BY PYE POD.
Thou hast described
A hot friend cooling.
--_Julius Cæsar._
It was nine o'clock in the evening. While we were chatting with
the landlord of the only tavern in Luzerne, a portly, smooth-looking
individual entered the room. He was clad in a great fur
ulster and top boots. After a familiar "hello" to the landlord, he
eyed me searchingly, and added, "Your name is Pod, ain't it?"
I said, "I believe so; yours is what, don't it?"
Evidently not pleased with my expression, he instantly struck an
attitude, or something equally hard, and announced, "I'm the
sheriff of Borden County, and have come for a jack belonging to
Mr. K----."
"Jack?" I interrogated; "boot-jack, apple-jack--"
"Just plain jack," interrupted the officer.
"Well," I replied, carelessly, "I have no jack belonging to Mr.
K----, but I have the jenny he sold me for five dollars. Mr. K----
imposed upon me, and if he will refund the money, I will be only
too glad to return his hundred-year old mule."
Here K---- himself entered. He stormed about, and said that I told
only a section of the truth.
The sheriff gave his client a look, which quelled his ire for a
moment, then, turning to me, said: "You talk reasonably enough,
Mr. Pod, and doubtless mean right, but Mr. K---- has sworn out a
warrant for your arrest; and if you don't want trouble and a
double-jointed advertisement just turn over to K---- the jack he
claims, and send your man back for the gray jenny."
It may not seem strange that I was converted to the officer's way
of thinking.
"Take the donkey you claim," I said to K----, "you have the
advantage of me. I haven't time to fight my case in the courts."
My black-bearded adversary now calmed his temper; his victory must
have tasted sweet. I calculated the cost of the warrant and the
sheriff's services to be at least ten dollars, since the officer
had sacrificed angling for posse duty; although he was prevented
from catching fish, there was a nice mess for me.
With reluctant equanimity the man who had wished to help me along
explained that he had boasted of having acquired one of Pye Pod's
noted donkeys, but when he found I had outwitted him, he swore
vengeance.
On the other hand, the officer had conducted himself as a gentleman.
"Here, Coonskin," said the officer, "take this dollar and fetch us
a pail of beer;" and, turning to me, added, "we must drown ill
feeling amongst us, for when you come this way again, we'll show
you how to catch fish."
By one o'clock next day Coonskin, weary, hungry, and morose, had
managed to steer his slow "craft" into Luzerne and to moor it in
front of the tavern barn. That closed the interesting event.
On our way to Tama City I was greeted by a member of assembly, who
tendered me an invitation from the Mayor to dine with them that
day. Lounging about the shop doors and strolling the streets, on
our arrival in Tama, were many stately, still proud redskins, who,
when they espied me with the wealth of canines collected on my
way, shied off the scent for "fire-water" and dogged my trail to
the hotel.
After dinner with the Mayor and Assemblyman, I escorted them to
the stable to discover Mac A'Rony devouring a new hair-cushioned
carriage seat. At once the Mayor wanted to buy that donkey
outright, head and seat, for a round sum.
On expressing my intention to visit the Indian Reservation, some
three miles away, his Honor gave me letters of introduction to the
Indian Teacher and the Indian Instructor in agriculture. There
lived the Sac and Fox tribe of the Musquaques. I was told that
they were one of the most primitive tribes in the States, holding
on to the primeval, and often evil, customs of feeding on dog
soup, indulging in various kinds of dances, living in teepees, or
wickey-ups, and wearing bears' teeth, eagles' claws, scalps, skins
and moccasins. As you know, I had long hoped to be welcomed as
their guest. I was tired and weary of the care of my dog pack, and
wished to present it bodly, save Don, to the Chief.
About two o'clock we saddled and packed. When ready to start, a
diminutive bicyclist, mud-bespattered and perspiring from a hot
century run, he affirmed, wheeled up to the stable and, almost
before catching his breath, introduced himself to me.
"My name is Barley Korker," said he, "de champion lightest-weight
wheelman in de United States, weighin' jest sixty-eight pounds.
I'm jest troo wid a trip from New York in one month and tirty-two
days. My bicycle was giv me by de Cormorant Club of Phil'delfia.
De Bourbon Club of Chowchow Wheelman of Pittsburg put up five
hundred dollars 'gainst de wall dat I couldn't go all de way to
San Francisco and git dere. On de way I hears of de great donkey
traveler, Professor Pod, so I says, I'll jest catch up wid him,
and mebbe he'll take me 'long wid him."
I at once made the little fellow a proposition, which he accepted;
if he would wheel ahead of my caravan every day, carrying a small
flagstaff with a streamer containing the words, "Official Courier
to Pye Pod," I would, as long as he gave satisfaction, defray his
traveling expenses. Barley was delighted. He forthwith purchased a
piece of plum-colored silk and a bit of white silk for letters,
needles and thread, and, having once been a tailor by trade, when
we went into camp that night said that he would make a beautiful
streamer, one I would be proud of. He promised to have it
completed in a couple of days.
I had not more than finished my business with my courier, when a
rustic-looking boy rode up on a white donkey, and called to me,
"Want ter trade?"
"Not anxious," I returned, but showed no signs of a desire to
flee.
"Trade with yer, if you give me five dollars to boot," said the
enterprising lad.
I recalled how I had been swindled recently in a trade, and
resolved to make a deal with that boy by hook or by crook.
"Do you suppose I would think of trading this thoroughbred Irish
ass that has gone around the world for your common beast, just
because mine is tired from fast and long traveling, and yours is
fresh?" I saw I had made an impression; the lad dismounted, and
examined Cheese IV, critically.
"I hain't no money to-day," said the boy, "but if you'll give me
two dollars to boot I'll trade."
[Illustration: "_I killed my first rattlesnake._"]
[Illustration: "_That was the town._"]
[Illustration: "_Over the Platte ... after blindfolding them._"]
"What! do you want the earth?" I exclaimed. "Only before dinner
I paid two dollars to have this donkey shod. I don't intend to pay
two dollars more to shoe your animal."
The lad replied "All right," and galloped away, but had only gone
a short distance when I hailed him. He came back without
hesitation, and I then concluded a bargain. It was agreed that a
blacksmith should take the new shoes off Cheese and put them on
his donkey, and that I should pay him three dollars to boot. An
hour later Cheese V was shod, bridled and saddled, and that
afternoon became Coonskin's mount, Damfino carrying the principal
portion of our luggage, and Mac A'Rony his master.
My party reached the Reservation in time for me to meet the Indian
teacher before he left school, my courier having wheeled ahead to
announce my coming.
I was greeted warmly when I presented the Mayor's letter, was
shown some of the lodges of the tribe, and made acquainted with a
few of the foremost braves of the camp. The teacher was an
admirable interpreter, and the Indians grunted approvingly at
meeting such a noted personage as Professor Pye Pod.
A fat old buck named Ne-tah-twy-tuck (old one), on being
presented, extended me his hand, muttering, "How do?" His grip
almost mashed my fingers.
"Much dog," he observed, eyeing my pack with doubtful admiration.
"Yes, too much," I replied; "I want to visit Me-tah-ah-qua, your
great chief, and give him a heap of dogs." The Indian grinned
majestically, while his teacher turned his head to control his
risibles.
"Make pleasant?" the redskin grunted, and shook his head
disapprovingly. "Me-tah-ah-qua say no dog good--old--make tough
soup." And the brave pinched one of the mongrels, causing such a
ky-eying that my interpreter feared it would put the whole camp on
the war-path.
Presently an Indian boy notified the teacher that the chief had
heard of Mr. Pod's arrival, and wished him to dine with him at his
lodge. I accepted, and the boy departed; and soon afterward
Coonskin and I were escorted to the chief's wigwam, taking my dog
pack with me.
Me-tah-ah-qua met us with a grunt, rubbed my nose against his
until it became lopsided, and likewise greeted Coonskin.
Then the chief waved us into the wigwam. He seated me on his
right, and Coonskin on his left, while opposite to me he placed
his disenchanting daughter of forty-five summers. Opposite the
chief sat his first councilman, Muck-qua-push-e-too (young one),
and at my right, at the entrance of the tent in full view of the
host was seated our Government interpreter, seemingly much amused
by the event. I lost no time in presenting my dogs to the chief,
who in broken sentences, half Indian, half English, accepted the
munificent gift in befitting words.
The spread consisted of a wolf skin, and on it rested a large flat
stone on which to stand the kettle of soup when ready.
For some moments the chief regarded me searchingly, then said,
"Me-tah-ah-qua wants--big donk man to live with him--and marry--his
only daughter--Ne-nah-too-too. Me-tah-ah-qua will give--him a
bow and a quiver of arrows--three seasoned pipes--five ponies--a
new wicky-up--two red blankets--a deer skin--bag full of dogs'
teeth--fifteen scalps taken by his father."
The chief left off abruptly, as if for my answer, but I shook my
head thoughtfully, and the chief continued:
"If you--will marry my daughter (here the chief glanced at me,
then let his eyes dwell fondly on that aged belle of forty-five
summers), Me-tah-ah-qua will make--you chief of his tribe--before
he goes to--the Happy Hunting Grounds. He will call--your first
born Chicky-pow-wow-wake-up."
I was never more embarrassed, and eyed the damsel of forty-five
summers, trying to persuade myself that she was beautiful and
rich, and still shook my head. The old chief, seeing his
inducements were not alluring, motioned to his councilman to pass
the pipe of peace. After we had all taken a puff at it, the kettle
of dog soup was set before us, and we all dipped in our ladles,
the chief first, and began to eat.
When I first looked into that caldron of bouillon, I could see in
my mind's eye, all kinds and conditions of dog staring at me, and
almost fancied I could hear them barking. The soup wasn't bad,
after all; it reminded me of Limburger cheese, in that it tasted
better than it smelled. But Coonskin and I, and even our
interpreter, ate sparingly (I use the word "ate," because there
was so much meat in it). I learned from the teacher that the whole
kettleful of soup was extracted from one small spaniel. "Dog
gone!" I sighed.
The feast at an end, I thanked the chief for the honor conferred
upon me, shook hands with his daughter, and departed. Barley
Korker, Mac A'Rony and the rest of the party welcomed me with
glee, and soon we were marching over the hill toward the house of
the Indian farmer.
In front of a wigwam sat the chief's squaw, an old, wrinkled and
parched woman of a hundred and five winters, weaving a flat mat; a
little way off two Indian boys were filling pails with sand,
making believe they were at Coney Island; and still beyond I saw
two squaws carrying huge bundles of faggots for the wigwam fires,
round which sat the lazy bucks, smoking.
A half-mile further on we met the Indian Farmer, and I presented
my letter of introduction. He extended me a glad hand, and invited
us all to supper, and on the way to his house, enlightened me
about Indian farming, and the results of our Government's efforts
to civilize the savage tribes. The Reservation contains 2,800
acres of woodland and arable soil.
After supper on bread and milk with the farmer, we travelers made
our beds of hay and horse-blankets in the barn, and then followed
the trail half way back to the Indian village, until we came to a
house, where I discovered in the darkness its rustic incumbent
leaning on the fence, smoking. There we lay down on the dry sod,
lit our pipes, and listened for the first sound of the Indian drum
beats which, the farmer told us, we would soon hear; that was the
night for an Assembly dance, and the first drum beat was to
assemble the tribe to its nocturnal orgie.
As I reclined on the grass in the starlight that mild May evening,
my mind recalling the harrowing tales of the early settlers of the
West, the first sound of the drum beat sent a thrill through my
frame. I mentally counted the weapons comprising the arsenal in
our belts; and even Don crept closer to me and rubbed his face
against mine. After a few moments' interim the drum again beat,
but for a longer period, sounding something like the army long-roll,
only more weird. The farmer said this was the signal for the
dance to begin, so we strolled leisurely down the hill trail
through the woods to the grotesque scene.
A circular corral, fenced with three or four strands of wire,
surrounded a pole driven slantingly in the ground, and from the
pole was suspended a very bright lantern. Already within the
enclosure could be seen the dusky forms of the Musquaques, some of
them grouped in a sitting posture, crosslegged, in the center of
the corral, beating a large shallow drum resting on the ground;
while maneuvring fantastically about them were four agile reds,
clad in loose-fitting, bright-colored robes, feathers, moccasins
and sleighbells, dancing, and pow-wowing frightfully.
Finally we drew closer to the scene, and then an educated Indian,
named Sam Lincoln, welcomed us into the enclosure. He said he was
a graduate of the Carlisle Indian School of Pennsylvania, and
greeted us in the true American style, but he still loved the
primitive customs of his people. We sat on the ground against the
fence, and occasionally one or another of the dancers would put a
pinch of tobacco into the hand of Sam, seated next to me.
"What was that he just gave you?" I asked of the Indian.
"He give pleasant of tobacco," said Sam. "Show good feeling--Indian
not steal--leave things around--Indian no take--Indian honest."
By that sign of distributing tobacco among his fellows, the
tamed savage promises fair play among his tribe.
The men alone danced. Before long, the squaws, one by one, came
into the ring from various quarters with pappooses bound on their
backs in shawls or robes, and squatted in a circle just behind the
drummers. As the dancers became fatigued, I noticed that they
would exchange places with the spectators, most of whom were in
dancing rig. Sam Lincoln, after a time, excused himself politely
and asked me to sit on his coat, reminding me should I leave
before his return not to forget to leave the strap he loaned me to
tie my dog to a post.
The weird proceedings were all too exciting for Don, and it was
all I could do to prevent his making mince-meat out of the dancers
and prowling squaws. The whoops and pow-wowing and yells were
thrilling enough to frighten even a man "tenderfoot."
Toward midnight speech-making began. The drummers stopped beating
the drum, and an old patriarch walked from the fence toward the
center group, and stood behind the squaws a moment in silence.
Presently he softly uttered something that sounded like a prayer,
to which all the dusky auditors responded feelingly at the close
in a monosyllable not unlike "Amen." Then the drum-beating and
dancing was resumed, continuing some moments, to be followed by
another prayer.
At last, a great pipe was put through a series of mysterious
calisthenics, and passed around among the drummers.
At midnight the full, round moon rose above the wooded hills, and
cast a broad, silvery sash across the ring, illuminating the weird
and grotesque scene. Now a squaw entered with a large earthen jar
and passed it around to all the Indians, the bucks first. I was
ignorant of its contents, as it was not passed to me and my white
comrades. Fatigued from travel, I finally rested my head on Don's
warm body, and went to sleep; and it must have been near one
o'clock when Coonskin awoke me. Then we three, accompanied by my
dog, started for the barn to lay ourselves out for a few hours'
repose. I shall never forget that night.
Sam Lincoln said that several members of the tribe, a few weeks
previous, had gone to visit another branch of the tribe in
Wisconsin, in the absence of which a "meeting dance" was held
every fourth night, when the Indians appealed to the Great Father
for their safe return. Sam told me that in all their various dances
a different drum was beaten--there was one each respectively for
the snake dance, ghost dance, wolf dance, buffalo dance, peace
dance, war dance, meeting dance, etc. The drum for the meeting
dance, Sam pronounced beautiful, and "much nice"--"seven dollars
fifty cents worth of quarters on it--all silver on drum--fine
drum--much cost." The Indians valued their drums, evidently, more
than any other of their possessions.
We rested well that night in our haymow bed, although the rats
kept the dog busy till morning, so Barley said; he was the only
one of us three who failed to sleep soundly. We rose in good
season, and traveled five miles to Mountour, Barley Korker
wheeling on in advance to order breakfast. He proved himself a
good financier on this, his first, mission as Pod's official
courier, and pleasantly surprised me by having bargained for three
twenty-five cent breakfasts for fifty cents.
Before reaching Marshalltown, we met with a terrific thunderstorm,
and rode up to the hotel at six o'clock in a drenched condition.