The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-05-22
STRANGE INDIAN RITES
0tterskin ReIigionists Hold a
Revival Meeting.
FORTY TWO DOGS EATEN
One of the Converts" a High
School Graduate.

Guthrie, o. T., May 21.-An interesting
account Of an Indian ceremony last week
IS given in the Stroud Messenger. II
says: The three score and ten Ozaukie
members of the very ancient otterskin
religion, held three days and three
nights revival meeting on the Wapee-
kahon allotment. about ten miles north
of Stroud, last Monday. Tuesday and
Wednesday. Most of the other members.
of the united tribes Of the Sacs and
Foxes and some white folks attended
the solemn, heathenish, ridiculous en-
tertainment. Senator Nishkocot oficiat
ed as the grand master of ceremonies,
while the irrepressible Billy Harris act
ed as general roustabout. The faithful,
unadulterated Ozaukies prayed all Of
last Monday and Monday night, while
severay of the young sinners were get
ting gloriously drunk in the adjacent
brush so that the Indian police hogtied
twelve of the forst sinners early Tues
day morning. Most Of Tuesday was con-
sumed in initiating two new converts
into the "Eleusinian mysteries of otter
skin and breechclout religion. The two
candidates for breechclout honors had to
fast three days and nights, and the two
ponies heavily laden with nice presents
for the new members, were tied out
side the heather sanctum sanctorium,
without getting a mouthful of food or
water for three days and nights, or I'M
til their future masters had thoroughly
members carried on wmThcs WTd- NH, Dy
members carried an otter skin, which
they used for shooting irons" The
Church" owns about fifty otter skins,
all of them having been owned by their
very distant progenitors away back on
Lake Michigan several hundred years
ago. Some Of the otterskins are said to
be about 400 years old, and are consid-
cred of more value than many ponies or
quarter sections Of choice bottom land.
that those that fall onto their face
when touched by the otter skins, can
see all their dead relatives and the beau
ties of the happy hunting ground. Most
of them fell into the mud many a time
last Tuesday and didn't mind the rain
and mud any more than SO many hogs
or ducks
While the wallowing in the mud pro-
ceeded in the "holy Of holies,' the forty
two dogs that were strangled and scorch-
ed before sunrise were sizzling and boil
ing in seven huge soap Kettles Sixty
bankers were intended for the feast, but
owing to the bad weather the rise in
dog flesh and for other weighty reasons,
only forty-two ours were strangled
cooked and devoured for religions and
health's sake. The nearly incessant rain
on Tuesday didn't dampen or throw a
vet blanket" over the barbarous orgies
The high priests and lesser priests
marched round and round about the sa-
cred dog soup circle" for three long
hours, praying and singing, granting,
boo-hooing. shooting" one another with
the grinning heads of the holy otter
skin. The new converts, one of them the
graduate of high school, were stripped
naked and marched in the rain all after
noon. The grand dog soup feast took
place on Tuesday evening. The flesh of
the forty-two bankers was devoured in
about thirty minutes, after which the
devout dog eaters cleaned their greasy
hands on their long hair and rubbed the
dog bones over their heads.