The Washington weekly post. (Washington, D.C.) 1878-1916, 1899-03-21

live with their savage captors The leader
OF the aSsngtnR bard Of c0Rn9Fs aha
ranci1eFs was Iguacio EnciuaE. another
seon u Don fascliaL y was - The eoast o.
this hand that they killed = SeFis. men.
women and children, IN tfat one gay
hunt They pursued the Indians 20 The
island, surprised them and shot them
down Ike animals Iguaci0 Encinas. AZ
the head 81 the troop. encountered
rather comely looking sQuaw. who was
said 70 be descended from a Mexican
woman captured years before. Rgnpt
bad il that Encinas was the father o. tht
papoOFe she carried. At any rate, wren
81 strobe through the camp she flung the
child I'D before her. crying.
PITY DO not kill your own SON"
What does a ser know OF ply Z,
shouted Encinas This Is the pity VIII
gIve vouf'' and he Flashed them down
Nth his machctc.
influence in preventing the paciheatlon OF
the Seris and the opening OF the Island 10
exploration.
Bucks Pond of Battle.
The bucks Of the tribe are extremely
active and warlike. They ike nothing
bttteT than fighting 50 long as the al
vantage is on their side. They VIII plot
and lie ia wait for years in order TO re-
vengc themselves for wrongs real or fan
AAtAA III N-lNtaAtAD1s AONAAAA4At- ~ 49,
cattle on the range. sometimes ride with
in sight Of the island but they are ex-
tremely cautious when approaching as
close as this. They generally ride IN
groups and keep q lively lookout against
surprise. The SeTis have a plan OF dig
giHg little holes Ia the earth. IN which
they hide for hours and even days. The
eye glancing over the eXpaase Of sandy
ground broken only b. stUnted brush sees
no sign Of such ambusCades The murder
Of small bands OF cowboys has made the
DINERS very alert and WatchfUl.
By some manner. supposedly through the
murder OF victims. tie Seris have OBJ
tanned possession Of a number OF rifles.
Iaey cannot set cartridges. however. and
ara therefore reduced 10 the exercise OF
considerable ingenuity IN providing am
muniuon. They make their OWN cart
ridges by taking pieces Of green rawhlde
anu Doiding them tOtthe shape of q cart
ridge ana filling il with powder ard lead,
OF with small pe-5le II lead IS not al
hand. For percussion cap they take
common parloT match and stick IL in the
hole in the end OF the cartridge. They
send their women over TO the mainland,
where they steal or trade IOT matches.
These cartridges are sometimes slow ~
exploding. but they are really quite sue
cessful.
The main weapons Of the Seris, how
ever, are bows and arrows and snort
spear used for catching fish as We'll as
fighting. The bows are made of the gar
ambuIlo wood, fortified by rawhide or
deerskin. The arrows are made Of the
caTrlSO and are nowadays tipped with iron
or brass, which the Indians get from
wrecked boats, or pick up about the cattle
ranches. They invariably poison their
arrows for killing their enemies. The POI
son is obtained by hanging up COWS
liver TO purify. when the arrows tips are
dipped in the mass. Sometimes a rattle
snake is excited into biting the liver, thus
making the poison more deadly.
Seris Afraid of sickness.
Like all wild people. the Seris are en-
dowed with strong bodies and great en-
durance They literally run a deer to
death. and have been known to capture
horses the same way. They take the trail
and follow the animal until it drops Of ex-
haustiOn. The Serbs feet are long and
narrow, mucn unlike the Yaqufs, which
are broad. The Serbs are of all sizes,
some OF the men reaching a height of
almost seven feet. Most of the men, in
fact, are tall and powerful while the
/ women are not above medium height All
paint their faces with ugly colors.
or the sqraws only enc could speak
Spanish She was the old woman with
the pelican mantle. The others spoke the
savage tongue only. 1t is cultural and
entirely unlnJelligible to the neighboring
ln0lanS. Inc women are shreWd, and
bargain well They are full Of laughter
ana profess the greatest friendship Tor
the whites, inviting them to the island
and saying that no harm can come 10
/ them. They are def in weaving baskets
and bowls Of the tender bark obtained
| from the roots of mesquite trees. Some
OF these baskets are so made as TO hold
water without leaking.
Inc SerlS have peculiar ideas regarding
sickness. They are in mortal terror OF il,
Some OF them are pOckmarked which
shows that they have struggled through
smallpox unaided. When a member of
/ the tribe becomes ill., no matter what his
/ grade or the number of his relatives he
/ Is instantly deserted and left to die OF
| get well, as nature determines. On no az
! count can a Seri be induced TO stay and
| nurse the SICK At the Mexican ranches,
! during Il smallpox scare. a SeTi became ill.,
His wife, without an instantS hesitation
/ rolled up her bundle Of clothing ana start
/ ed for the is.and. Looking back. with
/ tears streaming down her face, she babe
| her husband farewell. Nothing could in
/ duce her TO remain. On the island the
| sick are placed on a pelican-skin blanke
/ and left in secluded place, with an ola
| Of water near at hand. If they survive il
/ is well; and If they die, the spot is visited
| after weeks time and the body burned
! The heat renders the bodies combustlDle.
and il is said that they are totally con
! sumed without the aid Of any fuel