Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1921-07-14
POW NOW HELD
=. AT KILBOURN.

-
The Indian encampment at Kill
bourn which attracted thousands of
visitors last week and early this
week. was most picturesque. Perhaps
fifty ,Winnebago men, women and
children gayly apparelled hoped
about to the beating of tomtoms. All
wore mocassins, the women BEADS.
but more, interesting even than the
dance was the spectacle Of the In.
dams in their tents in a, large semi
circle, at their cooking and other
domestic duties. Here was young
mother soothing a nine-day old babe
on a board in her arm. Near the
fire stopped a gray and Wrinkled
woman whose age might be fifty
years or seventy-ive. She was
DEBORAH and lost a son in the World
war. Like many another Winnebago
she is enjoying federal pension Of
nearly $50 month. / approached af-
ter being told who she was, but was
informed that she knew nothing of
English. Still l thought I would try.
Speak English" l inquired.
She shook her head in desolate
fashion.
"Decorah?T I inquired. Instantly
she nodded her head violently /
~essayed another sentence. Again she
shook her head solemnly and spoke
with musical accent gently to two
younger women not far away; but
I said, mo, no. and moved on.
There was an Indian policeman
who understood English well.
Big Soldier His Grandfather
big Soldier was my grandfather"
said he. big Soldier was friend of
the whites in the Black Hawk war.
He never got a pension. Could have
what he earned?"
| was fain to tell him that I had
little faith that he could persuade the
government to award him pension
for service performed by his grand
father nearly ninety years ago." 4
81 had a son who was in the Phil
ippine war;" continued the police
man gravely, but he didn't live long
after he came home and l never got
a pension for him either"
"Yes," said comely Indian wom-
an of perhaps thirty when / had been
informed that Mrs. John Mann had
received her education in. the Carlisle,
Indian school in Pennsylvania, "I
am Mrs. Mann and was at Carlisle
five years." a0ltJ
She was full blooded without ques-
forehead and every other mark that
distinguishes the Indian; but she
talked with all the facility of a we'll
educated white woman.
"How did you happen to go to
Carlisle?" I asked
''Well, I had been to the Indian
school at Tomah,' she replied, "and
my mother died and there was I'M
happiness in our family. l asked the
postmaster if / couldn't go to- a big
ger Indian school somewhere, and
in little while railroad tickets came
and I went to Carlisle. never came
back for five years, then / expected to
finish my course had gone to the
sophomore year. But went to work
at Congressman Esch's home at La
Crosse.
Studied Algebra
did you take domestic science at
Carlisle?"
mo they started that soon after I
left. l had all the ordinary studies,
including history and algebra. Then
| set type in printing office at Val
ley Junction, and married I lost my
little girl" she said sorrowfully, "but
/ have a son. We have a little farm
Of 40 acres near Valley Junction.
It's a good farm and we are getting
up,"-an odd expression. Mrs Mann
had gay ribbon band round her
forehead, heavy string of beads
hung from her neck and she was in
mocassins and otherwise in Indian
tOggery of lively colors. Her husband
stalwart fellow, sspoke in csearlI
English and asked him, upon ap-
preaching his tent, if Mrs Mann lived
there. He snapped me up rather
sharply. rather as if had no business
to be inquiring about Mrs. Mann at
all.
Three little Indian girls, about
eleven were romping merrily in inno-
cent games some distance away from
the tents on the grass under the trees.
One Indian woman / noticed who sat
against the tent-pole with her feet
outward wore shoes with high heels
lone Of the incOngruous spectacles Il
witnessed, and the only shoes, bar
ring one other pair saw in camp.
That pair was being shined by a.
young Indian lad with all the dexter
ity Greek might display. But. the
most modern objects on the ground
were spools of tickets exactly. like