The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1912-04-11

IN the center OF the ediice is used for a general
reception room. for dances. and for the entertain
ment OF friends and visitors The chief or head
of this patriarchal community lives with his fam
lily. in an apartment at one end OF the maloka.
Everything is under his direction, and nothing OF
Importance is undertaken without his consent and
advice
Notwithstanding the large number OF people iv.
Ing under the same roof. there is the greatest
peace and harmony. Il have lived for months at
time" declares author, in one of these
malokas and never have l, under normal condi-
tions, witnessed any disputes or quarrels"
II Is, however the moral conditions of the 90
cupants OF these communal lodges that impressed
him most deeply. These naked Indians" he as
serts ARE as decorous 1t is possible for men
to be. Their morality is on a high plane, although
several families live together in the same room
The woman plays an important role as the
wife and counselor OF her husband but her in
huence is greatly augmented when she becomes
a mother. She then enters upon her proper life
work, for the care and bringing up the children
are committed entirely to her unfailing love and
devotion.
From the moment OF birth until IL is able to
walk one rarely sees the child without the mother.
The two are practically inseparable. The baby
here is ever the object OF the same tender afrec-
ton as with u.s. and the older children too are
never without their mothers special solicitude. 1
have seen a mother playing with and entertaining
them for hours time.
The Indian woman is far from being the stupid
beast OF burden pictured for US by superficial OBJ
servers. While the husband devotes his attention
to the commonweal, the wife spends her time
within the limits OF the family circle But along
with the chief duties of the family she also as
sumes the chief rights. Her life is indeed one of
toll and fatigue, but she thereby expands her
faculties and brings her true nature to its full
development.
What. however. excited the authors greatest
agtOniShnent WaQ atr
The Ehrlichkeit, he tells u.s. war verfiuffend" II
could have left all my trunks remain open and
they would have taken nothing Even pieces OF
printed paper which | had thrown away and bits
OF stearin that had dropped from my candle they
always carefully placed on my camp stool
Speaking generally. the author does not hesi-
tate to declare, The property OF another is strict
y respected. Never will an Indian sell the small
est thing while In his keeping which belongs 10
another without the owners knowledge and con-
sent. and never will he accept payment for an
other"
Regarding the cannibals against whom he had
been warned when he was In Manaos he assures
us that they were all harmless and good
natured as all the other wild Indians with whom
he came In contact"
Having had such delightful experiences among
these simple. kind hearted people, we can well
understand that when the day OF parting came the
author found 1t difncut to tear himself away
from those at whose hands he had for nearly two
years received such unvarying kindness and who
had contributed SO materially to the success OF
his expedition.
We are we'll aware that the account DR. Koch
Grunberg gives of the coppercolored denixens OF
the South American forests is wholly ditrerent
from thar OF most writer's But he is not alone
In his favorable estimate OF them Those VINO
know them best. who have spent the longest time
among them and have had an opportunity OF
studying them at close range, will find our au-
thor's descriptions and judgments correct as we'll
as sympathetic.
But divergent as his experiences are from those
OF the majority OF travellers, they are neverthe
less quite In harmony with those we should expect
from one who was willing to treat the Indian as
human being and not pariah or as a SOU
less brute