico which arc
also suffering more or less from small
pox, and DR.. McKee's example will
doubtless be followed by the other
agency physicians.
DR.. Mary H. Mckee is Pennsyl.
vanian, aud was appointed physician
at Keams Canyon, Ariz., in January,
1891, with salary of $1,000 a year.
She is about thirty-five years of age,
slight of stature and of delicate
physique. She has, however, shown
q great deal OF courage, zeal and eff
cheney, and ranks high on the records
of the Indian office.
Matrimonial Motors.
Motors are now being extensively
used ut marriages. You can see them
corrv;no hridol ,,ortiaa IN ond fron,