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I p Che Cheat a Death D e eM M th i i to V ti 3 t i i F if t tr r t 0 T Q 11 1 rv K KS S l v r l I 7 I r A o oA A J fr ft i ii r 7 i r t- t i r t. t fri 9 fr i p y T AST o othe f the San Juans Fends t r Putting on t the c black ail silk k dress ahe she had ad made mid for her burial shroud the last of the San Salt j awaited Juans calmly the inevitable as she O End n 0 of Life i e in Dramatic Ii haltingly related the h history s t ory of her people r to chroniclers Picture above was Ras taken c Struggle Until Complete om ete Story of t 1 g shortly y before her death i Her er Extinct California a c Tribesmen rc esmen r r i T l i 11 J 1 1 1 t L Is Gwen Given the i Jr to Agents eats of s liven t a e o e x t. t 1 li f S Smithsonian ml onlan I Institution II L By Nell Ray a Clarke s r rA had pr prepared pared hers herself her- her 1 serf self for death She was the last of her tribe to know the customs and ways of her people three Eighty summers had rolled over over her snow snowy Y h head ad And no now v came death Did not she a doctors doctora doctora doc tora tors of her tribe know the signs and portents So tortured by pain she put on her black y silk dress especially made for her buri burial l and propped herself back against the pillows in the front 1 room Then she sent out a call for her friends She believed she had three days longer in which to live Her going would have dramatic significance e to mark the passing of a great race of I Indians di lt But b lo 10 the hand band of death was stayed A sudden sudden sudden sud sud- den new interest enabled this remarkable old woman to it prolong her own life in order that she might give to the world the true history of her people their customs u toms their language music folklore folklore folk folklore r lore and andr their heir religion The San Sali Juan Indians were a tribe whose st story ry the Smithsonian Institution had despaired of ever ev r getting They had been at the height of their power a hundred years ago but with the great trek to C California lif they had bad died out victims of the white man mans man's s diseases and desire for land It was known that very few full-bloods full remained and it was believed th that t none knew the story of th their r td tribe e Then hen J. J 1 P P. P Harri Harrington of the Smith Smith- I staff heard of A Ascensions cencion s preparations for death It was the theone theone theone one chance for which he had long been waiting But would he beable bable be b able abie to to stay death long enough to toge get ge her h story HE E FOUND POUND her at the home ot of her daughter Mondragon In Sn Monterey last September She had left Jelt Jelther lefther her home in the hills hUIs when she realized th that thit t her hour was approaching approach He told her why he had come to see her Theold The Th old womans woman's eyes lighted with pleasure and und understanding She would tell ten him everything she knew and she prayed that i death might wait Watt until she could t tell ll It alt all j She proved a wonderful find She Sho waS was a fine type physically and mentally r a woman who had her five Ave senses s senses as they way say In Spanish I 1 ha have vo never known a woman with a better memory Mr H Harrington said Bald Sickness seemed toh to h have ve made it even better clearer and more spiritual The circumstances produced produced pro pro- du ed the tho e rights t condition for bering She w was s atrue San Juan Her mother Barbara Barbaa Sierra had lived to to be 84 84 and her father fattier Miguel had died of grief greet the loss at lat of lily hia lifelong com com- paRlOn one week we k later at the age ot o 82 Ascencion had bad lived with them always had bd talked the language and had bad b d learned from them aU all there wasp was to to know of their tribal history tory Wh When n I 1 found her her- herShe she wast was t in the ithe middle stages stares of dying fr from m a mau malignant ant tumor which bad had reduced her herto herto t to the point where she could sit up tip only with with the greatest difficulty You You o are are the vehicle of God clod that that- r- r com comes stO to see me mee in to in inthe the eleventh hour bOur to io save eave my knowledge from being lost Jon she ahe a Kid Indeed 1 t will teach you up to the kit day day X 11 can cani nd and see lee if U Z I can ten tell you V all that tIk I kaow w s fJ I c. c y s. s m 11 c n tl r t. t ii 0 i. i h w M. M t Jr f f j jk r rs k T s f r 1 ft t t r rr T S Ss s Daughter and f S' S granddaughter of a. a or ors s 4 S 7 Ascencion in 4 4 front of the 5 house where the they y 5 aged Indian woman won died dieda a Ta r. r IS r f When she began to put her mind on the happenings and the information she ha had picked up from old Indians rus long dead it seem seemed d to act like a a. tonic for for her mind and body Mr Harrington con con- She gained a new interest in life and began to eat better and worked such h long ho hours s that we had to stop slop to tomake tomake make ake her rest she rest she never stopped first She never took opiates but she was dosing herself all aU the time with Indian medicines s. s Fo For many years she had been a doctora doc d doctora C- C tora for Indians and Mexicans They hey came cam to her from places within a radius of miles She would undertake any ariy case and when at her home near San Juan Calif kept patients at her house treating them with Internal and external Indian herb remedies remedies' a and d prayer She had a whole back yard full of sick Indians These courses of treatment wo would d go on for fore months It was In this business that she learned the Ingratitude of the human race Some wh whom m she would Mould cure would leave the hosp hospital t i as soon as they Uley recovered with the promise that they would pay next week Many of these she never heard of again All AU Al Althe AUthe the hobos had her h house use marked because she never turned any anyone one away without a meal Ascencion undoubtedly took a great deal of pleasure swe in her er hospital Her He attitude de toward her work was not so much uch that of doing good but but her patients provided her a a sort of practical laboratory In which ch to test out her knowledge and her skill She was Interested In it ft itI I h have ve more than pages on Indian medicine as well wen as as' details of persons treated and their ailments regular aliments regular case histories s. s Mr Harrington said At present pres present pres pres- present ent they are recorded d hi in ina a mixture of ofSan ofSan S San ri Juan Indian IndIa dialect span Spanish and nd at a. a aUttIe little UttIe English as she gave them to Inc me n I 1 knew khew Spa Spanish of co course rs but I I I. had had to Jea learn from her h the San Juan language t I f j Mr Harr Harrington 1 m moved x d into Into the he home of or the tho hospitable Indian family so that he ne might I be befree free re to o take e. e down an anything t l g that Ascencion might might tell tell him hini They gave gaye him the room in ln the base basement rit at t- t the bac back of the house w which i looked ov over over r. r a short hort stretch o of t beach to the pacificO Pacific O Ocean ean Among her patients was Indian Maggie a 3 full blood d who didn't know knout where she was born bornor or to she she had had belonged t The white people ha had hao killed her parents when hen she was was yas' a a a baby and had carried her awa away with them on a b boat at to fan an Francisco where sh she had been re reared redin in inthe the slums ns When she was was very old d she had happened to come where Ascencion lived and so had remained with her until her death Maggie could entertain theother theother the theother other patients by the hour with her het tales of early days In the the West Vest and particularly of ot the building of San Francisco Another An Another Another An An- other patient who was nearly a hundred years old had lived In Mexico at atthe the time the Austrians placed Maximilian an on the throne of Mexico i iN IN N THE evening around As Ascensions Ascension's fireplace fire fireplace fire fire- place th these e patients would tell U stories from the their r youth Old Mag Maggie e with her tales of the slums of San F Francisco Inthe In Inthe inthe the sixties and the old Mexican who knew the Arabian Nights tales not t as as they y were written but embroidered with Mexican and Indian n variations 13 w the children as well wen as the ups grown awake hall half the night Mrs Mrs rs lo n was in b better te condition after a m month th an a a. half than tha than she was wason was wason wason on the first day Mr Harrington n ex ex- ex The bed eats people p ople she said meaning that if one Iles fes' in bed ed t too o longone longone long one becomes bed The more she remembered the more clearly other details details de dc- de- de tails taUs came io fo her mind until story after story rela happenings in her youth or or 01 d during l 1 the the of her parents were were recorded and embellished and nd with the great great- eat eat d detail r i. i t 4 1 i r po ii F 5 kr k it ito o I f s. s s f. f Last to fo comfort Ascencion was her daughter daught r Dionisia shown chow above e with infant son The San Juans were called in their own language the ithe Westerners because they were the westernmost of the group of Indians In Indians In- In speaking various dialects the others of ot which are long extinct Th They y lived in inthe inthe inthe the mountains near Monterey Calif in one of the most beautiful regions of the world where according to Ascencion Nature provided such abundant food that the Indians had an oversupply of wild fruits seeds and greens greens Therefore they never practiced agriculture because there was no n need ed of ot i It They lived In hi villages for greater grater so sociability so- so o- o and to protect themselves against their enemies A village consisted of of rows of houses shaped like Uke old fashioned ed beehives beehives bee bee- hives and constructed by pla planting willow p poles les In in the ground imd a step part apart in Inthe the form of or a circle and bending and bending the tops top together and lashing them tying on horizontal hori hort- poles and covering the wh whole Ie with witha 3 a liberal thatch of bulrush or r deer grass Fires were built in the middle of the wigwam a liberal hole being left at the top as an exit for the smoke A few little holes were left In the side walls for windows windows windows win win- dows or peepholes The door was low and small and on the side away from the prevalent prevalent prevalent alent wind The floor was of earth At night the Indians got out their bulrush sleeping mats spread them on n the floor and cuddled up UPi under lider a few bear or other skin robes The San Juan men and boys wore no clothing at all and were athletic They spent their time I In swimming hunting and similar pursuits The San Juan women also went lightly clad their only clothing consisting of a short petticoat of buckskin or bulrushes They never ne sunburned sunburned sunburned sun sun- burned and they never caught co cold d on the severest winter dayAs dayAs dayAs day As soon oon as they arose in the morning they headed for the creek tak taking ng along the babies and jumped into the cold coldwater water water They followed this practice the year round They returned to their houses for breakfast breakfast break break- break break- fast consisting of mush made by boiling boiling boil boll 5 ing acorn kernels I which h had a. a d been pounded u up ups p and nd bleached with water to remove the bitterness bitterness bit bit- bit bit- along with some m meat e a a. t fish greens green or other ty s f food y The people then a 1 started I out for the thep p d pursuits of pleasures pleasures pleas pleas- ures ores of ot ottile the tile day Work was unknown e s except that food A fit had to be gathered 4 i This was more a a. 3 pleasure or adventure adventure y s ture than labor r The men had the theP P of the t animal part diet to hunt for tor the 1 women women the vege vege- Y x table This resulted ti j i in the men strolling strolling stroll stroll- x yea ingoll ing off in the morning morn morn- 4 y in ing to hunt or fish full y They often orten were r tJ r gone for tor the greater j part of the day visiting with friends r as as well as h hunting nUng a. a and Carr carrying Y in g out other t h e r ideas o or r it chores they might have lave They were ere sometimes sometimes' su sus- sus of making a fire out in m the woods and eating the choicest part of the e game themselves and no doubt they did tl this s for who would not get hungry while walking around all day The women had to gather the acorns the greens the roots the seeds the nuts and other foods T They cy interspersed visit visiting visit visit- ing mg and gossiping ping Ing with the not at all strenuous quest tor for food and had a good time They also had to keep the camp supplied with wood a more unpleasant task task and rarely was any laid In ahead ol ot time The Indians were contented with a afew afew afew few sticks even if It clouds were rapidly gathering for a big rain ram The women also had to get the water They brought It in bas basketry etY Jugs and aDd in other kinds of baskets They were wonderful basket basket- makers their baSk baskets s being woven so 1 tightly that when swelled by the water they didn't leak a a. drop Both the men and women had certain crafts they indulged In hi from tune to time The men made wonderful bows bows' i with a s slayer layer of sinew glued on their backs barks tomake to tomake tomake make them shoot with more force Th They y were were they could pass an arrow through a a. deer and could string and shoot a bow with incredible swiftness The women made beautiful baskets out of ot shredded roots of cut grass willow twigs and other material Cut grass grows groWl in low or swampy gr ground und and will cuts person severely if not handled carefully et It has long slender roots tough and flexible These were dug by the Indi Indian n women who used for this s purposes purpose a hardwood hardwood hardwood hard hard- wood crowbar the end of which was was made harder by holding it in the fire They were yere carried home hom split in two scraped with a broken clam shell sheIl to make them round and even and then I laid ld in a 3 bask basket t of t water These roots and the willow twigs were used wet as they the were woven woven The would sit the women on ground usually out of doors and work at basket baske making hours a at a time weaving in Beau beau- Beautiful l p patterns tte ns according to their r own t genius The patterns were not merely a aped d fr from m others as white people night might do but the idea was to have th them original Every house had a lot of ot baskets and they were ere of ot many kinds used t for fora r ra a still greater number of purposes es Some of the baskets basket s had be been n many man many y years years ais Inthe in inthe D the family At At- Ather her death an Indian I womans woman's baskets were som sometimes burned or given away to strangers A FTER the work with Mrs AFIER had continued for some weeks It wu was decided to enlist the aid of physician a D who instilled new hope into her and for tor a time tune she even felt that she might recover v r. r but she never lost opportunity of putting in long hours so as to finish up up the work before death overtook herAs herAs her As autumn came and passed she still looked the same only she shee was becoming g more skeleton-like skeleton in appearance and no nC longer had the the- strength to sit up but ut she talk and in bed and did Tso T J still stin could talk and she lay so with the greatest faithfulness Mr Harrington said Toward the end December of It was plain that the work could not continue e much longer She was given a a. a fine fi e Christmas Chrls but it meant little to her since she was |
