El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-04-20

a
8 the day has been enlivened with
reports from different sections OF
the country recounting feats of endUr-
ance at socalled Marathon Dances in
which the tersichOrean marvels are said
to have danced from eight to IS hours
continuously. In more than one In
stance the police have interfered. But
how trivial seem these efforts when
compared with the truly remarkable
feats of endurance performed by the
indian braves of the plainsi For the
Sioux, the Cheyenne and the Arapahoe
tribes a dance of rs hours was not an
infrequent event in the old days %hen
the indians were allowed to celebrate
their victories in orgies of blood and
torture.
One Dance Only a Memory.
The most striking of all indian dances
is known as the Medicine Dance" which
now has passed into history. Originally
the medicine man, or doctor, was the
dictator Of these dances. Usually about
once a year he sent out his call to the
warriors of the tribe naming those in
dividuals whom he wished to dance in
this ceremony of divination, for the
medicine dance was not ceremony of
devotion, but rather a sort of American
"Delphic Oracle" to determine what
were to be the fortunes of war, the state
of the crops and the health of the tribe.
When all the warrior dancers were
assembled they marched to the Hooh-e-
a-yum, or lodge of the cottonwood poles,
beneath which a circle of about 90 feet
in diameter was roped off The dancers
assembled in this ring. Then began the
beating of the tom-tomS and the indians,
slowly hopping from one foot 10 the
other, began to make the circuit of the
central pole. from which was suspended
a tNo-faced image, one of the faces
~
other representing the Good Medicine"
A "Relay" Dance.
During the dance the women and chill
dren of the village would gather around
the roped circle and shout encourage
ment to the dancers After about 10 or
~ hours of this ordeal the dancers
would begin to drop from exhaustio
As soon as a warrior was overcome he
would be seized by the feet and dra gged
from the circle The medicine man
would bend over him, AMI paint symbolic
figures over his body, which was al
ways naked except for the breech cIout.
If these symbols did not revive him he
was hauled from beneath the lodge and
water was thrown in his face. This usu-
ally caused the warrior to revive and
he would be ordered back into the cir
Gle to continue the dance unless the
medicine man could be persuaded by
the members of the dancers family
through the gift of ponies, blankets or
beads. to allow him 10 retire.
Few Went the Limit.
1t is estimated that ordinarily. if 100
warriors were in dance. so would drop
out before the end of 80 hours. and an
other % by the end of the 4Sth hour.
Usually from 10 to 10 survived to the
fourth day, or the 18th hour. During
this long period there was no rest, no
sleep, no eating and no drinking. No
warrior was ever required to perform
the medicine dance a second time, how
ever Usually one dancer was selected
for every 100 inhabitants
After the waning OF the power of the
medicine man these dances were con-
tfnued but the participants were al
ways volunteers and these were con-
fined to young men who were anxious
to impress some Of the young women OF
the tribe with their prowess, or some
warrior who wanted 10 do penance for
supposed transgression. or else some
person anxious to propitiate the evil
spirit and restore the health of some
member of his family. Usually the vol
unteers " ere the young bucks who join
ed in the ceremony chiefly because it
was the thing to do''-fashionable, in
other words
Torture Solicited.
After the dances there were the self
inflicted fortunes Of the young men Of
the tribe who were anxious to be en-
rolled as fullfledged warriors These
ordeals we're truly remarkable. A lad of
16 would be examined by the medicine
man and there would be council to de-
termine how much torture he ought to
be able 10 endure He would lay bare
his breast and the medicine man, armed
with broad bladed knife would make
two incisions in each breast about one
inch apart and about four inches long
The flesh and muscle would be lifted
away from the bone. and beneath these
two strips would be passed a horsehair>
rope, about three-Quarters of an inch
IN circumference. Then, fastened by his
own flesh the young man would be
tied 10 the top of the central pole of
the lodge with about 10 feet of pIav.
and would be required to remain there
until he could tear himself loose
Sometimes if the youth were particu-
lariy robust he would be suspended
three or four feet above the ground and
would be required to remain until
through his own exertions or the soften.
ing of the tissues, he was able to break
the cords of flesh and muscle No food
or water was given to the would be war
rlors dur ing this ordeal As soon as they
succeeded in breaking loose the victims
usually plunged into river or lake TO
cool their fevered flesh. and after this
their wounds were dressed by the medi-
cine man.
Herbs Most Virtuous
The herbs used were of such a heal