38 THE SUNDAY OREGONIAN, PORTLAND, MAY 3, 1903.
T3CTR1AL CUSTOMS OF NORTHWESTERN iNPlANS H "SSSFSSgro
k.REVTOUS to the advent of civilization
among tho Indians, and particular
reference is had to the tribes -whose
habitat -was the north-western portion of
this country, the Indian lived a life pecu
liarly his own, a life differing essentially
from -what it Is today. It is the preva
lent opinion that the Indian does not
change, that he tenaciously clings to an
cient traditions and superstitions. This
view Is not altogether true. It Is a fact
that he modifies his life so slowly that the
change is scarcely perceptible, neverthe
less he does reshape It In conformity with
lessons learned from environment, so
much so that many interesting usages of
the past are being rapidly lost.
Among the interesting features of the
Indian's past are Ills burial customs. The
various tribes of the Northwest largely
buried their dead in the earth, the cere
monies not differing materially from
those witnessed in the present day. The
tribes of the Pacific Coast practiced canoe
burial almost exclusively, while the In
dians inhabiting the region near the line
between this country and Canada disposed
of their dead by tree, scaffold and rock
burial. Further to the south that ex
tremely rare and mysterious rite known
as water or spring burial was practiced.
In the past earth burial differed to
Bome extent from what is seen today, but
not sufficiently so as to be worthy of men
tion here. The place of 'Interment was
usually In the mountains, a cleft In the
rock being selected as a sepulcher. This
natural opening was selected for a va
riety of reasons, the most salient of which
are as follows: They were frequently
on the warpath when death occurred, the
pursued or pursuers, in either case time
was precious and that necessary to dig a
grave, with the ride Instruments at their
command, could ill be spared, and to
dig In frozen or even very compact earth
was equally impossible. The crevice was
easily and quickly filled with stones,
which preserved the remains from muti
lation by wild animals. A hill was chosen
that they might guard against surprise
by enemies. The obsequies were hurried
In fear that the women, who largely com
posed the ancient funeral party, might
be surprised and carried off by lurking
enemies.
Preparing: for Burial.
The preparation of the body In this, as.
in almost every other form of burial, ex
cept that of water, was practically the
same and one description will suffice for
all. The corpse was thoroughly washed,
usually by some old squaw, and dressed
in all the finery dear to the Indian heart.
The face was elaborately painted In tho
traditional tribal mourning colors, which,
by the way, varied greatly with each
tribe; however, as a rule, black predom
inated. At least one tribe of the North
west habitually used olive green and or
ange as an Indication of grief and for
painting the faces of their distinguished
dead. The body was then wrapped in
fine white buckskin or Navajo blankets,
and within this envelope were placed the
most prized among the personal trinkets,
ornaments; weapons, etc, and In some In
stances a little food. The body was now
conveyed to the grave, where the squaws
indulged in wailing, the singing of the
pongs for the dead, scarrlfylng their
arms, legs and breasts as evidences of
their grief. The cleft in the rocks doing
duty for a grave, was not Infrequently
nearly filled with presents from the
friends and relatives of the deceased,
many articles of considerable value and
much artistic merit being cast promis
cuously into the grave. At the termina
tion of the ceremonies two, and some
times more, of the favorite ponies of the
dead Indian were killed upon his grave.
Burial in trees, on scaffolds, in canoes,
beneath piles of stones and In springs
were all methods practiced In the dis
posal of the dead, and examples of the
WHAT do you make of her, Allar
dyce?" I asked.
My second mate was standing
beside me upon the poop, with his short,
thick legs astrctch, for the gale had left
a considerable swell behind It and our two
quarter boats nearly touched the water
with every roll. Ho steadied his glass
against the mizzen-shrouds and looked
long and hard at this disconsolate stran
ger everj' time she came reeling up onto
the creBt of a roller and hung balanced
for a few seconds before swooping down
on the other side. She lay so low In the
water that I could only catch an occasion
al glimpse of a pea-green line of bulwark.
She was a brig, but her mainmast had
been snapped short off some ten feet
above the deck, and no effort seemed to
have been made to cut away the wreck
age, which floated, sails and yards, like
the broken wing of a wounded gull, upon
the water beside her. The foremast was
still standing, but the foretopsail was fly
ing loose and the head sails were stream
ing out in long white pennons In front of
her. Never had I seen a vessel -which
appeared to have gone through rougher
handling.
But we could not be surprised at that,
for there had been times during the last
three days when It was a question
whether our own bark would ever see
land again. For 56 hours wo had kept
her nose to it, and if the Mary Sinclair
had not been as good a sea boat as ever
left the Clyde, we could not have come
through.
Allardyce who was a slow and methodi
cal Scotchman, stared long and hard at
the little craft, while our seamen lined
the bulwark or clustered upon the fore
shrouds to have a view of the stranger.
In latitude 29 degrees and longitude 10 de
grees, which are about our bearings, ono
becomes a little curious as to whom one
meets, for one has left the main lines of
Atlantic commerce to the north.
"She's a derelict, I'm thinking," said
the second mate.
I had come to the same conclusion. Th
crew probably had deserted her under the
Impression that she was about to founder.
"She can't last long." continued Allar
dyce. in his measured way. "The water's
lapping up to the edge of her rail."
"What's her flag?" I asked.
"I'm trying to make out. It's got all
twisted and tangled with the halliards.
Yes, I've got It now. clear enough. It's
the Brazilian flag, and it's wrong side up."
She had hoisted a signal of distress,
then, before ner people abandoned her.
Perhaps they bad only Just gone. I took
the mate's glass and looked around over
the tumultuous face of the deep blue At
lantic But, nowhere could I see any
thing human beyond ourselves.
"There may be living men aboard,"
said L
"There may be salvage," muttered the
second mate
"Then we will run down on her lee side
and He to."
We were not more than a hundred yards
"from her when we swung our foreyard
aback, and there we were, the bark and
the brig, ducking and bowing like two
clowns in a dance.
"Drop one of the quarter boats," said L
"Take four men, Mr. Allardyce, and see
what you can learn of her."
Just at that moment my first officer,
Mr. Armstrong, came on deck, for seven
"bells had struck, and it was but a few
minutes off his watch. It would Interest
mo to go myself to this abandoned vessel
and to see what there might be aboard
of her. So, with a word to Armstrong
I swung myself over the side, slipped
down the falls and took my place in the
sheets of the boat.
I steered to com around by her stern,
CANOE BURIAL AS PRACTICED BY THE COAST IXDIAXS.
first four may be seen even In these days
in some secluded localities of the North
west. For Interment In either of the first
four mentioned methods the preparation
of the body differed but little from that
described under earth burial. In tree bur
ial the wrapping was made very secure
by means of many circles of buckskin
thongs.
In aerial or tree burial the body, after
being prepared, was placed as high as
possible In the tallest tree that could
conveniently be found. The corpse was
generally placed In a horizontal position
in the crotch of a limb and securely
lashed there. A few were placed in a
standing position, those burled In this
way -usually being children. Where there
was not a suitable disposition of the
branches a platform of strong poles was
often constructed, the remains being
placed upon this and firmly fastened to
It and the body of the tree. So firm were
these fastenings that It was" the rarest
accident for a body to fall. A tree with
thick and Interlacing branches was al
ways selected. To such an extent was
this true that it was a matter of con
siderable difficulty to locate a grave of
this kind. Among the Sious the cotton
wood Is said to have been preferred for
mortuary purposes, and many of these
people esteemed this tree as "wa-kan,"
or holy, and seldom used the wood for do
mestic purposes.
Scaffold burial was about as generally
THE STRIPED CHEST
so that we might determine which was the
best way of boarding her. As we passed
her we saw the name Nossa Senhora da
Vlttorla painted across her dripping coun
ter. "The weather side, sir," said tho second
mate. "Stand by with the boathook, car
penter!" An instant later we had Jumped
over the bulwarks, which were hardly
higher than our boat, and found ourselves
upon the deck of the abandoned vessel.
Our first thought was to provide for our
j own safety In case as seemed probable
j the vessel should settle down beneath our
! feet. With this object two of our men
I neid on to the painter of the boat, and j
! fended her oft from tho vessel's side so
that she might be ready in case we had
to make a hurried retreat. The carpenter
was sent to find out how much water
I there was and whether It was 6tlll galn-
lng, while tho other seamen and Allar
dyce and myself made a rapid inspec
tion of the vessel and her cargo,
i The deck was littered with wreckage
' and with hencoops. In which the dead
j birds were washing about. The boats were
gone, with tho exception of one, the bot
tom of which had been stovo. and it was
certain that the crew had abandoned the
i vessel. The cabin was in a deckhouse, one
, side of which had been beaten in by a
heavy sea. Allardyce and I entered It and
found the captain's table as he had left
It. His books and papers all Spanish or
Portuguese scattered over It, with piles
j of cigarette ash everywhere. I looked
j about for the log. but could not find Iti
"As likely as not he never kept one."
1 said Allardyce. "Things are pretty slack
j aboard a South American trader."
j "I should like to take all these books
; and papers." said I. "Ask tho carpenter
how much time we have."
j His report was reassuring. The vessel
. was full of water, but some of the cargo
j was buoyant, and there was no lmmedl
i ate danger of her sinking. Probably she
would never sink, but would drift about
aa one of those terrible, unmarked reefs
which have sent so many stout vessels
to the bottom.
"In that case there Is no danger In your
going below, Mr. Allardyce," said L "See
what you can make of her, and find out
how much of her cargo may be saved.
I'll look through these papers while you
are gone"
The bills of lading and some notes and
letters which lay upon the desk, sufficed
to Inform me that the Brazilian brie Nos-
. sa Senhora da Vlttorla had cleared from
iBahla a month before. The name of tho
captain was Texeira. She was bound for
j London, and a glance at the bills of lad
ing was sufficient to show mo that we
were not likely to profit much In the way
of salvage. Her cargo consisted of nuts,
ginger and logs of valuable tropical
growths. As I turned over the papers I
came upon a short, note In English which
arrested my attention.'
"It Is requested," said the note, "that
the various old Spanish and Indian curi
osities, which came out of the Santarem
collection, and which are consigned to
Prontfoot and Neuman of Oxford street,
London, should be put in some place
where there may be no danger of these
very valuable and unique articles being
Injured or tampered with. This applies
most particularly to the treasure chest of
Don Ramirez dl Leyra, which must on no
account be placed where any one can get
at it."
The treasure chest of Don Ramirez!
! Unique and -valuable articles. Here was a
chance of salvage, after all! I had risen
, to my feet with the paper In my hand,
when my Scotch mate appeared in the
doorway.
, "I'm thinking all Isn't quite as it should
be aboard this ship, sir." said he. He was
a hard-faced man, and yet I could se
that he had been startled.
"What's the matter?" - .
used as that In trees, of which It Is only
a modification, depending, no doubt, upon
the scarcity of trees of a suitable size
In the territory where practiced. The
prime reason for both forms of aerial
interment was the preservation of tho
remains from mutilation by animals. But
the belief held by many Indians relative
to the souls of the dead was to a large
extent responsible for this moihod In dis
posing of their dead.- In brief, they be
lieved that every one possessed four
souls. These left the body after death,
tho first to enter the body of a bird, the
second to remain about the home of the
deceased, the third to remain In the vicin
ity of the grave, while the fourth wended
Its way to the Spirit land, there to remain
until after the lapse of one year, when
all four would be reunited In tho veri
table person Inhabited during life. Bur
ial in the manner mentioned contributed
to the convenience with which the first
and third of the souls might perform
their functions. Upon this weird belief
was dependent the ceremony entitled "let
ting the ghost go," which was formerly
always held Just one year after death.
It Is now almost obsolete.
In Canoes.
Canoe burial was entirely confined to
the tribes Inhabiting the Pacific Coast line,
particularly its northern half. This meth
od of Interment differs materially from
popular Impression, which Is that the
"Murder's the matter, sir. There's a i
man here with his brains beaten out."
"Killed In the storm?" said I.
"Maybe so, sir. But I'll be surprised if
you think so after you have seen him."
"Where Is he. then?"
"This way, sir; here in tho main deck
house." There appeared to have been no accom
modation below In the brig, for there was
the af terhouse for the captain, another by
tho main hatchway with the cook's galley
attached to it, and a third in the forecas
tle for men. It was to this middle one
that the mate led me. As you entered,
the galley, with Its litter of tumbled pots
and dishes, was upon the right, and upon
the left was a small room with two bunks
for the officers. Then beyond there was a
place about 12 feet square, which was lit
tered with flags and spare canvas. All
round the walls -were a number of pack
ets done up In coarse cloth and carefully
lashed to the woodwork. At the other
end was a great box, striped "red and
white, though the red was so faded and
tho whlto so dirty that It was only where
the light fell directly upon It that one
j could see the coloring. The box was, by
I subsequent measurement, 4 feet 3 Inches
j In length, 3 feet 2 Inches In height and 3
1 feet across considerably larger than a
seaman's chest.
i But It was not to the box that my eyes
or my thoughts were turned as I entered
tho storeroom. On the floor, lying across
the litter of bunting, there was stretched
a small, dark man, with a short curled
beard. He lay as far as It was possible
from the box, with his feet toward It and
his head away. A crimson patch was
printed upon the white canvas on which
his head was resting, and little red rib
bons wreathed themselves round his
swarthy neck and trailed away on to the
floor, but there was no sign of a wound
that I could see, and his face was as
placid as that of a sleeping child.
It was only when I stooped that I could
perceive his Injury, and then I turned
away with an exclamation of horror. He
has been pole-axed, apparently by some
person standing behind him. A frightful
blow had smashed in the top of his head
and penetrated deeply into his brain. His
face might well be placid, for death, must
have been absolutely instantaneous, and
tho position of the wound showed that ho
could never have seen the person who had
inflicted it,
"You are quite right, Mr. Allardyce,"
said I. "The man has been murdered
struck down from above by a sharp and
heavy weapon. But who was he and why
did they murder him?"
"He was a common seaman, sir," said
the mate. "You can see that if you look
at his fingers."
Ho turned out his pockets as ho spoke
and brought to light a pack of cards,
some tarred string and a bundle of Bra
zilian tobacco.
"Hullo, look at this!" said he.
It was a large, open knife, with a stiff
spring blade, which he had picked up
from the floor. The steel was shining and
bright, so that we could not associate it
with the crime, and yet the dead man ap
parently had held it In his hand when he
was struck -down, for it still lay within
his grasp.
"It looks to me. sir, as if he knew he
was in danger, and kept his knife handy,"
said the mate. "However, we can't help
the poor beggar now. I can't make out
these things that are lashed to tho "wall.
They seem to be Idols and weapons and
curios of all sorts done up In old sacking.
"That's right," said I. "They are the
only things of value that we are likely to
get from tho cargo. Hall the bark and
tell them to send the other quarter boat
to help us get the stuff aboard."
While ho was away I examined this cu
rious plunder which had come into our
possession. The curiosities were so
wrapped up that I could only form a gen
eral Idea as to their nature but the
SIOUX SQUAWS SCARRIFYIXG THEIR KI.BSH AND CUTTING THE
HAIR AT A SCAFFOLD BURIAL.
dead are placed In canoes and set adrift.
Such procedure is rare and then only In
the case of quite young infants, girls es
pecially. "When a little one died the sor
rowing mother took the little form to
some secluded spot, deep In the recesses
of a pine forest. Here she tenderly placed
the little form in a canoe-shaped cradle
and committed her dearest treasure to the
spirit of the water, by casting It adrift
upon the bosom of some still pooL These
pappoose burial-cradles were so well
woven of rushes as to be practically water
tight, making a miniature canoe that
floated with Its light burden whenever
thrown upon- the water.
In the burial of adults tho customary
course was to select a large canoe or
boat, preferably one that the dead had
used and valued during life. At the death
of any one especially prominent a funeral
canoe was not Infrequently constructed
and was a very ornate affair, the cover
and sides decorated and painted with de
signs representing the principal events In
the life of the deceased. The body was
always washed thoroughly clean, an un
dertaking, of some magnitude. If the In
dian of the past paid as little attention
to personal cleanliness as his fellow of
the present. It was then swathed In
many folds of new rush mats or buckskin
and within it a few of the little orna
ments prized during life. It was then
placed In the canoe and covered with ad
striped box stood in a good light, where
I could thoroughly examine 1L On the
lid, which was clamped and cornered with
metal work, there was engraved a com
plex coat of arms, and beneath It was a
line of Spanish, which I was able to de
cipher as meaning:
"The treasure chest of Don Ramirez dl
Leyra. knight of tho Order of St, James.
Governor and Captain-General of Terra
Flrma and of the Province of Veraquas."
In one corner was the date 160$, and on
the front a large white label, upon which
was written In English. "You are earnest
ly requested upon no account to open this
box." The same warning was repeated
underneath In Spanish. As to the lock. It
was a complex and heavy one of engraved
steel, with a Latin motto which was above
a seaman's comprehension.
By the time I had finished this exami
nation of the peculiar box, the other
quarterboat with Mr. Armstrong, the first
officer, had come alongside, and we began
to carry out and place In her the various
curlosties, which appeared to be the only
objects worth moving from the derelict.
When she was full I sent her back to the
bark, and then Allardyce and I, with the
carpenter and one seaman, shifted the
striped box, which was the only thing left,
to our boat and lowered It over, balanc
ing It upon tho two middle thwarts, for
it was eo heavy that It would have given
the boat a dangerous tilt had we placed
It at either end. As to the dead man, we
left him where wo had found him.
The mate had a theory that at the mo
ment of the desertion of the ship this fel
low had started plundering, and that the
captain In an attempt to preserve .disci
pline, had struck him down with a hatchet
or somo other heavy weapon. It seemed
more probable than any other explana
tion, and yet It did not entirely satisfy me.
The heavy box was slung up by ropes
onto the deck of the Mary Sinclair and
was carried by four seamen Into tho
cabin, where between the tablo and the
after lockers, there was Just spaco for It
to stand. There It remained during sup
per, and after the meal the mates re
mained with me and discussed over a glass
of grog the event of the day. Mr. Arm
strong was a long, thin, vulture-like man,
an excellent seaman, but famous for his
nearness and cupidity. Our treasure trove
had excited him greatly and already ha
had begun with glistening eyes to reck
on up how much It might .bo worth to
each of us when the salvage came to bo
divided.
"If tho paper said they were unique,
Mr. Barclay, then they may be worth
anything that you like to name. You
wouldn't believe the sums that the rich
collectors give."
"I don't think that." said L "As far as
I can see they are not very different from
any other South American curios."
"Well, sir, I've traded there for 14 voy
ages, and I have never seen anything like
that chest before. That's worth a pile
of money, just as it stands. But It's so
heavy that surely there must be some
thing valuable Inside It. Don't you think
that we'ought to open It and ee?"
'If you break it open ypu will spoil it,
likely as not," said the second mate
Armstrong squatted down in front of it,
with ills head on one side rn his long,
thin nose within a few Inches of the lock.
"If I had a chisel," said he, "or a
strong-bladed knife I could force the lock
back without doing any damage at all."
The mention of a strong-bladed knife
made me think of the dead seaman upon
the brig.
"I wonder if he could have been on the
Job when some one came to interfere with
him?" said L
"I don't know about that, sir; but I am
perfectly certain that I could open the
box. There's a screwdriver here In the
locker. Just hold tho lamp, Allardyce,
and I'll have it done in a brace of shakes."
: "Wait & bit," said It for already, -with
ditional mats. In the canoe were placed
many articles, such as clothing, weapons,
etc., the whole being covered with a
heavy waterproof mat or dressed hide,
firmly lashed to the sides of the canoe.
When all was thU3 completed the canoe
was taken Into the forest, to the bank
of some stream. Here four stout posts
were set In the ground, with cross-pieces
lashed to them at a distance of four or
five feet from the ground. The canoe,
with its burden was then raised and placed
upon these supports. All the personal ef
fects of the deceased were collected,
broken or mutilated, and hung on the
posts and cross-pieces. They included
clothing, cooking utensils, weapons, fish
ing tackle, etc. After burial but little at
tention was paid to the remains. At the
end of a year the body was taken from
the canoe and burled In the earth di
rectly under It, but the canoe was allowed
to remain. In some Instances a smaller
canoe was substituted for the covering of
mats, being Inverted over the body. A
large opening wa3 cut in the bottom of
the funeral canoe for the double purpose
of letting out any water due to a defec
tive covering and that It might not ex
clto the cupidity of passing strangers.
The period of mourning was very brief.
, Interments In Rock.
Other and less frequently practiced
forms of Interment were what may be
termed rock and spring burial, me form
BY A. CONAN DOYLE
eyes which gleamed with curiosity and
with avarice he was stooping over the lid.
"I don't see that there Is any hurry over
this matter.. You've read that card which
warns us not to open it. It may mean
anything or it may mean nothing, but
somehow I feel inclined to obey It. After
all. whatever Is in it will keep."
The first .officer seemed bitterly disap
pointed at my decision. "Surely, sir. you
are not superstitious about It?' said he
with a slight sneer upon his thin lips. "If
It gets out of our own hands, and we don't
see for ourselves what Is lnsldo it, we'
may be done out of our rights; besides"
"That's enough, Mr. Armstrong," said I
abruptly. "You may have every confidence
that you will get your rights, but I will
not have that box opened tonight,"
Armstrong threw the screwdriver down
upon the table and shrugged his shoulders.
"Just as you like," said hey but for tho
rest of the evening, although we spoke
upon many subjects, I noticed that his
eyes were continually coming round, with
the same expression of curiosity and
greed, to the old striped box.
The main cabin had the rooms of the
officers around it, but mine was the far
thest away from It, at the end of the
little passage which led to the compan
ion. No regular watch was kept by me,
except In cases of emergency, and the
three mates divided the watches among
them. Armstrong had the middle watch,
which ends at 4 o'clock In the morning,
and he was relieved by Allardyce. For
my part, I have always been ono of the
soundest of sleepers and it is rare for
anything less than a hand upon my
shoulder to arouse me.
And yet I was aroused that night, or
rather In the early gray of the morning.
It was Just 4:30 by my chronometer when
something caused me to sit up In my
berth, wide awake and with every nerve
tingling. It was a sound of somo sort,
a crash with a human cry at the end of
it, which still jarred upon my ears. I sat
listening, but all was now silent. And
yet It couldnot havo been Imagination,
that hideous cry, for tho echo of It still
rang In my head, and It seemed to have
come from some place quite close to me
I sprang from my bunk and pulling on
some clothes, I made my way into the
cabin.
At first I saw nothing unusual there.
In the cold, gray light I made out tho
redclothed table, the six rotating chairs,
the walnut lockers, the swinging barom
eter, and there, at the end, the big striped
chest- I was turning away with the In
tention of going upon deck and asking the
second mate if he had heard anything
when my eyes fell upon something which
projected from under the table It was
tho leg of a man a leg with a long sea
boat upon it, I stooped, and there was a
figure sprawling upon its face, his arms
thrown forward and his body twisted.
One glance told me that it was Armstrong,
the first officer, and a second that he
was a dead man. For a few moments I
stood gasping. Then I rushed on to the
deck, called Allardyce to my assistance,
and came back with him into the cabin.
Together we pulled the unfortunate fel
low from under the table and, as we
looked at his dripping head we exchanged
glances, and I do not know which was
the paler of the two.
"The same as tho Spanish, sailor,"
said L
"Tho very same God preserve us! It's
that Infernal chest. Look at Armstrong's
Irand!"
He held up the mate's right hand, and
there was the screwdriver which he had
wished to use the night before
"He's been at the chest, sir. He knew
that I was on deck and you asleep. He
knelt down In. front of it and pushed the
lock back with that tool. Then something
happened to him and ho cried out so that
you heard him."
"Allardyce," I whispered, what could
have happened to him?"-
CAXOE BURIAL
er was mainly used by the Indians in
habiting the extreme northern border of
the United States and was largely de
pendent upon their Inability to dig graves
in the frozen earth or to get into the
mountains, on account of excessive snow,
during a large part of the year. In a
burial of this kind the corpse was
stripped, washed and dressed In a suit of
black- buckskin. A part of the costume
was the. now seldom seen, funeral mocca
sins. In these the design, in the colored
quills of the porcupine, covered every part
of the moccasin. Including the sole. This
was In conformity with their belief, that
after death an Indian never need walk,
being provided with never-tiring ponies.
After being prepared the corpse was taken
to some convenient hill, one being se
lected that had numerous loose stones or
boulders. A space was cleared of these
and the corpse laid In the center, usually
on a mat or buffalo hide. It was covered
with mats and skins, the top one being
held in close contact with the earth by
means of a circle of large stones layed
around Its edges. Beginning Just within
this circle the body was completely cov
ered with a large and symmetrical heap
of stones.
In "Water.
Interment by sinking the body In water
was an extremely rare form of burial
practiced by n, few Indians that formerly
ranged over what Is now parts of Utah
and Idaho. The body was thoroughly
The second mate put his hand upon my
sleeve and drew me into his cabin.
"We can talk here, sir, and we don't
know who may be listening to us In there
What do you suppose Is in that box, Cap
tain Barclay?"
"I give' you my word, Allardyce that I
havo no Idea."
"Well, I can only find one theory which
will fit all the facts. Look at the size of
the box. Look at the carving and metal
work, which may conceal any number of
holes. Look at the weight of It; It took
four men to carry it. On the top of that,
remember that two men have tried to
open it, and both have come to their end
through it. Now, sir, what can I mean
except, one thing?"
"You mean there Is a man in It?"
"Of course there la a man in it. You
know how It is In these South American
states, sir? A man may. be President one
week and hunted like a dog the next, for
they are forever flying for their lives. My
Idea is that there Is some fellow In hiding
there, who Is armed and desperate, and
who will fight to the death before he Is
taken."
"But his food and drink?"
"It's a roomy chest, sir, and he may
have some provision stowed away. As to
his drink, he had a friend among the crew
upon the brig who saw that ho had what
he needed. Have you any other way of
explaining the facts?"
I had to confess that I had nor.
"The question Is, what are we to do?"
I asked.
. "The man's a dangerous ruffian, who
sticks at nothing. I'm thinking It
wouldn't be a bad thing to put a rope
around the chest and tow it alongside
for half an hour. Then we could open It
at our ease Or If we just tied the box
up and kept him from getting any water,
maybe that would do as well. Or the car
penter could put a coat of varnish over it
and stop all the blowholes."
"Come, Allardyce," said I, angrily, "you
don't seriously mean to say that a whole
ship's company are going to ba terrorized
by a single man In a box. If he's there
I'll engage to fetch him out" I "went to
my room and came back with my revolver
In my hand. "Now, Allardyce," said L
"do you open the lock and I'll stand on
guard."
"For God's sake, think what you are
doing!" cried the mate "Two men have
lost their lives over it, and the blood of
one not yet dry upon the carpet!"
"The more reason why we should re
venge him."
"Well, sir, at least let me call the car
penter. Three are better than two, and
he Is a good, stout man."
He went off in search of him, and I was
left alone with the striped chest In the
cabin. I don't think that I'm a nervous
man, but I kept the table between me
and this solid old relic of the Spanish
Main. Presently the carpenter and the
mate came back together, the former with
a hammer In his hand.
"It's a bad business, this, sir," said he,
shaking his head as he looked at the body
of the mate. "And you think there's
some one hiding in tie box?"
"There's no doubt about it," said Allar
dyce, picking up the screwdriver and set
ting his jaw like a man who needs to
brace bis courage "I'll drive the lock
back If you'll both stand by. If he rises
let him have it on the head with your
hammer, carpenter! Shoot at once, sir, If
he raises his hand. Now!"
He had knelt down In front of the
striped chest, and passed1 the blade of the
tool under tho lid. With, a sharp snick
the lock, flew back.
"Stand by!" yelled the mate, and with a
heave he threw open the massive top of
the box. As it swung up; we all three
sprang back; I with my pistol leveled, and
. the carpenter -with the hammer above his
head. Thent as nothing- happened, we
OF AX IXFAXT.
washed and placed In a sitting position, in
fact this posture was sometimes as
sumed previous to dissolution. The arms
were folded over the breast, the head
bowed and the legs flexed upon the ab
domen. It was then securely bound in
this position with strips of willow bark,
taken to a spring and sunk therein by
means of heavy stones. Springs were
preferred, or in their absence, at least
running water, as far as can be learned
lakes were never used for burial pur
poses. One of the last burials of this
character was that of a Bannock Indian,
who died some 15 years ago and was
burled in a spring a few miles west of
the City of Pocatello, Idaho. This spring
is well known to many of the Indians
residing on the Fort Hall Reservation,
and is regarded by them with supersti
tious awe.
The Indian suffers from as keen and real
a grief at the loss of his loved ones as
any race of people. His stoicism under
this and kindred afflictions contributes to
the popular fallacy that he does not feel
the same degree of affection for his kith
and kin as is true of other races. In
olden times they had many methods, In
teresting and unique, for expressing sor
row, but they are so numerous and di
versified that even the briefest mention
would far exceed the limits of this arti
cle. T. M. BRIDGES.
Fort Hall, Idaho.
each took a step forward and peeped In,
The box was empty.
Not quite empty, either, for in one cor
ner was lying an old yellow candlestick,
elaborately engraved, which appeared to
be as old as the box Itself. Its rich, yel
low tone and artistic shape suggested that
It was an object of value.
"Well, I'm blessed!' 'cried Allardyce,
staring blankly Into It. "Where does tho
weight come In, then?"
"Look at the thickness of the sides and
look at the lid. Why, it's Ave Inches
through. And see that great metal spring
across It."
"That's for holding the Hd up," said
the mate. "You see. It won't lean back.
What's that German printing on the in
side?" "It means that it was made by Johann
Rothstein, of Augsburg, In 1606."
"And a solid bit of work, too. But it
doesn't throw much light on what has
passed, does it. Captain Barclay? That
candlestick looks like gold. We shall
have something for our trouble after all."
He leaned forward to grasp It, and from
that moment Iihave never doubted as to
tho reality of Inspiration, for on the in
stant I caught him by the collar and
pulled him straight again. It may havo
been some story of the Middle Ages which
had come back to my mind, or It may havo
been that my eye caught some red which
was not that of rust on the upper part of
the lock, but to him and to me it will
always seem an inspiration, so prompt
and sudden was my action.
"There's deviltry here," said I. "Glva
me the crooked stick from the corner."
It was an ordinary walking cane with
a hooked top. I passed it over the can
dlestick and gave it a pull. With a flash
a row of polished steel fangs shot out
from below the upper lid, and the great
striped chest snapped at us like a wild
animal. Clang came the huge lid Into its
place, and the glasses on the swinging
rack sang and tinkled with the shock. Tho
mate sat down on the edge of the tablo
and shivered like a frightened horse.
"You've saved my life, Captain Bar-
clay!" said he.
So this was the secret of the striped
treasure chest of old Don Ramirez di
Leyra, and this was how he preserved hl3
ill-gotten gains from Terra Flrma and
tho Province of Verasquez. Be the thief
ever so cunning he could not tell that
golden candlestick from the other arti
cles of value, and the Instant that ho
laid hand upon It the terrible spring was
loosed and the murderous steel spikes
were driven into his brain, while the shock
of the blow sent the victim backwards
and enabled the chest automatically to
close Itself." How many, I wondered, had
fallen victims to the Ingenuity of the me
chanic of Augsburg. And a9 I thought
of the possible history of that grim striped
chest my resolution was very ulckly
taken.
"Carpenter, bring three men and carry
this on deck."
"Going to throw It overboard, sir?"
"Yes, Mr. Aldardyce. I'm not super
stitious as a rule, but there are somo
things which are more than a sailor can
be called upon to stand.
So we did not even wait for the three
sailors, but we carried out, the mate, tho
carpenter and I, and wo pushed it with
our own hands over the bulwarks. There
was a whlto spot of water,, end it waa
gone.
There It lies, the striped chest, a thou
sand fathoms deep, and if, as they say,
the sea will some day be dry land, I
grieve for the man who finds that old
box and tries to penetrate Into its secret,
Copyright 1S03.
Opportune Time She Georsre. I think you'd
better not speak to papa tonight. I'm afraid
he Isn't la a very good humor. He Why pot?
She My dressmaker snt him her bill today.
He But, ray dear, I'll make it clear to hlra
that I -wrant to provide for yes Is tho fatvrv"
Louisville Fort