The Savannah morning news., 1904-07-03

abode to cape at him take his presence
as a matter of course. But If the visi-
tors only knew It. the most interesting
Shing of all about the hairy Ainu, or
the giant Patagonian, or the dwarf
like South African Bushman is the
manner in which he was induced to
place himself on exhibition for the
edification and wonderment of. to him,
strange people beyond the seas
Ask one of the coterie of men whose
days and years are spent in getting
together living chronological exhibits
how he works it, and he viii reply
after this fashion:
why. / tell them that 1t will be
good for them, and / let them take
what meaning they want TO out OF
that
And do you have to pay them any
thing" you may ask. And the answer
viii be: They come mostly because
it Will do them good and for mighty
little money, considering
All this sounds simple and easy, but
sn reality il takes a strange people a
long while to make up their childlike
minds in truly childlike fashion wheth-
err the trip proposed by the white man
will do them good and, more i'm
portant STILL to interpret what II Will
do you good" means. Interpreted to
their satisfaction, the white mans
only difficulty is to keep the entire
tribe from coming away with him.
Interpreted to their dissatisfaction,
even If the heaven were to fall, they
would not move one foot In the direc-
ton the white man pointed out. So
il is that the three months of expe-
riences e. c. Cushman of Washing
ton, D. c., had among the Cocopa In
dams is representative.
The CoCopa is about as low a type
of Indian as there Is. His habitat is
in old Mexico, along the Gulf of Cali
fornia, and besides his dirtiness, he is
chiefly marked by his head of long
thick. matted hair. He had never been
on exhibition or outside his native land
until Mr.. Cushman induced him to see
the big world. He had been labored
with three times before, but in each
case the paeface left after a few
weeks firmly convinced that a mules
obstinacy is as weak as running wa
ter when compared with the particular
brand displayed by the average Coco
pa.
As a foretaste of the adventures
ahead Of him. when MIR. Cushman ar
rived in Arizona, on his way to the
Cocopa country. he found that he
would have to make a boat trip of sew
eral hundred miles down the Colorado
river He secured an Indian guide
loaded the boat with the staple foods
that he intended to use with good ef-
feet on the Indians, and set off.
Everything went well until he came
10 part of the river marked by two
channels. The Indian knew nothing
about either channel so MIR. Cushman
chose one and headed down stream.
only to be caught half an hour later
in rapids extending for several miles.
During the ensuing twenty minutes
the two men experienced about as
much adventure as is crowded into the
whole life of the average man. The
rapids are among the swiftest In the
Colorado. The Indian became frenZied
in his fright threw himself in the
bottom of the boat and tried by his
shouts 10 drown the roar of the swirl
ing river. Mr.. Cushman, with his one
oar. could not keep any Roadway, and
round and round like a top the boat
whirled for miles down stream, Cush-
man sitting in the bow and every mo-
ment expecting the little craft to be
capsized or dashed against one of the
great rocks sticking up here and there
above the boiling waters surface. But
at last. after many narrow escapes, the
boat was shot with the velocity of
freshly-sped arrow into comparatively
quiet water; the Indian again took his
journey to the Cocopa country was
made without special incident
Once in Colona Lerdo. the little
town on the Sonora side of the river
where the Cocopas have their tribal
headquarters, Mr.. Cushman made a
feast with a portion of the contents
of his boat and invited thereto Head
Chief Pablo Colorado. Second Chief
Captain Tom Moore. all the other
lesser chiefs and their respective fol-
lowers. The next day. while the taste
Of the good things served up to them
by the pale face still fingered pleas
ontly in their mouths. Mr.. Cushman
hung up in conspicuous place a
batch of gaudy Autographs, supposed
10 represent views of the exposition
whittier he was anxious to take a
group OF the Indians as a part of the
living chronological exhibit.
When Pablo Colorado and Captain
Tom Moore-goodness knows how he
got the name-and their clansmen had
gathered about the chromos. their new
found acquaintance explained them.
Beautiful" he said in the Cocopa
equivalent.
Captain Tom Moore and the rest
grunted acquiescence.
Gorgeous" ne added and went
through a long list of descriptive ad-
5ectives. eXhausting his knowledge of
both CocopS and English. And every
time the listeners nodded.
Then Mr.. Cushman came to the
point.
1T would do YOU heap good to so
there" he said.
This time the Indians lost their in
terest. They shook their heads
"Oh, Well" said Mr.. Cushman, 'If
you don't want to go. that's the end
of II. l knew IL would do YOU cood
10 go. and l came down here from
thousands Of miles away to tell YOU
so. because I'm your friend. but II you
don't want to so, all right. I don't
care"
That was the last Mr. Cushman said
90 the Indians on the subject for DAYS.
In the meantime he lived their life and
occasionally judictously placed a square
meal inside Captain Tom Moore his
head chief and the rest. But the in
difference about those gaudy chromos
and the great exhibition they portrayed
was supreme.
After a time. Just as a child acts
under similar conditions. the Cocopas
became intensely interested i'm the
white mans proposal. on account Of
fhis very indifference. and the first
thing Mr.. Cushman knew they had
called pow-wow. The talk lasted for
three nights. When il was finally at
an end. Mr.. Cushman was informed
that the Indians had decided against
his friendly advice.
'oh. we'll" he said. Its immaterial
20 me. But I'm sorry for your sakes
because the trip would do you