The Holbrook news., 1911-03-17

occasions QSerSk1n tunlc, legg1nSS and moccasins of buckskin and a head dress decorated with feathers from sea birds Also he entwined himself with belts which he Invariably kept filed with wampum. Not infre- quently he carried as much as S10,000 with him. in his kind of money. Oh the Dutch scales it was worth about 30 cents.
 On one of these visits to New Am sterdam the chief of the MontauS-- met with Tamaraud. or Tammany. then Sachem of the A gonqdins. Tammany stuck around the Montauk chief all the time he was in town. The story of the Mcntauk's treasure chest appealed to Tamnany Indeed, it may have been something more than gossip that Tam many wanted to marry into the Mon tauk tribe
 When the Indians began to dispose of their lands on Long Island they at first got real Dutch money. or i-5 equal in usab'e barter But it wasn'. always 20. Take the gallant old Chief Smackatagh, for example. He held a considerable stretch of wave-washed land on the ocean side of the island. One Sally Higbee, buxom young maiden, was anxious to acquire tract upon which she and her intended hus- band might make their home. Smack atagh-suggestive name, in view of the incident-offered to sell the required acres.
 How much?" asked Sally. leaning against the door and rolling her hands up in her apron.
 The big chiefs solemn face broke into a grin as he replied that he would sell it for a kiss Why, she sat down with her father, who knew a thing of two about such laws of contracts as obtained at the time. and drew up a contract which the chief signed. Then she turned her plump cheek to the h. dian, who kissed 1t and went away satisfied. The contract, which Is still in existence. reads:
 Sally Higbee did receive a notable tracke of land from Chief Smackats gh, by reason of kiss which he did begge of her, and which she bestowed in con- sideration of having the said lande gwen uST Dy In0 SdlfdSC.
 In 1859, when all the Moatauks of | fighting age were summoned to coun- cil. their number exceeded 600. War fare and sickness made such great in- roads during the next three genera tions, that instead of increasing in number, they had become less than 200 in 1759 In 1929 a tribal roll call was answered by only 50, and 40 years thereafter there were only 20.
 The last real council of the tribe was convened in the early seventies. Chief David Pharaoh went to the coun- | ell arrayed in all the ancient plumery of the Montauks, and called his follow. CTS to their places in semi-circ' e around him. He passed the pipe from one to another in silence, and then ad' dressed them as the father of the tribe. Could 1t be, he asked, that the tribe, which had lived for centuries in happiness on Long Island. was doom ed to extinction? What had the tribes men to say? Nothing. It was late aft ernoon. The chief bowed his head and with the others sat in silence. By and by the sun went down. Then the chiei I arose, folded his cloak about him made a sign that the council had done 4 its work, and passel with measured l stride into the shadows. The others followed.
 For half a century more or less the
 Montauk Indian lands have been IT litigation. Deeds bearing date Of l66t
 were shown in court during the severa
 hearings. What the tribe might have succeeded in accomplishing, had Il i been able to count its people on the fingers of two hands and prove that
 they still lived together under triba
 conditions, need not lead to specula
 ton here A living tribe held many
 broad and valuable acres by ancient deeds. The tribe had ceased to ex
 ist, and the property was lost to them.
 D.-