Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1904-08-26

overland travel brought them to Pop
lar at the same time that the, train
brought large delegation of the ma
tive pastors and minissionaries, who
did not have the time to spend on the
road.
Village of Tents.
The village of tents is full of activi-
ty, with little children playing between
the teepees and the dogs everywhere
After the morning meal the people
gather in large group in the center
of the camp with their hymnbooks,
and, beginning with a Dakota song
which makes the whole camp ring,
they have their morning devotions. At
least once each day crier goes about
through the camp announcing that
fresh meat is to be issued by the CON-
mittee of entertainment, or that the
people can come and get logs for fire.
wood. This crier is picturesque in
his appearance, with a broad-brimmed
black hat over his long braided hair.
He is one of the dancers" as the
non-Christian Indians are called. The
progressive Christian Indians do not
like to do this calling since it seems
to them like one of their barbaric
customs. Hence one of the heather
is hired for the purpose.
The Parliament Proper.
The Playa Owoglake, or DELICIOUS
parliament, is held for four days. The
first morning service began with wor-
ship and enrolment of delegates, fol-
lowed by an opening sermon by Rev.
Joseph Rogers, native pastor of the
Presbyterian church at Devils Lake.
The singing of the Dakota hymns are
inspiring, for the Indians have good
:; rich voices and put a great deal Of
spirit into their songs. Most of the
tunes in their hymnbook of some one
hundred and sixty songs are our famil-
lar English hymn tunes, but there are
good many which are adaptations of
the early native airs, which have been
harmonized by the missionaries. These
airs are often in minor strain and
with peculiar changes, to which
white" ears arc not accustomed.
Meetings for the Women.
The delegates represent the Presby-
terrain churches at Poplar and Wolf
Point, Mont; Sisseton and Yankton,
S. D., and Devils Lake, N. D., and the
. Congregational churches at Fort Bert.
hold and Standing Rock, N. D.; Oahe
| and Rosebud, S. D., and .Santee, Neb,
! The afternoons are given to the Wo.
mems societies of the two denomina
lions, and the evening services are
young mems meetings conducted by
the Y. M. c. A., of which Arthur lib
belts is native secretary.
In the evening the missions gather
in the parlor of Rev. Mr.. Lindsey OF
the Poplar mission. These confer
ences are intensely interesting, for
here are the venerable DR.. Alfred
Riggs of Santee, Neb., and Dr. John
Williamson of Yankton The latter
came to Crow Creek with the released
Indian prisoners from the Minnesota
massacre of 1862, and there started
the first mission work, of which this
parliament shows the wonderful
growth during these forty years. DR.
Riggs has normal training school at
Seattle; Rev. Thomas Riggs at Oahe
G. w. Reed at Standing Rock and Rev
c. L. Hall at Fort Berthold have mis-
sion stations, and Rev. D. E. Evans al
Sisseton and Rev. H. T. Smith at Wolf
Point have mission schools.
All Proceedings In Dakota.
The meetings are conducted entirely
in Dakota and by the Sioux them
selves, for there are many efficient ma
tive pastors in the delegation. Perhaps
>. it would astonish many white people
to look into the tent where the meet
ings are held and see such a neatly
dressed, fine-looking company of mer
and women, the majority of whom
can read and write both Dakota ant
English. To see such an Indian re
ligious assembly as this is to make
one realize that the race is making
progress and showing the results o
the many years of faithful work by tn,
pioneer missionaries.