Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1906-05-20
INDIAN FEATS OF MAGIC
BuRaIO BiII's stories OF stunts Per-
formed by the American
Red Man.

''The western Indians are great magi-
clans" says Colonel Buffalo Bill Cody. Il
believe l have seen takers OF just about
all nationalities, but these western Indians
Of ours beat them all.
THE modern stage magician of course,
has the aid OF assistants. and of pre-
pared stage, but the wild Indian just squats
down on the prairie wherever he happens
to be, seemingly without any preparation
whatever. and does some things that will
make mans hair stand on end.
"One day l saw Sioux medicine man,
with nothing on but bTeech cloth and a
dozen different paints, having in his hand
a kind of wand, do some things with rat
tlesnakes that I never saw equaled by any
snake charmer in the world. The old fel-
low was a noted necromancer among his
people. and l had often heard of him. One
Gay, in his village, L met him and ex-
hibition was quickly arranged. That fell
low positively did not have time to make
any preparations whatever, but went at
his job Immediately.
He waved us away some ten feet or
more and soon we were glad to be twenty
feet away from him. He took his cane or
wand, whired it swiftly around his head
moment, and when he ceased doing so
he was holding big squirming rattlesnake
by the tail. 1t was a lightning change all
right. He laid the snake on the ground,
and when I next noticed IT there WASH I
any snake at all, but there lay that In
dams stick in it's place.
Grabbing the two plaits Of hair which
hung down his back, they, too, suddenly
became live rattlers and twisted them
selves around his neck, the kissing heads
Then that old Indian produced or manu-
featured snake after snake. We never saw
where he got them from. but in few min
utes he had the ground around him liter
ally covered with them. But they remained
near him. although crawling around, twist
ing and squirming Then the worst thing
of all. that red Indian deliberately ate them
Up. one at a time. Al least he appeared
to eat them alive. and finally there was
nothing left but the wand and his braids
Of hair which had returned to it's natural
self
"One day. over in the Big Horn basin, I
saw Crow Indian do some tricks that
would make him famous IL he ever got on
the stage with them. This fellow took a
buckskin tobacco bag, drawing II through
his hands to show there was nothing in
it. He even tied it in knot, for the same
purpose. Then he united It and threw It
on the ground. Almost Immediately big
jack rabbit with ears a foot long, bounded
out Of the sack. darted this way and that,
like a streak Of lightning, disappearing
with pack Of camp dogs right after him.
moment later. and without the Indian
going near the bag, three big rattlesnakes
crawled out, threw themselves into posi-
ton and were ready for a fight at once
But before they could raise a row a large
owl came out Of that bag. blinked and
winked at the sun for a moment and then
flew away The Indian killed the snakes
with his stick picked up the bag. took out
a pipe and some tobacco loaded the pipe
and. without the formality of lighting it,
began TO pun away, while clouds of smoke
rolled out.
But the very best piece Of magic 7 ever
saw" said Colonel Cody, was done by a
Cheyenne Indian medicine man out in the
wilds Of Wyoming. There was full dozen
of us and we agreed we had never seen
anything like Il, and I never have since
then. either.
1--WE had formed a circle--the whites and
the Indians-and when the conjurer entered
he was without stitch of clothing, except
that he carried gray army blanket across
his shoulders. He had a big warclub in his
hand. Along with him there came a little
Indian girl, looking about years old. The
child didn't have much more on than old
Medicine did, either.
1.-THE little girl lay nat down on the
ground. and old Medicine covered her with
the blanket, right in front of us all. Then
he began making passes over the blanket
and, suddenly raising his war club aloft
he brought it down with fearful force on
- g,l, IL, g..I-~
see the outlines under the blanket There
was a scream, and l instinctively grabbed
my pistol, but managed TO regain myself
knowing 1t was some kind of a fake.
Then again and again. that big Indian
struck that little girl and she screamed
time after time, the screams gradually be-
coming weaker and weaker. The Indian
jumped onto the blanket with his feet
jumping up and down. We could see the
red blood stains coming through the gray
blanket, and ] mentally resolved to shoot
that old fellow before the exhibition was
over.
But suddenly old Medicine stopped his
blows, reached down. picked up the edges
Of the blanket and lifted it up. We looked
expecting to see a corpse. There was moth
ing whatever under the blanket Old Medl-
cine grinned at me as I stood with my
mouth open in amazement. We all rushed
up and examined the blanket It was wet
as IL with blood, all right, but the body was
not there.
Then old Medicine pointed away across
the prairie. We looked and saw a figure
running toward US ct top speed. II was a
quarter of a mile away. When II reached
us it proved 10 be the little girl whom we
had seen placed under the blanket! We
couldn't explain IT, and we didn't attempt
10. Old Medicine wouldn't say how 1t was
done, and neither would any OF the other
Indians, IL they knew. He would only say,
| 'Wakan'-the great mysteTy-great IN