Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-09-11
Apache Scouts Performance
Witnessed by 1000 Soldiers
Of Punitive Expedition.
SIX DAYS. PREPARATION
MADE BY PERFORMERS
Spectacle, Untamed, Unframed,
Primitive, Takes Place Mid Weird
Storm on Mexican Desert.

FIELD HEADQUARTERS. American
| Punitive Expedition. Mexico. September
| 1.-THE Apache scouts attached to the
American punitive expedition came all
tho way from Ell Vale to field head
J. ]. Pershing Just before tho COM
mander Of the expedition left on his
recent inspection trip to the border
The dance. wierd ana picturesque. was
witnessed by q thousand soldiers, and
was held only after painstakins prep
arations by the Indians.
Prior to his first inspection trip
(Which took him to Ell VALLEY the gen.
eral had heard many times of the ghost
dances the scouts had been giving at
their camp. and before leaving for Ell
Vale had informed Capt James A.
shannon. who has directed the destinies
| OF the Apaches. that he would be
pleased to have them perform for him.
Communicated to the Indians. the gen.
eraIs request caused great excitement,
ana tney insisted on leaving at once
FOR field headquarters.
They passed the general en- route,
and II was only by the exercise Of
greatdtplomacy that they were prevent
Cd from debouching from their motor
- AShS dAu giving their QdHCe on the
trail. They were persuaded to continue
their trip. however, and busted them
selves during their six-day layover at
headquarters by furnishing their cos
tunes and securing a new and COM
plete line of vivid paints.
Untamed, Unframed, Primitive.
The dance, held the night after Gen
Pershing's return from Ell Vale, was
staged on a level piece of ground in
side the lines near Chinatown Behind
a circle Of bales of hay fifty yards in
diameter. hundreds of khaki-clad SOL
diers gathered. The general was seated
In a big camp chair on a low platform
A huge fire of logs blazed in the center
OF the circle. sending showers of sparks
whenever the Jealous Apache fireman
dashed gasoline into its roaring vor-
tex.
Long before the general was seated,
the fourteen musicians. uniformed ac-
cording to regulations and seated a
short distance from the fire, began their
chant Their soloist, Ietsuay, would
shout etanza Of perhaps twenty words
| and his comrade would chant sort of
chorus in gutteral rhythm. It was un
| tanned, unframed and altogether primi-
| tive. Accompanying his chant, Ietsuay
thumped on a makeshift tomtom-a
galvanized iron pail with a wet deer
| skin stretched across it's mouth.
For Ave minutes the prologue contin-
| ued, then the ranks of the onlookers
| parted to admit the dancers. There
were five Of them-costumed barbara
cally in trappings and headdresses fash
toned by their own hands. John Cody
led the band, followed by Chow Big,
Nonotolth. Saas and Eskibende. Eski-
bende was tho ghost and his role par
took somewhat OF the clown stiff
legged. dignified clown. OF the five, he
wore the least clothes. Like the four
| others he wore q mask. cut from a bur-
| lap sack. A small headdress, breech
clout, moccasins and a stuffed fawn,
| which dangled against the small of his
| back, completed his costume. In his
hands he carried two red-tipped wands.
His body was painted ghostly gray.
Mirrors Reflect freight.
The others were attired most elab-
orately Their headgears. carved from
| wood, painted In bright colors, bespan-
gled with small mirrors and tipped with