The National tribune., 1902-10-16

mending the garments Of the men, which
| with the primitive means Mt command was
| no slight task, the tanning and preparing
! the skins for the market, and working in
| the field.
While the women were doing all this
the warriors, who numbered at this time
about 50, passed the days in idle sport,
such as playing baggatiway, blind mans
| buff and leap frog. A few repaired their
weapons, still others spent the day in
hunting. but the majority remained idle.
AS might be expected, these were anxious.
exciting days to them. Many were away
on the warpath. and runners were fire.
! quently coming and going, bearing news
of some raid or battle in which captiyes
had been taken or some of the warriors
had fallen.
The day following the coming Of our
| captives arrangements were begun for
one of those feasts for which the red men
were noted. this being given in honor of
| the return Of the party under Swift Bear,
bringing the two captives. In ignorance
| as to what was meant by the sudden
awakening of the indolent inha abitants,
both Mrs. Craig and Mary at once became
alarmed, when they were told that a
great festival was in progress.
| As usual the work of the preparation
| fell on the women. particularly the mar
ried women, who seemed to consider it a
great privilege to be allowed to do it. In
olden times they were told that these fes-
tivaIs often lasted for several days, and
| usually followed some extended hunt. but
| that this was to be "littlebone," and the
meat was to be furnished by the paleface
brothers from the great fort. The mean
ing of this statement was made plain by
| the middle of the afternoon, when small
squad Of French soldiers, commanded by
| a Sergeant in bright buttons and uniform,
| appeared on the scene.
| These newcomers lost no time in giving
out quantities of meat, which was greedily
accepted by the red men, some Of whom,
| as il too hungry to wait for it to be cook
ed, began to eat portions raw. Besides
| this ration Of meat they brought supply
| Of powder and balls, which were received
| with even greater pleasure by the Indians.
| Following the arrival of the essential part
of the coming feast, the meat, prepara-
| tiOns went on more rapidly than before,
| 50 by nightfall everything was in readi-
ness. In one of the stone houses the feast
was spread about on blankets and skins
laid on the ground, for your simple sons
1 of the forest scorned anything like a
| raised dais or table.
The chapel bell had summoned its wor-
| shippers, and the grave priest had dis
missed his dusky followers with his fer
vent benediction, when the entire collec-
ti0n Of people gathered at the house of
feasting and rejoicing. The post of honor
was accorded the sachem Of the town, a
tall, dignfied chief, who bore the sears
of many battles, and whose voice rather
than his arm lent strength to the warlike
assembly. On either side of him sat his
council, ckiefs who had been tried in war
as well as in council. A little in front of
i these had been given a position of prom
inence to the French soldiers. Next to
the council sat the old men of the tribe,
while the young men were seated together
on the opposite side of the circle. In fact
the entire collection was grouped accord
ing to age, station and sex. Thus the
matrOns and old women sat behind the
men. while the children stood behind their
mothers. Another group was made up of
the young women, who were expected to
take part in the dance to follow the feast
ing. The captives had been assigned to a
position ut one corner, where they could
both see and be seen. Their feelings can
be well imagined. as they looked on this
rude assembly with memories of their loss
uppermost in their minds. To them it
all seemed like horrible dream. Several
times they had felt like appealing to the
little party of white men who seemed so
out Of place there, but had wisely refrain
ed from making what they knew must be
useless request. Prominent among the
younger chiefs of the Indians sat Merrrl-
Maqua at this feast, casting ever and
anon furtive giances toward the hapless
couple. Though he had not shown any
inclination to address them since their ar.
rival at the settlement, Mary Shepley
often found herself watching him, and
wondering if it could be true that he was
an Indian only by adoption.
The matrOns had begun to distribute
the feast, and the attention of all became
centered upon the prime object of this
gathering. Very proud appeared the
women, all of whom improved the oppor.
tunity to indulge in their display of dress
and many fancy trinket had been
brought into show for the first time In
this connection it seems appropriate to
say that while the life of an Indian woman
has been often described as one of extreme
hardship and deprivation, such was
the case only so far as their manner OF
living might be considered So. 1t is true
they were expected to perform many tasks
that the whites looked upon as belonging
. to the sterner sex, but this was nothing
more than the difference custom had set
tied as between the races. The household
duties, if they really deserved the dignity
of this expression, were naturally nominal
while the outdoor tasks were not as hare
and onerOus as ut first thought one Nigh
!, be led to expect. The warriors were sup
posed to furnish the food, and hunting il
I the days and under the conditions of tn,
Indians was no childish sport. In fact
the division of labor had been as mutual!
agreed upon as that between the sexes O
| the Wnltc race, ana any interference OH TIT
part of the man to do the part of his wifi,
would have been resented by her as re
flecting discredit upon her ability to do it
} The return of a hunting party was likely
l to add to the work Of the women. but the.
invariably went about their tasks of car
ing for the meats by fire-curing them
smoking the fish, if such had been secured
l and in tanning and dressing the skim
, with cheerful manner. The men were
: as rule, fond of their wives, kind to thei
, children, and a harsh or blasphemou.
, word was seldom spoken by an Indian.
The present occasion had opened unde
J most auspicious circumstances. The ma
irons very politely offered the visitor.
, generous portions of the food, and were il
, the act of waiting upon the old men of tn,
: tribe, when a most unlooked-for affair tool
place-a sight and an act which chilled
, the blood of the hardest warrior present
; and sent such wave of horror over tn,
) entire gathering that the joy of the feas
; was instantly forgotten.
. The last of the old men. a weakened
} battle-scarred veteran Of the Ameriscog
: gins, who carried in pride at his belt tht
scalD-locks of at least half dozen white
victims, had accepted his share of thu
: bounty, and the young men were waiting
| expectantly for their portions, when 8
, shrill. wOlfish laugh rang exultingly ovel
/ the dimly lighted conclave, fairly filling
the building with its hideous, mirthless
sounds.
Their gaze suddenly drawn in that di