Calendar history of the Kiowa Indians. (1898 N 17 / 1895-1896 (pages 129-444))Mooney, James
History
Calendar history of the Kiowa Indians. (1898 N 17 / 1895-1896 (pages 129-444))
Mooney, James
Kiowa Indians; Kiowa language -- Glossaries, vocabularies, etc.
The great event of the summer was the arrest of the noted chiefs and
raiders, Set-t'aiñte, Set-äñgya and Ä´do-eétte, "Big-tree." The figure
on the Set-t'an calendar shows the soldier arresting Set-t'aiñte,
distinguished by the red war-paint which he always used.
Notwithstanding the promises of good conduct which had induced General
Sheridan to release Lone-wolf and Set-t'aiñte when the tribe had been
brought to the reservation in December, 1868, the Kiowa had never
ceased their raids into Texas, and had constantly behaved in the most
insolent manner toward the agent and military commander on the
reservation. On May 17, 1871, a party of about one hundred warriors, led
by Set-t'aiñte and Set-ängya, attacked a wagon train in Texas, killed 7
men and captured 41 mules. Shortly afterward Set-t'aiñte had the
boldness to avow the deed to the agent, Lawrie Tatum, who at once called
upon the commander at Fort Sill to arrest Set-t´aiñte and several other
chiefs who had accompanied him, viz: Set-ängya, Big-tree, Big-bow,
Eagle-Heart and Fast-bear. The officer promptly responded and arrested
the first three; Eagle-heart escaped and the other two were absent at
the time. On May 28, the three prisoners were sent under military guard
to Fort Richardson (Jacksboro), Texas, to be tried for their crimes,
when Set-ängya attacked the guard and was killed in the wagon (_Report,
89_; _Record, 11_; _Battey, 19_; _Tatum letter_). The fate of the other
prisoners is noted elsewhere.
According to the Kiowa account, which is correct in the main incidents,
the prisoners having been disarmed, Set-ängya was placed in a
wagon, accompanied by a single soldier, and Set-t'aiñte and Big-tree
were put into another wagon with other guards, and an escort of cavalry
and Tonkawa scouts rode on either side. Leaving Fort Sill, they
started toward the south on the road to Texas, when Set-ängya began a
loud harangue to the two prisoners in the other wagon, telling them
that he was a chief and a warrior, too old to be treated like a little
child. Then pointing to a tree where the road descends to cross a small
stream about a mile south of the post, he said: "I shall never go beyond
that tree." As he spoke in the Kiowa language, none but the prisoners
knew what he was saying. Then raising his voice, he sang his death
song, the song of the Kâitséñko, of whom he was chief:
I´ha hyo´ o´ya i´ya´ i´ya' o i´ha ya´ya yo´yo´
A´he´ya ahe´ya´ ya´he´yo´ ya e´ya he´yo e´he´yo
Kâ´itseñ´ko änä´obahe´ma haa´-ipai´-degi o´ba´-ikă´
Kâi´tse´ñko änä´obahe´ma hadâ´mga´gi o´ba´-ikă´
_I hahyo, etc._
_Aheya, etc._
O sun, you remain forever, but we Kâitse´ñko must die.
O earth, you remain forever, but we Kâitse´ñko must die.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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