Politeness Of The Indians

Some ïndiari sclioolboys found their teacher liad a very gfeat aveamn to froga. To them it was a cantina al source of amusement to sec her run away from tliem. One day a boy caught one and simt it up in the table drawer. Tlie teachee entera! the room. All were in oriler, luit. wlini she opened the drawer the froy;, glad to gain its liberty, leappd out npon the table and the tcacnei madeagrèat ado. One of the boys, in agenjtlemanr ly way, took up the frog, carried it to the door and threw it out. No sign of enjoyment could be discerned in their faces. They reniained through school hours maintaining their solemn dignity. Al'icruanl as they told'of it they laughed nntil the tears eame, Iaugbea cit and over agah. as the y membered the disniay of tho téa( her. Why lid lliey not laugh at first? They had ïot y et como into the wav of the vhile men enough to realize that we vould excuse rudencsa in our pupila, even under these cireumstanees, and jhey consk'.er it rade to laugh aloud or to laugh at all at the expenso oí another in the other's presencc. An old wonian, who owihhï a poor )ld pony whirh was almost dcad from atavVation and hard work, had jrougbt the pony in and tied hini to he fence. He was literally "skin and jones." Vhil(; I was in the house I nard the woman nïalfcing a grèat outcry, and I ran to Uie door in time to see an immense Hoek of crows lly i'way. I said: "W'hat istheinattcr?" 3he replied that the cïows had come to piek her poor old pony's bones whlle he still lived. Shesaw the fiinny side of it as well as land laughed very leartily. Wbep one of the young lady mislionaiies asked an Indian woman for ier "waka sica tanka," instoad of her 'wasica tanka," no one lan;hcd till ;he teacher was gone. Wnenl inquired why tli 3 dishpan was not given, t hereply was, she did not ask for the dishian; she asked for ''the great evilspirt" (thedcvil), and 1 assure you no Indian woman luard that utory without laughing heartily. Another teacher, meaning to ask for a tub, asked for a young man, and, though to htr face :hey did not la'ugh,! haveseena whole eewing school convulsed with lauphter over the mista ke aeveral times since. When one of the ministers liom t he east attending one of our meetings went up to a group of Indian's who could not speak or uhaerstand a word of English, and tried to enter into conversation, of course there was no response. He said to me as I cania up: "Why do they look so solemn?" I snnply interpreted wnatlie said to the Indians, and alllaughed and said: "We did not know what he said, why should we laugh?" It does not aeena to occur to those asking the dufestion, why they do not laugh, tlmt they have littie to laugh at in the presance of white men. They cannot understand us qr our ways. Indian children are n the heuse qtiiet and orderly, they si, and listen to hear older ieople talk, and f anything is said that is very amusing, so much ao that they feel that they cannot control themselves, they put their hands on their mouths and run outside to laugh. Men will laugh geiitly and quietly, and now and then you may bear an old woman laugh long and loud; if so, some relative wil] say aside. "Hear how loud she laughs, like a wliite man; she is unwomanly." They are very sociable people, and around the campfire one may hear inany legends and l'ables, hear niany old war songs and nursery rhymes.