moomet] a'piatan's pilgrimage 911 



to go on, and on doing so he came to an immense circle of Kiowa danc- 

 ing the < iliost dance around a cedar tree, indicated by the black circle 

 with a green figure resembling a tree in the center. He stood for a 

 while near the tree, shown by another blue mark, when he saw a woman. 

 whom lie knew, leave the dance. He hurried after her until she reached 

 her own ti[ti and went into it — shown by the blue mark beside tlie red 

 tipi with red flags on the ends of the tipi poles — when he turned around 

 and came back. Sbe belonged to the family of the great chief Set- 

 t'ainti, •• White Bear," as indicated by the red tipi with red flags, no 

 other warrior in the tribe having such a tipi. On inquiring for bis 

 own relatives he was directed to tlie other side of the camp, where he 

 met a man — represented by tbe heavy black mark — who told him his 

 own people were inside of the next tipi. On entering lie found the 

 whole family, consisting of his father, two brothers, two sisters, and 

 several children, feasting on fresh buffalo beef from a kettle hung 

 over the fire. They welcomed him and offered him some of tbe meat, 

 whieb for some reason lie was afraid to taste. To convince him that it 

 was good they held it up for him to smell, when he awoke and found 

 himself lying alone upon the mountain. 



A pintafi went on first to Pine Ridge, where he was well received by 

 tbe Sioux, who had much to say of tbe new messiah in tlie west. He 

 was urged to stop and join them in the Ghost dance, but refused and 

 hurried on to Fort Washakie, where he met the northern Arapaho and 

 the Shoshoni, whom he called the ••northern Coinanches." Here tbe new 

 prophecy was the one topic of conversation, and after stopping only 

 long enough to learn the proper route to the 1'aiute country, he went 

 on over the Union Pacific railroad to Nevada. On arriving at tlie 

 agency at Pyramid lake the Paiute furnished him a wagon and an 

 Indian guide across the country to the home of Wovoka in the upper 

 end of Mason valley. The next day he was admitted to his presence. 

 The result was a complete disappointment. A single interview con- 

 vinced him of tin- utter falsity of the pretensions of the messiah and the 

 deceptive character of the hopes held out to the believers. 



Saddened and disgusted. A'piatan made no stay, but started at once 

 on his return home. On his way back he stopped at Bannock agency 

 at Fort Hall, Idaho, and from there sent a letter to his people, stating 

 briefly that he bad seen the messiah and that the messiah was a fraud. 

 This was the first intimation the Kiowa had received from an Indian 

 source that their hopes were not well grounded. The authonras pres- 

 ent when the letter was received at Anadarko and read to the assem- 

 bled Indians by A'piatafi's sister, an educated woman named Laura 

 Dunmoi, formerly of Carlisle school. The result was a division of 

 opinion. Some of the Indians, feeling that the ground had been taken 

 from under them, at once gave up all hope and accepted the inevitable 

 of despair. Others were disposed to doubt the genuineness of the let- 

 ter, as it had come through the medium of a white mau, and decided 

 14 eth pt 2 18 



