— tty —
СИ \КЫ>
LAWMAN
Indian Ball . . .
1848 Version
Qualla Town, North Carolina
May. IM4K
I he plan adopted (or the civiliza¬
tion of the Carolina Cherokee* differ*
materially from any orher» adopted m
the t 'micd Vale* Their amusement*
are nor interfered with. excepting when
fonnd
Ю
km an immoral .* unhappy
tendency A goodly number of their
more ridkolout game*, however. they
have abandoned of their own accord,
but the manly game of Mi-playing it
Mill practiced after the ancient manner
with one or two rcctrictiont. In the
Tint place, they are n<
n be
way
Ы
a
kerchief, and they arc prohibited
choking each other, and breaking tl
head* and lege, when excited, at
their habit in former time». SlUcc
arrival here the Indian» have had
of their ball garnet, and at it wat i
ten up ctpccially for my
made it
а Г
ent at the
dcavor to detcribc.
The preparatory or training dance
took place on the night preceding the
game, and none participated in it who
not to play on the following day.
I here were tixty young men present,
besides the tpectaton. and they met on
a grauy plot formed by a bend of a
netghbomg dream called Socu Creek
The daocerc were unpped of every
of clothing but their ward-
they made their own music,
which »n compoved merely of a rapid
succession of whoop* and sbouli. and
they danced round a large blanng fire.
Ihc night in quedmn wat very beauti¬
ful. and when thn urange group
«а»
looked upon by the hgftt of the ful
"»*.
and the wild mountain cccnery
on every vide, they presented a mod
kept up ihc dance lor over an hour,
and. when
И
wav concluded, all the
men immediately ran toward* a deep
pool
м
the ice-cold dream, and with¬
out waiting for the perspiration to
coni plunged 1M0 the wjkt. and. hav¬
ing finally emerged, darted for their
several homes. Thn dance. I am in-
Non: TfWi 1 1 another In the series
of "‘Learn from the AHethany kfoioi-
tarns ~ More t strata from this oU
travel
Ьо,Л
mil appear In later nates
of I III Stall
ad ns origin M an ancient
custom, which compelled all the can¬
didate* for a gallic of hall to inure
themselves to every hardship for ten
days before the game IihA place, und
during all that lime they were to cat
hut little food, and were to refrain
from graufymg any of the
On the morning of the game a large
Plant, lying between «wo hills and di¬
rectly in front of the Indian Court¬
house. (a large circular lodge, built of
logs.) wav directed of every «tone and
dick on ib surface, and at ten o'clock
the spectators began to assemble.
These were composed of the old men
of the aauon. a large number of boys,
and
а аЛ
larger nmnhrr of women
and children They were al dressed in
their holiday attire, to that feather*,
shawl turbans, scarlet bells, and gaudy
bunting shirts were quite abundant;
and. scattered as they were In group*
of from five to fifty on tlic hill side*
the shadow of the
I hiring all this time the play¬
er* had kepi out of sight and it mas
understood that the two parties were
among the bush», at the two ends
Ы
the plain, preparing ihcimchet for the
game. Under the direction of the pre¬
siding chief or game-director, two
pole* were now erected about *lv hun¬
dred yards apart, on cither tide of a
which first succeeded in
throw uig it outside of the pole belong¬
ing to their oppooentv to the number
of twelve tun» were to be considered
the winners.
Every thing being ready, a thrill
whoop wai given from one end of the
slowly to the centre
yelling as they passed along Each
pony consisted of thirty splendidly
( Continued on pare 36)
An early traveler describe* sflrk-
bnll a* be saw If on Ibe reservation
n renter* ago.
THC STATE. jAWuwav I. t*SS
