The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1907-04-07
SEMINOLE EXECUTION TREE

corner OF the store Of the Wewoka
Trading company, at Wewoka, is a
section of a white oak tree full Of
bullet holes, some of them enlarged
and jagged where boys have dug bul.
lets out This is all that is left of the
execution tree of the Seminole ma
tion. 1t has been preserved as an elo-
uuont relic of the execution laws OF
the Seminole nation. The tree stood
close by the old council house and all
Indians sentenced to death by the
Seminole courts were placed with
their backs to this tere and shot.
There are a great many bullets In
the old tree and each bullet hole
represents the life of some Indian
whose sins transgressed tho Seminole
laws.
The last official execution in the
Seminole nation was that OF Tuloms-
key. a full-blood Seminole Indian. who
was shot in March, 1894. 1t was just
about that time that the Curtis act
which provided for the dismember-
ment OF the five civilized tribes and
the dissolution OF ali Indian courts.
taking authority from them and plac-
ing 1t in federal court, was en-
acted.
Tulmoskey was a full.blood. He was
to death because ne was found gull
ty of stealing horse II is said
that the theft was committed under
the most pressing circumstances and
that the incident so gruesomely por-
trayed herewith was born in romance.
Tulmoskey had an Indian maiden
sweetheart who was stricken with fe-
yer and II was feared she would die.
Word reached her lover. and he. to
reach her, must travel far, as he wa
in what is now Oklahoma, nearly 100
miles away. He mounted his horse and
started straight to his sweetheart. lie
rode all day and all night until nis
horse dropped dead beneath him. He
promptly stole another horse and
proceeded on his way. But the stern
old Seminole judge who tried the case
would countenance no leniency on ac-
count Of the reasons that had driven
Tulmoskey to theft. He was sen
fenced 10 death. Under all Of the In
dian codes theft was a most serious
crime and horse stealing was always
punished by death.
Sentence was passed upon Tulmos-
key and he was given three weeks to
go to his home and prepare to die. He
was not placed under bond and no Of
ficer or spy was sent to watch that
he did not flee He said he would re-
turn on execution day and neither his
friends nor the Indian court enter
tanned a thought that he would not.
This was the code Of honor among
Indians OF the earlier times An In.
dian would rather die than have his
family dishonored with the shame OF
his having fled to escape a sentence
OF the court even though it be death.
He went to his home, disposed OF
what he possessed. told his family
and friends goodby, and upon the
day appointed for the execution he
appeared early in the morning and
placed himself in the hands of the
light horse men, the Indian peace
officers corresponding to sheriffs. He
was dressed In the best clothes he
possessed, for in them he would be
buried. 1t was the duty of a membos
OF the light horse men to fire the
fatal shot.
All Seminole executions were ex-
actly alike. The victim was blindfold.
ed and placed upon a stone at the foot
of the execution tree, with his back
to the tree. A piece OF white paper
just the size of a human heart was
cut heart shaped and this pinned over
the heart of the person to be shot.
This furnished target for the light
horse man. The executioner was usu.
ally fifteen PAGES from the person
executed No member of the light
horse men was allowed to execute a
man unless he was known to be
dead shot, and tn re is not known
an instance where the first bullet
fired failed to pierce the paper heart.
Death was practically instantaneous.
An executed Indian was never bur
led In graveyard with other persons.
not even members Of his own family,
He was picked up from the foot of
the execution tree where he had fall.
en-, and In the same clothes and with
out coffin was buried in the woods
nearest at hand, and no stone or
80 h..