davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27
Reached Her Zenith

Tn the forties and hfties, Cahaba raeched her zenith. Large mercantile
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27

bonVla. number more than 100000. and those of Colombia and Ecuador are put down al from 600,000 to double that num- Der.
 During my stay at La Paz I had a long chat with Hugo Wenburg who is run ning an experimental farm upon which he Is trying to ciyilize the Aymaras MT. Weinberg has travelled over great part of South America as the agent of the American Bible society and his work has been largely among the Indians of this part of the world. He estimates the num- Der oi red men in Brazil. Bolivia, Para quay and Peru at about 100000. Another estimate puts the Indians of Brazil at L. 3OOoOO, those of Peru at 1,70O,O0O, Bolivia, 9ooOoO; Ecuador 100000; Colombia, 250- GOO; Chile. 102.000; Argentina, 30 OO0 Para quay, loo,OO0. The number of savages in Chile is more than 100000, and this includes the southern part of the shoestring re- public, The Argentinian Indians include the Onas and Yaghans and Tehuelches, and among them tribes of Indians whose average height is about six feet and who are perhaps the tallest and strongest of the red men.
 As to Paraguay, it is hard to tell where the Indian ends and the white man be- gins. The country consists of Paraguay proper, a territory that lies between the Paraguay and the Alto-Parana rivers, having an area as large as the state of Missouri. and of the Chaco. a territory much larger, lying west of the river The population of Paraguay proper Is about So0O0 and it is made up of people who have large percentage of Guarani blood in their veins. The common language of the country is GuaranI and thoukands speak 1t who do not know Spanish. The best educated families use Guarani in speaking to their servants and outside the cities it would be difficult to get along without it.
 The Guaranis were in Paraguay when the Spaniards first came. You will find descriptions of them in the stories of the early explorers. They are described as a gentle people, very hospitable and lov- able. It may have been for this reason that the Spaniards did not enslave them as they did the Incas the Aymaras. Quichuas and other nations of the high Andes. They united with them and took the women as wives and their descendants became subjects of Spain. The Indian
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27

besieged and starved. Mendoza, who was one of the first Spanish settlers in Para quay, made fort in which he had 25O0 of his people. They were reduced by famine and forced to eat horses, dogs, cats and rats. During this time three men were hanged for stealing horse. The next morning the dead bodies were found to have been cut down and eaten. It was during this siege that a force of thou sands of Indians attacked the fort with boas The bola was a weapon consist ing of several pieces of cord tied together, each piece having a ball or stone at the end. The Indians attached burning torches to their bolas and threw them in- side the fort. The fire caught in the thatch of the huts and the huts were re- duced to ashes.
 The first man to come up the Paraguay river to this point was Sebastian Cabot. He was looking for channel to the Pa- cific and had entered the Rio de la Plata and sailed up the Parana. When he reached the borders of Paraguay he turned to the right and sailed up the Alto -Parana until he came somewhere near the Mag ara Falls of South America. He then turned back and started up the Paraguay. He was 24 miles below the present site of Asuncion when he was attacked by band of Indians in 300 canoes. He trained his cannon upon them and drove they away.
 He then went on up past Asuncion, where he met more Indians, who were de- scribed as gentle and docIle. Some of them had bits of gold, and this made him think ho was near the rich mines of Peru or near the Indies. He took some of the Guarani Indians with him and sent them to Spain with a few of his follow- CTS. He sent with them some of the pro- auctions of Paraguay and begged for re- Inducements that he might continue his expedition. At that time the wealth of Peru was pouring into Spain. The gov errment and people were mad for gold, and the beauty and agricultural wealth of sParaguay was not enough to attract the additional forces that Cabot desired. It was over 10 years before the advent of Mendoza and the whites who began the settlement of the country. which finally resulted in the subjugation of the Guar anis and the creation of the Spanish Guarani people of today.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27

south was that of Mir E. M. Perrine
 The lot occupied a whole block. This large brick structure was first erect ed by MT. Joel Matthews for factory but a fire partially destroyed it before its completion and MT. Perrine bought it later for about s6o,000. He convert ed it into one of the most beautiful homes The mantles were made of marble, which came from Italy. The inner furnishings were the my elab- crate that money could buy. The front parlors alone seated 300 peo- pie. It contained 40 rooms. The night of the formal opening a reception was given and everybody, rich and poor for miles around was invited. In the front yard stood the second largest overflowing well in the world, the largest being in Paris. A stream of water the size of a mans body. gushed forth from It. This well is still running today into the same ee- ment basin, though the flow is not so large. It was 900 feet deep and cost about S3000. There were about 75 of these wells in Cahaba, ranging from 200 to 300 feet deep, and costing up Into the thousands of dollars. MT. Kirk
 patrick bought this place a few years ago for a few hundred dollars. The house was torn down and the brick sold to make chimneys for negro cab ins on the surrounding plantations.
 Mrs Fry in her Memories of Old Cahaba." relates one of the most pe- culiar things that ever happened--in fact. one which has no parallel. She, with party of young friends, had been out in the woods blackberry Among the crowd was d Miss Fanny Troy from North Carolina, who was then on a visit to her aunt. After returning in the afternoon Miss Troy complained of being too tired to hold her eyes open" and retired without supper. She slept through breakfast the next morning. and also through dinner, when her aunt, becoming alarmed. summoned physician. All the medical skill of Cahaba availed nothing. For three weeks she con- tinued to sleep, being reused enough to he fed with spoon. when she would
 immediately go back to sleep. Sine
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27

houses, brick warehouses and palatial homes spread over an area of a mile or two down and back from the river. Though the population was never more than two or three thousand, still the wealth and refinement made up for the deficit As the south was proverbial for it's hospitality "'fore de war" Ca haba was one of her leaders. Grand balls, sumptuous dinners, given in costly homes, presided over by stately danes, and graced by the fairest of southern be1les. were common occur rences Butler in livery served their masters and their guests with the choicest of wines and brandies from the finest of silver. The merchantile firms, with large brick stores, sold the high. est class aticles, as the people, being wealthy, never counted the cost of any thing Large warehouses, filled with thousands of bales of cotton and other valuable plantation products waiting to be shipped to the markets of the world, stood upon the left banks of the liver. The streets running north and south through the town, with paved sidewalks, were named mostly after trees as Ash, Beech. Chestnut. Null berry. Oak, Vine and Walnut. Capital avenue was the principal residence street. extending east and west through the center of the town. The streets north and south of 1t were known as North First street, North Second street, South First street, South Second street, etc. Vine street was the principal busi- ness street, and today is marked by 8 narrow, grassy lane on each side of W hich are half dozen small negro cabins.
 During the forties and fifties some of the most brilliant men of the state were members of the Dallas county her, among them being John R. Campbell, George R. Evans. John D. Hunter, Wl,- liam E. Bird, George W. and Reese D. Gayle, John Lapsey. A w Spright, Will liam Boyd, Daniel Troy. N H. R. Daw- son, B. H. Craig, Reginald Dawson. John White, Edmund w. Pettus, John T. Morgan, while some of the promi- rent doctors were John and Robert
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27

up of tribes and it's people lived on the skirts of the forests or in little openings in the hills. Their chief food was maize peahs, peanuts. mandioca and sweet po- tatoes. They had also honey, wild fruits and monkeys to eat. They caught fish With arrows or fish-hooks made of wood, and they had granaries in which they stored their corn The people were then. as now, shorter than the average whites. They were of dark red color. Every where there were more women than men. The women married young, usually by the age of F. and the men a little later
 As time went on and the marriage with the whites continued. the Guarapi nation became hybrid one. It was mixed with the whites and that with some of the cavaliers of Spain. This is the character of great part of the Paraguay of today, a population noted for its politeness and courtesy.
 It is different with many of the tribes of the Chaco, the most of whom are sav- age and of low civilization. There seem to be many tribes and each has it's own in dependent existence and it's own language, Some are mere hunters and fishers. others have cattle and others little farms of corn and mandioca and other. vege- tables.
 Among the best known tribes are the Lenguas, the Chumacocas and the Tobas. The Lenguas are chocolate-colored peo- pie, who live In the northern part of the Chaco. and some of whom are now and then to be seen in Asuncion. They are known by the large wooden disks which they wear in their ears. In the past they wore wooden plugs in their lower lips. but this custom has now disappeared Out in the forests the men wear blankets only and the women have skirts of deerskin. Nearly all paint their faces and use glass beads and feathers to decorate their heads and necks. I am told there are from 10000 to 20,000 of these Lenguas. di- vided into tribes, each of which has It's own hunting grounds.
 The ordinary tribe or clan has seldom more than 40 persons, and sometimes much less, The people have no permanent vil- lages. and they move about from place to place to get water and food. Some of the larger clans have sheep and goats, and some have a few cattle and two or three horses Their chief business is hunting ostriches. deer and small game. They also fish in the swamps. Some have gar-
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27
The Indians of the Chaco

women were faithful to their Spanish low CTS Indeed, a great plot which was formed to wipe out the whites shortly after they first came to this country in l5S was revealed by an Indian girl who was in love with a Spaniard The mas sacre was to have occurred on Holy Thursday when all the Spaniards were collected in their settlement near Asun- cion. The Indians were about to begin their bloody work when the Spanish gov ernor announced the plot and captured the ringleaders. He executed them, and after that the other Indians submitted and gave up their sisters and daughters to the Spaniards. This was the beginning of the union of the races.
 AS Paraguay became more and more settled, the Jesuts encouraged the mar riage of the Spaniards and Indians. The Jesuits converted the Indians to Cathol- icism and they built up here a great Catholic nation, which was largely com posed of red men. At one time they had colonies of Guarani Indians which num- bered more than 100000 They had their own settlements and had built up great farms and industries. They owned 100, ,O00 horses and mules, 25o0o0 sheep and 1,000,- GOO cattle. They had also great orange plantations, and factories where they made yerbe mate, the dried leaves of which are used for Paraguay tea. In these establishments the Indians were largely employed as laborers. They were made to work on the farms. but at the same time they were educated and Christian- ized. The Indians rose and went to bed at the stroke of bell. Their lands were di- vided into sections, and a part was all lotted to the support of their families. Other sections belonged to the church and one-half of each week had to be devoted to work upon the church lands. They also worked in the yerbe forests Everything was systematic and the Indians worked, played and slept to the beating of the drum. Then there came a great outcry against the Jesuts and they were ex- pelled. The people got their lands in sew crafty and began to hold them as they do now. Still the Jesuits did great good. They gave the Indians a standardization. They translated the scriptures into the Guarani and left the Indians written language which is now in use here and throughout the country.
 The Guaranis of early South America had no great chief. The nation was made
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27
English. John Ulmer and Thomt Hunter
 Most Famous Hostelry

Most Famous H0stelry
 The most famous hostelry in town was the Bell tavern where travel CTS from far and near waited Ito take the boat" on their way to Mobile and other points. Here 1t was, in this old tWo-story. frame building, that la- fayette was given a most elaborate re- ception in 1925. n triumphal arch being erected in his honor through which he marched amid much pomp and splendor. Mrs. Fry says. Here the political and wealthy planters would gather, and pass the time away, playing billiard ds and gentlemanly poker wherein night ly the stakes went far into the thou sands, and valuable slaves changed hands to satisfy debt of honor Not only was it famed for such scenes in the early days, but it was used during the war as hospital wherein friend and foe alike were nursed by tender hands
 One of the few land marks still stand ing. and which is especially historical, is the old Crocheron home. situated on high bluff, overlooking the river, and the country at large. for miles in every direction, this old two-story brirk building stil stands, silent and dilap- dated sentinel of a glorious past. It was the first brick house built in Dal- las county, and was the scene Of many merry makings as its owner was very wealthy and popular In 1885 it passed into the hands of Col. Thomas M. Matthews, who was an out and out union man, and Mrs. Fry says that within this house General Forrest and General Wilson met after the battle or Selma to arrange terms of surrender and exchange of prisoners. This is quite unlikely, as old soldiers of General Forrest say they do not remember the incident, and they doubt if the two gen. erals ever met.
 Another antique" building still standing, situated on the outskirts of the town, is the old "Shoestring Bar ker' home. 1t is now ohned and occ1- pied by MT. Clifton Kirkpatrick, a pros porous merchant and planter It is n large two-story brick building, with large columns in front and dome on top. The rooms are very spacious and the overhead frescoing is beautiful, though in places it is beginning to shov the ravages of time.
 Cahaba was not without its personal strifes. A feud of long standing existed between the Bells on the one hand and Judge Bird, Dr. Troy and Dr. Hunter, connections of Judge Bird, on the other hand. The parties met one day on one of the principal streets in the down. town section hot words passed, pistols were drawn, and when the smoke cleared away. the two Bells, father and son, had passed to another world. On account of the prominence of the fanli- Hes, the affair was most deplorable, and almost the entire town became more or less involved in the feeling, Anyone standing and looking at the inscrp- ton on the marble shaft erected over the grave of the two Bells, will be par ticularly struck with the latter part of it: "In memory of John P. and John A. Bell, born (such and such a date) and were killed May 23, 1856. No murderer hath eternal life abiding in him"
 One of the most palatial residences in Cahaba, and in fact in the entire
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27
dens in which they grow sweet potatoes and pumpkins

dens, in which they grow sweet potatoes and pumpkins.
 The Lenguas believe in witchcraft, and they have their witch doctors. They live in constant dread of devils and are afraid to go abroad at night in the swamps be- cause they say the swamps are the homes of the devils. They are much afraid of the witch doctors, who, as they believe can send cats, rats or snakes inside ones body. They believe in dreams They think that the spirit leaves the body during a dream and wanders away, and that at this time any other wandering soul may enter in and take possession In this case the mans own soul cannot get back. If they have a dream of being killed by a certain man, they think they are justified in killing that man in return. It is said that they bury people alive from relig- ious motive and that they practice in- fanticide.
 Some of the customs of the Lenguas are not unlike those of the Burmese. One is the piercing of the ears. This is done with great ceremony and feasting and dancing. A small hole is made at first This is gradually enlarged by putting stocks or plugs of increasing size in it until 1t reaches diameter of two or more inches.
 One of the advancing tribes of the Chaco is the Toba. These people live in the southern part of the country. Some of them have been driven out by the white settlers. and not few are beginning to hire themselves to the sugar planters and the timber proprietors. They work during the cane cutting season. receiv- ing wages of about s1 day. After the harvesting season they go back to their hunting and fishing. They are good hunt CTS and trappers and can take anything from an antbear to an alligator. They are skillful snake hunters and have cer- tain. herbs which they chew to cure them selves when bitten by poisonous snakes. They are great gamblers and will gamble on anything from the bark of a tree to the bark of dog. Very few of them speak Spanish and they are fond of their own language These Indians wear anklets of horse hair, which they strap around their legs so that the hair stands out like the bristles upon tue back of wild hog.
 hear tales here of other Indians, out side the Tobas, who wear hair twisted around the legs below the knees and
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27

By FRANK G. CARPENTER

tCopyright, 1915, by Frank G. Carpenter)
 Asuncon, Paraguay. f~ HE Indians of the Grand Chaco . One hundred thousand red men
 who are practically unknown to kNfMi5NJ the civilized worldl
 kSGzkV The savage tribes of virgin territory of pastures, forests and swamps four times as large as New England, lying in the heart of the South American con tinent
 his in brief is the subject of the letter that follows. For the past week l have been gathering material about the In- dians of Paraguay and the great Chaco or Wilderness that extends from the Paraguay river westward almost to the foot of the Andes. I have visited the museum in Asuncion and looked at it's relics 1 have talked with travellers and the officials of the government and have gathered scraps of information from d score of sources. The result leaves much to be desired, but it shows that great field exists here for the ethnologst of the present.
 Comparatively little is known about the South American Indians. Volumes upoi volumes have been penned about the red men of our continent There is a whole library on Mexico and the Aztecs; and the Indians of the United States and Can ada have been studied, nation by nation and tribe by tribe Several books have been written about the Incas and the other races Of the Andes and the west coast of South America, but practically nothing except tradition exists as to the great population that swarmed over South America at the time the continent was discovered. The records show that when the white men first explored the country lhere were Indians scattered here and there throughout the vast territory east of the Andes. Many of these were killed. some were ensaved and not few tribes were worked to death by the Spaniards and are practically forgotten. Others kept their homes in the wilds and they have today almost the same customs and habits of life that they had in l520 when Fei- nando Magellan sailed down the east coast of the continent.
 As it is now. the estimates of the h. dians left in South America vary widely. They range all the way from several mill lfon to 15,00o,000. Some put the Incas and Quichuas at 100000 or 5.000g00, the Aymaras. who live on the highlands of
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27

around the waist This is not the hair of horses, however, but that of women. These Indians live in the swamps and they feed largely upon wild fruits, roots reptiles and caterpillars. Besides this hair ornamentation their only clothing is a strip of cloth about the loins. They paint the skin with black pigment and some of them make holes In the lower lip in which they hang a sort of tongue made of gum that extends down in front of the chin. They are warlike. They use power- ful bows and long barbed arrows of pointed hardwood. Some of the arrows measure over six feet in length and it must take great strength to shoot them
 These people believe in witches and have drums to drive off the evil spirits They make water pots of basket work covered with beeswax and also a rude pottery. The pottery is made without a wheel. The clay is rolled between the hands into long ropes and the pot is built up coll by coil, being smoothed as the de- sired shape is produced. It is then burned. They make twine and they weave their loin cloths on crude frame made of the branches of trees, fixed in the ground.
 I understand that the Indians of the Chaco are afraid of white men. A. K. Mcdonald, one of the most lenient writers on Paraguay matters, says that the native hunters have no more com junction in killing an Indian than in killing monkey. He asked one of them why this was so and the man replied i: VI do not know, but the skin of an Indian Is tougher than that of any other It is good for hammock or bags for yerbe leaves.' It is said that the Indians have been hunted for 300 years and that some times they have been chased with dogs for sport This is what is said of a tribe known as the Guajiki, which, although savage. is altogether harmless. Its peo- pie are hunters and they use bows and arrows of hard wood.
 Another tribe is the Cangwah. It is quiet and peaceable. It has little farms. in which it's people cultivate maize, beam and peanuts.
 The whites had somewhat the same ex- periences in conquering the Indians that our forefathers had. They had long pe-
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27
By JOHN ROBERT FOSTER

loMETIME ago the writer stood amidst the ruins of a deserted village" which nearly a century ago was just budding into life
 ... . a.a.t.,5 .o ba
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27

The whites had somewhat the same ex- periences in conquering the Indians that our forefathers had. They had long pe- riods of warfare and ct times they were
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-06-27

hear tales here of other Indians. out side the Tobas, who wear hair twisted