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22 - Among the Camanches and Apaches- An Autobiography by Edwin Eastman · Among the Camanches and Apaches- An Autobiography

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  Speaker 1: Chapter twenty two, seven and nine years Among the Comanches
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  Speaker 1: and Apaches and Autobiography by Edwin Eastman. This is a
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  Speaker 1: LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
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  Speaker 1: For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Feasts,
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  Speaker 1: facts and facts. This chapter is to be a faithful
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  Speaker 1: description of mystery, hocus pocus, voodoo, and Indian superstition concrete
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  Speaker 1: and abstract. The entire ceremonial of Indian worship has for
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  Speaker 1: its groundwork the possessed and most groveling superstition. All events
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  Speaker 1: in any way out of the ordinary run of human
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  Speaker 1: affairs are directly trace to the good or evil spirit.
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  Speaker 1: If their affairs are in any way confused, or do
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  Speaker 1: their war parties come to grief, the misfortune is laid
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  Speaker 1: at the door of o Khid, the evil spirit, and
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  Speaker 1: when fortune smiles upon them and bountiful harvest, game, scalps,
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  Speaker 1: and victories are theirs, it is directly attributable to the
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  Speaker 1: influence of the Great Spirit. And infant's knowledge begins by
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  Speaker 1: the incalcation of this proposition, and during its lifetime existence
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  Speaker 1: is enjoyable or the reverse, according as the good or
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  Speaker 1: evil spirit smiles on him. In this fact is displayed
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  Speaker 1: the resemblance between a savage fetish and the ideal Christian religion.
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  Speaker 1: It is the distinction that exists between the bud and
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  Speaker 1: full blown flower, a wild, barbarous groping after the perfected,
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  Speaker 1: civilized idea. The Indian has his ideas of a heaven
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  Speaker 1: and a purgatory, but they are carnal and material. As
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  Speaker 1: he lives in this world, so he proposes to exist
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  Speaker 1: in the world hereafter. The happy hunting grounds are merely
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  Speaker 1: a repetition of his present life. Only in those blissful
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  Speaker 1: Elisian fields of good spirit wills that game shall always
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  Speaker 1: be in abundance and hunting facilities inexhaustible. Contrary to the
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  Speaker 1: faith that obtains among Christians, the Indian maintains that the
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  Speaker 1: good Spirit inhabits the realms of the evil spirit, while
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  Speaker 1: his opposite, the evil one, haunts the domains of the blessed.
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  Speaker 1: This curious, not to say absurd, state of affairs is
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  Speaker 1: accounted for in the following manner. It is maintained that
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  Speaker 1: an Indian suffers for his crimes only for a length
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  Speaker 1: of time commensurate with the sins committed. Hence, while professing
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  Speaker 1: their conviction in a future administration of rewards and punishments,
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  Speaker 1: they also maintain that a very judas of his tribe, will,
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  Speaker 1: after expiating his sins, enjoy the fullest delights of his
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  Speaker 1: more upright companions. Thus it becomes very necessary, in their opinion,
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  Speaker 1: that the good Spirit should meet them in purgatory, and
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  Speaker 1: by word and act, increase their sufferings and bring them
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  Speaker 1: to a realizing sense of the power of Him whom
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  Speaker 1: they have offended, while on the other hand, the bad
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  Speaker 1: Spirit roams through their paradise, still tempting the happy. Those
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  Speaker 1: who have gone to the regions of punishment they believe
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  Speaker 1: will be tortured for a time proportion to their offenses,
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  Speaker 1: and then being transferred to the land of the happy,
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  Speaker 1: they are again liable to the temptations of the evil spirit,
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  Speaker 1: and answerable again at a future time for their new offenses.
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  Speaker 1: It will be seen that this scheme of salvation is
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  Speaker 1: rather crude and not as satisfactory in its details as
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  Speaker 1: one might desire. In regard to the topographical positions of
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  Speaker 1: these two places, Heaven and Hell, little can be ascertained.
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  Speaker 1: As near as I could learn, the offenders inhabited a
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  Speaker 1: county lying far to the north, where snow and ice
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  Speaker 1: were the minor concomitants of a bleak and barren land,
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  Speaker 1: whilst they suppose the happy hunting grounds to be in
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  Speaker 1: the region of perpetual sunshine, where every prospect is of
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  Speaker 1: the most charming character, and only the keenest enjoyment is experienced,
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  Speaker 1: where buffaloes and other Indian luxuries abound. Two such lengths
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  Speaker 1: was superstition carried that the young warriors of the tribe
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  Speaker 1: deemed no tortures, however brutal or sanguinary, too severe, that
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  Speaker 1: would buy their endurance gain them the admittance to this
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  Speaker 1: favored region. And to this end, annual feasts and religious
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  Speaker 1: ceremonies were instituted, that the appalling cruelty of the rites
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  Speaker 1: might well make the stoutest heart tremble and the most
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  Speaker 1: valiant spirit quake with fear. The Apaches were now on
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  Speaker 1: the eve of one of these festivals, and those who
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  Speaker 1: aspire to be considered as braves and to establish a
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  Speaker 1: reputation for endurance under pain and suffering, were making minute
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  Speaker 1: and careful preparations to endure the infliction. Creditedly, there was
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  Speaker 1: to be a series of performances under the sole supervision
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  Speaker 1: of one Grand Master of Ceremonies. This worthy was the
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  Speaker 1: head medicine of the nation and was looked up to
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  Speaker 1: with a species of veneration verging upon adoration. The rights
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  Speaker 1: were to be inaugurated by a grand dance in the
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  Speaker 1: open air. The ground selected for this performance was immediately
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  Speaker 1: in front of the medicine lodge and embraced an area
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  Speaker 1: of about a half an acre. Previous to the inception
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  Speaker 1: of the ceremonies, a number of the women were that
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  Speaker 1: it worked with large wooden mallets pounding the turf, which
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  Speaker 1: was done in order to make the ground hard, smooth
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  Speaker 1: and level. As soon as this was accomplished, a curb
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  Speaker 1: was erected in the center of the space by driving
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  Speaker 1: stakes in the ground in the form of a circle,
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  Speaker 1: just leaving sufficient space between each one to emit of
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  Speaker 1: a free passage of air. The curb rose to a
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  Speaker 1: height of about three feet, the top being covered by
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  Speaker 1: stretching a buffalo robe over the stakes. Within this enclosure
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  Speaker 1: was placed a small stone altar on which burned the
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  Speaker 1: sacred flame. Under no circumstances was the flame allowed to
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  Speaker 1: be extinguished in the event of it ceasing to burn,
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  Speaker 1: it would have been considered an ill omen and in
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  Speaker 1: order to propitiate the good spirit, it would have become
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  Speaker 1: necessary to sacrifice a female captive. All was now in readiness,
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  Speaker 1: and on the following morning, mato Chica and the chiefs
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  Speaker 1: of the nation assembled in the medicine lodge preparatory to
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  Speaker 1: commencing the death dance. Sixteen young men participated in the dance.
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  Speaker 1: They stood to one side in a group, isolated from
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  Speaker 1: the crowd. They were decked out in the most gorgeous trappings,
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  Speaker 1: each one personating some animal, which they imitated as closely
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  Speaker 1: as possible, both in action and sound. Beginning by circling
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  Speaker 1: around the curb in a measured tramp to the sound
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  Speaker 1: of the Indian drums and rattles, they gradually accelerated their
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  Speaker 1: pace until they were going at full speed, meanwhile indulging
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  Speaker 1: in the most frightful yells, groans, whoops, and cries. This
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  Speaker 1: was kept up without intermission for perhaps fifteen minutes. When
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  Speaker 1: the medicine man sounded a shrill blast on his whistle,
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  Speaker 1: and as if by magic, the performers dropped upon all
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  Speaker 1: fours and began to practice the distinctive peculiarity of the
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  Speaker 1: animals they personated. Their actions were a source of considerable
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  Speaker 1: amusement to the bystanders, and each actor was applauded vociferously
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  Speaker 1: when by some particular gesture or trick he faithfully portrayed
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  Speaker 1: the habits of the animal he represented. Some of these
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  Speaker 1: actions were of a very gross, not to say, revolting character.
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  Speaker 1: In the heat of the excitement, a wild scream startled
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  Speaker 1: the bystanders, and soon the women were rushing in every direction,
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  Speaker 1: seemingly in the most abject terror. Pursuing them was a
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  Speaker 1: hideous monster entirely nude, his body being blackened with charcoal
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  Speaker 1: and bear's grease until it shone like ebony. His face
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  Speaker 1: was marked with a profusion of white rings about an
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  Speaker 1: inch in diameter, and around his mouth wore frightful indentures
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  Speaker 1: which closely resembled K. Nineteen. In addition to his hideous appearance,
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  Speaker 1: he gave the most frightful shrieks as he dashed through
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  Speaker 1: the crowd. This unearthly creature carried in his hand a
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  Speaker 1: staff of about six feet in length with a red
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  Speaker 1: ball at the end of it, which he pushed along
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  Speaker 1: the ground in front of him as he ran. All
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  Speaker 1: eyes save those of the braves and gay in the dance,
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  Speaker 1: were upon him. As he dashed on in pursuit of
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  Speaker 1: the women. They fled in the wildest disorder, falling over
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  Speaker 1: each other in their frantic endeavors to elude the monster's grasp.
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  Speaker 1: The master of ceremonies now interfered, and, advancing from his
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  Speaker 1: position beside the Chief, ran up to where the women
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  Speaker 1: were struggling with the demon, and thrusting his medicine pipe
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  Speaker 1: before the black monster held him immovable under its charm.
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  Speaker 1: This action enabled the females to get safely out of
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  Speaker 1: his reach, and, when free from danger, although their hearts
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  Speaker 1: still beat with the excitement, they soon became calm, and,
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  Speaker 1: seeing that he was ignominiously subjugated by the charm of
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  Speaker 1: the all potent pipe, indulged in the most extravagant laugh
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  Speaker 1: and shouts of applause. At his sudden defeat and at
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  Speaker 1: the ridiculous posture in which he was held. They presented
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  Speaker 1: a striking picture as they stood there, face to face,
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  Speaker 1: the old man standing erect, his face tremulous with suppressed emotion,
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  Speaker 1: while his eyes gleamed with rage and hatred. The evil spirit,
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  Speaker 1: on the other hand, cowled and trembling, seemed transfixed with terror.
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  Speaker 1: At intervals he would make an effort to break the spell, and,
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  Speaker 1: darting to one side, attempt to break off in the
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  Speaker 1: direction of the prairie, But the ever vigilant Chief was
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  Speaker 1: at his side in a twinkling and holding the potent
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  Speaker 1: charm to his nose, reduce him to instant obedience. Thus
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  Speaker 1: they stood, the one with his body painted black and
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  Speaker 1: representing the evil one, frowning everlasting vengeance on the other,
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  Speaker 1: who sternly gazed him back with a look of exaltation
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  Speaker 1: and contempt as he held him in check and powerless
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  Speaker 1: under the influence of his magic charm. When the superior
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  Speaker 1: power of the Chief had been fully tested and acknowledged,
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  Speaker 1: and the women had been allowed ample time to remove
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  Speaker 1: themselves to a safe distance and place innumerable barriers between
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  Speaker 1: themselves and this fiendish monster, the pipe was gradually withdrawn
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  Speaker 1: from before him, and he was once more allowed to
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  Speaker 1: follow the dictates of his low and beastual mind. No
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  Speaker 1: sooner did he feel himself free from this constraining influence
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  Speaker 1: than he dashed into the center of the group of
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  Speaker 1: dancers and attacking one of the young men who was
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  Speaker 1: dressed in the guise of a buffalo. Evong ye ah
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  Speaker 1: wakstia chi ah knox, Tommy yung s towa Ee yong
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  Speaker 1: ye yut gowatchie oh knock sta chaw O, Tommy oh
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  Speaker 1: stuck no ha ong storm hai in hah no hext
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  Speaker 1: gimme ghitkni. After this performance, he visited three others in
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  Speaker 1: succession and indulged in antics of a like character that
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  Speaker 1: elicited shouts of laughter and rounds of applause. The Indians
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  Speaker 1: considered the strict observance of this particular ceremony as highly
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  Speaker 1: important and calculated to be of great benefit in attracting
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  Speaker 1: game to their facinity in the coming season. During the scene,
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  Speaker 1: Oki Hdee had become quite exhausted by his exercise and
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  Speaker 1: seemed to be anxiously looking around for some feasible means
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  Speaker 1: of escape. The women had by this time overcome the
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  Speaker 1: fear which his entrance had caused, and now gathered about
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  Speaker 1: him in shoals, poking him with bits of sticks, throwing
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  Speaker 1: stones at his body, and giving expression to their dislike
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  Speaker 1: in various ways that suggested themselves on the spur of
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  Speaker 1: the moment. At length, one more courageous than the rest,
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  Speaker 1: gathered a handful of yellow clay, and, drawing quite near,
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  Speaker 1: awaited her opportunity. When the fiend's attention was directed to
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  Speaker 1: another quarter, then, dashing up to him, emptied the contents
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  Speaker 1: of her hands over his body. The change was magical.
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  Speaker 1: The yellow clay was attracted and held by the grease
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  Speaker 1: with which his body was besmeared, turning his color from
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  Speaker 1: black to bright yellow. He seemed to become quite heartbroken
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  Speaker 1: at this signal disgrace, and losing control of his feelings, commenced,
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  Speaker 1: crying vehemently. When as quick as thought, a fearless young
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  Speaker 1: maiden made a frantic clutch at the magic ball tipped
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  Speaker 1: wand she was successful beyond her most sanguine anticipations, and
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  Speaker 1: flew through the crowd, bearing the trophy high above her head.
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  Speaker 1: The other women gathered around her, beseeching her to let
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  Speaker 1: them break the wand and thus and the spell. Their
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  Speaker 1: entreaties were at last acceded to, and the stick was
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  Speaker 1: broken into fine bits, which were hurled at their will.
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  Speaker 1: Oam owner, his power was now gone, his strength also,
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  Speaker 1: and gathering his energies for one grand and final effort,
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  Speaker 1: he plunged headlong towards the prairie, with a howling mob
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  Speaker 1: of women at his heels. As he struggled along, his
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  Speaker 1: movements were impeded by every known device, and at each
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  Speaker 1: fall he was set upon by the enraged and triumphant females,
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  Speaker 1: who exalted in his ignominious downfall, supplementing their gears with
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  Speaker 1: blows from sticks, stones and whips, until he at length
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  Speaker 1: escaped by diving into the underbrush that grew at the
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  Speaker 1: base of the hills and disappeared from view. The dance
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  Speaker 1: had by this time come to an end, and preparations
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  Speaker 1: were made the commencement of the cruelties which were about
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  Speaker 1: to take place within the lodge. The medicine chief, who
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  Speaker 1: acted as master of ceremonies, approached mato Chiga and made
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  Speaker 1: a requisition for musicians, and after a brief consultation, he
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  Speaker 1: gave orders to have two of the female captives perform
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  Speaker 1: this arduous and monotonous task. Zoe and myself were chosen,
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  Speaker 1: and we were at once ushered within the sacred precincts
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  Speaker 1: of the lodge. We were the only women who were
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  Speaker 1: permitted to view the scenes which I am about to
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  Speaker 1: relate would to God, I have been spared the revolting spectacle.
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  Speaker 1: As we entered, the candidates for the cruelties were about
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  Speaker 1: taking their places in spaces assigned them, as also the
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  Speaker 1: chiefs and doctors of the tribe, whose duty it was
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  Speaker 1: to look on bare witness too and decide upon the
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  Speaker 1: comparative degree of fortitude with which the young men sustain
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  Speaker 1: themselves in this most excruciating ordeal. The chiefs situated themselves
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  Speaker 1: on one side of the lodge, and opposite them were
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  Speaker 1: seated the musicians. The medicine chief took up his position
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  Speaker 1: in the center of the circle, near a small fire,
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  Speaker 1: with his big pipe in his hands, gravely filling it
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  Speaker 1: with connect kink, he lighted it at the flame and
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  Speaker 1: began puffing great clouds in the faces of the aspirants,
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  Speaker 1: that the great Spirit might give them strength to bear
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  Speaker 1: their tortures manfully. Directly under the aperture in the roof
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  Speaker 1: of the lodge was a curious arrangement of buffalo and
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  Speaker 1: human skull, which were divided into two parcels. Placed over them,
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  Speaker 1: at an elevation of about five feet, was a delicate
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  Speaker 1: scaffold made of four posts, not larger than a willow rod,
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  Speaker 1: and the crotches of these poles were placed lateral rods
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  Speaker 1: of about the same thickness, and resting on these transversely
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  Speaker 1: were a number of still more delicate sticks. On the
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  Speaker 1: center of this frame was a small stone altar, from
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  Speaker 1: which issued the sacred fire. Immediately under the frame, on
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  Speaker 1: the ground was placed a knife and a bundle of splints,
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  Speaker 1: which were kept in readiness for the infliction of the
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  Speaker 1: cruelties which I shall endeavor to explain. From the top
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  Speaker 1: of the LODs depended a number of cords, which, passing
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  Speaker 1: through the roof, were held by men on the outside, who,
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  Speaker 1: on a given signal, were to suspend the victims between
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  Speaker 1: heaven and Earth. An attendant now advanced to our side
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  Speaker 1: of the structure, bearing in his arms two curious looking objects,
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  Speaker 1: which on investigation proved to be sacks, containing in each
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  Speaker 1: about two gallons of water. These were articles of superstitious
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  Speaker 1: regard and held in great veneration by the Indians. They
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  Speaker 1: were constructed of the skin of the buffalo's neck, and
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  Speaker 1: most elaborately sewed together in the form of a large
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  Speaker 1: tortoise with a bunch of eagles quills appended to act
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  Speaker 1: the part of tail. Accompanying each was a drumstick, and
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  Speaker 1: with a few directions how to use it, he left us.
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  Speaker 1: After a brief incant, accompanied by more vigorous puffs at
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  Speaker 1: the big pipe, the order was issued to remove the scaffold.
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  Speaker 1: The skulls were placed on posts at the back of
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  Speaker 1: the lodge, and two stalwart savages took up their positions
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  Speaker 1: in the center of the open space, one with a
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  Speaker 1: knife in his hand, the other holding the splints. One
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  Speaker 1: by one, the candidates advanced their frames, were greatly emaciated
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  Speaker 1: by the fasting, thirsting, and wakefulness to which they had
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  Speaker 1: subjected themselves during four days. Placing themselves on their hands
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  Speaker 1: and feet, or otherwise as was best suited for the
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  Speaker 1: performance of the operation, they were grasped roughly by the attendants,
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  Speaker 1: and an inch or more of flesh taken up between
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  Speaker 1: the thumb and finger of the man who held the knife.
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  Speaker 1: The knife had been ground sharply on both sides and
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  Speaker 1: then notched so that the effect of pushing it through
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  Speaker 1: the skin might be made as painful as possible. As
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  Speaker 1: soon as the incision was made, the attendant ran askewre
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  Speaker 1: through the still quivering flesh. The cord was then lowered
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  Speaker 1: from the roof and fastened to the splints. When the
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  Speaker 1: signal being given, the cords were tightened and the victim
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  Speaker 1: was suspended in mid air. More splints were passed through
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  Speaker 1: his shoulders, arms, thighs, and legs. In some instances they
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  Speaker 1: remained upon the ground until this painful operation was completed.
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  Speaker 1: The time consumed and preparing the victims for suspension was
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  Speaker 1: about five minutes. As the body dangled in mid air,
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  Speaker 1: and while the blood was streaming down the victim sides,
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  Speaker 1: the bystanders would grasp at the body and hang upon
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  Speaker 1: the splints, each man's shield, bow and quiver. In some instances,
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  Speaker 1: a buffalo's skull was attached to his lower limbs to
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  Speaker 1: prevent the struggling which would otherwise have taken place, to
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  Speaker 1: the disadvantage of the sufferer. When these were adjusted, the
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  Speaker 1: body was raised higher until the weight swung clear. In
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  Speaker 1: this plight, they became a fearful sight to look upon
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  Speaker 1: the flesh to support their bodies. With the additional weights attached,
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  Speaker 1: there too was raised some eight inches by the skewers,
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  Speaker 1: and their heads sinking forward on their breasts or thrown
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  Speaker 1: backward in and in much more frightful condition. Was a
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  Speaker 1: sight that made one's blood curdle and the heart turned
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  Speaker 1: sick at the ghastly, bloody spectacle. The fortitude with which
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  Speaker 1: the victims bore this torture almost surpasses belief. As the
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  Speaker 1: knife was thrust through the flesh, not a muscle moved,
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  Speaker 1: and some even called attention to their faces and challenged
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  Speaker 1: the judges to detect the first symptom of weakness or
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  Speaker 1: faint heartedness. Truly, it was a fearful sight, and as
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  Speaker 1: the knife ripped through the flesh, it was more than
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  Speaker 1: I could bear, and throwing down the drumstick, I'd give
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  Speaker 1: way to the most violent grief. It was not until
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  Speaker 1: I was severely admonished to continue my task that I
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  Speaker 1: could sufficiently control my emotion and resume the horrid thrum
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  Speaker 1: thrumb of the monotonous music. As soon as the victim
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  Speaker 1: was thoroughly suspended, a number of demons inhuman guise clustered
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  Speaker 1: around him, devising means that would make this exquisite agony
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  Speaker 1: more intense. One would advance with a long pole in
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  Speaker 1: his hand and commence turning the bleeding body slowly at first,
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  Speaker 1: but the motion would be gradually accelerated until the victim
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  Speaker 1: would cry out in bitterness of spirit and intones the
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  Speaker 1: most lamentable and heartrending that the human voice is capable
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  Speaker 1: of producing, appealing to the great Spirit and beseeching him
• 26:47
  Speaker 1: not to forsake his servant. In this his hour of
• 26:51
  Speaker 1: severest agony, he is turned faster and faster. There is
• 26:58
  Speaker 1: no hope for escape, not the slightest respite, until by
• 27:04
  Speaker 1: fainting he is relieved from his tormentors and left to
• 27:08
  Speaker 1: hang apparently a lifeless corpse. When it has been ascertained
• 27:16
  Speaker 1: that he is, as they term it, entirely dead. His
• 27:20
  Speaker 1: torture ceases, and there hang, suspended by chords, all that
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: remains of a form that a few hours since was
• 27:30
  Speaker 1: instinct with life and vigor. His medicine bag, which he
• 27:35
  Speaker 1: has clung to all through the trying or deal with
• 27:39
  Speaker 1: the tenacity of despair, has dropped to the ground. Even
• 27:45
  Speaker 1: this potent charm deserts its owner in his hour of
• 27:49
  Speaker 1: greatest need, when if at any time it supposed supernatural
• 27:55
  Speaker 1: protection should be most felt. The signal is now given
• 28:01
  Speaker 1: to the men on the outside of the lodge to
• 28:03
  Speaker 1: lower the body, and he is gently laid upon the ground.
• 28:09
  Speaker 1: In this helpless condition, he lies looking like some massive
• 28:14
  Speaker 1: future faction that has just been removed from a charnel house.
• 28:20
  Speaker 1: During this time, he is said to be in the
• 28:23
  Speaker 1: keeping of the Great Spirit, whom he trusts will protect
• 28:27
  Speaker 1: and finally give him strength to get up and walk away.
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: After lying some time on the ground, an attendant removes
• 28:37
  Speaker 1: the splints from the breasts and shoulders, thereby disengaging him
• 28:42
  Speaker 1: from the cords by which he has been suspended, But
• 28:46
  Speaker 1: the others with the weights attached are suffered to remain
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: embedded in the bleeding wounds. As soon as consciousness returns,
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: he attempts to move. No one is allowed to assist
• 29:02
  Speaker 1: him or offer him aid, as he is now in
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: the enjoyment of one of the most exalted privileges that
• 29:09
  Speaker 1: Apaches can lay claim to, that of trusting his life
• 29:15
  Speaker 1: to the keeping of the Great Spirit. Presently, he crawls away,
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: dragging his weights after him, which, as they clatter over
• 29:26
  Speaker 1: the hard earthen floor of the lodge, make a mournful
• 29:30
  Speaker 1: accompaniment to his groans and sobs. He creeps to another
• 29:36
  Speaker 1: part of the lodge, where a savage sits in grim silence,
• 29:40
  Speaker 1: awaiting his coming. In his hand is a hatchet, and
• 29:45
  Speaker 1: immediately in front of him is a dried buffalo skull.
• 29:51
  Speaker 1: The sufferer draws near, and holding up the little finger
• 29:55
  Speaker 1: of his left hand, makes a short speech and calling
• 29:59
  Speaker 1: up on the Great Spirit to witness his self sacrifice.
• 30:04
  Speaker 1: Unflinchingly lays the doomed finger on the skull. One quick
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: sharp stroke by the Indian who wields the hatchet, and
• 30:14
  Speaker 1: the finger drops from the hand, a sacrifice to a
• 30:19
  Speaker 1: fanatics zeal. No bandages or applied to the fingers, nor
• 30:26
  Speaker 1: are any articles taken up. In fact, no attention whatever
• 30:32
  Speaker 1: of surgical character is paid to the wounds, lacerations and bruises.
• 30:38
  Speaker 1: They are left for the Great Spirit to cure. It
• 30:43
  Speaker 1: is rather remarkable that the bleeding is not so profuse
• 30:47
  Speaker 1: as might be expected from the severity of the torture,
• 30:51
  Speaker 1: and soon ceases, probably from the fact of their extreme
• 30:55
  Speaker 1: exhaustion and debility. The want of sustenance and sleep checks
• 31:01
  Speaker 1: the natural circulation and is at the same time an
• 31:05
  Speaker 1: admirable preparation for the tortures and enables them to bear
• 31:10
  Speaker 1: the infliction without the same degree of pain that might
• 31:13
  Speaker 1: under other circumstances result in inflammation and death. During these
• 31:21
  Speaker 1: cruel scenes, the chiefs and dignitaries of the tribe are
• 31:25
  Speaker 1: looking on unmoved, and by taking mental notes of the
• 31:29
  Speaker 1: way in which the victim bears this terrible torture, decide
• 31:33
  Speaker 1: who are the heartiest and stoutest hearted, who can hang
• 31:37
  Speaker 1: the longest by his flesh without fainting, and who will
• 31:41
  Speaker 1: be the soonest up after he is cut down. In
• 31:46
  Speaker 1: this way they judge of the physical capacity of the
• 31:49
  Speaker 1: young braves to bear hunger, fatigue, and suffering. And to
• 31:55
  Speaker 1: those who acquit themselves the most worthily is entrusted the
• 31:59
  Speaker 1: leadership of forlorn hopes, war parties resolved on desperate enterprises,
• 32:06
  Speaker 1: et cetera, et cetera. This scene was enacted during a
• 32:12
  Speaker 1: whole day, and in that time some forty or fifty
• 32:17
  Speaker 1: young men went through the agonies of suspension and amputation,
• 32:22
  Speaker 1: all the while the din and clatter was undiminished. Did
• 32:27
  Speaker 1: we but relax our efforts for a moment a brawny
• 32:31
  Speaker 1: savage was at our side, and by ward and blow
• 32:35
  Speaker 1: commanded us to recommence what with the physical and mental
• 32:41
  Speaker 1: fatigue caused by this continuous and seemingly everlasting thrumming. Joined
• 32:47
  Speaker 1: to the horrid sites, sounds, and emotions to which we
• 32:52
  Speaker 1: were subjected, and the revolting and bloody nature of the drama,
• 32:57
  Speaker 1: it seemed as if we were under the influence of
• 33:01
  Speaker 1: a horrid nightmare, as if we had suddenly been wafted
• 33:06
  Speaker 1: away in the arms of some hideous geni to realms
• 33:10
  Speaker 1: of darkness, and were maliciously compelled to be the unwilling
• 33:15
  Speaker 1: spectators of scenes which, even at this day, the bare
• 33:20
  Speaker 1: remembrance of causes the blood to chill with horror, and
• 33:25
  Speaker 1: the frame too vibrant with agony at their recollection. God
• 33:31
  Speaker 1: grant that such cruelties may soon disappear off the face
• 33:36
  Speaker 1: of the earth, together with the actors and instigators of
• 33:41
  Speaker 1: these horrible rites. End of Chapter twenty two.