Part 11

His long-continued attachment to the whites at one time so far brought him into disrepute with his tribe that they charged his friendship to cowardice, called him a woman, and refused to listen to his counsels. Finding his influence in the tribe nearly gone, he raised a force, conducted a raid into Texas, and had a severe engagement with the white soldiers, where he led his men with such ability and coolness as to come off victorious and win a testimony of respect from the commander of his enemy's forces. On his return home he again advocated peace with the whites, and has steadily continued to do so from that time to the present. The tribe, thoroughly convinced of his bravery, no longer attribute his desire for peace to cowardice, and listen to his eloquent arguments, in most cases yielding to his counsels; so that he really stands at the head of all those Kiowa who are disposed to live peaceably, as Lone-wolf does at the head of those occupying a less friendly position (_Battey, 12_).

Another characteristic incident is recorded by Battey. Shortly before the outbreak some trouble occurred between Kicking-bird and the chiefs disposed to hostility, who accused him of having lied about them. A meeting was arranged at the agency to talk it over, and as the Indians were greatly excited some trouble was anticipated. When, the Kiowa began to arrive, each as he entered the office and seated himself strung his bow and placed it where it could be instantly seized for action, put his quiver of arrows in convenient position, also placing three or four arrows across his lap, loosened his revolver, and turned the handle ready for grasping, while many of them trembled with excitement. When the room was nearly filled, Kicking-bird, accompanied only by his brother and another friend, rode up coolly, as if unaware of what might be going on inside. Securing their ponies, they entered the office, Kicking-bird in advance. Looking around the circle, he took in the situation at once, and seating themselves, he and his companions coolly proceeded to place their bows, arrows, and revolvers in the same position for convenient use if necessary. Then addressing the agent, Kicking-bird informed him of the charges against himself (Kicking-bird), and called upon him to keep back nothing that he had told him, but to tell his people his whole talk (_Battey, 13_).

CHANGED CONDITIONS

With the close of the outbreak and the subsequent readjustment of affairs came a great change in the condition of the Kiowa and their confederated tribes. The old chiefs who had so often led them on the warpath were dead or in prison; their horses, which to prairie warriors were almost as essential as the bow or rifle, had been taken from them, together with their weapons; military posts and garrisons had been established in their midst and the chain of white settlements had been drawn closer around them; their old allies, the Cheyenne, had been rendered powerless to help them, and, more than all, their unfailing commissary, the buffalo, had practically disappeared. They felt that they were powerless in the hands of the stronger race, and with a deep sigh of regret for their vanished sovereignty they literally put their hands to the plow and endeavored in their weak fashion to follow the white man's road. The warriors, realizing that their time was too short to learn new ways, were anxious to see their children prepared to meet the changed conditions, and in consequence the schools were soon crowded, some of the chiefs even assisting the teachers in the work of organizing. Henceforth we find them trying to follow the new path with patient resignation, in spite of difficulties and frequent neglect, with only occasional weak ebullitions of the old fighting temper when aroused by some particularly aggravated grievance.

EPIDEMICS OF MEASLES AND FEVER IN 1877--FIRST HOUSES BUILT

In 1877 an epidemic of measles in the tribe carried off a large number of children. It was followed immediately afterward by an outbreak of fever. In the fall of the same year the government, through agent Haworth, built a number of houses for the prominent chiefs, these being the first Indian houses on the reservation (see the calendar). In accordance with a new plan of employing Indians at agencies, a police force of about thirty natives was organized in 1878. The result in this as in all other cases has been eminently satisfactory (_Report, 60_).

AGENCY REMOVED TO ANADARKO--THE LAST OF THE BUFFALO

For years Indians and agents alike had complained of the location of the agency at Fort Sill. In consequence of repeated representations of the matter, it was removed toward the close of 1879 to Anadarko on the Washita and consolidated with the Wichita agency at that point, where it still remains (_Report, 61_). As a result, the Kiowa, who had previously been together in a single camp on Cache creek below the fort, now began to scatter and take up individual farms along the Washita and on the creeks north of Mount Scott. This year may be taken as the date of the disappearance of the buffalo from the Kiowa country, the Indians during the summer of 1879 being reduced to the necessity of killing and eating their ponies to keep from starving, in consequence of the almost total failure of their annual hunt (see the calendar). Thereafter the appearance of even a single buffalo was a rare event.

[Illustration: BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY

SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT, PL. LXIV

PHOTO BY SOULE, ABOUT 1870

PHOTOS BY JACKSON, 1872

SET-ĬMKÍA OR STUMBLING-BEAR (PUSHING-BEAR)]

In the same year died Lone-wolf, the principal chief and leader of the war element in the late outbreak. Dohásän, Set-ängya, and Set-t'aiñte being already gone, his death may be said to mark the end of the war history of the Kiowa. Shortly after his return from Florida he had conferred his name and succession upon the present bearer of the name, who had been the comrade of his son, killed in Texas, although not related by blood. The succession is now disputed by Ä´piatañ, the nephew of the first Lone-wolf.

THREATENED OUTBREAK INSTIGATED BY DÁTEKÂÑ

In June of 1881 there was considerable excitement caused by threats of an outbreak by the Kiowa on account of dissatisfaction with the rations. Their attitude became so threatening that the more peaceable Wichita and associated tribes became alarmed, and troops were sent from Fort Sill to prevent trouble, which had the effect of quieting the unrest (_Report, 62_). It is possible that the Kiowa were instigated to this course by Dátekâñ, who soon afterward began preaching the return of the buffalo and the old Indian life (see the calendar, 1882).

EPIDEMIC OF 1882--BEGINNING OF CHURCH WORK

In the fall of 1882 the tribe suffered from an epidemic of whooping cough and measles (_Report, 63_). In 1883 the first church was built at the agency by Reverend J. B. Wicks of the Episcopal church, who had been conducting missionary work among the associated tribes for about two years previously. It was built and supported, however, by the Wichita and affiliated tribes, the Kiowa and Apache as yet taking little interest in such matters (_Report, 64_). The work was abandoned shortly after and not resumed until 1887, when the Methodists entered the field, followed later by the Presbyterians, Baptists, and Catholics.

LEASING OF GRASS LANDS

For some time various agents had called attention to the fact that the Indians had a large surplus of valuable grass lands, which might be made to yield them a considerable income if leased to cattlemen. The suggestion being approved by the department, an arrangement was made with several large cattle firms. The first money payment to the Indians under this agreement was made in the summer of 1885, but only to the Comanche, as the Kiowa and Apache for a year longer refused to accept the money, believing this to be a scheme to deprive them of their lands. There is no official notice of this at the time, for the reason that the arrangement was at first only a matter of tolerance and mutual agreement between the Indians and cattlemen, without formal official recognition or responsibility for several years afterward.

PÁ-IÑGYA, THE MEDICINE-MAN AND PROPHET

In the spring of 1887 a prophet named Pá-iñgya, "In-the-middle," revived the doctrine which had been taught five years before by Dátekâñ of the speedy return of the buffalo and the revival of the old Indian life, adding the usual accompaniments of invulnerability for his followers and the destruction of the whites and unbelieving Indians by fire and whirlwind. He claimed also the power to resurrect the dead and to destroy his enemies with a glance as by a lightning stroke. His preaching aroused great excitement among the Kiowa, and nearly the entire tribe was soon enrolled among his adherents, including every prominent chief except Stumbling-bear and Sun-boy. He established headquarters on Elk creek, at the extreme western end of the reservation, to which all his followers repaired. Here, by the friction of a stick upon a block of wood, he kindled a sacred fire, from which the devotees took brands to light and warm their tipis, being commanded to throw away the white man's matches or flint and steel, together with the white man's dress and weapons. As the day appointed for the final cataclysm approached, the Indians took their children from the schools at the agency in order that they might escape the destruction which was soon to overwhelm the intrusive race, and left in a body for the rendezvous on Elk creek. The movement alarmed the whites, who saw that there was trouble brewing, but could get no explanation of the reason. In anticipation of an outbreak, the agent, Captain Hall, summoned the troops to his assistance. With a small escort he visited the prophet's camp, and through the medium of Stumbling-bear invited the chiefs to a conference, with the result that the Kiowa agreed to return to their homes and await developments. As the time came and went without supernatural event, they became satisfied that the prophecy was a delusion, and the excitement died out. Pá-iñgya still lives, and when the messiah revelation spread among the southern tribes a few years later he hailed it as the delayed fulfillment of his own prophecy (see the calendar).

INDIAN COURT ESTABLISHED

As a practical step toward educating the Indians in civilized forms of self-government and to save the time consumed by the agent and other officials in trivial concerns, an Indian court consisting of three judges was organized upon the reservation in 1888 for the trial of minor offenses and questions, the first judges appointed being Quanah, Lone-wolf, and Tawákoni Jim, head chiefs respectively of the Comanche, Kiowa, and Wichita (_Report, 65_). This court is still in successful operation.

[Illustration: BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY

SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. LXV

PHOTOS BY JACKSON; 1872

PAÍ-TÄLYÍ OR SUN-BOY]

INTERTRIBAL COUNCIL OF 1888

The questions of railroads through the reservations, intrusions, allotments, and the ultimate opening of Indian Territory to white settlement, had now assumed such proportions that the civilized tribes had become alarmed and had called an intertribal council to debate measures to meet the emergency. The council met at Fort Gibson, in the Cherokee nation, in June, 1888, with representatives of about twenty tribes in attendance. Although recognizing civilization as their ultimate destiny, they were strongly opposed to any change in the tribal holding of their lands, and the sentiment was practically unanimous against allotment or any disturbance of the existing tribal system. The delegates and speakers from the Kiowa and associated tribes were Täbinä´naka and White-wolf for the Comanche, Big-tree for the Kiowa. White-man for the Apache, and Caddo Jake for the Caddo, Wichita, and smaller bands (_Report, 66_).

DEATH OF SUN-BOY--THE LAST SUN DANCE

In the fall of 1888 died Pai´-tälyi´, "Sun-boy," one of the last of the prominent chiefs of the old days of the buffalo hunt and the warpath (see the calendar). The summer of 1890 is notable for the last sun dance (_k`adó_) undertaken by the tribe. On this occasion the agent, making objection to the ceremony, which the Indians refused to abandon, ordered out the troops from Fort Sill to prevent it. On their arrival, although the Kiowa were at first disposed to resistance, upon the advice of Stumbling-bear and some other of the cooler heads, they finally dispersed to their homes, leaving the unfinished medicine lodge standing (see the calendar).

GHOST DANCE INAUGURATED--ÄPIATAÑ'S JOURNEY IN 1890

In the fall of 1890 Sitting-bull (Hänä´chä-thíak), an Arapaho, came and inaugurated the ghost dance among the Kiowa. As this subject is treated at length in the author's work on "The Ghost-dance Religion," in the Fourteenth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, it need only be mentioned here. Like all the neighboring tribes except the Comanche, the Kiowa went heart and soul into the new religion, which was in line with the previous prophecies of Dátekâñ and Pá-iñgya. A few months later they sent Ä´piatañ, "Wooden-lance," a prominent young man of the tribe, to find the messiah and investigate and report upon his doctrine. On his return in the following spring he denounced the new teacher as an impostor, whereupon the Kiowa abandoned the dance. Within the last two years, however, they have revived the ghost-dance ceremonies with all the old-time vigor (see the calendar).

[Illustration: FIG. 52--A´piatañ or Wooden-lance]

In the same winter, in January, 1891, three boys ran away from the government school at the agency in consequence of the harshness of a teacher, and a day or two later were found frozen to death in the mountains, having been overtaken by a blizzard while attempting to reach their homes. The affair naturally created intense excitement in the tribe and threats were made against the teacher who was responsible for the occurrence, but the matter finally quieted down without the necessity of calling on the troops (see the calendar).

ENLISTMENT OF INDIANS AS SOLDIERS

In March, 1891, the Secretary of War authorized the enlistment of an Indian contingent for each of the cavalry and infantry regiments serving in the west. In pursuance of this plan, a troop was enlisted from among the Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache tribes in the fall of 1891 and placed under the command of Lieutenant (now Captain) H. L. Scott, and designated as troop L, of the Seventh cavalry, then stationed at Fort Sill. Of this troop probably two-thirds were Kiowa and Apache. The experiment did not prove satisfactory, and all of the Indian companies have now been disbanded. The Kiowa troop maintained its existence longest, under Captain Scott, who was peculiarly fitted for the position by his intimate and sympathetic acquaintance with Indian habit and belief and his expert knowledge of the sign language. For this reason he has several times been selected by the War Department to investigate threatened troubles among the associated tribes, particularly during the critical period of the ghost dance, and has also been selected by the Indians themselves to represent their interests at Washington (see the calendar; also _War, 4_).

MEASLES EPIDEMIC OF 1892--GRASS LANDS LEASED

The year 1892 was signalized by several important events. Early in the spring an epidemic of measles broke out among the children in the Kiowa school. Instead of isolating and nursing the sick, the superintendent in charge sent the infected children home to their camps, thus spreading the disease broadcast, resulting in the death of about two hundred and twenty persons, nearly all children, among the Kiowa and Apache, or fifteen per cent of the entire number. The superintendent was soon afterward removed. This epidemic was the most terrible calamity that has befallen the tribe in many years. Every family lost relatives, and in addition to the large number of deaths thousands of dollars' worth of property, in the form of horses, wagons, blankets, etc, was destroyed at the graves in accordance with the Indian custom (see the calendar).

As by this time the Indians had learned that the leasing of their grass lands would be a substantial benefit to themselves, they held a joint council in the spring of the same year and authorized Quanah, Lone-wolf, and White-man, head chiefs of the three confederate tribes, to go as delegates to Washington, where they succeeded in negotiating leases for nearly all of their surplus grass lands for an aggregate annual rental of nearly $100,000. This money, with that received by the Indian soldiers, has been invested largely in houses and improved stock. Today probably half the Indians of the three tribes are owners of houses paid for with their own money (see the calendar).

[Illustration: FIG. 53--H.L. Scott, Captain, Seventh cavalry, U.S.A.]

COMMISSION FOR ALLOTMENT OF LANDS--PROTEST AGAINST DECISION

In the autumn of 1892 a commission, which had already concluded agreements with several other tribes, visited the Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache to negotiate with them for the distribution of individual allotments and the sale of the remainder of their reservation. As the terms of the Medicine Lodge treaty, under which they hold their present reservation, do not expire until August 25, 1898, the Indians were opposed to any change in the existing conditions, but by bringing strong pressure to bear upon them, an agreement was finally reached by which the reservation was to be thrown open immediately upon the ratification of the contract by Congress. On learning the true nature of the instrument, the Indians denounced the interpreter and demanded that their names be stricken from the paper. This being refused, they repudiated in council the action of the chiefs who had signed, and elected other representatives to go to Washington to protest against the whole proceeding. The delegates chosen were Ä´piatañ, already mentioned, Apache John (_Goñk'oñ_, "Stays-in-tipi") and Piänä´vonĭt, "Big-looking-glass," for the Kiowa, Apache, and Comanche, respectively, with Captain Scott, U. S. A., and Andres Martinez (_Ä´ndali_), an influential Mexican captive among the Kiowa, as interpreter. The delegation arrived in March, 1894, and made such representation of the matter that no action was taken upon the agreement, and it is still unratified.

[Illustration: FIG. 54--A group of Kiowa]

PRESENT CONDITION--AGENTS IN CHARGE OF CONFEDERATE TRIBES

Realizing that a change is inevitable in the near future, the Indians are going to work, and with the aid of the money received for their grass lands invested in houses, cattle, and improved breed of horses, the opening of small farms, and the general educational work of the schools, there is a fair prospect that at the expiration of their present treaty in 1898 they will be able to meet the new conditions (see 52d Cong., 2d sess., Senate ex. doc. 17--Comanche, Kiowa, and Apache Agreement; 53d Cong., 2d sess., misc. doc. 102--Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache memorial).

Following are the names of the agents who have been in charge of the Kiowa, Apache, and Comanche since they were first brought upon the reservation in December, 1868. Of the earlier ones, Haworth (_Senpo-gúadal_, "Red-beard") is held in best remembrance:

1869--Laurie Tatum (Kiowa name, _Dän-pá-iñgya-t'á-i_, "Bald-head").

1873, April--J. N. Haworth (_Sénpo-gúadal_, "Red-beard").

1878, April--P. B. Hunt (_Tádalk`ia_, "Lean-man").

1885, September--J. Lee Hall (_K`ódal-gúadal_, "Red-neck").

1887, September--E. E. White, special agent (_T'áiñte_, "White").

1888, September--W. D. Myers (_Maiz_).

1889, October--Charles E. Adams (_Ädam_).

1891, December--George D. Day (_Ĭmasä´nmot_, "Grinning").

1893, June--Hugh G. Brown, captain Twelfth infantry.

1893, November--Maury Nichols, lieutenant Seventh infantry (_Dogúatal-taíde_, "Young Man Chief").

1894, October--W. H. Abell, special agent (_Pá-ehémgó`te_, "Lame-bull").

1894, November--Frank D. Baldwin, captain Fifth infantry.

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL EVENTS

The principal events in the history of the Kiowa may be summarized as follows:

1700 (about)--Migration from the mountains to the Yellowstone region.

1732--Mentioned in Spanish document of New Mexico.

1770 (about)--Massacre of the K'úato and expulsion from the Black Hills.

1790 (about)--Peace and alliance with the Comanche.

1805--First American mention; Kiowa then on North Platte.

1833--Massacre by the Osage and capture of the _taíme_.

1834--Dragoon expedition and first official intercourse with United States.

1837--First treaty, at Fort Gibson.

1839--Smallpox epidemic.

1849--Cholera epidemic.

1854--Defeat of plains tribes by the Sauk.

1864--General outbreak of plains tribes.

1866--Death of Dohásän.

1867--Medicine Lodge treaty; Kiowa agree to go on reservation.

1868--Battle of the Washita; Ute capture the _taíme_.

1869--Kiowa go upon present reservation.

1871--Setängya killed.

1872--First attempt to establish schools.

1874--Outbreak of Cheyenne, Comanche, and Kiowa.

1879--Practical disappearance of the buffalo.

1881--Dátekâñ's prophecy.

1886--First money for grass paid to Kiowa and Apache.

1887--Pá-iñgya's prophecy.

1890--Last sun dance; beginning of the ghost dance in the tribe.

1892--Measles epidemic; unratified agreement of land sale.

SOCIOLOGY OF THE KIOWA

ABSENCE OF THE CLAN SYSTEM

The clan system does not exist among the Kiowa, and there is no evidence that they have ever had it. This may be a surprise to those disciples of Morgan who have assumed that because the system is found among the eastern tribes and certain tribes of the southwest and extreme northwest it is therefore universal and a necessary factor in tribal development. It is by no means universal, and it is doubtful if it exists among the Athapascan tribes of British America, the tribes of the Columbia region, Oregon, or California, or any of the recognized Shoshonean stock with the exception of the Hopi. The Cheyenne and Sioux of the plains seem to know as little of it as do the Kiowa. Clark, in his "Indian Sign Language," says: "I cannot help feeling that Mr Morgan's careful study of the form of government of the Iroquois league colored his writings in regard to all other Indians. Certain it is that no trace now exists of such organization among many of the plains tribes." In another place he states that among the majority of the plains tribes, and perhaps the western Indians generally, judging from their laws of inheritance and marriage customs, the system never did exist (_Clark, 5_). Gatschet, in his great work on the Klamath language, declares that the Klamath Indians of Oregon are absolutely ignorant of the clan system, while Hale, in the "Iroquois Book of Rites," takes the ground that the system is simply an artificial invention, adopted for convenience and spreading from various local centers. In support of the idea that it is artificial rather than natural he points out the fact that it is not found among the Polynesian tribes, who are on about the same plane of development as our Indians (_Hale, 1_). In the United States the clan system seems to be found more particularly among the agricultural tribes.

LOCAL DIVISIONS

Before they were confined to the reservation the Kiowa were grouped into two general local divisions, known, respectively, as _T'ó-k`íñähyup_, "cold men" (i.e., men of the cold, or northern, country), and _Gwáhalégo_, from the Comanche name Kwáhadi or Kwáhari. These terms were practically equivalent to "northern" and "southern," the former ranging chiefly along Arkansas river and the Kansas frontier, while the latter, as the name indicates, associated more with the Kwáhadi Comanche of the region of the Staked plain. As they were merely temporary local designations and not proper band or gentile names, they have now ceased to be of any practical importance.

SUBTRIBES

The Kiowa have six recognized divisions or subtribes, including the Apache, who form a component part of the Kiowa tribal circle. The extinct K'úato formerly made a seventh, but their position in the circle is now forgotten. These divisions are not clans or gentes (social) based on marriage regulations, but subtribes (political), each division having had originally its own chief, subordinate to the recognized head chief of the tribe, with certain peculiarities of dialect and sometimes its special "medicine" or religious ceremonial. They may have been in the beginning distinct cognate tribes, with the exception of the Apache, which confederated at a later period for mutual assistance. The Comanche, although now allied with the Kiowa, have no

## part in their tribal organization or ceremonies.

THE CAMP CIRCLE