TOO MUCH INNOVATION.

Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 709, 2 January 1877, Page 3

TOO MUCH INNOVATION.

'. The last Indian war that they had • out in Colorado had a very, curious • origin. -The squaw of Red-Eye, the chief who 'was killed in '59, was about seventy years of age, and had lost all her teeth ; and. so whenever I the tribe- of TTtes regaled themselves with bakeddog, the Red Eye woman ' stood precisely no chance at-all, but used to sit over in the* corner and xjhatterher gums in imbecile ■ rage, while the others - disposed of the rations. One day ..Mrs R. mounted a pony and started for Denver. When she-returned, two days later, the rest of the folks werejust about to begin a banquet. She approached the fire, lifted out a hind quarter >6i • one of the most succulent dogs that bad ever been seen on the reservation, and while everybody was wondering -what she was going to do with it, she began to eat it! In Afive minutes it was gone, and just as

a couple of the astonished braves were .about to demand an explanation, she produced a new set of false teeth, and brandishing them in the face of. ithe -assembly, uttered a terrific whoop, which she concluded --with the affirmation that, from this time forward, \when any -of 'the delicacies -of ; the season were about, •alie was to have her share, unlessvshe was deceived'in her conjecture that she was the daughter of and the widow of a -mighty'big 'lndian.

There was a desp enough feeling of indignation against all the whites because of this, but this was not all. One day whilo they were all sitting around the camp-fire, not expecting , any alarming demonstration, and not prepared for any exciting-intelli-gence, Buffalo Bull stood suddenly up, and announced that l "he was going himself! »One aged chieftain was so overcome by the shook that die over and died on the spot. The others at first- couldn't believe their ears, and when Buffalo -repeated in distinct tones, that'he had. arrived at* the conclusiomthat hje j would wash himself, almost everybody thought; hj& was joking, and"the ..chief of the tribe sternly told him that he did very wrong to trifle in that.manner with such serious things. However, when Buffalo -actually produced a bar of Castile soap and .a huokaback j towel, and brandished them about, the braves saw at once-that they' were face to. face with a grave crisis. Then they -surrounded Buffalo and argued with him, b«t he was firm. Then 'they threatened him, they .'• pleaded with-him; they tried to bribe him j they got the medicine man to. bring out-the war-drum, .and to beat it and howl so as to scire away the ; evil spirits which had control of Buffalo; but; -without avail. That degenerate Indian he was-going to try it once to see how it went, no matter who got mad about it. So then the braves resolved to hold a-council to-consider the situation. Bold Eagle said that •if this kind of thing.was going to be done ■with • impunity, if the enervating, customs of the white man were thus to be forced upon the abrogines, then the North. American Indian might as -well take a back seat at once, and agree to go down to oblivion as one of the inferior races. Two braves a&ked the committee to look at the-consequence.*. Wash: the-members of this tribe, and no one will be able to -recognise them j their-own> familieswon't know them; and the first thing. you know they will be killing each other under the. impression that they are strangers belonging to another'tribe. Bandylegged v KFim expressed the idea that if washing Was introduced,, they would simply let himout as an Indian. He -would .give up scalpsnatching, '-give up building., bonfires on the stomachs, of bis prisoners, give up t painting his nose, greon-when : &e '-wanted to -fight,v surrender all:, the little joys and comforts of life, and settle down somewhere in ignominy as a- cultivator of cabbages ancLturnips.. Yellow Dog asked where 'thisi' kind • of thing was going to end. To-day washing was allowed; tomorrow sombody would be insisting upon *he -"introduction of . toothbrushes ; pretty soon the noble red man would be asked to -wipe >his nose- on- and to catTy-an umbrella; after a while some other >■ idiot woul4 becoming along with incendiary notions about putting on a clean shirt once in every four or five years, and he shoiald not be surprised if, -sooner or later, an effort "should be-made to degrade the Indian ■-•by forcing' him to eat;-witla a fork. For himself'he would rather die on the Spot. : Grey Eagle, the chief, observed that this revolutionary business had gone far enough. It was the fault of the -whites. .They had set"up<Red Eye's widow with teeth so that she ate more than her honest share; and now they had persuaded another wretched .Indian to insult the ' memory of his ancestors by taking a bath. : It was time for revenge. He moved that they wipe out a lot of the--whl<tes on*thespot. The trouble began next day. About forty people were massacred, and in the .fight Buffalo Bull was killed, and Bed Eye Squaw dropped her teeth and lost them. Then things became serene again, and since then the Utes have maintained their institutions nud -their, dignity against all innovations.