4
THE CHEMAWA AMERICAN
Noted Indian Chief
(Continued from page 1.
has diminished until they number less
than 250 members. This state of af
fairs grieves the broken down old
Apache ex-chief and advisor more than
anything that ever came up in his life
in times of war or peace. It has all
ways been his ambition to have his
tribe, like his white brethren, to thrive
and increase incumber and influence.
Geronimo was the chief attraction at
the last . pow-wow given by the blan le
tted Indians at Collinsville. That time
he met the Shawnees, Osages and ' a few
Cherokees and Greeks. Geronimo- went
over with an armed escort, upon-- ;pcr
mission from. Secretary AViliiam aft,
of the war department, J; A. Decker
son, secretary of the Collinsville .Com
mercial club, came to Fort Sill and ac
companied the old chief, his daughter
and wife, to Collinsville. VVhen old
Geronimo reached the spot of the great
Indian meeting, and found there E. W
Logston, a Lawton photographer and
one of his close personal Jriends, having
made many photos for the old chief,
who would not p e r m i t a ny p n e to -.return
home with hi in, rather preferring to
come back wi t h Mr . Logston .
There was nothing out of the ordinary
in the 'dress of Geronimo to attract
attention to his person when he arrived
at thepow-wowbut Geronimo was not
to be outdone, land when he saw the
Osage and Shawnees mil togged out in
their many colored blankets and glaring
feather -headgears and ;paint of gaudy
tints, he retired to .his tepee and soon
emerged therefrom .; with all his war
paint and feathers. He was a grand
upstanding figure of a ., man. Yet he
. looked deminutiye beside the . big fat
forms of the Osage and : the masculine
Shawnees, until he looked around and
then the big husky Osages and the tall
shawnees seemed to wither away and
leave but the single figure of the old
warrior in the foreground.
He took occasion early in the conven
tion of Indians to show his contempt for
the blanket Indians. When he was in
troduced to the chief of the other tribes
he held a limp hand and did not say a
word. One of the other chiefs said it
was like shaking 'hands with ;a monu
ment.;,. .),
In his speech made at that- time he
said ;'The: ! hope oi my people js.? the
Christian .Religion. By that alone will
the remnant that remains be saved.
They need some . restraint. Too . long
have they been enemies of the white
m an . Too long h a ve t h ey fought th e
w h i te m en! The wh ite brother will do
alright by the Indians. It is the In
dians' fault. T believe in God myself
(Geronimo is a member of the Dutch
reformed church near Fort Sill and is an
active wor.ker in the church ) and every
Indian ought to believe in God and fol
low his teachings. The isooner the 'In
dians find that he will keep on dying
out unless he does something to save
himself, the sooner will the Indian
amount to something. Indian amount t
to nothing now. Great white father
pays no attention .Jtpv, Indian. t Indian
goes to great white father, .gets drunk.
Great white father disgusted and turn?
away. Indian ought to go to : great
white father likej .white man. . White
man goes to great white fathe;, and
great white father listens. White man
goes sober, Indian should do same." .... .