Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-02-08
souAws UNDER THE HAMMER.
Features of the Annual Sale of Brides
by the comanche indians.
TChicapo Inter Ocean1

| The annual distribution of Comanche
Indian brides has just occurred at the
| Saddle Mountain mission, In southern
| Oklahoma. Fifty of the pretues'
women of the tribe were sold at pup
| tic auction as the wives OF trloesfneh
who bid them in. This barbaric Gus
tom was to have been discontinued by
the Comanches last year, but it Went
on more boldly than ever this season,
being conducted under the very eyes
| of the white settlers.
The festival of the Comanche pony
smoke" as this ceremony Is called rs
of more than passing interest. seldom
are SO many young squaws aucuoned
| off as was done this year, but the sur
plus was great and needed thinning
out. according to the head men OF the
| tribe. Their parents. refusing TO Keep
them any longer, the girls naturally
needed homes somewhere, and 1t was
deemed best by the medicine men to
auction them off as wives, the hlghest
bidders to take their choice. Big BOW
monstrous fat and ugly redskin, act :
ed as the auctioneer. He was assisted
by number of medicine men, who
performed the marriage ceremonies
after the sales had been made.
Five hundred Indians gathered at
the Saddle Mountain mission last
week This mission is located thirty
miles directly south of Mountain View,
and on the range of the Wichita Noun
tains. The girls who were sold had
been confined In a lodge for three
weeks prior to this meeting, and were
we'll fed and extremely well groomed
They were all clad in gay colors. and
their hair arranged in perfect Indian
fashion 1t was plain to see that theii
parents had prepared them to bring
fancy prices The girls were in var
ious moods; some hysterical. others
calm, and not few delighted with the
experience.
Among others was daughter Of the
famous Quahnah Parker, the noted
Comanche Indian chief This daugh
ter, whose name is Amy, had dis
pleased him by attempting to run away
and marry a white man, and COW :
boy at that, so Parker decided that the
best thing would be to sell her at auc-
ton. This is the first time Parker.
who is counted by his white neighborS
highly cultivated red man, has ever
allowed any of his relatives to be
sacrificed at the auction block. But
the wrath Of an Indian parent knows
no bounds.
Sad and silent, Amy Parker was led
to the block for sale. The first bid
was eleven ponies. Jack Wild Horse
q well-known scout of the tribe, was
the bidder. He was Immediately raised
| by rival. likewise a scout. This
latter claimant bid fifteen. Others
then cut In, and Miss Parker was run
up to fifty ponies. Her face grew pale
when she saw that Wild Horse was de-
| termined to get her, as he is known
as the most desperate savage on the
reservation when drunk and angered.
1t Is said that he has killed three
wives when drunk. Wild Horse, how
three ponies. The stock was turned
married Wild Horse and the squaw ac-
cording to the Comanche rites. The
couple then went to Ell Reno, where a
regular marriage license was issue ,
to them and the ceremony repeated
| by a pale faced minister. Altho the
marriage took place only three days
ago. dispatch from Lawton says that
she attempted to commit suicide after
failing In an attempt to kill her new
husband.
Other young women objected quite
as strongly rs Miss Parker did to be,
ling auctioned off, but 1t did them na
good whatever. Big Bow went ahead
with the sale until every one of them
was sold. The lowest bid made for
any Of them was twenty ponies. This
was the price paid for half breed
woman who had been married to a
white man, but the latter having died
she reverted back to her parents again.
In all over 1900 ponies changed
hands In the three days of the big
bridal auction. Not for many years
have the squaws commanded such
spirited biding and big prices as In
this latest event of its kind among the
Comanches.