The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1901-08-15
WHITE GIRL CAPTIVE,
Pretty Babe Traded 10 Indians Now
Ola Enough 10 Med Her
Sweetheart.

The story " AliIe Burke, VI Montana
who Is ahou, 20 Inheri; her fathers tor,
tune and marry her Indian lover, IS
strange chapter In the pioneer history
u the West.
In habyhoaj the pretty whiie girl wa'
hear9esslv traded 70 the RlacStoo; In
dams Tor twelve ponies, For more thar
sixteen years she dwelt among the rcd
men o. the northwest as one ot N,
daughters o. the tribe. although In he,
veins there was no; one drop " Indian
blood.
1; was At The las; sun dance, less ,han
year ago, that White Feather, as the
Indians called her, learned that she was
paletacs; that she had been chrIs;ened
Alice Burke by her white parents, ana
;ha; she had been sold 70 he Indians
by an unscruPulous friend oI her faith,
sr's.
These revelations awoke new emotions
and ambitions In White Feathers
breas, Strange and varied have been
her experiences since then. Through Il,
all she has hehn helped by the s,anch
and shrewd assistance ot a full-bI1oisd
indian named F1ee'w.ng
John Flae;wing is no: IN ordinary,
painted bsfsa,herad Indian. hut he was
as uncou,h ami villa .s any ot chem
when ha WAS taken from his A5rs IS and
sent away 20 he paletlces school Now
his name stands high oa the Carlisle
roll u honor, and he ;yp!has how Uncle
sam can develop the modern Indian.
Flee;w.rg s'aid a, Carlisle TWO years.
When he came back 90 the reservation
John" Fleeiwing was scrlwlsd on the
tex; books which the indian youth
proudly displayed 70 Whit Fea,he~
Before thar vacation was over ;hs am
bilious girl had mastered as much OF
the contents u those books a. Flse.-
wing himself
a half-bresd" the old CHIEF would
answer when pressed too closely about
White Fathers ancestry. She had been
brought into their midst, he explained,
nv Bear Leggins and his squaw when
she was a little two-year-old plppoo..
Bear Leggins told the CHIEF mat sh, was
half Indian, tha; her mother and father
were both dead. and so he had taken
her to his tepee.
\ year ago events began 10 develop
tha, proved c5ncluslvely that she was
white girl. and that her name was Alice
Burke. The first person 20 TAX a hand
in clearing up the mystery was Tom
Husson. Husson was dlsrep,able
l0rss-'ralsr, cattls-buyer ana rlnch-
man. who hailed from Eastern oregon.
He bore a bad reputation even among
,hs fr1nter Indians. II rode into The
Backf51; settlement, making inquiries
concerning a white girl baby ,hl. had
been los. among or traded with the
Backfe-t some sixteen years before.
r. could get NJ clue until he rode into
he village where Whit, Feather lived.
lust ab5u. the lime the braves were
getting ready for the grsa, sun dance"
White Feather was among The suuaw
'aniiIatss who wanted the honor u
preparing ,h= sacred tongue" he sac
amen, pJr.aksn of by he braves lur-
ng the dance. Only squlws u stainless
.harA,,-r and tribe Iescen, are selected
'or this honor. When White Feather
2ass-I before the 1ssemb'ag- as o can.
iIate, an Old cr5ne jumped 90 her fee,
ma, IN a cracked voice, ghreked: Tho
irsa, Father forbid this. She is u,
3lackfoot, bu: white squaw. She Is
lor fl % serve with the sacred ones and
prepare the tongue"
4 am but hals white" returned White
Feather. s.0u.ly
"Whte squ3w, J say; all white"
married back The crone. II appell TO tn.
Biz Chief"
Big chief nodded his head gray-ly
,ver this +,
Of course the revelation Of the old
rome was goss.p-d about the village.
Am1ag other Husson heard It and hur-
Idly hunted mp the girl II was able
0 add another chapter 10 the story.
Il admit It was my father who did IT,"
e confessed bluntly But he had to.
We been hunting you up for nearly
ear irving 70 s;raighten the thing out.
We seen YOU before In my trading trips
ere. but I never guessed who you were.
didn't know It'll my father died last
ear and he told ne the story"
And is that the only reason you've
united me up?" demanded White
Gather. shrewdly.
well" admitted Huss0n, with a bit
Z hang-dog hestancy, Il might - well
III you there's 4 little land your father
1T when he diel six years ago It lies
ext ours II don't amour, to much and
u give you a hundred dollars for H."
Tell ne about how ! came 70 BE- sold,
rst," said the girl
Then Husson wen. on 10 recount that
me seventeen years before his own
itaer and her father, James Burke, had
aterrnlnad 10 give up farming in west
m Kansas and try stockraising In
.ast-n Oregon.
On the long wagon trip he entrusted
is little three-year-old daughter 10 his
Is friend Husson. He being in neel
? PONIES traded her to the Indians and
jld her father she had died.
White Feather knew that John Fleet
ing would be back from Carlisle before
le week was out and he would advise
-r In this extraordinary situation in the
IA, tttru Il, b.v affofra