Tene'-angopte's Dilemma

The questions recently posed in English and Hindi by an Indian DJ come to play in this story.

1) Why do people trouble each other in this life?

2) What is the soul thirsty for?

After the American Civil War, Kiowa (Kaui-gu) leader Kicking Bird (Tene'-angopte) recognized the impossibility of (permanently) fending off the settlers and military forces of the United States, of maintaining the established way of life. He chose to attempt peace, with hope of some modified future for the Kiowa.

But Tene'-angopte was caught in an existential dilemma: in order to give peace a chance, he must show to doubting Thomases and men who would be king that he was also a brave warrior. So he formed a war party and engaged a detachment of the Sixth United States Cavalry at the Battle of the Little Wichita on July 12, 1870. Kicking Bird led the attack and killed a trooper personally with his lance. Having literally proven his point, it was time to end the conflict.

But making peace is more controversial than making war, and after a time, on May 3, 1875, Tene'-angopte became sick, apparently poisoned, dying the next day.

I visited the vast grounds of Fort Sill, where tribesmen, cavalrymen and family members are all buried together in a "Town of the Deads." This headstone reads "CHIEF KICKING BIRD / "TENE-ANGOPTE" / KIOWA TRIBE / MEDICINE LODGE TREATY SIGNER / MAY 4 1870."

Also spoke with many living members of the Kiowa Tribe. The Kiowa Casino is located just north of the Red River. On their website at http://www.kiowacasino.com/ there is a brief history and other information about their culture.  I heard one estimate that puts Kiowa numbers at about 12,000 today, many living in the southwest part of okla humma (Oklahoma).

Today's Rune: Harvest.