iOsd *^^ IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I 11.25 £lli 125 i^ i^ 12.2 m M 1.4 V] /l ^> ^%^"^ *> J' > /a :>:> 7 /^ Photographic Sdences Corporation ^\ •^ \ •^ \\ 4^ 33 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) S73-4S03 4^ ^^ O^ CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHIVI/ICMH Collection de microfiches. Canndian Institute for Historical Microreproductions / Institut Canadian de microreproductions historiques Tachnieal and Bibliographic Notas/Notes techniquas at bibliographiquas Tha inatituta haa attamptad to obtain tha baat original copy avaiiabia for filming. Faaturaa of thia copy which may ba bibliographically uniqua, which may altar any of tha imagaa in tha raproduction, or which may significantly changa tha usual mathod of filming, ara chackad balow. □ Colourad covars/ Couvartura da coulaur I I Covars damagad/ D n D D D Couvartura andommagte Covars rastorad and/or laminatad/ Couvartura rastaurAa at/ou pailiculAa □ Cover titia missing/ La titre da couvartura manque I I Coloured maps/ Cartes g6ographiques en couleur Coloured ink (i.e. other than blue or black)/ Encre de couleur (i.e. autre que bleue ou noire) I I Coloured plates and/or illustrations/ Planches et/ou illustrations Bn couleur Bound with other material/ RaiiA avec d'autras documents r~7] Tight binding may causa shadows or distortion along interior margin/ La re liure serrie peut causer de I'ombre ou de la distortion la long da la marge intArieure Blank leaves added during restoration may appear within the text. Whenever possible, these have been omitted from filming/ II se peut que certaines pages blanches ajouttes lors d'une restauration apparaissant dans la texte. mais, lorsque cela Atait possible, ces pages n'ont pas M filmAes. Additional comments:/ Commentaires supplimentaires; L'Institut a microfilm* la mailleur exemplaire qu'il lui a 4t* possible de se procurer. Les details da cat exemplaire qui sont peut-Atre uniques du point de vua bibliographique, qui peuvent modifier una image reproduite, ou qui peuvent exiger une modification dans la mithoda normale de filmage aont indiqute ci-dassous. r~n Colourad pages/ D D y D Pagea de couleur Pages damaged/ Pages endommag^as Pages restored and/or laminated/ Pages restaur^as et/ou peliiculAes Pages discoloured, stainr,d or foxed/ Pages d^colories. tacheties ou piquies Pages detached/ Pages ditachAes Showthrough/ Transparence I I Quality of print varies/ Quality inAgale de I'impression Includes supplementary material/ Comprend du materiel suppl^mantaire Only edition available/ Seule Mition disponible Pages wholly or partially obscured by errata slips, tissues, etc., have been ref limed to ensure the best possible Image/ Les pages totalement ou partiellement obscurcies par un feuillet d'errata, une pelure, etc., ont M filmies d nouveau de fapon A obtenir la meilleure image possible. This item is filmed at the reduction ratio checked below/ Ce document est film* au taux de reduction indiqu* ci-dessous 10X 14X 18X 22X 26X aox - J 12X 16X 20X 24X 28X 32X The copy filmed hero has been reproduced thankt to the generosity of: Moritsat Library University of Ottawa L'exemplaire fiimA f ut reproduit grice A la gAnirosltA de: Bibiiotli^a iMoriisat Uni«trait< d'Ottawa The images appearing here are the best quality possible considering the condition and legibility of the original copy and in Iceeping with the filming contract specifications. Original copies in printed paper covers are filmed beginning with the front cover and ending on the last page with a printed or illustrated impres- sion, or the bacic cover when appropriate. All other original copies are filmed beginning on the first page with a printed or illustrated impres- sion, and ending on the last page with a printed or illustrated impression. The last recorded frame on vach microfiche shall contain the symbol — ^ (meaning "CON- TINUED"), or the symbol V (meaning "END"), whichever applies. Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, »s many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les images suivantes ont 4tA reproduites avec le plus grand soin, compte tenu de le condition et de la nettet* de i'exemplaire film6, et en conformit6 avec les conditions du contrat de filmage. Les exemplaires originaux dont la couverture en papier est imprimAe sont filmte en commenpant par le premier plat et en terminant soit par la dernlAre page qui comporte une empreinte d'impression ou d'illustration, soit par le second plat, salon le cas. Tous les autres exemplaires originaux sont filmte en commenpant par la premlAre page qui comporte une empreinte d'impression ou d'illuetration et en terminant par la dernlAre page qui comporte une telle empreinte. Un des symboles suivants apparaftra sur la dernlAre image de cheque microfiche, selon le cas: le symbols — ► signifie "A SUIVRE". le symbols V signifie "FIN". Les cartes, plancheS, tableaux, etc., peuvent Atre filmfo A des taux de reduction diffArents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atre reproduit en un seul ciichi, 11 est fiimA A partir de I'angle supArieur gauche, de gauche A droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images nAcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m6thode. 1 2 3 i « ■ i t -' i: # ^ 5 6 Il *■ ^miippii J:'-' t-- LETTERS AND NOTES MANNERS. CUSTOMS, AND CONDITION or m NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. WRITTEN DUBINQ EIGHT TBABB' TBATEL AJIONOBT THR WILDEST TBIBEI or INDUMS IN NOBTH AMEBIOA, w BY GEO. CATLIN. TWO VOLS. IN ONE. WITH ONI BT7NDBID AND FIFTY ILLC8TBATI0NS, ON STEEL AND WOOD. PHILADELPHIA: J. W. BRADLEY, 48 NORTH FOURTH ST. 1859. ii \ i i I I ■ i ! 'i :-'. e V CONTENTS. LETTER No. I.— p. 17. Wyoming, birth-place of the Author.— His former Profession. — First oanse of his Travels to th« Indian Country.— Delegation of Indians in Philadelphia.— First start to the Far West, in 1832.— Design of forming a National Qallety.— Num- bers of Tribes visited, and number of Paintings and other things coUeoted.^ Probable extinction of the Indians,— Former and present numbers of. — The proper mode of approaching them, and esti m at i ng their oharaoter. 1 LETTER No. II.— p. 33. Month of Tellow Stone.— Distance flrom St Louis.— Difflonlties of the MissonrL— Politeness of Mr. Chontean and Major Sanford.— Fur Company's Fort— Indian Epicures.— New and true School for the Arts. — Beautiful Models. LETTER No. III. • -p. 38. Mouth of Yellow Stone. Character of Missouri Rirer. — BeantifUI prairie shores. — Picturesque clay bluffs. — First appearance of a steamer at the Yellow Stone, and curious ooi^jeotures of the Indians about it — Fur Company's Establishment at the mouth of Yellow Stone.— M'Kensle — His table and politeness. — Indian tribes in this vioinity. LETTER No. IV.— p. 47. Mouth op Yellow Stone. Upper Missouri Indians.— Qeneral Character. — Buffaloes — Description of. — Modes of killing them. — Buffalo-hunt — Chordon's Leap. — Wounded bulL— Extroordi- sai7 feat of Mr. M'Kenzie.— Return from the chase. iM LETTER No. V.— p. 59. Mouth of Yellow Stone. Author's painting-room, and characters in it — Blaokfoot chief. — Other Blackfoot chiefs, and their costumes. — Blaokfoot woman and child. — Scalps, and objects for which taken — Red pipes, and pipe-stone quarry. — Blaokfoot bows, shields, arrows and lances. — Several distinguished Blackfeet 0) 8 CONTENTS. LETTER No, VI.— p. 70. Mouth of Ybllow Stonb. Medicines or mysteries — medicine-bag — origin of tlie word medicine. — Mode of forming tlie medioine-bng— V»lae of the medicine-bag to the Indian, and mate- rials for their oonstruction, — Blaokfoot doctor or medicine-man — his mode of caring the sick. — Different offices and importance of medioine-men. LETTER No. YIL— p. 81. Mouth of Yelloii Stone. Crows and Blaokfeet. — Qeneral character and appearance. — Killing and drying meat.— Crow lodge or wigwam. — Striking their tents and encampment moving.— Mode of dressing and smoking skins.— Crows. — Beauty of their dresses. — Uorse stealing or capturing. — Reasons why they are called rognes and robbers of the first order, Ae. LETTER No, VIII.— p. 92. Mouth op Yellow Stone Farther remarks on the Crows.— Bztraordlnary length of hair. — Peenliaritiei of the Crow head, and several portraits. — Crow and Blackfeet women. — Their modes of dressing and painting. — Differences between the Crow and Blaokfoot langnages.- Different bands. — Different languages, and numbers of the Black- feet. — Knisteneaux. — Assinneboins and Ojibbeways. — Assinneboins a part of the Sioux. — Their mode of boiling meat. — Pipe-dance. — Wi-Jun-Jon (a chief) and wife. — His visit to Washington. — Dresses of women and children of the Assinneboins. — Knisteneanx (or Crees) — character and numbers, aad leTeral portraits. — Ojibbeways — Chief and wife. LETTER No. IX.— p. 106. Mouth op Yellow Stonb. Contemplations of the Oreat Far West and its customs. — Old acquaintance.— March and effects of oiviiisatLon. — The " Far West."— The Author in search of it— Meeting with "Ba'tiste," a free trapper. LETTER No. X.— p. lit." Manoan Village, Upper Missoubl A strange place. — Voyage fyom Month of Tellow Stone down the river to Man- dans. — Commencement. — Leave M'Kensie's Fort. — Assinneboins enoamped on the river. — Wi-Jun-jon lecturing on the customs of white people. — Mountain- sheep. — War-eagles. — Grizily bears. — Clay bluffs, "brick-kilns,* roleanio re- mains. — Red pumice stone. — A wild strolL — Mountaineer's sleep. — Qriztly bear and cubs. — Courageous attack. — Canoe robbed. — Eating our meals on a pile of drift-wood. — Encamping in the night — Voluptuous scene of wild flowers, buffalo bush and berries. — Adventure after an elk. — War-party discovered. — Magnifi- cent scenery in the " Grand Detour." — Stupendous day bluffs. — Table fatnd. — Antelope shooting.—" Qrand Dome."— Prairie dogs.- Village.— Fruitless endca- Toiirs to shoot them. — Pictured bluff and the Three Domes. — Arrival at the Mandan village. CONTENTS. i ;, LETTER No. XI.— p. 135. Mandan ViLiAoa. Location. — Village. — Former loeationi, forUfloation of their Tillage.— Deteription of Tillage and mode of conitmcting their wigwama. — Deiorlption of interior— Bedg — Weapons — Family gronpi. — Indian garrulity — Jokes — Fire-tide ftin and story-tolling.- Causes of Indian taciturnity in ciTilized society. LETTER No. XII.— p. 146. Mamdan Village. Bird's-eye Tiew of the tillage.- The "big canoe."— Medicine-lodge. — A strange medley.— -Mode of depositing the dead on scaffolds. — Respect to the dead.— Visiting the dead. — Feeding the dead. — ConTcrse with the dead. — Bonei of the dead. LETTER No. XIII.— p. 154. Mandan Villaob. The wolf-chief. — Head chief of the tribe.— SeTeral portraits. — Personal appear- ance. — Peculiarities. — Complexion. — " ChoTeux gris." — Hair of the men. — Hair of the womdn. — Bathing and swimming. — Mode of swimming. — Sudatories or vapor-baths. LETTER No. XIV.— p. 166. Mandan Village. Costumes of the Mandans.— High Talue set upon them. — Two horses for a head- dress — Made of war-eagles' quilla and ermine. — Head-dresses with horns. — A Jewish custom. ., ' V/,'.i LETTER No. XV.— p. 174. Mandan Villaob. Astonishment of the Mandans at the operation of the Author's bmsh. — The Author installed medicine or medicine-man. — Crowds around the Author. — Curiosity to seo and to touch him. — Superstitions fears for those who were painted. — Objec- tions raised to being painted. — The Author's operations opposed by a Mandan doctor, or medicine-man, and bow brought orer. LETTER No. XVI.— p. 185. Mandam Village. An Indian beau or dandy. — A fruitless endeaTor to paint one. — Mah-to-wb *ja (the four bears), second chief of the tribe. — The Author feasted in his wig- wam. — Viands of the feast — Pemioan and marrow-ikt. — Mandan pottery.— Bobe presented. I LETTER No. XVII.— p. 194. Mandan Village. Polygamy. — Reasons and excuses for it — Marriages, how contracted. — (Tivei bought and sold. — Paternal and filial affection. — Virtue and modesty of women. — Early marriages. — SlaTish lives and occupations of the Indian women.—. Pomme blanche. — Dried meat — Caches. — Modes of cooking, and times of eating.— Attitudes in eating.— Separation of males and females in eating.— The Indians moderate eaters. — Some exceptions. — Curing meat in the ran, with- out smoke or salt— The wild Indians eat no salt 10 CONT£ I •tf LETTER No. XVIII.— p. 206. Maxdam Villaoi. Indian dAocing.—" Buffalo dance."— DUoovcry of buffaloes— Prepanrtion* for the obaae — Start — A deoor — A retreat — Death and acalping. LETTER No. XIX.— p. 214. Mandan Village. Sham fight and iham acalp danoe of tho Mandan boyB.— Game of Tchong-kee. — Feaiting.— Faating and aacrificing.— White buffalo robe — Its value.— Rain nakera and rain atoppera.— Rain making.— "The thunder boat."— The big double medicine. LETTER No. XX.— p. 229. Mandan Village. Mandan archery. — " Oame of the arrow."— Wild horaea.- Uorae-racing.— Foot war-party in counoiL LETTER No. XXL— p. 234. Mandan Village, Uppkk Missoubi. Hah-to-toh-pa (the Four Bears) — His costume and his portrait. — The robe of Mah- to-toh-pa, with all the battles of his life painted on it LETTER No. XXII.— p. 244. Mandan Village. Mandan religious ceremonies. — Mandan religious creed. — Three objects of the ceremony. — Place of holding the ceremony. — Big canoe. — Season of com- mencing — and manner. — Opening the medicino-Iodgo. — Sacrifices to the water.— Fasting scene for four days and nights. — Bel-lohck-nah-pick (the bull danoe). — Pohk-hong (the cutting or torturing scene). — Eh-kc-nah-ka-nah-iiick (tho lost race). — Extraordinary instances of cruelty in self-torture. — Sacrificing to tho water. — Certificates of the Mandan ceremonies. — Inferences drawn from these horrible cruelties, with traditions. — Tradition of 0-kee-hee-de (the Evil Spirit). — Mandans can be civilized. LETTER No. XXIII.— p. 289. Minatabee Village. Location and numbers. — Origin. — Principal village. — Vapor baths. — Old chief, Black Moccasin. — Two portraits, man and woman. — Qreen corn dance. f. LETTER No. XXIV.— p. 298. Minataree Village. Crowt in the Minataree village. — Crow chief on horseback, in full dress.— Peculi- arities of the Crows — Long hair — Somi-lnnar faces. — Rats in tho Minatarte village.— Crossing Knife River in " bull boat."— Swimming of Minatoreo girls.— Horse-racing. — A banter. — Riding a " naked horse." — Qrand buffalo surround. — Cutting up and carrying iu meat. t-l i I ^•tbnts. 11 LETTER No. XXV.— p. 315. Littli Mandan Villaoi, Upper Missouri. An Indian offering himielf for a pillow.— Portraiti of Riooare«s.— Rieeareo viU lage.— Origin of tha Mandani.— Welsh colony.— Expedition of Madoo. LETTER No. XXVI.— p. 322. MontH of Toton Ritbr. Sionz or Dah-co-ta.— Fort Pierre. — Misaiasippi and Miuonri Sioaz. — Ha^wan- Je-Uh (chief ).—Panoalia, Shoo-de-ga-oha (chief) and wife.— Four wivei taken at once.— Portrait of one of the wives.- Early nuurriages. — causes of. LETTER No. XXVII.— p. 335. Modth of Tktoii Bitkb. Cuatom of expoaing the aged. — A tedious march on foot. — LctcI pralriea. — " Out of sight of land."— Mirage.— Looming of the prairies.— Turning the toes in. — Bgou hills.— Salt meadows.— Arrive at Fort Pierre.— Great assemblage of Sioux. — Paint the portrait of the chief.- Superstitious objections.— Opposed by the doctors.— Difficulty settled.— Death of Ha-wan-Je-tah (the chief ).— Mode of.— Portraits of other Sioux chiefs. — Wampum. — Beautiful Sioux women.— Daugh> ter of Black Rook.— Chardon, his Indian wife. LETTER No. XXVIII.— p. 345. Mouth of Tkton Rivke. Difficulty of painting Indian women. — Indian vanity.— Watching their portraits. — Arrival of the first steamer amongst the Sioux. — Dog-feast LETTER No. XXIX.— p. 354. Mouth of Teton River. Voluntary torture, " looking at the sun." — Religions ceremony. — Smoking " k'niok- k'neck." —Pipes. — Calumets or pipes of peace. — Tomahawks andscalping-knives. Dance of the chiefs. — Scalps— Mode of taking, and object. — Modes of carrying and using the scalps. LETTER No. XXX.— p. 367. Mouth of Teton River. Indian weapons and instruments of music. — Quiver and shield.— Smoking the shield. — Tobacco pouches — Drums — Rattles — Whistles— Lutes. — Bear dance.^ Beggars' dance. — Scalp dance. LETTER No. XXXI.— p. 376. Mouth of Teton River. Bisons (or buffaloes), description of. — Habits of. — Bulls' fighting.— Buffalo wal< lows. — Fairy circles. — Running the buffaloes, and throwing the arrow. — Buffalo chase.- Use of the laso. — Hunting under masque of white wolf skins. — Horses destroyed in buffalo hunting. — Buffalo calf.— Mode of catching and bringing in. — Immense and wanton destruction of buffaloes. — One thousand four hundred killed.— White wolves attacking buffaloes. — Contemplations on the probablo extinction of buffaloes and Indians. 4 iiiiMnjM ■K» 12 CONTXKTS. LETTER No. XXXI [.— p. 403. Cantonment Leavenworth.— Shionnoi.— Portroita of. — Floyd'i Qrave.— DIack Bird'i Qrare.— Beautiful graiay blufli.— Mandan remaini.— DoUo Vue.— S()uara hilU. — Mouth of Platte. — Baffaloei eroiilng. LETTER No. XXXIII.— p. 423. Orottse (hooting before the burning prairiei.— Prairie bluffii burning.— Prairie meadowf burning. LETTER No. XXXIV.— p. 434. loways. — Eoniai.— Mode of aharing the head. — Pawneei.— Small-pox amonget Pawnees.— Mi^or Dougherty'* opinion of the Fur Trade.— Grand PawneeH.— Ottoea.— Omahaa. , LETTER No. XXXV.— p. 443. St. Loula. — Loaa of Indian curioaitiea, Ao. — Qovemor Clarke. , LETTER No. XXXVI.— p. 447. Penaaoola, Florida.— Perdido.— Pine woods of Florida.— Banta Bon laland.— Prophecy.- Start for Camanohee oountry. LETTER No. XXXVII.-p. 452. Tranait up the Arkanaaa river. — Fort Gibaon, lat regiment United Statea' Dragoona reviewed.- Equipping and atarting of Dragoona for the Camanohee country. LETTER No. XXXVIII.— p. 459. Fort Gibaon. — Osages. — Portraits of Oaages.- Former and preaent condition of.— Start for Camancheea and Pawnee Picta. LETTER No. XXXIX.— p. 465. Month of the False Washita and Red River. — Boautiftil prairie country. — Arkansas grapes. — Plums. — Wild roses, currants, gooseberries, prickly pears, Ac. — Buffalo chace. — Murder of Judge Martin and family. LETTER No. XL.— p. 471. Sickness at the Month of False Washita— one-half the regiment atart for the Camancheea, under command of Col. Dodge. — Sickneaa of General Leaven- worth, and cauae of.— Another buffalo hunt. 1 CONTENTS. LETTER No. XLI.— p. 477 Grwt Cunuwhe* Till«g«, TexM.— A itampedo.— Meeting a Otmanohae war party, and mode of approaching them. — They torn abont and eioort the Dragoone to their riUage.^Immenio herd* of butfaloei. — BoiTaloei breaking through the rankf of the Dragoon regiment. — Wild honei — lagaolty of— wild honei at play. — Joe Chadwiok and I "orea*t'Ny"a wild hone. — Taking the wild hone with laeo, and "breaking down."— Chain of the Rooky Mountain. — Approach to the Oamanohee Tillage.- Immonio number of Oamanohee honei—i>ricea of. — OapU Snnoan'i porohaie. ii:uJ- .1-1 LETTEB No. XLII.— p. 493. reaorlption of the Oamanohee Tillage, and tIcw of. — Painting a fiimily group.— Camanoheei moving. — Wonderfbl feata of riding. — Portraiti of Comanohee ohieft.— Eatimates of the Camancheea.— Pawnee Piota, Kiowaa, and Wicoa. LETTER No. XLIIL— p. 602. The regiment adTanoe towarda the Pawnee Tillage. — DeaerlpUon and view of the Pawnee Tillage.— Council in the Pawnee Tillage. — ReooTcry of the aon of Judge Martin, and the preaentation of the three Pawnee and Qowa women to their own people. — Return of the regiment to the Oamanohee Tillage. — Pawnee Piota, portraita of.— Kiowaa.— Wiooa, portraita of. LETTER No. XLIV.— p. 610. Camp Canadian. — Immenae herdaof buffaloea. — Oreatalanghter of them. — Eztra> ordinary alckneaa of the command. — Suffering from impure water. — Siokneaa of the men. — Homed fh>ga.— Curiona adTenture In catching them. — Death of General LeaTcnworth and Lieutenant M'Clnre. LETTER No. XLV.— p. 517. Retom to Fort Qibaon. — SoTore and fatal alckneaa at that place. — Death of Lien- tenant Weat — Death of the Pruaaian Botanist and his servant. — Indian Council at Fort Qibaon.— Outflta of trading-parties to the Camancheea— Probable conse- quencea of. — Ourioua minerals and fossil sheila collected and thrown away. Mountain ridgea of foaail shoUa, of iron and gypaum. — Saltpetre and aalt. LETTER No. XLVI.— p. 529. Alton, on the Miaaissippi.— Captain Wharton.— Hia aiokness at Fort Oibson.— The Author starting alone for St. Louis, a distance of five hundred miles, across the prairies.— Ilia outfit.- The Author and his horse " Charley " encamped on a level prairie.— Singular freak and attachment of the Anthor'a horse.— A beau- tiftal valley in the prairies.— An Indian'a eatimation of a newapaper.— Riqua's village of Osages — Meeting Captain Wharton at the Kickapoo prairie.— Diffi- culty of swimming rivera.— Crossing the Osage.- Boonville on the Missouri.- Author reaohea Alton, and atarU for Florida. 14 CONTEXTS. LETTER No. XLVII.— p. 544. Trip to Florida and Texas, and back to St. Lonig.— KickapooB, portraiU of.— Weas, portraiU of.— Potowatomies, portraits of.— Kaekasics, portraits of.— Peo- riag, portraits of. — Piankosliaws. — Delawares. — Moheoonneuhs, or Mohegani. — Oneidas. — Tuskaroras. — Senecas. — Iroquois. LETTER No. XLVIII.— p. 660. Flatheads, Net Perc6s. — Flathead Mission across the Rocky Mountains to St Louis.— Mission of the Reverends Messrs. Lee and Spalding beyond the Rocky Mountains. — Chinooks, portraits of. — Process of flattening the head — and cradle. — Flathead skulls. — Similar custom of Cboctaws. — Choctaw tradition. — Curious manufactures of the Chinooks. — EUukatacks. — Chuhaylas, and Ka-aa Indiana.— Character and disposition of the Indiana on the Columbia. LETTER No. XLIX.— p. 570. Shawanos. — Shawnee prophet and hia transactions. — Cherokees, portraits of. — Creeks, portraits of. — Chootaws, portraits of. — Boll-play.— A distinguished ball> player. — Eagle dance. — Tradition of the Deluge — Of a future state. — Origin of the Crawfish band. LETTER No. L.— p. 590. Fort Snelling, near the Fall of St. Anthony.— Description of the Upper MissiS' sippi. — View on the Upper Mississippi, and " Dubuque's Grave." — Fall of St. Anthony. — Fort Snelling. — A Sioux cradle, and modea of carrying their chil- dren. — Mourning cradle, same plate. — Sioux portraita. LETTER No. LI.— p. 699. Fourth of July at the Fall of St. Anthony, and amusements. — Dog dance of the Sioux. — Chippeway village. — Chippcwnys making the portage around the Fall of St. Anthony. — Chippeway bark canoes. — Mandan canoes of skins. — Sioux canoes. — Sioux and Chippeway anow-shoes. — Portraita of Cbippeways. — Snow . shoe dance. LETTER No. LII.— p. 608. The Author descending the Mississippi in a bark canoe. — Shot at by Sioux In- dians. — Lake Pepin and " Lover's Leap." — Pike's Tent, and Cap au'l'ail.- " Cornice Rooks." — Prairie du 'Jluen. — Boll-play of the women. — WinnebHgoes, portraits of. — Menomonics, portraits of. — Dubuque. — Lockwood'a cave. — Camp des Moines, and visit to Keokuk's village. LETTER No. LIII.— p. 623. The Author and his bork canoe sunk in the Dcs Moine's Rapids.— The Author left on Moscotin Island.- Death of Joe Chailwick.— The " West," not the " Fur West" — Author's contemplations on the probable future condition of the Great Valley of the Mississippi, ■i\y I m I i'^ CONTENTS. 15 LETTER No. LIV.— p. 638. Oatesu des Pralrios.— Mackinaw and Sault de St. Mary'a.— Catching white fish.— Cano« race.— Chippeways, portraits of.— Voyage up the Fox River.— Voyage down the Ooisooniin in bark canoe. — Red Pipe Stone Quarry, on the Cfiteau des Prairies. — Indian traditions relative to the Red Pipe Stone.— The " Leaping Book." The Author and his companion stopped by the Sioux, on their way, and objections raised by the Sioux. — British medals amongst the Sioux. — Mona. La Fromboise, kind reception. — Encampment at the Pipe Stone Quarry. — Ba'tiste's " Story of the Medicine Bag." — " Story of the Dog," prelude to.— Leaving the Mandans in canoe. — Passing the Riooarees in the night — Encamping on the side of a olay -bluff, in a thnnder-storm. LETTER No. LV.— p. 679. •♦ Story of the Dog" told.— Story of Wi-jun-jon (the pigeon's egg head).— Further account of the Red Pipe Stone Quarry, and the Author's approach to it. — Boul. ders of the Prairies. — Chemical analysis of the Red Pipe Stone. LETTER No. LVI.— p. 708. Author's return from the COteau des Prairies. — " Laque du Cygn."— Sioux taking Muskrats. — Oatbering wild rice. — View on St Peter's river. — The Author ond his companion embark in a log canoe at " Traverse de Sioux." — ^Arrive at FaU of St Anthony. — Lake Pepin. — Prairie du Chien. — Cassville. — Rock Island. — Sac and Fox Indians, portraits of. — Ke-o-kuk on horseback. — Slave dance. — "Smoking horsey" — Begging-dance. — Sailing in canoes. — Discovery-dance. — Dance to the BpVdash. — Dance to the medicine of the brave. — Tr^iiiy with Sacs ft&d Foxes — ^ipnlations of. LETTER No. LVII.— p. 723. Fort Moultrie. — Seminolees. — Florida war. — Prisoners of war. — Osceola. — Cloud, King Philip. — Co-ee-ha-jo. — Creek Billy, Miokenopah. — Death of Osceola. LETTER No. LVIII.— p. 728. North-Westem Frontier — Oeneral remarks on. — General appearance and habits of the North American Indians. — Jewish customs and Jewish resemblances. — Probable origin of the Indians. — Languages. — Qovemment — Cruelties of pun- ishments. — Indian queries on white man's modes. — Modes of war and peace. — Pipe of peace dance. — Religion. — Picture writing, songs and totems. — Policy of removing the Indians. — Trade and small -pox, the principal destroyers of the Indian tribes. — Murder of the Root Diggers and Ricoarees. — Concluding remark!. I APPENDIX A. Account of the destruction of the Mandans. — Author's reasons for believing them to have perpetuated the remains of the ^V'el8k Colony established by Prince Madoc. 16 CONTENTS. APPENDIX B. Vocabularies of several different Indian language i, showing their dissimilarity, APPENDIX 0. Comparison of the Indian's original and leeondary charaato; \ , [^ Jl CATLIN'S LETTERS AND NOTES OH TBI NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. LETTER No. 1. As the following pages have been hastily compiled, at the urgent request of a number of my friends, from a series of Letters and Notes written by myself during several years' residence and travel amongst a number of the wildest and most remote tribes of the North Ameri- can Indians, I have thought it best to make this page the beginning of my book, dis- pensing with Preface, and (17) 18 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THK even with Dedication, other than that which I hereby make of it, with all my heart, to those who will take the pains to read it. If it be necessary to render any apology for beginning thus unceremoniously, my readers will understand that I had no space in these, my first volumes to throw away ; nor much time at my disposal, which I could, in justice, use for introducing myself and my works to the world. Having commenced thus abruptly, then, I will venture to take upon myself the sin of calling this one of the series of Letters of which I have spoken, although I am writing it several years later, and placing it at the beginning of my book ; by which means I will be enabled briefly to introduce myself to my readers (who, as yet, know little or nothing of me,) and also the subjects of the following epistles, with such explanations of the customs described in them, as will serve for a key or glossary to the same, and prepare the reader's mind for the information they contain. Amidst the multiplicity of books which are, in this enlightened age, flooding the world, I feel it my duty, as early as possible, to beg pardon for making a book at all ; and in the next (if my readers should become so much interested in my narrations, as to censure me for the brevity of the work) to take some considerable credit for not having trespassed too long upon their time and patience. Leaving my readers, therefore, to find out what is in the book, without promising them anything, I proceed to say — of mytelf, that I was bom in Wyoming, in North America, some thirty or forty years since, of parents who entered that beautiful and famed valley soon after the close of the revolutionary war, and the disastrous event of the " Lidian massacre." The early part of my life was whiled away, apparently, somewhat in vain, with books reluctantly held in one hand, and a rifle or flshing-pole firmly and affectionately grasped in the other. L of id, jed NORTH AMERICAN i:JDIANS. 19 At the urgent request of my father, who was a practising lawyer, I was prevailed upon to abandon these favorite themes, and also my occasional dabblings with the brush, which had secured already a corner in my affections, and T commenced reading the law for a profession, under the direction of Beeve and Gould, of Connecticut. I attended the lectures of these learned judges for two years — was admitted to the bar — and practised the law, as i sort of Nimrodical lawyer, in my native land, for the term of two or three years when I very deliberately sold my law library and all (save my rifle and fishing-tackle) and converting their proceeds into brushes and paint-pots, I commenced the art of painting in Philadelphia, without teacher or adviser. I there closely applied my hand to the labors of the art for several years ; during which time my mind was con- tinually reaching for some branch or enterprise of the art, on which to devote a whole life-time of enthusiasm ; when a delegation of some ten or fifteen noble and dignified- looking Indians, from the wilds of the " Far West," sud- denly arrived in the city, arrayed and equipped in all their classic beauty, — with shield and helmet, — with tunic and manteau, — tinted and tasselled off, exactly for the painter's palette! In silent and stoic dignity, these lords of the forest strutted about the city for a few days, wrapped in their pictured robes, with their brows plumed with the quills of the war-eagle, attracting the gaze and admiration of all who beheld them. After this, they took their leave for Washington City, and I was left to reflect and regret, which I did long and deeply, until I came to the following deductions and conclusions : Black and blue cloth and civilization are destined, not only to veil, but to obliterate the grace and beauty of Nature. Man, in the simplicity and loftiness of his nature, unrestrained and unfettered by the disguises of art, is surely the most beautiful model for the painter, — and the J ■k ;f' 20 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE country from which he hails is unquestionably the best study or school of the arts in the world: such, I am sure, from the models I have seen, is the wilderness of North America. And the hiatory and customs of such a people, preserved by pictorial illustrations, are themes worthy the life-time of one man, and nothing short of the loss of my life, shall prevent me from visiting their country, and of becoming their historian. There was something inexpressibly delightful in the above resolve, which was to bring me amidst such living models for my brush ; and at the same time to place in my hands again, for my living and protection, the objects of my heart above-named ; which had long been laid by to rust and decay in the city, without the remotest prospect of again contributing to my amusement. I had fully resolved : I opened my views to my friends and relations, but got not one advocate or abettor. I tried fairly and faithfully, but it was in vain to reason with those whose anxieties were ready to febricate every difficulty and danger that could be imagined, witliout being able to understand or appreciate the extent or importance of my designs, and I broke from them all,— from my wife and my aged parents, — myself my only adviser and protector. With these views firmly fixed — armed, equipped, and supplied, I started out in the year 1832, and penetrated the vast and pathless wilds which are familiarly denomi- nated the great "Far "West" of the North American Continent, with a light heart, inspired with an enthusiastic hope and reliance that I could meet and overcome all the hazards and privations of a life devoted to the production of a literal and graphic delineation of the living manners, customs, and character of an interesting race of people, who are rapidly passing away from the face of the earth — lending a hand to a dying nation, who have no historians or biographers of their own to portray with fidelity their native looks and history; thus snatching from a hasty oblivion what could be saved for the benefit of posterity, ' if :* », 4 NOBTH AUBRICAK INDIANS. 21 ._.ll and perpetuating it, as a fair and just monument, to the memory of a truly lofty and noble race. I Lave spent about eight years already in the pursuit above-named, having been for the most of that time immersed in the Indian country, mingling with red men, and identifying myself with them as much as possible in their games and amusements, in order the better to familiar- ize myself with their superstitions and mysteries, which are the keys to Indian life and character. It was during the several years of my life just mentioned, and whilst I was in familiar participation with them in their sports and amusements, that I penned the following series of epistles ; describing only such glowing or curious scenes and events as passed under my immediate observa- tion ; leaving their early history, and many of their traditions, language, &c., for a subsequent and much more elaborate work, for which I have procured the materials, and which I may eventually publish. I set out on my arduous and perilous undertaking with the determination of reaching, ultimately, every tribe of Indians on the Continent of North America, and of bring- ing home faithful portraits of their principal personages, both men and women, from each tribe ; views of their villages, games, &c., and full notes on their character and history. I designed, also, to procure their costumes, and a complete collection of their manufactures and weapons, and to perpetuate them in a Gallery unique, for the use and instruction of future ages. I claim whatever merit there may have been in the originality of such a design, as I was undoubtedly the first artist who ever set out upon such a work, designing to carry his canvass to the Eocky Mountains; and a con- siderable part of the following Letters were written and published in the New York papers, as early as the years 1832 and 1833; long before the Tours of "Washington Irving, and several others, whose interesting narratives are before the world. 22 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THK i 1:1 #• r- I have, as yet, by no means visited all the tribes ; but I have progressed a very great way with the enterprise, and with far greater and more complete success than I expected. I have visited forty-eight different tribes, the greater part of which I found speaking different languages, and containing in all four hundred thousand souls. I have brought home safe, and in good order, three hundred and ten portraits in oil, all painted in their native dress, and in their own wigwams; and also two hundred other paintings in oil, containing views of their villages — their wigwams — their games and religious ceremonies — their dances — their ball plays — their buffalo hunting, and other amusements (containing in all, over three thousand full-length figures) ; and the landscapes of the country they live in, as well as a very extensive and curious collection of their costumes, and all their other manufactures, from the size of a wig- wam down to the size of a quill or a rattle. So much of myself and of my workSf which is all that I wish to say at present. Of the Indians, I have much more to say, and to the following delineations of them, and their character and customs, I shall make no further apology for requesting the attention of my readers. The Indians (as I shall call them), the savages or red men of the forests and prairies of North America, are at this time a subject of great interest and some importance to the civilized world ; rendered more particularly so in this age, from their relative position to, and their rapid declension from, the civilized nations of the earth. A numerous nation of human beings, whose origin is beyond the reach of human investigation, — whose early history is lost — whose term of national existence is nearly expired — three- fourths of whose country has fallen into the possession of civilized man within the short space of two hundred and fifty years — twelve millions of whose bodies have fattened the soil in the mean time; who have fallen victims to whisky, the small-pox, and the bayonet ; leaving at this NOBTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 23 the md 1 1 ing iS fv aen Wm .me mm the H ge. 9 ion oua 1 ach 1 t— 1 •ee- f of «^ ind aed , to his '•^1 time but a meagre proportion to live a short time longer, in the certain apprehension of soon sharing a similar fate. The writer who would undertake to embody the whole history of such a people, with all their misfortunes and calamities, must needs have much more space than I have allotted to this epitome ; and he must needs begin also (as I am doing) with those who are living, or he would be very apt to dwell upon the preamble of his work, until the present living remnants of the race should have passed away, and their existence and customs, like those of ages gone by, become subjects of doubt and incredulity to the world for whom his book was preparing. Such an his- torian also, to do them justice, must needs correct many theories and opinions which have, either ignorantly or maliciously, gone forth to the world in indelible characters; and gather and arrange a vast deal which has been but imperfectly recorded, or placed to the credit of a people who have not had the means of recording it themselves ; but have entrusted it, from necessity, to the honesty and punctuality of their enemies. In such an history should be embodied, also, a correct account of their treatment, and the causes which have led to their rapid destruction ; and a plain and systematical pro- phecy as to the time and manner of their final extinction, based upon the causes and the ratio of their former and present declension. So Herculean a task may fall to my lot at a future period, or it may not: but I send forth these volumes at this time, fresh and full of their living deeds and customs, as a familiar and unstudied introduction (at least) to them and their native character ; which I confidently hope ynU. repay the readers who read for information and historical facts, as well as those who read but for amusement. The world know generally, that the Indians of North America are copper-colored; that their eyes and their hair are black, &c. ; that they are mostly uncivilized, r.nd consequently unchristianized ; that they are nevertheless 24 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE «: human beings, with features, thoughts, reason, and sympa- thies like our own ; but few yet know how they live, how they dress, how they worship, what are their actions, their "•istoms, their religion, their amusements, &c., as they practise them in the uncivilized regions of their uninvaded country, which it is the main object of this work, clearly and distinctly to set forth. It would be impossible at the same time, in a book of these dimensions, to explain all the manners and customs of these people ; but as far as they are narrated, they have been described by my pen, upon the spot, as I have seen them transacted ; and if some few of my narrations should seem a little too highly coloured, I trust the world will be ready to extend to me that pardon which it is customary to yield to all artists whose main faults exist in the vivid- ness of their coloring, rather than in the drawing of their pictures ; but there is nothing else in them, I think, that I should ask pardon for, even though some of them should stagger credulity, and incur for me the censure of those critics, who sometimes, unthinkingly or unmercifully, sit at home at their desks, enjoying the luxury of wine and a good cigar, over the simple narration of the honest and weather-worn traveller (who shortens his half-starved life in catering for the world), to condemn him and his work to oblivion, and his wife and his little children to poverty and starvation ; merely because he describes scenes which they have not beheld, and which, consequently, they are unable to believe. The Indians of North America, as I have before said, are copper-colored, with long black hair, black eyes, tall, straight, and elastic forms — are less than two millions in number — were originally the undisputed owners of the soil, and got their title to their lands from the Great Spirit who created them on it, — were once a happy and flourishing people, enjoying all the comforts and luxuries of life which they knew of, and consequently cared for : — were sixteen millions in numbers, and sent that number of daily prayers soil, who ihing rhich tteen lyers KOBTH AMKRICAN INDIANS. 25 to the Almighty, and thanks for his goodness and protec- tion. Their country was entered by white men, but a few hundred years since ; and thirty millions of these are now scuffling for the goods and luxuries of life, over the bones and ashes of twelve millions of red men, six millions of whom have fallen victims to the small-pox, and the remain- der to the sword, the bayonet, and whisky; all of which means of their death and destruction have been introduced and visited upon them by acquisitive white men ; and by white men, also, whose forefathers were welcomed and embraced in the land where the poor Indian met and fed them with " ears of green com and with pemican." Of the two millions remaining alive at this time, about one million four hundred thousand are already the miserable living victims and dupes of the white man's cupidity, degraded, discouraged and lost in the bewildering maze that is pro- duced by the use of whisky and its concomitant vices ; and the remaining number are yet unroused and unenticed from their wild haunts or their primitive modes, by the dread or love of white man and his allurements. It has been with these, mostly, that I have spent my time, and of these, chiefly, and their customs, that the following letters treat. Their habits (and their's alone) as we can see them transacted, are native, and such as I have wished to fix and preserve for future ages. Of the dead and of those who are dying, of those who have suffered death, and of those who are now trodden and kicked through it, I may speak more fully in some deduc- tions at the close of this book ; or at some future time, when I may find more leisure, and may be able to speak of these scenes without giving offence to the world, or to any body in it. Such a portrait then as I have set forth in the following pages (taken by myself from the free and vivid realities of life, instead of the vague and uncertain imagery of recollec- tion, or from the haggard deformities and distortions of disease and death), I offer to the world for their amuse- li 26 LKTTIRS AND NOTES ON THE ment, as veil as for their information, and I trust they will pardon me, if it should be thought that I have over- estimated the Indian character, or at other times descended too much into the details and minutiaa of Indian mysteries and absurdities. The reader, then, to understand me rightly, and draw from these Letters the information which they are intended to give, must follow me a vast way from the civilized world ; he must needs wend his way from the city of New York, over the Alleghany, and far beyond the mighty Missouri, and even to the base and summit of the Rocky Mountains, some two or three thousand miles from the Atlantic coast. He should forget many theories he has read in the books, of Indian barbarities, of wanton butch- eries and murders ; and divest himself, as far as possible, of the deadly prejudices which he has carried from his childhood, against this most unfortunate and most abused part of the race of his fellow-man. He should consider, that if he has seen the savages of North America without making such a tour, he has fixed his eyes upon and drawn his conclusions (in all probability) only from those who inhabit the frontier ; whose habits have been changed — ^whose pride has been cut down — whose country has been ransacked — whose wives and daughters have been shamefully abused — whose lands have been wrested from them — whose limbs have become enervated and naked by the excessive use of whisky — whose friends and relations have been prematurely thrown into their graves — whose native pride and dignity have at last given way to the unnatural vices which civilized cupidity has engrafted upon them, to be silently nurtured and magnified by a burning sense of injury and injustice, and ready for that cruel vengeance which often falls from the hand that is palsied by refined abuses, and yet unrestrained by the glorious influences of refined and moral cultivation. That if he has laid up what he considers well-founded knowledge of these people, from books which he has read, and from NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. vr )een ited mds leir iven haa ified for tbat the 'bat ^dgo rom A newspapers only, he should paiuo at least, and withhold his sentence before ho passes it upon the character of a people who are dying at the hands of their enemies, without the means of recording their own annals — struggling in their nakedness with their simple weapons, against gun§ and gunpowder — against whisky and steel, and disease, and mailed warriors, who are continually trampling them to the earth, and at last exultingly promulgating from the very soil which they have wrested from the poor savage, the history of his cruelties and barbarities, whilst his bones are quietly resting under the very furrows which their ploughs are turning. So great and unfortunate are the disparities between savage and civil in numbers, in weapons and defences — in enterprise, in crafl, and in education, that the former is almost universally the sufferer, either in peace or in M'ar ; and not less so after his pipe and his tomahawk have retired to the grave with him, and his character is left to be entered upon the pages of history, and that justice done to his memory, which from necessity, he has intrusted to his enemy. Amongst the numerous historians, however, of these strange people, they have had some friends who have done them justice ; yet as a part of all systems of justice when- ever it is meted to the poor Indian, it comes invariably too late, or is administered at an ineffectual distance ; and that too when his enemies are continually about him, and effectually applying the means of his destruction Some writers, I have been grieved to see, ha-v written down the character of the North American Indian as dark, relentless, cruel and murderous, in the last degree ; with scarce a quality to stamp their existence of a higher order than that of the brutes : whilst others have given them a high rank, as I feel myself authorized to do, as honorable and highly intellectual beings ; and others, both friends and foes to the red men, have spoken of them as an " anomaly in nature 1" 28 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE In this place I have no time or inclinrtion to reply to so unaccountable an assertion as this ; contenting myself with the belief, that the term would be far more correctly applied to that part of the human family who have strayed farthest from nature, than it could be to those who are simply moving in, and filling the sphere for which they were designed by the Great Spirit who made them. From what I have seen of these people I feel authorized to say, that there is nothing very strange or unaccountable in their character ; but that it is a simple one, and easy to be learned and understood, if the right means be taken to familiarize ourselves with it. Although it has its dark spots, yet there is much in it to be applauded, and much to recommend it to the admiration of the enlightened world. And I trust that the reader, who looks through these vol- umes with care, will be disposed to join me in the conclu- sion that the North American Indian, in his native state, is an honest, hospitable, faithful, brave, warlike, cruel, revengeful, relentless — yet honorable, contemplative, and religious being. If such be the case, I am sure there is enough in it to recommend it to the fair perusal of the world, and charity enough in all civilized countries, in this enlightened age, to extend a helping hand to a dying race ; provided that prejudice and fear can be removed, which have heretofore constantly held the civilized portions in dread of the savage — and away from that familiar and friendly embrace, in which alone his true native character can bo justly ap- preciated. I am fully convinced, from a long familiarity with these people, that the Indian's misfortune has consisted chiefly in our ignorance of their true native cliaracter and disposition, which lias always held us at a distrustful distance from them ; inducing us to look upon them in no other light than that of a hostile foe, and worthy only of that system of continued warfare and abuse that has been for ever waged agamst them. m XOBTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 29 There is ■ > difficulty in approaching the Indian and getting acquaiuted with him in his wild and unsophisticated state, and finding him an honest and honorable man, with feelings to meet feelings, if the above prejudice and dread can be laid aside, and any one will take the pains, as I have done, to go and see him in the simplicity of his native state, smoking his pipe under his own humble roof, with his wife and children around him, and his faithful dogs and horses hanging about his hospitable tenement. So the world may see him and smoks his friendly pipe, which will be invariably extended to them ; and share, with a hearty welcome, the best that his wigwam affords for the appetite, which is always set out to a stranger the next moment after he enters. But so the mass of the world, most assuredly, will not see these people ; for they are too far off, and approachable to those only whose avarice or cupidity alone lead them to those remote regions, and whose shame prevents them from publishing to the world the virtues which they have thrown down and trampled under foot. The very use of the word savage, as it is applied in its general sense, I am inclined to believe is an abuse of the word, and the people to whom it is applied. The word, in its true definition, means no more than wild, or wild man , and a wild man may have been endowed by his Maker with all the humane and noble traits that inhabit the heart of a tame man. Our ignorance and dread or fear of these people, therefore, have given a new definition to the adjec- tive ; and nearly the whole civilized world apply the word savage, as expressive of tho most ferocious, cruel, and mur- derous character that can be described. The grizzly bear is called savage, because he is blood- thirsty, ravenous and cruel; and so is the tiger, and they, like the poor red man, have been feared and dreaded (from the distance at which ignorance and prejudice have kept us from them, or from resented abuses which we have practised V hen we have come in close contact with them,) until Van 80 LBTTEBS AND NOTES ON THE i'\ Amburgli shewed the world, that even these ferocious and unreasoning animals wanted only the friendship and close embrace of their master, to respect and to love him. As evidence of the hospitality of these ignorant and be- nighted people, and also of their honesty and honor, there •will be found recorded many striking instances in the following pages. And also, as an offset to these, many evidences of the dark and cruel, as well as ignorant and disgusting excesses of passions, unrestrained by the salutary influences of laws and Christianity. I have roamed about from time to time during seven or eight years, visiting and associating with, some three or four hundred thousand of these people, under an almost infinite variety of circumstances ; and from the very many and decided voluntary acts of their hospitality and kindness, I feel bound to pronounce them, by nature, a kind and hospitable people. I have been welcomed generally in their country, and treated to the best that they could give me, without any charges made for my board ; they have often escorted me through their enemies' country at some hazard to their own lives, and aided me in passing mountains and rivers with my awkward baggage ; and under all of these circumstances of exposure, no Indian ever betrayed me, struck me a blow, or stole from me a shilling's worth of my property that I am aware of. This is saying a great deal, (and proving it too, if the reader will believe me) in favor of the virtues of these people ; when it is borne in mind, as it should be, that there is no law in their land to punish a man for theft — that locks and keys are not known in their country — that the command- ments have never been divulged amongst them ; nor can any human retribution fall upon the head of a thief, save the disgrace which attaches as a stigma to his character, in the eyes of his people about him. And thus in these little communities, strange as it may seem, in the absence of all systems of jurisprudence, I have often beheld peace and happiness, and quiet, reigning 1 I if the |)eople; is no cs and Lmand- Lor can If, save Iter, in lit may ll have liguing NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 81 supreme, for which even kings and emperors might envy them. I have seen rights and virtue protected, and wrongs redressed; and I have seen conjugal, filial and paternal affection in the simplicity aud contentedness of nature. I have unavoidably, formed warm and enduring attachments to some of these men which I do not wish to forget — who have brought me near to their hearts, and in our final separation have embraced me in their arms, and commended me and my affairs to the keeping of the Great Spirit. For the above reasons, the reader will be disposed to forgive me for dwelling so long and so strong on the just- ness of the claims of these people ; and for my occasional expressions of sadness, when my heart bleeds for the fate that awaits the remainder of their unlucky race ; which is long to be outlived by the rocks, by the beasts, and even birds and reptiles of the country they live in ; — set upon by their fellow-man, whose cupidity, it is feared, will fix no bounds to the Indian's earthly calamity, short of the grave. I cannot help but repeat, before I close this Letter, that the tribes of the red men of North America, as a nation of human beings, are on their wane ; that (to use their own very beautiful figure) " they are fast travelling to the shades of their fathers, towards the setting sun;" and that the traveller who would see these people in their native simpli- city and beauty, must needs be hastily on his way to the prairies and Rocky Mountains, or he will see them only as they are now seen on the frontiers, as a basket of dead garner — harassed, chased, bleeding and dead ; with their plumage and colors despoiled ; to be gazed amongst in vain for some system or moral, or for some scale by which to estimate their true native character, other than that which has too often recorded them but a dark and unintelligible mass of cruelty and barbarity. Without further comments I close this Letter, introducing my readers at once to the heart of the Indian country, only asking their forgiveness for having made it so long, and their patience whilst travelling through the following pages (as I I . m 82 LETTBBS AND NOTES. journeyed through those remote realms) in search of infor- mation and rational amusement; in tracing out the true character of that ^^ strange anomaly" of man in the simple elements of his nature, undissolved or compounded into the mysteries of enlightened and fashionable life. '<:t infor- true Imple bo the LETTER No. II. MOUTH OF YELLOW STONE, VPPER MISSOURI, 1832. I ARRIVED at this place yesterday in the steamer " Yello-w Stone," after a voyage of nearly three months from St. Louis, a distance of two thousand miles, the greater part oi which has never before been navigated by steam ; and the almost insurmountable difficulties which continually oppose the voyageur on this turbid stream, have been by degrees overcome by the indefatigable /eal of Mr. Chouteau, a gen- tleman of great perseverance, and part proprietor of the boat. To the politeness of this gentleman I am indebted for my passage from St. Louis to this place, and I had also the pleasure of his company^ with that of Major Sanford, the government agent for the Missouri Indians. The American Fur Company have erected here, for their protection against the savages, a very substantial Fort, three hundred feet square, with bastions armed with ordnance ; and our approach to it, amid the continued roar of cannon for half an hour, and the shrill yells of the half affrighted savages, who lined the shores, presented a scene of the most 8 (33) 84 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE thrilling and picturesque appearance. A voyage so full of incident, and furnisLing so many novel scenes of the picturesque and romantic, as we have passed the numerous villages of the "astonished natives," saluting them with the puffing of steam and the thunder of artillery, would afford subject for many epistles ; and I cannot deny myself the pleasure of occasionally giving you some little sketches of scenes that I have witnessed, and am witnessing ; and of the singular feelings that are excited in the breast of the stran- ger travelling through this interesting country. Interesting (as I have ^aid) and luxurious^ for this is truly the land of Epicures ; we are invited by the savages to feasts of dogs' meat, as the most honorable food that can be presented to a stranger, and glutted with the more delicious food of beavers' tails, and buffaloes' tongues. You will, no doubt, be somewhat surprised on the receipt of a Letter from me, so far strayed into the Western World; and still more startled, when I tell you that I am here in the full enthu- siasm and practice of my art. That enthusiasn^ alone has brought me into this remote region, three thousand five hundred miles from my native so'.l; the last two thousand of which have furnished mc with almost unlimited models, both in landscape and the human figure, exactly suited to my feelings. I am now in the full possession and enjoy- ments of those conditions, on which alone I was induced to pursue the art as a profession ; and in anticipation of which alone, my admiration for the art could ever have been kindled into a pure flame. I mean the free use of nature's undisguised models, with tlie privilege of selecting for mysolf If I am here losing the benetit of the fleeting fashions of the day, and neglecting that elegant polish, which the world ^ay an artist should draw from a con- tinual intercourse with the polite world ; yet have I this consolation, that in this country, I am entirely divested of those dangerous steps and allurements which beset n". artist in fashionable life; and have little to steal i:.y thoughts away from the contemplation of the beautiful ,ot p.". utiful 1 M NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 85 models that are about me. If, also, I have not here the benefit of that feeling of emulation, which is the life and spur to the arts, where artists are associates together ; yet am I surrounded by living models of such elegance and beauty, that I feel an unceasing excitement of a much higher order — the certainty that I am drawing knowledge from the true source. My enthusiastic admiration of man In the honest and elegant simplicity of nature, has always fed the warmest feelings of my bosom, and shut half the avenues to my heart against the specious refinements of the accomplished world. This feeling, together with the desire to study my art, independently of the embarrassments which the ridiculous fashions of civilized society have thrown in its way, has led me to the wilderness for a while, as the true school of the arts. I have for a long time been of opinion, that the wilder- ness of our country afforded models equal to those from which the Grecian sculptors transferred to the marble such inimitable grace and beauty ; and I am now more confirmed in this opinion, since I have immersed myself in the midst of thousands and tens of thousands of these knights of the forest ; whose lives are lives of chivalry, and wBose daily feats, with their naked limbs, might vie with those of the Grecian youths in the beautiful rivalry of the Olympian games. No man's imagination, with all the aids of description that can be given to it, can ■ ver picture the beauty and wildness of scenes that may be daily witnessed in this ro- mantic country ; of hundreds of these graceful youths, with- out a care to wrinkle, or a fear to disturb the full expression of pleasure and enjoyment that beams upon their faces — their long black hair mingling with their horses' tails, float- ing in the wind, while they are flying over the carpeted prairie, and dealing death with their spears and arrows, to a band of infuriated buffaloes; or their splendid procession in a war parade, arrayed in all their gorgeous colors and trappings, moving with most exquisite grace and manly 86 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE ^1 ^"1 beauty, added to that bold defiance which man carries on his front, who acknowledges no superior on earth, and who is amenable to no laws except the laws of God and honor. In addition to the knowledge of human nature and of my art, which I hope to acquire by this toilsome and expensive undertaking, I have another in view, which, if it should not be of equal service to me, will be of no less interest and value to posterity. I have, for many years past, contem- plated the noble races of red men who are now spread over these trackless forests and boundless prairies, melting away at the approach of civilization. Their rights invaded, their morals corrupted, their lands wrested from them, their cus- toms changed, and therefore lost to the world ; and they at last sunk into the earth, and the ploughshare turning the sod over their graves, and I have flown to their rescue — not of their lives or of their race (for they are " doomed^^ and must perish,) but to the rescue of their looks and their modes, at which the acquisitive world may hurl their poison and every besom of destruction, and trample them down and crush them to death; yet, phoenix-like, they may rif'e from the " stain on a painter's palette," and live again upon canvass, and stand forth for centuries yet to come, the living monuments of a noble race. For this purpose, I have de- signed to visit every tribe of Indians on the Continent, if my life should be spared ; for the purpose of procuring por- traits of distinguished Indians, of both sexes in each tribe \)ainted in their native costume ; accompanied with pictures of their villages, domestic habits, games, mysteries, religious ceremonies, &c., jvith anecdotes, traditions, and history of their respective .nations. If I should l;ve to accomplish my design, the result of my labors will doubtless be interesting to future ages; who will have little else loft from which to judge of the original inhabitants of this simple race of beings, who require but a few years more of the march of civilization and death, to deprive them of all their native customs and character. I have been kindly supplied by the Commander-in-chief of i rORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 8; the Army and the Secretary of War, with letters to the commander of every military post, and every Indian agent on the Western Frontier, with instructions to render me all the facilities in their power, which will be of great service to me in so arduous an undertaking. The opportunity af- forded me by familiarity with so many tribes of human beings in the simplicity of nature, devoid of the deformities of art; of drawing fair conclusions in the interesting sciences of physiognomy and phrenology; of manners and customs, rites, ceremonies, &c.; and the opportunity of examining the geology and mineralogy of this western, and yet unex- plored country, will enable me occasionally to entertain you with much new and interesting information, which I shall take equal pleasure in communicating by an occasional Letter in my clumsy way. ''^itaKj^Vn^ LETTER No. III. MOUTH OP YELLOW STONE, UPPER MISSOURI. SiNCK the date of my former Letter, I have been so mucli engaged in the amusements of the country, and the use of my brush, that I have scarcely been able to drop you a line until the present moment. Before I let you into the amusements and customs of this delightful country however, (and which, as yet, are secrets to most of the world, I must hastily travel with you over the tedious journey of two thousand miles, from St. Louis to this place ; over which distance one is obliged to pass, before he can reach this wild and lovely spot. The Missouri is, perhaps, different in appearance and character from all other rivers in the world; there is a terror in its manner which is sensibly felt, the moment we enter its muddy waters from the Mississippi. From the mouth of the Yellow Stone River, which is the place from whence I am now writing, to its junction with the Missis- sippi, a distance of two thousand miles, the Missouri, with its boiling, turbid waters, sweeps off, in one unceasing current; and in the whole distance there is scarcely au (38) KORTH AMERICAN INDIiN'S. 89 ice and Ire is a lent we lorn the Ice from Missis- [ri, with [ceasing •ely an 'i. eddy or resting-place for a canoe. Owing to the continual falling in of its rich alluvial banks, its water is always turbid and opaque; having, at all seasons of the year, the color of a cup of chocolate or coffee, with sugar and cream stirred into it. To give a better definition of its density and opacity, I have tried a number of timple experiments with it at this place, and at other points below, at the results of which I was exceedingly surprised. By placing a piece of silver (and afterwards a piece of shell, which is a much whiter substance) in a tumbler of its water, and looking through the side of the glass, I ascertained that those substances could not be seen through the eighth part of an inch; this, however, is in the spring of the year, when the freshet is upon the river, rendering the water, undoubtedly, much more turbid than i), would be at other seasons ; though it is always muddy and yellow, and from its boiling and wild character and uncommon color, a stranger would think, even in its lowest state, that there was a freshet upon it. For the distance of one thousand miles above St. Louis, the shores of this river (and, in many places, the whole bed of the stream) are filled with snags and raft, formed of trees of the largest size, which have been undermined by the falling banks and cast into the stream; their roots becoming fastened in the bottom of the river, with their tops floating on the surface of the water, and pointing down the stream, forming the most frightful and discouraging prospect for the adventurous voyageur. Almost every island and sand-bar is covered with huge piles of these floating trees, and when the river is flooded, its surface is almost literallv covered with floating raft and drift-wood which bid positive defiance to keel-boats and steamers, on their way up the river. With what propriety this '* Hell of waters" might be denominated the " River Styx," I will not undertake to decide ; but nothing could be more appropriate or innocent than to call it the Kiver of Sticks. I 1^ if 40 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE The scene ia not, however, all so dreary ; tlicre is a redeeming beauty in the green and carpeted hhores, which hem in this huge and terrible deformity of waters. There is much of the way though, where the mighty forests of stately cotton-wood stand, and frown in horrid dark and coolness over the filthy abyss below ; into which they are ready to plunge headlong, when the mud and soil in which they were germed and reared have been washed out from underneath them, and with the rolling current are mixed, and on their way to the ocean. The greater part of the shores of this river, liowevcj, are without timber, where the eye is delightfully relieved by wandering over the beautiful prairies ; most of the way gracefully sloping down to the water's edge, carpeted with the deepest green, and, in distance, softening into velvet of the richest hues, entirely beyond the reach of the artist's pencil. Such is the character of the upper part of the river especially ; and as one advances towards its source, and through its upper half, it becomes more pleasing to the eye, for snags and raft are no longer to be seen ; yet the current holds its stift' and onward turbid character. It has been, heretofore, very erroneously represented to the world, that the scenery on this river was monotonous, and wanting in picturesque beauty. This intelligence is surely incorrect, and that because it has been brought per- haps, by men who are not the best judges in the world, of Nature's beautiful works; and if they were, they always pass them by, in pain or desperate distress, in toil and trembling fear for the safety of their furs and peltries, or for their lives, which are at the mercy of the yelling savages who inhabit this delightful country. One thousand miles or more of the upper part of the river, was, to my eye, like fairy-land ; and during our transit through that part of our voyage, I was most of the time rivetted to the deck of the h it, indulging my eyes in the boundless and tireless pleasure uf roaming over the tliousand hills, and bluffs, and dales, a id ravines; where NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 4!k . of the the astonished herds of buffaloes, of elks, and antelopes, and sneaking wolves, and mountain-goats, were to be seen bounding up and down and over the green fields; each one and each tribe, band, and gang, taking their own way, and using their own means to the greatest advantage possible, to leave the sight and sound of the pufTing of our boat ; which was, for the first time, saluting the green and wild shores of the Missouri with the din of mighty steam. From St. Louis to the falls of the Missouri, a distance of two thousand six hundred miles, is one continued prairie ; with the exception of a few of the bottoms formed along the bank of the river, and the streams which are foiling into it, which are often covered with the most luxuriant growth of forest timber. The summit level of the great prairies stretching off to the west and the east from the river, to an almost boundless extent, is from two to three hundred feet above the level of the river ; which has formed a bed or valley for its course, varying in width from two to twenty miles. This channel or valley has been evidently produced by the force of the current, which has gradually exca\-ated, in its floods and gorges, this immense space, and sent its d&bris into the ocean. By the continual overflowing of the river, its de- posits have been lodged and left with a horizontal surface, spreading the deepest and richest alluvion over the surface of its meadows on either side; through which the river winds its serpentine course, alternately running from one bluff to the other, which present themselves to its shores in all the most picturesque and beautiful shapes and colors imaginable — some with their green sides gracefully slope down in the most lovely groups to the water's edge; whilst others, divested of their verdure, present themselves in immense masses of clay of different colors, which arrest the eye of the traveller, with the most curious views in the world. These strange and picturesque appearances have been produced by the rains and frosts which are continually li 42 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE changing tlic dimensions, and varying the thousand shapes of these denuded hills, by washing down their sides and carrying them into the river. Amongst these groups may be seen tens and hundreds of thousands of different forms and figures, of the sublime and the picturesque; in many places for miles together, as the boat glides along, there is one continued appearance, before and behind us, of some ancient and boundless city in ruins — ramparts, terraces, domes, towers, citadels and castles may be seen, — cupolas, and magnificent porticoes, and here and there a solitary column and crumbling pedestal, and even spires of clay which stand alone — and glistening in the distance, as the sun's rays are refracted back by the thousand crysiais of gypsum which are imbedded in the clay of which they are formed. Over and through these groups of domes and battlements (as one is compelled to imagine them,) the sun sends his long and gilding rays, at morn or in the evening; giving life and light, by aid of shadows cast, to the different glowing colors of these clay-built ruins; shedding a glory over the solitude of this wild and pictured country, which no one can realize unless he travels here and looks upon it. It is amidst these wild and quiet haunts that the moun- tain-sheep, and the fleet-bounding antelope sport and live in herds, secure from their enemies, to whom the sides and slopes of these blufls (around which they fearlessly bound) are nearly inaccessible. The grizzly bear also has chosen these places for his abode ; he sullenly sneaks through the gulphs and chasms, and ravines, and frowns away the lurking Indian ; whilst the mountain-sheep and antelope are bounding over and around the hill-tops, safe and free from harm of man and beast. Such is a hasty sketch of the river scenes and scenery for two thousand miles, over which we tugged, and puffed, and blowcd, and toiled for three months, before we reached this place. Since we arrived here, the steamer has returned and left me h(;re to explore the country and visit the tribes no one for his 1 chasms, Ihilst the around least, ncry for Fed, and hod this [•eturned 10 tribes I NOBTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 48 in this vicinity, and then descend the river from this place to St. Louis ; which Tour, if I live through it, will furnish material for many a story and curious incident, which I may give you in detail in future epistles, and when I have more leisure than I have at the present moment. I vfill men undertake to tell how we astonished the natives, in many an instance, which I can in this Letter but just hint at and say adieu. If anything did ever literally and com- pletely "astonish (and astound) the natives," it was the appearance of our steamer, pufl&ng and blowing, and pad- dling and rushing by their villages which were on the banks of the river. These poor and ignorant people for the distance of two thousand miles, had never before seen or heard of a steam- boat, and in some places they seemed at a loss to know what to do, or how to act ; they could not, as the Dutch did at Newburgh, on the Hudson River, take it to be a ^^ floating saw-mill" — and they had no name for it — so it was, like every thing else (with them,) which is mysterious and unac- countable, called medicine (mystery). We had ou board one twelve-pound cannon and three or four eight-pound swivels, which we were taking up to arm the Fur Company's Fort at the mouth of Yellow Stone ; and at the approach to every village they were all discharged several times in rapid suc- cession, which threw the inhabitants into utter confusion and amazement — some of them laid their faces to the ground, and cried to the Great Spirit — some shot their horses and dogs, and sacrificed them to appease the Great Spirit, whom they conceived was offended — some deserted their villages and ran to the tops of the bluffs some miles distant ; and others, in some places, as the boat landed in front of their villages came with great caution, and peeped over the bank of the river to see the fate of their chiefs, whose duty it was (from the nature of their office) to approach us, whether friends or foes, and to go on board. Sometimes, in this plight, they were instantly thrown ' neck and heels' over each other's heads and shoulders — 44 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE men, women and children, and dogs — sage, sachem, old and young — all in a mass, at the frightful discharge of the steam from the escape-pipe, which the captain of the boat let loose upon them for his own fun and amusement. There were many curious conjectures amongst their wise men, with regard to the nature and powers of the steam- boat. Amongst the Mandans, some called it the "big thunder canoe :" for when in distance below the village, they " saw the lightning flash from its sides, and heard the thunder come from it ;" others called it the " big medicine canoe with eyes ;" it was medicine (mystery) because they couFd not understand it ; and it must have eyes, for said they, " it sees its own way, and takes the deep water in the middle of the channel." They had no idea of the boat being steered by the man at the wheel, and well they might have been astonished at its taking the deepest water. I may (if I do not forget it) hereafter give you an. account of some other curious inci- dents of this kind, which wc met with in this voyage ; for we met many, and some of them were really laughable. The Fort in which I am residing was built by Mr. M'Kenzie, who now occupies it. It is the largest and best- built establishment of the kind ou the river, being the great or principal head-quarters and depot of the Fur Company's business in this region. A vast stock of goods is kept ou hand at this place ; and at certain times of the year the numerous out-posts concentrate here with the returns of their season's trade, and refit out with a fresh supply of goods to trade with the Indians. The site for the Fort is well selected, being a beautiful prairie on the bank near tlie junction of the Missouri with the Yellow Stone rivers ; and its inmates and its stores well protected from Indian assaults. Mr. M'Kenzie ia a kind-hearted and high-minded Scotch- man ; and seems to have charge of all the Fur Companies' business in this region, and from this to the Kocky Mountains. He lives in good and comfortable style inside '1 NOKTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 46 Scotch- npanies' Kocky e inside of the Fort, which contains some eight or ten log-houses and stores, and has generally forty or fifty men, and one hundred and fifty horses about him. He has, with the same spirit of liberality and politeness with which Mens. Pierre Chouteau treated me on my passage up the river, pronounced me welcome at his table, which groans under the luxuries of the country; with bufialo meat and tongues, with beavers' tails and marrow- fat; but sans cofiee, sans bread and butter. Good' cheer and good living we get at it, however, and good wine also ; for a bottle of Madeira and one of excellent Port are set in a pail of ice every day, and exhausted at dinner. At the hospitable board of this gentleman I found also another, who forms a happy companion for mine host; and whose intellectual and polished society has added not a little to my pleasure and amusement since I arrived here. The gentleman of whom I am speaking is an Englishman, by the name of Hamilton, of the most pleasing and enter- taining conversation, whose mind seems to be a complete store-house of ancient and modern literature and art ; and whoso free and familiar acquaintance with the manners and men of his country gives him the stamp of a gentleman, who has had the curiosity to bring the embellishments of the enlightened world, to contrast with the rude and the wild of these remote regions. "We three bans vivants form the group about the dinner- table, of which I have before spoken, and crack our jokes and fun over bottles of Port and Madeira, and a consider- able part of which, this gentleman has brought with great and precious care from his own country. This post is the general rendezvous of a great number of Indian tribes in these regions, who are continually con- centrating here for the purpose of trade; sometimes coming, the whole tribe together, in a mass. There are now here, and encamped about the Fort, a great many, and I am continually at work with my brush ; we have around us at this time the Knisteneaux, Crows, Assinno- ^V'i h 'J'' "I '■■I,. 46 LETTERS AND NOTES. boins and Blackfeet, and in a few days are to have large accessions. The finest specimens of Indians on the Continent are in these regions; and lefore I leave these parts, I shall make excursions into their respective countries, to their own native fire-sides; and there study their looks and peculiar customs : enabling me to drop you now and then an interesting Letter. The tribes which I shall be enabled to see and study b;, my visit to this region, are the Ojibbe- ways, the Assinneboins, Knisteneaux, Blackfeet, Crows, Shiennes, Grosventres, Mandans, and others ; of whom and their customs, their history, traditions, costumes, &c., I shall in due season, give you further and minute accounts. ve large lent are I shall to their aka and .nd then enabled 5 Ojibbe- Crows, hom and [?., I shall its. I m .*v LETTER— No. IV. MOUTH OF YELLOW STONE. The several tribes of Indians inhabiting the regions ol the Upper Missouri, and of whom I spoke in my last Letter, are undoubtedly the finest-looking, best equipped, and most beautifully costumed of any on the Continent. They live in a country well-stocked with buffaloes and wild horses, which furnish them an excellent and easy living; their at- mosphere is pure, which produces good health and long life ; and they are the most independent and the happiest races of Indians I have met with : they are all entirely in a state of primitive wildness, and consequently are picturesque and handsome, almost beyond description. Nothing in the world, of its kind, can possibly surpass in beauty and grace, some of their games and amusements — their gambols and parades, of which I shall speak and paint hereafter. As far as my travels have yet led me into the Indian country, I have more than realized my former predictions that those Indians who could be found most entirely in a (47) m 48 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE state of nature, with the least knowledge of civilized society, ■would be found to be the most cleanly in their persons, elegant in their dress and manners, and enjoying life to the greatest perfection. Of such tribes, perhaps the Crows and Blackfoet stand first; and no one would be able to appreciate the richness and elegance (and even taste too,) with which some of these people dress, without seeing them in their own country. I will do all I can, however, to make their looks as well as customs known to the world ; I will paint with my brush and scribble with my pen, and bring their plum> s and plumage, dresses, weapons &c., and every thing but the Indian himself, to prove to the world the assertions which I have made above. Every one of these red sons of the forest (or rather of the prairie) is a knight and lord — his squaws are his slaves; the only thing which he deems worthy of his exertions are to mount his snorting steed, with his bow and qui\cr slung, his arrow-shield upon his arm, and his long lance glistening in the war-parade ; or, divested of all his plumes and trap- pings, armed with a simple bow and quiver, to })lunge his steed amongst the flying herds of buft'aloes, and with his sinewy bow, which he seldom bends in vain, to drive deep to life's fountain the whizzing arrow. The bullalo herds which graze in almost countless num- bers on these beautiful prairies, afford them an abundance of meat ; and so much is it preferred to all other, that the deer, the elk, and the antelope sport upon the prairies in herds in the greatest security; as the Indians seldom kill them, unless they want their skins for a dress. The bufliilo (or more correctly speaking bison) is a noble animal, that roams over the vast prairies, from the borders of Mexico on the south, to Hudson's Bay on the north. Their size is somewhat above that of our common bullock, and their flesh of a delicious flavor, resembling and equalling that of fat beef. Their llesh which is easily procured, furnishes the savages of these vast regions the means of a wholesome and good subsistence, and they live almost exclusively upou it NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 49 society, persons, fe to the ■0W9 and ^pieoiate tla which in their ake their rill paint ing their ery thing assertions rather of lis slaves; iftions are \cr slung, glistening 1 and trap- plunge his . with his Irive deep tless num- ihundance that the •rairies in ieldom. kill 'he buffalo inmal, that iMexico on cir size is their flesh that of fat •nishcs the t'somo and ily upon it — converting the skins, horns, hoofs and bones, to the con- Btruction of dresses, shields, bows, «Scc. The buffalo bull ia one of the most formidable and frightful-looking animals in the world when excited to resistance; his long shaggy mane hangs in great profusion over his neck and shoulders, and often extends quite down to the ground. The cow is less in stature, and less ferocious; though not much less wild and frightful in her appearance. AMERICAN BISON — FEJIALT. IX TUE DISTANCE. The mode in which these Indians kill this noble animal is spirited and thrilling in the extreme ; and I must, in a future epistle, give you a minute account of it. I have almosi daily accompanied parties of Indians to see the fun, and have often shared in it myself; but much oftener ran my horse by their sides, to see how the thing was done — to study the modes and expressions of these splendid scenes, which I am industriously putting upon the canvass. They are all (or nearly so) killed with arrows and the lance, while at full speed ; and the reader may easily im- n i 60 LETTERS AND NOTES ON" THE agine, that these scenes afford the most spirited and pictur- esque views of the sporting kind that can possibly be seen. At present, I will give a little sketch of a bit of fun I joined in yesterday, with Mr. M'Kenzie and a number of his men, without the company or aid of Indians. I mentioned the other day, that M'Kenzie's table from day to day groans under the weight of buffalo tongues and beavers' tails, and other luxuries of this western land. He has within his Fort a spacious ice-house, in which he pre- serves his meat fresh for any length of time required: and sometimes, when his larder runs low, he starts out, rallying some five or six of his best hunters (not to hunt, but to "go for meat.") He leads the party, mounted on his favorite buffalo horse {i. e. the horse amongst his whole group which is best trained to run the buffalo,) trailing a light and short gun in his hand, such an one as he can most easily reload whilst his horse is at full speed. Such was the condition of the ice-house yesterday morn- ing, which caused these self-catering gentlemen to cast tlieir eyes with a wishful look over the prairies ; and such was the plight in which our host took the lead, and I, and then Mens. Chardon, and Ba'tiste, D<5fonde and TuUock (who is a trader amongst the Crows, and is here at this time, with a large party of that tribe,) and there were several others whose names I do not know. As we were mounted and ready to start, McKenzie called up some four or five of his men, and told them to follow immediately on our trail, with as many one-horse carts, which they were to harness up, to bring home the meat; "ferry them across the river in the scow," said he, "and following our trail through the bottom, you will find us on the plain yonder, between the Yellow Stone and the Missouri rivers, with meat enough to load you home. My watch on yonder bluff has just told us by his signals, that there are cattle a plenty on that spot, and we are going there as fast as possible." We all crossed the river, and galloped away a couple of miles or so, when we mounted WOKTH AHF"'CAJS' INDIAJIS. CI d pictur- be seen. of fun I imber of ble from gues and md. He I be pre- .red: and , rallying ut to "go 3 favorite lup wbich and short ily reload lay morn- cast their such 'was and then (who is ime, with ral others ^fcKenzie them to one-horse lome the said he, will find )tone and ou home. signals, are going river, and mounted ■t ■?ii' the bluff; and to be sure, as was said, there was in full view of us a fine herd of some four or five hundred buffaloes, perfectly at rest, and in their own estimation (probably) perfectly secure. Some were grazing, and others were lying down and sleeping ; we advanced within a mile or so of them in full view, and came to a halt. Mons. Chardon •' tossed the feather" (a custom always observed, to try the course of the wind), and we commenced " strip- ping" as it is termed (t. e. every man strips himself and his horse of every extraneous and unnecessary appendage of dress, &c., that might be an incumbrance in running) : hats are laid off, and coats — and bullet-pouches; sleeves are rolled up, a handkerchief tied tightly around the head, and another around the waist — cartridges are prepared and placed in the waist-coat pocket, or a half dozen bullets "thro wed into the mouth," &c., &c., all of which takes up some ten or fifteen minutes, and is not, in appearance or in effect, unlike a council of war. Our leader lays the whole plan of the chase, and preliminaries all fixed, guns charged and ramrods in our hands, we mount and start for the onset. The horses are all trained for this business, and seem to enter into it with as much enthusiasm, and with as restless a spirifr as the riders themselves. While " strip- ping" and mounting, they exhibit the most restless im- patience ; and when " approaching" — (which is, all of us abreast, upon a slow walk, and in a straight line towards the herd, until they discover us and run), they all seem to have caught entirely the spirit of the chase, for the laziest nag amongst them prances with an elasticity in his step — champing his bit — his ears erect — ^his eyes strained out of his head, and fixed upon the game before him, whilst he trembles under the saddle of his rider. In this way we carefully and silently marched, until within some forty or fifty rods; when the herd discovering us, wheeled and laid their course in a mass. At this instant we started I (and all mist start, for no one could check the fury of those steeds at that moment of excitement,) and away all sailed, and 1-M ;i r ! ■! 62 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE over the prairie flew, in a cloud of dust which was raised by their trampling hoofs, McKenzie was foremost in the throng, and soon dashed off amidst the dust and was out of sight — he was after the fattest and the fastest. I had dis covered a huge bull whose shoulders towered above the whole band, and I picked my way through the crowd to get alongside of him. I went not for " meat," but for a trophy; I wanted his head and horns. I dashed along through the thundering mass, as they swept away over the plain, scarcely able to tell wliether I was on a buffalo's back or my horse — hit, and hooked, and jostled about, till at length I found myself alongside of my game, when I gave him a shot, as I passed him. I saw guns flash in several directions about mo, but I heard them not. Amidst the trampling throng, Mons. Chardon had wounded a stately bull, and at this moment was passing him again with his piece levelled for another shot ; they were both at full speed and I also, witliin the reach of the muzzle of my gun, when the bull instantly turned receiving the horse upon his horns, and tlie ground received poor Chardon, who made a frog's leap of some twenty feet or more over the bull's back and almost under my horse's heels. I wheeled my horse as soon as pt)ssible and rode back, where lay poor Chardon, gasping to start his breath again ; and within a few paces of him his huge victim, with his heels high in the air, and tlie horse lying across him. I dismounted instantly, but Chardon was raising himself on his hands, with his eyes and mouth full of dirt, and feeling for his gun, which lay about thirty feet in advance of him. " Heaven spare you 1 are you hurt Chardon ?" " hi — hie hie hie hie ^hio -hie no no, I believe not. -no, Oh ! this is not much. Mens. Cataline — this is nothing new — but this is a hard piece of ground here — hie — oh ! hie 1" At this the poor fellow fainted, but in a few moments arose, picked up his gun, took his horse by the bit; v/hich then opened lUi eyes, and with a hie and a ugh — ughk ! sprang IS raised 5t in the 19 out of had dis )ove the !rowd to lut for a id along over the buffalo's bout, till , when I flash in Amidst >undcd a im again irere both nuzzle of ving the kd poor ;y feet or y horse's and rodo lis breath o victim, ng across raising of dirt, feet in rou hurt hie ieve not. hing new )h! hid" nts arose, ch then ! sprang NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 53 upon its feet— shook off the dirt— and here we were, all upon our legs again, save the bull, whose fate had been more sad than that of either. I turned my eyes in the direction where the herd had gone, and our companions in pursuit, and nothing could be seen of them, nor indication, except the cloud of dust which they left behind them. At a little distance on the right, however, 1 beheld my huge victim endeavoring to make as much head-way as he possibly could, from this dangerous ground, upon three legs. I galloped off to him, and at my approach he wheeled around — and bristled up for battle ; he seemed to know perfectly well that he could not escape from me, and resolved to meet his enemy and death as bravely as possible. I found that my shot had entered him a little too far forward, breaking one of his shoulders, and lodging in his breart, and from his very great weight it was impossible for hun to make much advance upon me. As I rode up within a few paces of him, he would bristle up with fury enough in his hoha alone, almost to annihilate me, and making one lunge at me, would fall upon his neck and nose, so that I found the sagacity of my horse alone enough to keep me out of reach of danger : and I drew from my pocket my sketch-book, laid my gun across my lap, and commenced taking his likeness. He stood stiffened up, and swelling with awful vengeance, which was sublime for a picture, but which he could not vent upon me. I rode around him and sketched him in numerous attitudes, sometimes he would lie down, and I would then sketch him; then throw my cap at him, and rousing him on his legs, rally a new expression, and sketch him again. lu this way I added to my sketch-book some invaluable sketches of this grim-visaged monster, who knew not that he was standing for his likeness. No man on earth can imagine what is the look and ex- pression of such a subject before him as this was. I defy the world to produce another animal that can look so fright- ■1 64 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE ftil 03 a huge buffalo bull, when wounded as he was, turned around for battle, and swelling with rage;— his eyes blood- shot, and his long Bhag::y mane hanging to the ground,— his mouth open, and his horrid rage hissing in streams of .k*'. 66 LETTERS AND NOTES. Oa our return to tlie Fort, a bottle or two of wine were set forth upon the table, and around it a half dozen parched throats were soon moistened, and good cheer ensued. Ba'tiste, D^fonde, Chardon, &o., retired to their quarters, enlarging smoothly upon the events of our morning's work ; which they were reciting to their wives and sweet-hearts ; when about this time the gate of the Fort was thrown open, and the procession of carts and packhorses laden with buf- falo meat made its entree; gladdening the hearts of a hun- dred women and children, and tickling the noses of as many hungry dogs and puppies, who were stealing in and smell- ing at the tail of the procession. The door of the ice-house was thrown open, the meat was discharged into it, and I being fotigued, went asleep. rl k ine were I parclicd ensued, quarters, ^'s work; 3t-hearts ; iwn open, with buf- of a hun- •■ as many- ad smell- ice-house it, and I LETTER No. V. MOUTH OF YELLOW STONE, UPPER MISSOURI. In my f «rmer epistle I told you there were encamped about the Tort a host of wild, incongruous spirits — chiefs aiul sachems — warriors, braves, and women and children of different tribes— of Crows and Blackfeet — Ojibbeways — Assinneboins — and Crees or Knisteneaux. Amongst and in the midst of them am I, with my paint-pots and canvass, snugly ensconced in one of the bastions of the Fort, which I occupy as a painting-room. My easel stands before me, and the cool breech of a twelve-pounder makes me a comfortable seat, whilst her muzzle is looking out at one of the portholes. The operations of my brush are mysteries of the highest order to these red sons of the prairie, and (57) 53 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE my room the earliest and latest place of concentration of these wild and jealous spirits, who all meet here to be amused and pay me signal honors; but gaze upon each other, sending their sidelong looks of deep-rooted hatred and revenge around the group. However, whilst in the Fort, their weapons are placed within the arsenal, and naught but looks and thoughts can be breathed here ; but death and grim destruction will visit back those looks upon each other, when these wild spirits again are loose and free to breathe and act upon the plains. I have this day been painting a portrait of the head chief of the Blaokfoot nation. He is a good-looking and dignified Indian, about fifty years of age, and superbly dressed. Whilst sitting for his picture he has been sur- rounded by his own braves and warriors, and also gazed at by his enemies, the Crows and the Knisteneaux, Assinne- boins and Ojibbeways: a number of distinguished per- sonages of each of which tribes, have laid all day around the sides of my room ; reciting to each other the battles they have fought, and pointing to the scalp-locks, worn as proofs of their victories, and attached to the seams of their shirts and leggings. This is a curious scene to witness, when one sits in the midst of such inflammable and com- bustible materials, brought together, unarmed, for the first time in their lives ; peaceably and calmly recounting over the deeds of their lives, and smoking their pipes upon it, when a few weeks or days will bring them on the plains again, where the war-cry will be raised, and their deadly bows will again be drawn on each other. The name of this dignitary, of whom I have just spoken, is Stu-mick-o-sucks (the buffalo's back fat), i. e. the " hump" or " fleece," the most delicious part of the buffalo's flesh. There is no tribe, perhaps, on the Continent, who dress more comfortably, and more gaudily, than the Blackfeet, unless it be the tribe of Crows. There is no great difference, however, in the costliness or elegance of their costumes ; nor in the materials of which they are formed ; though NORTH AMEKICAN INDIANS. 59 atration of here to be upon each )ted hatred lilst in the rsenal, and i here ; but hose looks a are loose )f the head joking and id superbly I been sur- [so gazed at X, Assinne- iiished per- day around the battles iks, worn as ,ms of their to witness, le and com- id, for the recounting pipes upon 1 the plains leir deadly ust spoken, le " hump" o's flesh, who dress Blackfeet, difference, costumes ; )d; though there is a distinctive mode in each tribe, of stitching or ornamenting with the porcupine quills, which constitute one of the principal ornaments to all their fine dresses ; and which can be easily recognized, by any one a little ferailiar with their modes, as belonging to such or such a tribe. The dress, for instance of the chief whom I have just mentioned, consists of a shirt or tiinic, made of two deer skins finely dressed, and so placed together with the necks of the skins downwards, and the skins of the hind legs stitched together, the seams running down on each arm, from the neck to the knuckles of the hand; this seam is covered with a band of two inches in width, of very beautiftil embroidery of porcupine quills, and sus- pended from the under edge of this, from the shoulders to the hands, is a fringe of the locks of black hair, which L \\ar. taken from the heads of victims slain by his own he "u battle. The leggings are made also of the same r ..T-iil; and down the outer side of the leg, from the hip to the feet, extends also a similar band or belt of the same width ; and wrought in the same manner, with porcupine quills, and fringed with scalp- locks. These locks of hair are procured from scalps, and worn as trophies. The wife (or squaw) of this dignitary Eeh-nis-kin (the crystal stone), I have also placed upon my canvass ; her countenance is rather pleasing, which is an uncommon thing amongst the Blackfeet — her dress is made of skins, and being the youngest of a bevy of six or eight, and the last one taken under his guardianship, was smiled upon with great satisfaction, whilst he exempted her from the drudgeries of the camp ; and keeping her continually in the halo of his own person, watched and guarded her as the apple of his eye. The grandson also of this sachem, a boy of six years of age, and too young as yet to have acquired a name, has stood forth like a tried warrior ; and I have painted him at full length with his bow and quiver slung, and his robe made of a racoon skin. The history of this child is somewhat curious and interesting ; his father ij Jl 60 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE dead, and in case of the death of the chief, of whom I have spoken, he becomes hereditary chief of the tribe. This boy has been twice stolen away by the Crows by ingenious stratagems, and twice re-captured by the Blackfeet, at con- siderable sacrifice of life, and at present he is lodged with Mr. M'Kenzie, for safe keeping and protection, until he shall arrive at the proper age to take the ofl&ce to which he is to succeed, and able to protect himself. SCAU'INO. The scalp of which I spoke above, is procured by cutting out a piece of the skin of tlie head, the size of the palm of the hand or less, containing the very centre or crown of the head, the place where the hair radiates from a point, and exactly over what the phrenologists call self-esteem. This patch then is kept and dried with great care, as proof posi- NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 61 lom I have ribe. This J ingenious feet, at con* odged with 1, until he e to which by cutting he palm of rown of tlio point, and Jem. This proof posi- tive of the death of an enemy, and evidence of a man's claims as a warrior; and after having been formally "danced" as the saying is, (i. c. after it has been stuck up upon a pole or held up by an "old woman," and the warriors have danced around it for two or three weeks at intervals,) it is fastened to the handle of a lance, or the end of a war-club, or divided into a great many small locks and used to fringe and ornament the victor's dress. When these dresses are seen bearing such trophies, it is of course a difficult matter to purchase them of the Indian, for they often hold them above all price. I shall hereafter take occasion to speak of the scalp-dance; describing it in all its parts, and giving a long Letter, at the same time on scalps and scalping, an interesting and general custom amongst all the North American Indians. In the chief's dress, which I am describing, there are his moccasins, made also of buckskin, and ornamented in a corresponding m^ner. And over all, his robe, made of the skin of a young buffalo bull, with the hair remaining on; and on the inner or flesh side, beautifully garnished with porcupine quills, and the battles of his life very in- geniously, though rudely, portrayed in pictorial represen- tations. In his hand he holds a very beautiful pipe, the stem of which is four or five feet long, and two inches wide, curiously wound with braids of porcupine quills of various colors; and the bowl of the pipe ingeniously carved by himself from a piece of red steatite of an interesting charac- ter, and which they all tell me is procured somewhere between this place and the Falls of St. Anthony, on the head waters of the Mississippi. This curious stone has many peculiar qualities', and has, undoubtedly, but one origin in this country, and perhaps in the world. It is found but in the hands of the savage, and every tribe and nearly every individual in the tribe has his pipe made of it. I consider this stone a subject of great interest, and curiosity to the world; and I shall most as- suredly make it a point, during my Indian rambles, to visit 62 LETTBRS AND NOTES ON THK 12 f ! 1 .if the place from whence it is brought I have already got a number of most remarkable traditions and stories relating to the "sacred quarry;" of pilgrimages performed there to procure the stone, and of curious transactions that have taken place on that ground. It seems, from all I can learn, that all the tribes in these regions, and also of the Missis- sippi and the Lakes, have been in the habit of going to that place, and meeting their enemies there, whom they are obliged to treat as friends, under an injunction of the Great Spirit. So then is this sachem (the buffalo's back fat) dressed; and in a very similar manner, and almost the same, is each of the others above named; and all are armed with bow and quiver, lance and shield. These north-western tribes are all armed with the bow and lance, and protected with the shield or arrow-fender, which is carried outside of the left arm, exactly as the Roman and Grecian shield was carried, and for the same purpose. There is an appearance purely classic in the plight and equipment of these warriors and "knights of the lance." They are almost literally always on their horses' backs, and they weild their weapons with desperate effect upon the open plains; where they kill their game while at full speed, and contend in like manner in battles with their enemies. There is one prevailing custom in these respects, amongst all the tribes who inhabit the great plains or prairies of these western regions. These plains afford them an abun- dance of wild and fleet horses, which are easily procured ; and on their backs at full speed, they can come alongside of any animal, which they easily destroy. The bow with which they are armed is small, and appar- ently an insignificant weapon, though one of great and almost incredible power in the hands of its owner, whose sinews have been from childhood habituated to its use and service. The length of these bows is generally about three feet, and sometimes not more than two and a half. They have, no doubt, studied to get the requisite power in the NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 68 smallest compass possible, as it is more easily and handily used on horseback than one of greater length. The greater number of these bows are made of ash, or of "bois d'arc" (as the French call it,) and lined on the back with layers of buflfalo or deer's sinews, which are inseparably attached to them, and give them great elasticity. There are very many also (amongst the piacV-*"' and Crows) which are made of bone, and others o 6 no. of the mountain-she < .. .'hose made of bone are decideaiy the most valuable, and can- not in this country be procured of a good quality short of the price of one or two horses. About these there is a mystery yet to be solved, and I advance my opinion against all theories that I have heard in the country where they are used and made. I have procured several very fine speci- mens, and when purchasing them have inquired of the Indians, what bone they were made of? and ia every in- stance, the answer was, "that's medicine," meaning that it was a mystery to them, or that they did not wish to be questioned about them. The bone of which they are made is certainly not the bone of any animal now grazing on the prairies, or in the mountains between this place and the Pacific Ocean ; for some of these bows are three feet in length of a solid piece of bone, and that as close-grained — as hard — as white, and as highly polished as any ivory ; it cannot, therefore be made from the elks' horn (as some have sup- posed), which is of a dark color and porous : nor can it come from the buffalo. It is my opinion, therefore, that the Indians on the Pacific coast procure the bone from the jaw of the sperm whale, which is often stranded on that coast, and bringing the bone into the mountains, trade it to the Blackfeet and Crows, who manufacture it into these bows without knowing any more than we do, from what source it has been procured. One of these little bows in the hands of an Indian, on u fleet and well trained horse, with a quiver of arrows slung on his back, is a most effective and powerful weapon in the open plains. No one can easily credit the force with 64 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE which these missiles are thrown, and the sanguinary effects produced by their wounds, until he has rode by the side of a party of Indians in chase of a herd of buffaloes, and wit- nessed the apparent ease and grace with which their supple arms have drawn the bow, and seen these huge animals tumbling down and gushing out their hearts' blood from their mouths and nostrils. Their bows are often made of bone and sinews, and their arrows headed with flints or with bones, of their own con- struction, or with steel as they are now chiefly furnished by the Fur Traders quite to the Eocky Mountains. The quiver, which is uniformly carried on the back, and made of the panther or otter skins, is a magazine of these deadly weapons, and generally contains two varieties. The one to be drawn upon an enemy, generally poisoned, and with long flukes or barbs, which are designed to hang the blade in the wound after the shaft is withdrawn, in which they are but slightly glued; — the other to be used for their game, with the blade firmly fastened to the shaft, and the flukes inverted; that it may easily be drawn from the wound, and used on a future occasion. Such is the training of men and horses in this country, that this work of death and slaughter is simple and easy. The horse is trained to approach the animals on the right side enabling its rider to throw his arrows to the left ; it runs and approaches without the use of the halter, which is hanging loose upon its neck bringing the rider within three or four paces of the animal, when the arrow is thrown with great ease and certainty to the heart; and instances sometimes occur, where the arrow passes entirely through the animal's body. An Indian, therefore, mounted on a fleet and well-trained horse, with his bow in his hand, and. his quiver slung on his back, containing an hundred arrows, of which he can throw fifteen or twenty in a minute, is a formidable and dangerous enemy. Many of them also ride with a lance of twelve or fourteen feet in length, with a blade of polished NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 6u steel ; and all of them (as a protection for their vital parts,) with a shield or arrow-fender made of the skin of the buffalo's neck, which has been smoked, and hardened with glue extracted from the hoofs. These shields a^e arrow- proof, and will glance off a rifle shot with perfect effect by being turned obliquely, which they do with great skill. This shield or arrow-fender is, in my opinion, made of similar materials, and used in the same way, and for the same purpose, as was the clypeus or small shield in the Roman and Grecian cavalry. They were made in those days as a means of defence on horseback only — made small and light, of bull's hides; sometimes single, sometimes double and tripled. Such was Hector's shield, and of most of the Homerio heroes of the Greek and Trojan wars. In those days also were darts or javelins and lances ; the same were also used by the Ancient Britons ; and such exactly are now in use amongst the Arabs and the North American Indians. In this wise then, are all of these wild red knights of the prairie, armed and equipped, — and while nothing can possibly be more picturesque and thrilling than a troop or war-party of these fellows, galloping over these green and endless prairies, there can be no set of mounted men of equal numbers, so effective and so invincible in this country as they would be, could they be inspired with confidence of their own powers and their own superiority ; yet this never can be done ; — for the Indian, as far as the name of white man has travelled, and long before he has to try his strength with him, is trembling with fright and fear of his approach; he hears of white man's arts and artifice — his trioks and cunning, and his hundred instru- ments of death and destruction — he dreads his approach, shrinks from him with fear and trembling — his heart sickens, and his pride and courage wither, at the thoughts of contending with an enemy, whom he thinks may war and destroy with weapons of medicine or mystery. Of the Blackfeet, whom I mentioned in the beginning of 66 LBTTKRS AND NOTES ON THB ri-TOH-FKE-KISS. this Letter, and whose portraits are now standing in my room, there is another of whom I must say a few words ; Pe-toh-pee-kiss, (the eagle ribs). This man is one of the extraordinary men of the Blackfoot tribe; though not a chief, ho stands here in the Fort, and deliberately boasts of eight scalps, which he says he has taken from the heads of trappers and traders with his own hand. His dress is really Buperb, almost literally covered with scalp-locks, of vage and civil. NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 67 I have painted him at full length, with a head-dress made entirely of ermine skins and horns of the bufifalo. This custom of wearing horns beautifully polished and surmounting the head-dress, is a very curious one, being worn only by the bravest of the brave ; by the most extra- ordinary men in the nation. When he stood for his picture, he also held a lance and two •' medicine-bags" in his hand ; of lances I have spoken, — but " medicine-bags" and " medicine" will be the text for my next Letter. Besides the chiefs and warriors above-named, I have also transferred to my canvass the "looks and very resem- blance" of an aged chief, who combines with his high office, the envied title of mystery or medicine-man, i. e. doctor — magician — prophet — soothsayer — jongleur — and high priest, all combined in one person, who necessarily is looked upon as •* Sir Oracle" of i,he nation. The name of this distinguished functionary is Wun-nes-tou, (the white buffalo ;) and on his left arm he presents his mystery-drum or tambour, in which are concealed th» hidden and sacred mysteries of his healing art. And there is also In-neocose, (the iron horn,) at full length, in a splendid dress, with his " medicine-bag" in his hand; and Ah-kay-ee-pix-en, (the woman who strikes many,) in a beautiful dress of the mountain-goats' skin, and her robe of the young buffalo's hide. TVR TRADERS. LETTER No. VI. MOUTH OF YKLLOW STONE, UPPER lUISSOURI. Now for medicines or mysteries — for doctors, high- priests, for hocus pocus, witchcraft, and animal magnetism ! In the last Letter I spoke of I'e-toh-pee-kiss (the eagle ribs), a Blackfoot brave, whose portrait I had just painted (68) NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 60 ligh- Ism! jagle ited at ftiU length, in a splendid dress. I mentioned also, that ho hold two medicine-bags in his hand ; as they are repre- sented in the picture ; both of them made of the skins ot otters, and curiously ornamented with ermine, and other strange things. I must needs stop here — my painting and every thing else — until I can explain the word " medicine" and ^^medicine- hag /" and also some medicine operations, which I have seen transacted at this place within a few days past. " Medi- cine" is a great word in this country ; and i!. is very necessary that one should know the meaning of it, whilst ho is scanning and estimating the Indian character, which is made up, in a great degree, of mysteries and superstitions. The word medicine, in its common acceptation here, means mystery, and nothing else : and in that sense I shall use it very frequently in my Notes on Indian Manners and Customs. The Fur Traders in this country, are nearly all French ; and in their language, a doctor or physician, is called " Medicin.^' The Indian country is full of doctors ; and as they are all magicians, and skilled, or profess to be skilled, in many mysteries, the word " medecin" has become habi- tually applied to every thing mystorioas or unaccountable ; and the English and Americans, who are also trading and passing through this country, have easily and familiarly adopted the same word, with a slight alteration, conveying the same meaning; and to be a little more explicit, they have denominated these personages "medicine-r:;..'n,* which means something more than merely a doctor or physician. These physicians, however, are all medicine-men, aa they are all supposed to deal more or less in mysteries and charms, which are aids and handmaids in their practice. Yet it was necessary to give the word or phrase a still more comprehensive mcaninp* — as there were many per- sonages amongst them, and also amongst the white men who visit the country, who could deal in mysteries, though not skilled in the application of drugs and medicines ; 70 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE 4i'.'.i and they all range now, under the comprehensive and accommodating phrase of " medicine-men," For instance, I am a '* medicine-man" of the highest order amongst these superstitious people, on account of the art which I practice ; which is a strange and unaccountable thing to them, and of course, called the greatest of " medicine." My gun and pistols, which have percussion-locks, are great medicine; and no Indian can be prevailed on to fire them off, for they say they have nothing to do with white man's medicine. The Indians do not use the word medicine, however ; but in each tribe they have a word of their own con- struction, synonymous with mystery or mystery-man. The " medicine-bag" then, is a mystery-bag ; and its meaning and importance necessary to be understood, as it may be said to be the key to Indian life and Indian character. These bags are constructed of the skins of animals, of birds, or of reptiles, and ornamented and pre- served in a thousand different ways, as suits the taste or freak of the person who constructs them. These skins are generally attached to some part of the clothing of the Indian, or carried in his hand — they are oftentimes deco- rated in such a manner as to be exceedingly ornamental to his person, and always are stviffed with grass, or moss, or something of the kind ; and generally without drugs or medicines within them, as they are religiously closed and scaled, and seldom, if ever, to be opened. I fined that every Indian in his primitive state, carries his medicine- bag in some form or other, to which he pays the greatest homage, and to which he looks for safety and protection through life — and in fact, it might almost be called a species of idolatry ; for it would seem in some instances, as if he actually worshipped it. Feasts are often made, an(|^ dogs and horses sacrificed, to a man's medicine ; and days, and even weeks, of fasting and penance of various kinds are often suffered, to appease his medicine, which he imagines he has in some way offended. jirious Ich be NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 71 This curious custom has principally been done away with along the frontier, where white men laugh at the Indian for the observance of so ridiculous and useless a form : but in this country it is in full force, and every male in the tribe carries this, his supernatural charm or guardian, to ■< lich he looks for the preservation of his life, in battle or in other danger; at which times it would be considered ominous of bad luck and an ill fate to be without it. The manner in which this curious and important article is instituted is this : a boy, at the age of fourteen or fifteen years, is said to be making or " forming his medicine," when he wanders away from his father's lodge, and absents himself for the space of two or three, and sometimes even four or five days ; lying on the ground in some remote or secluded spot, crying to the Great Spirit, and fasting the whole time. During this period of peril and abstinence, when he falls asleep, the first animal, bird, or reptile, of which he dreams (or pretends to have dreamed, perhaps), he considers the Great Spirit has designated for his mysterious protector through life. He then returns home to his father's lodge, and relates his success; and after allaying his thirst, and satiating his appetite, he sallies forth with weapons or traps, until he can procure the animal or bird, the skin of which he preserves entire, and ornaments it according to his own foncy, and carries it with him through life, for " good luck" (as he calls it) ; as his strength in battle — and in death his guardian Spirit, that is buried with him, and which is to conduct him safe to the beautiful hunting grounds, which he contemplates in the world to come. The value of the medicine-bag to the Indian is beyond all price ; for to sell it, or give it away, would subject him to such signal disgrace in his tribe, that he could never rise above it ; and again, his superstition would stand in the way of any such dispositiou of it, for he considers it the gift of the Great Spirit. An Indian carries his medicine-hag into battle, and trusts to it for his protection ; and if he K TO LETTKRS XSli MOTES ON TUE P 11 loses it thus, when fighting ever ao bravely for his country, he suffers a disgrace scarcely less than that which occurs in case he sells or gives it away ; his enemy carries it off and displays it to his own people as a trophy ; whilst the loser is cut short of the respect that is due to other young men of his tribe, and for ever subjected to the degrading epithet of "a man without medicine," or "he who has lost his medicine," until he can replace it again ; which can only be done, by rushing into battle and plundering one from an enemy whom he slays with his own hand. This done his medicine is restored, and he is reinstated again in the estimation of his tribe ; and even higher than before, for such is called the best of medicine, or " medicine honorabhr It is a singular fact, that a man can institute his mystery or medicine, but once in his life ; and equally singular that he can reinstate himself by the adoption of the mcdicino of his eneniy ; both of which reguiotions are strong and violent inducements for him to fight bravely in battle : the first, that he may protect and preserve his medicine ; and the second, in case he has been so unlucky as to lose it, tha*^ he may restore it, and his reputation also, while he is desperately contending for the protection of his community. During my travels thus far, I have been unable to buy a mcdicinc-bag of an Indian, although I have oft'ered them extravagant prices for them ; and even on the frontier, where they have been induced to abandon the practice, though a white man may induce an Indian to relinquish his medicine, yet he cannot buy it of him — the Indian in such caso will bury it, to please a white man, and save it from his sacrilegious touch ; and he will linger around the spot and a' regular times visit it and pay it his devo- tions, as long as he lives. These curious appendages to the persons or wardrobe of an Indian are sometimes made of the skin of an otter, a beaver, a musk-rat, a weazcl, a raccoon, a polecat, a snake, a frog, a toad, a bat, a mouse, a mole, a hawk, an eagle, a magpie, or a sparrow : — sometimes of the skin of an animal NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. t8 BO large as a wolf; and at others, of the skins of the lesser animals, so small that they are hidden under the dress, and very difficult to be found, even if searched for. Such then is the medicine-bag — such its meaning and importance ; and when its owner dies, it is placed in his grave and decays with his body. This is but the beginning or incipient stage of " medi- cines," however, in this strange and superstitious country ; and if you have patience, I will carry you a few de- grees further into the mysteries of conjuration, before I close this Letter. Sit still then and read, until I relate a scene of a tragic, and yet of the most grotesque character, which took place in this Fort a few days since, and to all of which I was an eye-witness. The scene I will relate as it transpired precisely ; and call it the story of the " doctor," or the " Blackfoot medicine-man." Not many weeks since, a party of Knisteneaux came . here from the north, for the purpose of making their summer's trade with the Fur Company : and, whilst here a party of Blackfeet, their natural enemies (the same who are here now), came from the west, also to trade. These two belligerent tribes encamped on different sides of the Fort, and had spent some weeks here in the Fort and about it, in apparently good feeling and fellowship, unable in fact to act otherwise, for, according to a regulation of the Fort, their arms and weapons were all locked up by M'Kenzie in his " arsenal," for the purpose of preserving the peace amongst these fighting-cocks. The Knisteneaux had completed their trade, and loitered about the premises, until all, both Indians and white men, were getting tired of their company, wishing them quietly oflF. When they were ready to start, with their goods packed upon their backs, their arms were given them, and they started ; bidding everybody, both friends and foes, a hearty farewell. They went out of the Fort, and though the party gradually moved off, one of them undiscovered, loitered about the Fort, until he got an opportunity to 74 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE poke the muzzle of his gun through between the piquets ; when he fired it at one of the chiefs of the Blackfeet, who stood within a few paces, talking with Mr. M'Kenzie, and shot him with two musket buUetj through the centre of his body 1 The Blackfoot fell, and rolled about upon the ground in the agonies of death. The Blackfeet who were in the Fort seized their weapons and ran in a mass out of the Fort, in pursuit of the Knisteneaux, who were rapidly retreating to the bluffs. The Frenchmen in the Fort, also, at so flagrant and cowardly an insult, seized their guns and ran out, joining the Blackfeet in the pursuit. I, at that moment, ran to my painting-room in one of the bastions overlooking the plain, where I had a fair view of the affair ; many shots were exchanged back and forward, and a skirmish ensued which lasted half an hour; the parties, however, were so far apart that little effect was produced ; the Knisteneaux were driven off" over the bluffs, haviiig lost one man and had several others wounded. The Blackfeet and Frenchmen returned into the Fort, and then, I saw what I never before saw in my life — I saw a " medicine-'ma7i" performing his mysteries over a dying man. The man who had been shot was still living, though two bullets had passed through the centre of his body, about two inches apart from each other ; ho was lying on the ground in the agonies of death, and no one could indulge the slightest hope of his recovery ; yet the medicine- man must needs bo called (for such a personage they had in their party), and hocus pocus applied to the dying man, as the dernier resort, when all drugs and all specifics were useless, and after all possibility of recovery was extinct I I have mentioned that all tribes have their physicians who are also medicine (or mystery) men. These profes- sional gentlemen arc worthies of the highest order in all the tribes. They are regularly called and paid as physicians, to prescribe for the sick ; and many of them acquire great skill in the medicinal world, and gain much celebrity in their nation. Their first prescriptions are roots and herbs, I ri. NOKTH AMERICAN' INDIANS. 76 of which they have a great variety of species ; and when these have all failed, their last resort is to *^ medicine^' or mystery; and for this purpose, each one of them has a strange and unaccountable dress, conjured up and con- structed during a life-time of practice, in the wildest fancy imaginable, in which he arrays himself, and makes his last visit to his dying patient, — dancing over him, shaking his frightful rattles, and singing songs of incantation, in hopes to cure him by a charm. There are some instances, of course, where the exhausted patient unaccountably recovers, under the application of these absurd forms ; and in such cases this ingenious son of Esculapius will be seen for several days after, on the lop of a wigwam, with his right hand extended and waving over the gaping multitude, to whom he is vaunting forth, without modesty, the surprising skill he has acquired in his art, and the undoubted efficacy of his medicine or mystery. But if, on the contrary, the patient dies, he soon changes his dress, and joins in doleful lamentations with the moamers ; and easily, with his craft and the ignorance and superstition of his people, protects his reputation and maintains his influence over them ; by assuring them, that it was the will of the Great Spirit that his patient should die, and when sent for, his feeble efforts must cease. Such was the case, and such the extraordinary means resorted to in the instance I am now relating. Several hundred spectators, including Indians and traders, were assembled around the dying man, when it was announced that the ^^ medicine-man^^ was coming; we were required to •'form a ring," leaving a space of some thirty or forty feet in diameter, in which the doctor could perform his wonder- ful operations ; and a space was also opened to allow him free room to pass through the crowd without touching any one. This being done, in a few moments his arrival was announced by the death-like " hush sh " through the crowd ; and nothing was to be heard, save the light and casual tinkling of the rattles upon his dress, which was Hm** ■■v-:^-:\ X;:- ,. i:4- lit H 5;^^^ '*■-■■**.,: ■^■'■. ^M'' "^M rS ' 'Hs ^^^M .♦ .■■ ;it!^ ■•■ ,■' (• '' .-M ■W^ m m iSKL.,,: .^.^- i 76 LBTTEBS AND NOTES ON THE scarcely perceptible to the ear, as he cautiously and slowly moved through the avenue left for him ; which at length brought him into the ring, in view of the pitiable object over whom his mysteries were to be performed. Headers 1 you may have Been or read of the witch of Endor — or you may imagine all the ghosts, and spirits, and furies, that ever ranked amongst the "rank and file" of demonology ; and yet you must see my painting of this strange scene before you can form a just conception of real frightful ugliness and Indian conjuration — yes, and even more: you must see the magic dress of this Indian "big bug" (which I have this day procured in all its parts), placed upon the back of some person who can imitate the stvi les and swells, the grunts, and spring the rattles of, an Indian magician. His entrfee and his garb were somewhat thus : — he ap- proached the ring with his body in a crouching position, with a slow and tilting stop — ^his body and head were entirely covered with the skin of a yellow bear, the head of which (his own head being inside of it) served as a mask ; the huge claws of which also, were dangling on his wrists and ancles; in one hand he shook a frightful rattle, and in the other brandished his medicine-spear or magic wand ; to the rattling din and discord of all of which, he add^d the wild and startling jumps and yelps of the Indian, and the horrid and appaUing grunts, and snarls, and growls of the grizzly bear, in ejaculatory and guttural incantations to the Good and Bad Spirits, in behalf of his patient ; who was rolling and groaning in the agonies of death, whilst he was dancing around him, jumping over him, and pawing him about, and rolling him in every direction. In this wise, this strange operation proceeded for half an hour, to the surprise of a numerous and death-like silent audience, until the man died ; and the medicine-man danced off to his quarters, and packed up, and tied, and secured from the sight of the world, his mystery dress and equip- ments. he an lent Lced tred lip- NORTH AlOEBICAK mSIANS. 77 THE MEDICIIiE HAN, FBOH CATLIN'S PAINTING. This dress, in all its parts, is one of the greatest curiosi ties in the whole collection of Indian manufactures. It is the strangest medley and mixture, perhaps of the mysteries of the animal and vegetable kingdoms that ever was seen. Besides the skin of the yellow bear (which being almost an anomaly in that country, is out of the regular order of nature, and, of course, great medicine, and converted to a medicine use), there are attached to it the skins of many animals, which are also anomalies or deformities, which render them, in their estimation, medicine; and there are also the skins of snakes and fronts and bats — ^beaks and 78 LETTERS AND NOTES. toes and tails of birds, — hoofs of deer, goats, and antelopes , and, in iact, the "odds and ends," and fag ends, and tails, and tips of almost everything that swims, flies, or runs, in this part of the wide world. Such is a medicine-man or a physician, and such is one of his wild and ridiculous manoBUvres, which I have just witnessed in this strange country. These mon, as I before remarked, are valued as dignita- ries in the tribe, and the greatest respect is paid to them by the whole community; not only for their skill in their "materia medica;"but more especially for their tact in magic and myLturies, in which they all deal to a very great extent. I shall have much more to say of these characters and their doings in future epistles, and barely observe in the present plaoe, that no tribe is without them ; — that in all tribes their doctors are conjurors — are magicians — are soothsayers, and I had like to have said, high-priests, inasmuch as ihey superintend and conduct all their relig- iout ceremonies ; — they are looked upon by all as oracles 0^ the nation. In all councils of war and peace, they have a seat with the chiefs — are regularly consulted before any public step is taken, and the greatest deference and respect is paid to their opinions. LETTER No. VII. MOUTH OP YELLOW STONE, UPPER MISSOURI. The Letter which I gave you yesterday, on the subject of *' medicines" and medicine-men," haa somewhat broken the '* thread of my discourse ;" and left my painting-room (in the bastion,) and all the Indians in it, and portraits, and buffalo hunts, and landscapes of these beautiful regions, to be taken up and discussed ; which I will now endeavor to do, beginning just where I left (or digre. ;ed) off. I was seated on the cool breech of a twelve-pounder, and had my easel before me, and Crows and Blackfeet, and Assineboins, whom I was tracing upon the canvass. And so I have been doing to-day, and shall be for several days to come. My painting-room has become so great a lounge, and I so great a " medicine-man," that all other amuse- ments are left, and all other topics of conversation and gossip are postponed for future consideration. The chiefs have had to place "soldiers" (as they are called) at my (79) 80 LETTERS AND NOTES ON TUB door, with spears in hand to protect me from the throng, who otherwise would press upon me ; and none but the worthies are allowed to come into my medicine apart- ments, and none to be painted, except such as are decided by the chiefs to bo worthy of so high an honor. .^ ;-- - The Crows and Blackfeet who are here together, are enemies of the most deadly kind while out on the plains ; but here they sit and smoke quietly together, yet with a studied and dignified reserve. The Blackfeet are, perhaps, one of the most (if not entirely the most) numerous and warlike tribes on the Continent. They occupy the whole of the country about the sources of the Missouri, from this place to the Rocky Mountains; and their numbers, from the best computa- tions, are something like forty or fifty thousand — they are (like all other tribes whose numbers are sufficiently large to give them boldness) warlike and ferocious, i. e. they are predatory, are roaming fearlessly about the country, even into and through every part of the Rocky Mountains, and carrying war amongst their enemies, who are, of course, every tribe who inhabit the country about them. The Crows who live on the head waters of Yellow Stone, and extend from this neighborhood also to the base of the Rocky Mountains, are similar in the above respects to the Blackfeet; roaming about a great part of the year — and seeking their enemies wherever they can find them. They are a much smaller tribe than the Blackfeet, with whom they are always at war, and from whose great numbers they suffer prodigiously in battle ; and probably will be in a few years entirely destroyed by them. The Crows have not, perhaps, more than seven thousand in their nation, and probably not more than eight hundred warriors or fighting men. Amongst the more powerful tribes, like the Sioux and Blackfeet, who have been enabled to preserve their warriors, it is a fair calculation to count one in five as warriors ; but among the Crows and Minatarees, and Puncahs, and several other small but I I are Tellow ba3e pects year hem. with great jably usand dred vrerful been ilation rra and 1 but NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 81 warlike tribes, this proportion cannot exist ; as in some of these I have found two or three women to a man in the nation; in consequence of the continual losses sustained amongst their men in war, and also whilst pursuing the buft'alocs on the plains for food, where their lives are exceedingly exposed. The Blackfeet and the Crows, like the Sioux and Assinncboins, have nearly the same mode of constructing their wigwam or lodge ; in which tribes it is made of buflfalo skins sewed together, after being dressed, and made into the form of a tent ; supported within by some twenty or thirty pine poles of twenty-five feet in height, with an apex or aperture at the top, through which the smoke escapes and the light is admitted. These lodges, or tents, are taken down in a few minutes by the squaws, when they wish to change their location, and easily transported to any part of the country where they wish to encamp ; and they generally move some six or eight times in the course of the summer; following the immense herds of buflaloes, as they range over these vast plains, from east to west, and north to south. The objects for which they do this are two-fold — to procure and dress their skins, which are brought in, in the fall and winter, and sold to the Fur Company, for white man's luxury; and also for the purpose of killing and drying buffalo meat, which they bring in from their hunts, packed on their horses' backs, in great quantities ; making pemican, and preserving the marrow-fat for their winter quarters ; which aru generally taken up in some heavy-timbered bottom, on the banks of some stream, deep imbedded within the surrounding bluffs, which break off the winds, and make their long and tedious winter tolerable and supportable. They then sometimes erect their fikin lodges amongst the timber, and dwell in them during the winter months ; but more frequently cut logs and make a miserable and rude sort of log cabin, in which they can live much warmer and better protected from the assaults of their enemies, in case they 6 vAm ■■■ii fi tn- ■BSum 82 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE are attacked ; in which case a log cabin is a tolerable fort against Indian weapons. The Crows, of all the tribes in this region, or on the Continent, make the most beautiful lodge. As I have before mentioned, they construct them as the Sioux do, and make them of the same material ; yet they oftentimes dress the skins of which they are composed almost as AN INDIAN I.0DOK white as linen, and beautifully garnish them with porcu- pine quills, and paint and ornament them in such a variety of ways, as renders them exoeedin^ly picturesque and agreoable to the eye. I have procured a very beautiful rt he ve io, les as ml horcu- liricty and lutilul NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 83 one of this description highly-ornamented, and fringed with scalp-locks, and sufficiently large for forty men to dine under. The poles which support it are about thirty in number, of pine, and all cut in the Kocky Mountains, having been some hundred years, perhaps, in use. This tent, when erected, is about twenty-five feet high, and has a very pleasing effect; with the Great or Good Spirit painted on one side, and the Evil Spirit on the other. The manner in which an encampment of Indians strike their tents and transport them is curious, and to the traveller in this country a very novel and unexpected sight when he flrst beholds it. Whilst ascending the river to this place, I saw an encampment of Sioux, consisting of six hundred of these lodges, struck, and all things packed and on the move in a very few minutes. The chief sends his runners or criers (for such all chiefs keep in their employment) through the village, a few hours before they are to start ; announcing his determination to move, and the hour fixed upon, and the necessary preparations are in the meantime making; and at the time announced, the lodge of the chief is seen flapping in the wind, a part of the poles having been taken out from under it ; thir is the signal, and in one minute, six hundred of them (on !\ level and beautiful prairie), which before had been sfcraineJ • '^ht and fixed, were seen waving and flapping in the win-", and in one minute more allVere flat upon the ground. Their horses and dogj, of which they had a vast number, had all been secured upon the spot, in readiness; pa'M each one was speedily loaded with the burthen allotted to it, and ready to fall into the grand procession. For this strange cavalcade, preparation is made in the following manner: the poles of a lodge are divided into two bunches, and the little ends of each bunch fastened upon the shoulders or withers of a horse, leaving the butt ends to drag behind on the ground on either side. Just behind the horse, a brace or pole is tied across, which keeps the poles in their respective places ; and then upon ■ * IM i MM 84 LKTTEKS AND NOTES ON THE that and the poles behind the horse, is placed the lodge or tent, which is rolled up, and also numerous other articles of household and domestic furniture, and on the top of all, two, three, and even (sometimes) four women and children ! Each one of these horses has a conductress, who sometimes walks before and leads it, with a tretjendous pack upon her own back ; and at others trS 88 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE was the fact, that they had a good and sufficient reason for it. These gentlemen, with their party, were crossing the Crow country with a large stock of goods, of guns, and ammunition, of knives, and spears, arrow-heads, &c. ; and stopped for some time and encamped in the midst of the Crow country (and I think wintered there,) when the Crows assembled in large numbers about them, and treated them in a kind and friendly manner ; and at the same time proposed to trade with them for guns and ammunition, &c., (according to these gentlemen's own account,) of which they were in great want, and for which they brought a great many horses, and offered them repeatedly in trade ; which they refused to take, persisting in their determination of carrying their goods to their destined place, across the mountains ; thereby disappoint- ing these Indians, by denying them the arms and weapons which were in their possession, whilst they were living upon them, and exhausting the game and food of their country. No doubt, these gentlemen told the Crows, that these goods were going to Astoria, of which place they knew nothing; and of course, it was enough for them that they were going to take them farther west; which they would at once suppose was to the Blackfeet, their principal enemy, having eight or ten warriors to one of the Crows ; where they supposed the white men could get a greater }iiice for their weapons, and arm their enemies in such a way as would enable them to turn upon the Crows, and cut them to pieces without mercy. Under these circum- stances^, the Crows rode off, and to show their indignation, drove off some of the Company's horses, for which they have ever since been denominated a bind of thieves and highway robbers. It is a custom, and a part of the system of jurisprudence amongst all savages, to revenge upon the I)erson or persons who give the offence, if they can ; and if not, to let that punishment fall upon the head of the first white man who comes in their way, provided the offender I 1 ^^^n and um- 1 ion, ;l H ,hcy |i ■ and teia the >dif first 1 ^M ider 1 i NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. §9 was a white man. And I would not be surprised, there- fore, if I get robbed of my horse ; and you too, readers, if you go into that country, for that very (supposed) ofifence. I have conversed often and much with Messrs. Sublette and Campbell, two gentlemen of the highest respectability, who have traded with the Crows for several years, and they tell me they are one of the most honorable, honest, and high-minded races of people on earth ; and with Mr. Tullock, also, a man of the strictest veracity, who is now here with a party of them ; and, he says, they never steal, have a high sense of honor, — and being fearless and proud, are quick to punish or retaliate. So much for the character of the Crows for the present, a subject which I shall assuredly take up again, when I shall ixave seen more of them myself. O i 'Hi " ti Cl 5, . ''•■[sHv LEJTER No. Vni. MOUTH OF YEI LOW STONE, UPPER MISSOURI. SiS'i'K iny Irist Letter, nothing of great moment has trivn-pired at tlii>> j)lacc ; but I have been continually employed in painting my portraits and making notes on the character and eustoms of the wild folks who are about me, I have just been painting a number of the Crows, fine looking and noble gentlemen. They are really a hand- some and wcllforracd set of men as can be seen in any part of the world. There is a sort of ease and grace added t) their dignity of uiannors, which gives them the air of gentlemen at once. I observed the other day, that most ct them were uver six feet high, and very many of these have cultivated their natural hair to such an almost acredibl'' length, that it s^'eeps the ground as they walk • fJO) NORTH AMERICAJS^ INDIANS. 91 there are frequent instances of tliis kind amongst tlicra, and in some cases, a foot or more of it will drag on the grass as they walk, giving exceeding grace and beauty to their movements. They usually oil their hair with a profusion of bear's grease e' ery morning, which is no doubt one cause of the unusual length to which their hair extends; though it cannot be the sole cau of it, for the other iribes throughout this country usl the bear's grease in equal profusion without producin the same results. The Mandans, however, and the Si'^ '' whom I shall speak in future epistles, have cultiv.cLcd a very great growth of the hair, as many of them are seen whose hair reaches near to the ground. This extraordinary length of hair amongst the Crows is confined to the men alone ; for the women, though all of them with glossy and beautiful hair, and a great profusion of it, are unable to cultivate it to so great a length ; or else they are not allowed to compete with their lords in a, fashion so ornamental (and on which the men so highly pride themselves), and are obliged in many cases to cut it short off The fashion of long hair amongst the men, prevails throughout all the "Western and North Western tribes, after passing the Sacs and Foxes ; and the Pawnees of the Platte, who, with two or three other tribes only, are in the habit of shaving nearly the whole head. The present chief of the Crows, who is called " Long hair," and has received his name as well as his office from the circumstance of having the longest hair of any man in the nation, I have not yet seen : but I hope I yet may, ere I leave this part of the country. This extraordinary man is known to several gentlemen with whom I am acquainted, and particularly to Messrs. Sublette and Campbell, ot wlioin I have before spoken, who told me they had lived in his hospitable lodge for months together ; and assured mo that they had measured his hair by a correct means, and found it to be ten feet and seven inches in length ; closely IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 1.1 U|2e |Z5 |jo "^^ Hl^^ 1^ Ui 12.2 ? "^ lis 1.25 111.4 11.6 Photographic Sciences Corporation 33 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14580 (716) S73-4S03 % fr= 92 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE inspecting every part of it at the same time, and satisfying themselves that it was the natural growth. On ordinary occasions it is wound with a broad leather strap, from his head to its extreme end, and then folded up into a budget or block, of some ten or twelve inches in length, and of some pounds weight ; which when he walks is carried under his arm, or placed in his bosom, within the folds of his robe ; but on any great parade or similar occa- sion, his pride is to unfold it, oil it with bear's grease and let it drag behind him, some three or four feet of it spread out upon the grass, and black and shining like a raven's wing. It is a common custom amongst most of these upper tribes, to splice or add on several lengths of hair, by fastening them with giue; probably for the purpose of imitating the Crows, upon whom alone Nature has be- stowed this conspicuous and signal ornament. Amongst the Crows of distinction now at this place, I have painted the portraits of several, who exhibit some striking peculiarities. Amongst whom is Chah-ee-chopes, (the four wolves,) a fine-looking fellow, six feet in stature, and whose natural hair sweeps the grass as he walks ; he is beautifully clad, and carries himself with the most graceful and manly mien — he is in mourning for a brother; and according to their custom, has cut off a number of locks of his long hair, which is as much as a man can well spare of so valued an ornament, which he has been for the greater part of his life cultivating ; whilst a woman ' lio mourns for a husband or child, is obliged to crop her hair short to her head, and so remain till it grows out again ; ceasing gradually to mourn as her hair approaches to its former length. > I have also painted Pa-ris-ka-roo-pa (two crows) the younger, one of the most extraordinary men in the Crow nation ; not only for his looks, from the form of his head, which seems to be distortion itself — and curtailed of all its fair proportions; but from his extraordinary sagacity as a counsellor and orator, even at an early stage of his life. KOBTH AMERICAir INDIANS. 93 I the Crow head, all its Bity aa lis life. There is something very uncommoii in this outline, and sets forth the striking peculiarity of the Crow tribe, though rather in an exaggerated form. The semi-lunar outline of the Crow head, with an exceedingly low and retreating forehead, is certainly a very peculiar and striking charac- teristic ; and though not so strongly marked in most of the tribe as in the present instance, is sufficient for their detection whenever they are met ; and will be subject for further comment in another place. The Crow women (and Blackfeet also) are not handsome, and I shall at presout say but little of them. They are like all other Indian women, the slaves of their husbands : being obliged to perform all the domestic duties and drudgeries of the tribe, and not allowed to join in their religious rites or ceremonies, nor in the dance or other amusements. The women in all these upper and western tribes are decently dressed, and many of them with great beauty and taste ; their dresses are all of deer or goat skins, extending from their chins quite down to the feet; these dresses are in many instances trimmed with ermine, and ornamented with porcupine quills and beads with exceeding ingenuity. The Crow and Blackfeet women, like all others I ever saw in any Indian tribe, divide the hair on the forehead, and paint the separation or crease with vermilion or red earth. For what purpose this little, but universal, custom is observed, I never have been able to learn. The men amongst the Blackfeet tribe, have a fashion equally simple, and probably of as little meaning, which seems strictly to be adhered to by every man in the tribe ; they separate the hair in two places on the forehead, leaving a lock between the two, of an inch or two in width, which is carefully straightened down on to the bridge of the nose, and there cut square off. It is more than probable that this is done for the purpose of distinction ; that they may thereby be free from the epithet of effeminacy, which might otherwise attach to them. 94 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE These two tribes, whom I have spoken of connectedly, speak two distinct and entirely dissiptiilar languages ; and the language of each is different, and radically so, from that of all other tribes about them. As these people are always at war, and have been, time out of mind, they do not inter- marry or hold converse with each other, by which any knowledge of each other's language could be acquired. It would be the work of a man's lifetime to collect the languages of all the different tribes which I am visiting ; and I shall, from necessity, leave this subject chiefly for others, who have the time to devote to them, to explain them to the world. I have, however, procured a brief vocabulary of their words and sentences in these tribes ; and shall continue to do so amongst the tribes I shall visit, which will answer as a specimen or sample in each. The Blackfeet are, perhaps, the most powerful tribe of Indians on the Continent; and being sensible of their strength, have stubbornly resisted the Traders in their country, who have been gradually forming an acquaintance with them, and endeavoring to establish a permanent and profitable system of trade. Their country abounds in beaver and buffalo, and most of the fur-bearing animals of North America ; and the American Fur Company, with an unconquerable spirit of trade and enterprize, has pushed its establishments into their country ; and the numerous parties of trappers are tracing up their streams and rivers, rapidly destroying the beavers which dwell in them. The Black- feet have repeatedly informed the Traders of the Company, that if their men Persisted in trapping beavers in their country, they should kill them whenever they met them. They have executed their threats in many instances, and the Company lose some fifteen t'^ twenty men annually, who fall by the hands of these )le, in defence of what they deem their property and tL^./ rights. Trinkets and whisky, however, will soon spread their charms amongst these, as they have amongst other tribes ; and white man's voracity will sweep the prairies and the streams of their lan's Ibheir NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 95 wealth, to the Eocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean; leaving the Indians to inhabit, and at last to starve upon, a dreary and solitary waste. The Blackfeet, therefore, having been less traded with, and less seen by white people than most of the other tribes, are more imperfectly understood; and it yet remains a question to be solved — whether there are twenty, or forty or fifty thousand of them ? for no one, as yet, can correctly estimate their real strength. From all I can learn, however, which is the best information that can be got &om the Traders, there are not far from forty thousand Indians (altogether), who range under the general denomination of Blackfeet. From our slight and imperfect knowledge of them, and other tribes occupying the country about the sources of the Missouri, there is no doubt in my mind, that we are in the habit of bringing more Indians into the computation, than are entitled justly to the appellation of "Blackfeet" Such, for instance, are the "Grosventres de Prairie" and Cotonnfes, neither of which speak the Blackfeet language ; but hunt, and eat, and fight, and intermarry with the Blackfeet ; living therefore ir a state of confederacy and friendship with them, but speaking their own language, and practising their own custom.. The Blackfeet proper are divided into four bands or families, as follow: — the "Pe-a-gans," of five hundred lodges ; the " Blackfoot " band, of four hundred and fifty lodges; the "Blood" band, of four hundred and fifty lodges; and the "Small Robes," of two hundred and fifty lodges. These four bands constituting about sixteen hundred and fifty lodges, averaging ten to the lodge, amount to about sixteen thousand five hundred souls. There are then of the other tribes above-mentioned (and whom we, perhaps, incorrectly denominate Blackfeet), Grosventres des Prairies, four hundred and thirty lodges, with language entirely distinct ; Circees, of two hundred 96 LKTTEBS AND NOTES ON THE and twenty lodges, and Cotonnds, of two hundred and fifty lodges, with language also distinct from either * There is in this region a rich and interesting field for the linguist or the antiquarian; and stubborn facts, I think, if they could be well procured, that would do away the idea which many learned gentlemen entertain, that the Indian languages of North America can all be traced to two or three roots. The language of the Daacotas is entirely and radically distinct from that of the Mandans, and theirs equally so from the Blackfoot and the Crows. And from the lips of Mr. Brazeau, a gentleman of education and strict observation, who has lived several years with the Blackfeet and the Shiennes, and who speaks the language of tribes on either side of them, assures me that these languages are radically distinct and dissimilar, as I have above stated ; and also, that although he has been several years amongst those tribes, he has not been able to trace the slightest resemblance between the Circee, Cotonne, and Blackfoot, and Shienne, and Crow, and Mandan tongues; and from a great deal of corroborating information, which I have got from other persona acquainted with these tribes, I am fully convinced of the correctness of his. statement. Besides the Blackfeet and Crows, whom I told you were assembled at this place, are also the Knisteneaux (or Crees, as they are commonly called), a very pretty and pleasing tribe of Indians, of about three thousand in number, living on the north of this, and also the Assinneboins and Ojibbe- ways ; both of which tribes also inhabit the country to the north and north-east of the mouth of Yellow Stone. The Knisteneaux are of small stature, but well-built for * Several years since writing the above, I held a conversation with Major Pilchcr (a strictly correct and honorable man, who was then the agent for these people, who has livrd amongst them, and is at this time superintendent of Indian affairs at St. Louis), who informed me, liiuch to my surprise, that the Blackfeet were not far from sixty thousand in numbers, including all the confederacy of which I have just spoken. t?!* NORTH AMEBIOAK INDIANS. 07 strength and activity combined ; are a people of wonderful prowess for their numbers, and have waged an unceasing warfare with the Blaokfeet, who are their neighbors? and enemies on the west^ From their disparity in numbers, they are rapidly thinning the ranks of their warriors, who bravely sacrifice their lives in contentions with their powerful neighbors. This tribe occupy the country from the mouth of the Yellow Stone, in a north-western direction, ikr into the British territory, and trade princi- pally at the British N. W. Company's Posts. The Assinneboins of seven thousand, and the Ojibbeways of six thousand, occupy a vast extent of country, in a north-eastern direction from this ; extending also into the British possessions as high north as Lake Winnepeg ; and trading principally with the British Company. These three tribes are in a state of nature, living as neighbors, and are also on terms of friendship with each other. This friendship, however, is probably but a temporary arrange- ment, brought about by the Traders amongst them ; and which, like most Indian peace establishments, will be of short duration. ;.!;;.;•",'!] .^.-f f ::l ";i;v/ oilvi jiinj ;; The Ojibbeways are, undoubtedly, a part of the tribe of Chippeways, with whom we aro more familiarly acquainted, and who inhabit the south-west shore of Lake Superior. Their language is the same, though they are separated several hundred miles from any of them, and seem to have no knowledge of them, or traditions of the manner in which, or of the time when, they became severed from each other. Tho Assinneboins are a part of the Dahcotas, or Sioux, undoubtedly ; for their personal appearance as well as their language is very similar. At what time, or in what manner, these two parts of a nation got strayed away from each other is a mystery ; yet such cases have often occured, of which I shall say more in future. Large parties who are straying off in pursuit of game, 7 or in the occupation of war, are oftentimes M 98 LEITEBS AXD NOTES OK THE intercepted by their enemy; and being prevented from returning, are run ofif to a distant region, where they take up their residence and establish themselves as a nation: There is a very curious custom amongst the Assinne- boins, from which they have taken their name; a name given them by their neighbors, from a singular mode they have of boiling their meat, which is done in the following manner : — when they kill meat, a hole is dug in the ground about the size of a common pot, and a piece of the raw hide of the animal, as taken from the back, is put over the hole, and then pressed down with the hands close around the sides, and filled with water. The meat to be boiled is then put in this hole or pot of water ; and in a fire, which is built near by, several large stones are heated to a red heat, which are successively dipped and held in the water until the meat is boiled ; from which singular and peculiar custom, the Ojibbeways have given them the appellation of Assinneboins or stone boilers. This custom is a very awkward and tedious one, and used only as an ingenious means of boiling their meat, by a tribe who was too rude and ignorant to construct a kettle or pot. The Traders have recently supplied these people with pots; and even long before that, the Mandans had in- structed them in the secret of manufacturing very good and serviceable earthen pots ; which together have entirely done away the custom, excepting at public festivals ; where they Sbjm, like all others of the human family, to take pleasure in cherishing and perpetuating their ancient customs. The Assinneboins, or stone boilers, are a fine and noble looking race of Indians ; bearing, both in their looks and customs, a striking resemblance to the Dahcotas or Sioux, from whom they have undoubtedly sprung. The men are tall, and graceful in their movements; and wear their pictured robes of the buffalo hide with great skill and pleasing effect They are good hunters, and tolerably Dble land >ux, are Ibeir and lably NORTH AMEHIOAK INDIANS. 0» supplied yrith horses ; and living in a country abounding with buffaloes, are well supplied with the necessaries ot Indian life, and may be said to live well. Their games and amusements are many, of which the most valued one is the ball-play ; and in addition to which, they have the game of the moccasin, horse-racing, and dancing; some one of which, they seem to be almost continually practicing, and of all of which I shall hereafter give the reader (as well as of many others of their amusements) a minute account. Their dances, which were frequent and varied, were generally exactly the same as those of the Sioux, of which I have given a faithful account in my Notes on the Sioux, and which the reader will soon meet with. There was one of these scenes, however, that I witnessed the other day, which appeared to me to be peculiar to this tribe, and exceedingly picturesque in its eflfect ; which was described to me as the pipe-dance^ and was as follows : — On a hard- trodden pavement in front of their village, which place is used for all their public meetings, and many of their amusements, the young men, who were to compose the dance, had gathered themselves around a small fire, and each one seated on a buffalo-robe spread upon the ground. In the centre and by the fire, was seated a dignitary, who seemed to be a chief (perhaps a doctor or medicine-man), with a long pipe in his hand, which he lighted at the fire and smoked incessantly, grunting forth at the same time, in half-strangled gutturals, a sort of song, which I did not get translated to my satisfaction, and which might have been susceptible of none. While this was going on, another grim visaged fellow in another part of the gi'oup commenced beating on a drum or tambourine, accompanied by his voice ; when one of the young men seated, sprang instantly on his feet, and commenced singing in time with the taps of the drum, and leaping about on one foot and the other in the most violent manner imaginable. In this way he went several times around the circle, bowing and brandish* mr :^ 100 LXTTEBS AND NOTES ON THE ing his fists in the faces of each one who was seated, until at length he grasped one of them by the hands, and jerked him forcibly up upon his feet ; who joined in the dance for a moment, len ving the one who had polled him up, to continue his steps and his song in the centre of the ring ; whilst he danced around in a similar manner, jerking up another, and then joining his companion in the centre; leaving the third and the fourth, and so on to drag into the ring, each one his man, until all were upon their feet ; and at last joined in the most frightful gesticulations and yells that seemed almost to make the earth quake under our feet. This strange manoeuvre, which I but partially understood, lasted for half or three-quarters of an hour ; to the great amusement of the gaping multitude who were assembled around, and broke up with the most piercing yells and barks like those of so many afirighted dogs. The Assinneboins, somewhat like the Crows, cultivate their hair to a very great length, in many instances reaching down nearly to the ground ; but in most instances of this kind, I find the great length is produced by splicing or adding on several lengths, which are fastened very ingeni- ously by means of glue, and the joints obscured by a sort of paste of red earth and glue, with which the hair is at intervals of every two or three inches filled, and divided into locks and slabs of an inch or so in breadth, and falling straight down over the back to the heels. I have painted the portrait of a very distinguished young man, and son of the chief; his dress is a very handsome one, and in every respect answers well to the descriptions I have given above. The name of this man is Wi-jun-jon (the pigeon's egg head), and by the side of him is tho portrait of his wife, Chin-cha-pee (the fire-bug that creeps), a fine looking squaw, in a handsome dress of the mountain- sheep skin, holding in her hand a stick curiously carved, with which every woman in this country is supplied ; for the purpose of digging up the "Pomme Blanche," or prairie turnip, which is found in great quantities in these or lese NORTH AMERICAN mUHANB. 101 northern prairies, and furnishes the Indians with an abun- dant and nourishing food. The women collect these turnips by striking the end of the Stick into the ground, and prying them out; after which they are dried and preserved in their wigwams for use during the season. I have just had the satis&ction of seeing this travelled- gentleman (Wi-junjon) meet his tribe, his wife and his little children ; after an absence of a year or more, on his journey of six thousand miles to Washington City, and back again (in company with Major Sanford, the Indian agent); where he has been spending the winter amongst the fashionables in the polished circles of civilized society And I can assure you, readers, that his entrde amongst his own people, in the dress and with the airs of a civilized beau, was one of no ordinary occurrence ; and produced no common sensation amongst the red-visaged Assinneboins, or in the minds of those who were travellers, and but spec- tators to the scene. On hi» way home from St. Louis to this place, a distance of two thousand miles, I travelled with this gentleman, on the steamer Yellow Stone ; and saw him step ashore (on a beautiful prairie, where several thousands of his people were encamped,) with a complete suit en militaire, a colonel's uniform of blue, presented to him by the Presi- dent of the United States, with a beaver hat and feather, with epaulettes of gold — with sash and belt, and broad sword; with high-heeled boots — with a keg of whisky under his arm, and a blue umbrella in his hand. In this plight and metamorphose, he took his position on the bank, amongst his friends — his wife and other relations ; not one of whom exhibited, for an half-hour or more, the least symptoms of recognition, although they knew well who was before them. He also gazed upon them — upon his wife and parents, and little children, who were about, as if they were foreign to him, and he had not a feeling or thought to interchange with them. Thus the mutual gazings upon and from this would-be-stranger, lasted for M 102 LETTERS AND NOTES ON TUB full half aa hour ; when a gradual, but cold and exceed- ingly formal recognition began to take place, and an acquaintance ensued, which ultimately and smoothly resolved itself, without the least apparent emotion, into its former state ; and the mutual kindred intercourse seemed to flow on exactly where it had been broken oflF, aa if it had been but for a moment, and nothing had transpired in the interim to check or change its character or expression. Such is one of the stoic instances of a custom which belongs to all the North American Indians, forming one of the most striking features in their character; valued, cherished and practiced, like many others of their strange notions, for reasons which are difficult to be learned or understood; and which probably will never be justly appreciated by others than themselves. This man, at this time, is creating a wonderful sensation amongst his tribe, who are daily and nightly gathered in gaping and listless crowds around him, whilst he is descanting upon what ho has seen in the fashionable world ; and which to them is unintelligible and beyond their comprehension ; for which I find they are already setting him down as a liar and impostor. What may be the final results of his travels and initiation into the fashionable world, and to what disasters his incredible narrations may yet subject the poor fellow in this strange land, time only will develop. He is now in disgrace, and spurned by the leading men of the tribe, and rather to be pitied than envied, for the advantages which one might have supposed would have flown from his fashionable tour. More of this curious occurrence and of this extraordinary man, I will surely give in some future epistles. The women of this tribe are often comely, and some- times pretty ; the dresses cf the women and children, are usually made of the skins of the mountain-goat, and ornamented with porcupine's quills and rows of elk's teeth. The Knistoneaux (or Crees, as they are more familiarly ly I ¥^-^' NORTH AMEBIOAK INDIANS. 103 called in this country) are a very numerous tribe, ex- tending from this place as high north as the shores of Lake "Winnepeg; and even much further in a north-westerly direction, towards, and even through, a great part of the Bocky Mountains. I have before said of these, that they were about three thousand in numbers — by that, I meant but a small part of this extensive tribe, who are in the habit of visiting the American Fur Company's Establishment, at this place, to do their trading ; and who themselves, scarcely know any- thing of the great extent of country over which this numerous and scattered family range. Their customs may properly be said to be primitive, as no inroads of civilized habits have been as yet successfully made amongst them. Like the other tribes in these regions, they dress in skins, and gain their food, and conduct their wars in a very similar manner. They are a very daring and most adventurous tribe ; roaming vast distances over the prairies and carrying war into their enemy's country. With the numerous tribe of Blackfeet, they are always waging an uncompromising warfare; and though fewer in numbers and less in stature, they have shewn themselves eq^ual in sinew, and not less successful in mortal combats. '}M'l '"\ ' M LETTER No. IX. MOUTH OP YELLOW STONE, UPPER MISSOURI. Since tbe dates of my other Letters from this place, I have been taking some wild rambles about this beautiful country of green fields; jolted and tossed about, on horseback and on foot, where pen, ink, and paper never thought of going ; and of course the most that I saw and have learned, and would tell to the world, is yet to bo written. It is not probable, however, that I shall again date a letter at this place, as I commence, in a few days, my voyage down the river in a canoe ; but yet I may give you many a retrospective glance at this fairy land and its amusements. A traveller on his tour through such a country as this, has no time to write, and scarcely time enough to moralize. (104) L the no and whei the chatt and grizz have are t stran NORTH AIUiilCAK INDIANS. 105 It is as much as he can ivell do to " look out for his acalp,^* and " for aomething to eat." Impressions, however, of the most vivid kind, are rapidly and indelibly made by the ileeting incidents of savage life ; and for the mind that can ruminate upon them with pleasure, there are abundant materials clinging to it for its endless entertainment in driving the quill when he gets back. The mind susceptible of such impressions catches volumes of incidents which are easy to write — it is but to unfold a web which the fasci- nations of this shorn country and its allurements have spun over the soul — it is but to paint the splendid panorama of a world entirely different from anything seen or painted before ; with its thousands of miles, and tens of thousands of grassy hills and dales, where nought but silence reigns, und where the soul of a contemplative mould is seemingly lifted up to its Creator. What man in the world, I would psk, ever ascended to the pinnacle of one of Missouri's green-carpeted bluffs, a thousand miles severed from his own familiar land, and giddily gazed over the interminable and boundless ocean of grass-covered hills and valleys which lie beneath him, where the gloom of silence is complete — where not even the voice of the sparrow or cricket is heard — without feeling a sweet melancholy come over him, which seemed to drown his sense of everything beneath and on a level with him ? It is but to paint a vast country of green field, where the men are all red — where meat is the staff of life — where no laws, but those of Jumor, are known — w^here the oak and the pine give way to the c< ton-wood and peccan — where the buffaloes range, the elk, mountain-sheep, and the fleet-bounaing antelope — where the magpie and chattering parroquettes supply the place of the red-breast and the blue-bird — where wolves are white and bears grizzly — where pheasants are hens of the prairie, and frogs have horns ! — where the rivers are yellow, and white men are turned savages in looks. Through the whole of this strange land the dogs are all wolves — women all slaves— if 106 LETTEBS AND NOTES ON THE men all lords. The snn and rats alone (of all the list of old acquaintance), could be recognized in this country of strange metamorphose. The former shed everywhere his familiar rays; and Monsr. Eatapon was hailed as an old acquaintance, which it gave me pleasure to meet ; though he had grown a little more savage in his looks. In traversing the immense regions of the classic "West, the mind of a philanthropist is filled to the brim with feelings of admiration ; but to reach this country, one is obliged to descend from the light and glow of civilized atmosphere, through the different grades of civilization, which gradually sink to the most deplorable condition along the extreme frontier; thence through the most pitiable misery and wretchedness of savage degradation ; where the genius of natural liberty and independence have been blasted and destroyed by the contaminating vices and dissipations introduced by the immoral part of civilized socety. Through this dark and sunken vale of wretched- ness one hurries, as through a pestilence, until he gradually rises again into the proud and chivalrous pale of savage society, in its state of original nature, beyond the reach of civilized contamination ; here he finds much to fix his enthusiasm upon, and much to admire. Even here, the predominant passions of the savage breast, of ferocity and cruelty, are often found ; yet restrained, and frequently suMued, by the noblest traits of honor and magnanimity, — a race of men who live and enjoy life and its luxuries, and practice its virtues, very far beyond the usual estimation of the world, who are apt to judge the savage and his virtues from the poor, degraded, and humbled specimens which alone can be seen along our frontiers. From the first settlements of our Atlantic coast to the present day, the bane of this blasting frontier has regularly crowded upon them, from the northern to the southern extremities of our country ; and, like the fire in a prairie, which destroys everything where it passes, it has blasted and sunk them, aud all but their names, into oblivion, on, NORTH AUEBICAN INDIANS. 107 wherever it has travelled. It is to this tainted class alone that the epithet of " poor, naked, and drunken savage," can be, with propriety, applied ; for all those numerous tribes which I have visited, and are yet uncorrupted by the vices of civilized acquaintance, are well clad, in many instances cleanly, and in the full enjoyment of life and its luxuries. It is for the character and preservation of these noble fellows that I am an enthusiast ; and it is for these uncontaminated people that I Would be willing to devote the energies of my life. It is a sad and melancholy truth to contemplate, that all the numerous tribes who inhabited our vast Atlantic States ?Mve not " fled to the West ;" — that they are not to be found here — that they have been blasted by the fire which has passed over them — have sunk into their graves, and everything but their names travelled into oblivion. The distinctive character of all these Western Indians, as well as their traditions relative to their ancient locations, prove beyond a doubt, that they have been for a very long time located on the soil which they now possess; and in most respects, distinct and unlike those nations who formerly inhabited the Atlantic coast, and who (according to the erroneous opinion of a great part of the world), have fled to the West. It is for these inofiensive and unoffending people, yet unvisited by the vices of civilized society, that I would proclaim to the world, that it is time, for the honor of our country — ^for the honor of every citizen of the republic — and for the sake of humanity, that our government should raise her strong arm to save the remainder of them from the pestilence which is rapidly advancing upon them. We have gotten from them territory enough, and the country which they now inhabit is most of it too barren of timber for the use of civilized man ; it affords them, however, the means and luxuries of savage life; and it is to be hoped that our government will not acquiesce in the continued wilful destruction of these happy people. 108 LKTT£RS AND NOTES ON THX My heart has sometimes almost bled with pity for them, while amongst them and witnessing their innocent amuse- ments, as I have contemplated the inevitable bane that was rapidly advancing upon them; without that check from the protecting ann of government, and which alone could shield them from destruction. "What degree of happiness these sons of Nature may attain to in the world, in their own way; or in what pro- portion they may relish the pleasures of life, compared to the sum of happiness belonging to civilized society, has long been a subject of much doubt, and one which I cannot undertake to decide at this time. I would say thus much, however, that if the thirst for knowledge has entailed everlasting miseries on mankind from the beginning of the world; if refined and intellectual pains increase in pro- portion to our intellectual pleasures, I do not see that we gain much advantage over them on that score; and judging from the full-toned enjoyment which beams from their happy faces, I should give it as my opinion, that their lives were much more happy than ours; that is, if the word happiness is properly applied to the enjoyments of those who have not experienced the light of the Christian religion. I have long looked with the eye of a critic, into the jovial faces of these sons of the forest, unfurrowed with cares — where the agonizing feeling of poverty had never stamped distress upon the brow. I have watched the bold, intrepid step — the proud, yet dignified deportment of Nature's man, in fearless freedom, with a soul unalloyed by mercenary lusts, too great to yield to laws or power except from God. As these independent fellows are all joint-tenants of the soil, tbey are all rich, and none of the steepings of com- parative poverty can strangle their just claims to renown. Who (I would ask) can look without admiring, into a society where peace and harmony prevail — where virtue is cherished — where rights are protected, and wrongs are redressed — with no laws, but the laws of honor, which are the supreme laws of their land Trust the boasted virtues KOBTH AMEBIOAK IKDIAKS. 109 of civilized aooiety for a while, vritli all its intellectual refinements, to such a tribunal, and then write down the degradation of the " lawless savage," and our transcendent virtues. As these people have no laws, the sovereign right of summary redress lies in the breast of the party (or friends of the party) aggrieved ; and infinitely more dreaded is the certainty of cruel revenge from the licensed hands of an offended savage, than the slow and uncertain vengeance of the law. If you think me an enthttsiast, be it so ; for I deny it not. It has ever been the predominant passion of my soul to seek Nature's wildest haunts, and give my hand to nature's men. Legends of these, and visits to those, filled the earliest page of my juvenile impressions. The tablet has stood, and I am an enthusiast for God's works as He left them. ^ The sad tale of my native "valley,"* has been beautifully sung; and from the flight of "Gertrude's" soul, my young imagination closely traced the savage to his deep retreats, and gazed upon him in dreadful horror, until pity pleaded, and admiration worked a charm. A journey of four thousand miles from the Atlantic shore, regularly receding from the centre of civilized society to the extreme wilderness of Nature's original work, and back again, opens a book for many an interesting tale to be sketched ; and the mind which lives, but to relish the works of Nature, reaps a reward on such a tour of a much higher order than can arise from the selfish expectations of pecuniary emolument. Notwithstanding all that has been written and said, there is scarcely any subject on which the knomng people of the East, are yet less informed and instructed than on the character and amusements of the West: by this I mean the "Far West;" — the country whose fascinations spread a charm ovev the mind almost * Wyoming. 110 LKTTBRS AND NOTES ON THK dangerous to civilized pursuits. Few people even know the true definition of the term "West;" and where is its location?— phantom-like it flies before us as we travel, and on our way is continually gilded, before us, as we approach the setting sun. In the commenceraent of my Tour, several of my travelling companions from the city of New York, found themselves at a frightful distance to the West, when we arrived at Niagara Falls ; and hastened back to amuse their friends with tales and scenes of the West. At Buffalo a steamboat was landing with four hundred passengers, and twelve days out — "Where from?" "From the West." In the rich State of Ohio, hundreds were selling their farms and going — to the West. In the beautiful city of Cin- cinnati, people said to me, "Our town has passed the days of its most rapid growth, it is not far enough West." — In St. Louis, fourteen hundred miles west of New York, my landlady assured me that I would be pleased with her boarders, for they were nearly all merchants from the "West," I there asked, — "Whence come those steam- boats, laden vnth pork, honey, hides, &o. ?" From the West Whence those ponderous bars of silver, which those men have been for hours shouldering and putting on board that boat? They come from Santa F^, from the West Where goes this steam-boat so richly laden with dry goods, steamengines, &c. ? She goes to Jefferson city. Jefferson city ? — Where is that ? Far to the West And where goes that boat laden down to her gunnels, the Yellow Stone ? She goes still farther to the West—" Then," said I, " I'll go to the West." I went on the Yellow Stone — ♦ * ♦ * * * * Two thousand miles on KOBTH AMKRIOAK IKDIASS. Ill her, and we were at the mouth of Yellow Stone river — at the West. "What 1 invoices, bills of lading, &o., a wholeaalo establishment so far to the West I And those strange looking, long- haired gentlemen, who have just arrived, and are relating the adventures of thoir long and tedious journey. Who are they ? Oh ! they are some of our merchants just arrived from the West. And that keel-boat, that Mackinaw-boat, and that formidable caravan, all of which are richly laden with goods? .1 . These, Sir, are outfits starting for the West. Going to the West, ha? "Then," said I, "Til try it again. I will try and see if I can go to the West." * * « What, a Fort here, too? , Oui, Monsieur — oui. Monsieur (as a dauntless, and semi- 5ar&an'an-looking, jolly fellow, dashed forth in advance of his party on his wild horse to meet me.) What distance are you west of Yellow Stone here, my good fellow ? Comment? What distance ? — (stop) — quel distance? Parddn, Monsieur, je ne sais pas. Monsieur. No parlez vous 1' Anglais ? Non, Monsr. I speaks de French and de Americaine ; mais je ne parle pas 1' Anglais, '* Well then, my good fellow, I will speak English, and you may speak Americaine." Parddn, pard(5n, Monsieur. Well, then we will both speak Americaine. Val, sare, je suis bien content, pour for I see dat you speaks putty coot Americaine. What may I call your name ? BaHiste, Monsieur. What Indians are those so splendidly dressed, and with such fine horses, encamped on the plain yonder? lis aont Corbeauz. (* **) m LXTTEBS AMD ITOTBS ON THK 1 'I it 17' iir f. ■, ;,'! ' Crows, ha? ' Yes, sare, Monsieur. We are then in the Crow country? No , Monsieur, not putty ^xact ; we are in deooontrae of de dam Pieds noirs. Blackfeet, ha? ". v- '' , Qui. What blue mountain is that whioh we see in the distance yonder ? Ha, quel Montaigne ? cela est la Montaigne du (parddn). Du Kochers, I suppose ? Qui, Monsieur, de Rock Montaigne. j You live here, I suppose ? ■ i Non, Monsieur, I comes fair from de West. What, from the West! Where under the heavens is that? :- '»-■[■ '■ :, ry Wat, diable I de West ? well you shall see. Monsieur, he is putty fair o£f, siippose. Monsieur Pierre Chouteau can give you de historic de ma vie — il bien sait que je prends les castors, very fair in de West. You carry goods, I suppose, to trade with the Snake Indians beyond the mountains, and trap beaver also ? ' Oui, Monsieur. Do you see anything of the "Flat-heads" in your country ? Non, Monsieur, ils demeurent very, w»7 fair to de West. Well, Ba'tiste, I'll lay my course back again for the present, and at some future period, endeavor to go to the " West." But you say you trade with the Indians and trap beavers ; you are in the employment of the American Fur Company, I suppose. Non, Monsieur, not quite ^xact; mais, siippose, I am "/ree trappare" free, Monsr., free. Free trapper, what's that? I don't understand you, Ba'tiste. Well, Monsr. stippose he is easy pour understand — you shall kuow all. In d') first place, I am enlist for tree year in Fur Cc Well trapper Oui, 8 — I NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS 113 de Fur Comp in St. Louis — for bountd — pour bountd, eighty doUare (understand, ha ?) den I am go for wages, et I ave come de Missouri up, et I am trap castors putty much for six years, you see, until I am learn very much ; and den you see, Monsr. M'Kenzie is give me tree horse — one pour ride, et two pour pack (mais he is not buy, him not give, he is lend), and he is lend twelve trap ; and I ave make stort into de Rocky Montaigne, et I am live all dlone on do leet rivares pour prendre les castors. Some- time six months — sometime five months, and I come back to Yel Stone, et Monsr. M'Kenzie is give me coot price pour all. So Mr. M'Kenzie fits you out, and takes your beaver of you at a certain price ? Oui, Monsr., oui. What price does he pay you for your beaver, Ba'tiste ? Ha I sfippose one dollare pour one beavare. A dollar per skin, ah ? Oui. "Well, you must live a lonesome and hazardous sort of life ; can you make anything by it ? Oh 1 oui, Monsr., putty coot, mais if it is not pour for de dam rascalitfe Riccaroe, et de dam Pieds noirs, de Black- foot Ingin, I am make very much monnair, mais (sacrfe,) I am rob — rob — rob too much ! What, do the Blackfeet rob you of your furs? Oui, Monsr,, rob, sfippose, five time! I am been free trappare seven year, et I am rob five time — I am someting left not at all — he is take all ; he is take all de horse — he is take my gun — he is take all my clothes — he is takee de castors — et I am come back with foot. So in de Fort, some cloths is cost putty much monnair, et some whisky is give sixteen dollares pour gall ; so you see I am owe de Fur Comp six hundred dollare, by Gar 1 Well, Ba'tiste, this then is what you call being a free trapper, is it ? Oui, Monr., " free trappare," free I 8 114 LETTERS AND NOTES. You seem to bo going down towards the Yellow Stone, and probably have been out on a trapping excursion ? Oui, Monsr., o'est vrai. Have you been robbed this time, Ba'tiste? Oui, Monsr., by de dam Pieds noirs — I am loose much; I am loose all— very all eh bien — pour lo dernier — e'est le dernier fois, Monsr. I am go to Yel Stone — I am go le Missouri down, I am go to St. Louis. Well, Ba'tiste, I am to figure about in this part of the world a few weeks longer, and then I shall descend the Missouri from the mouth of Yellow Stone, to St. Louis; and I should like exceedingly to employ just such a man as you are as a voyageur with mo — I will give you good wages, and pay all your expenses; what say you? Avec tout men cour, Monsr., remcrcie, remercie. It's a bargain then, Ba'tiste ; I will see you at the mouth of Yellow Stone. Oui, Monsr., in de Yel Stone, bon soir, bon soir, Monsr. But stop, Ba'tiste, you told me those were Crowa encamped yonder. Oui, Monsieur, oui, des Corbeaux. - • • And I suppose you are their interpreter? , , ' Non, Monsieur. But you speak the Crow language ? i ; Oui, Monsieur. Well then, turn about ; I am going to pay them a visit, and you can render me a service. — Bien, Monsieur, aliens. Soon | dated at river fo| resided terraneol BOCKT MOCHTAIM GOAT. LETTER No. X. MANDAN VILLAGE, UrPER MISSOURI. Soon after the writing of my last Letter, which waa dated at the Mouth of Yellow Stone, I embarked on the river for this place, where I landed safely; and have resided for a couple of weeks, a guest in this almost sub- terraneous city — the strangest place in the world ; where (116) J» 'v'^W> f f*,-'; 118 LETTERS AND N'OTES ON THE one sees in the most rapid succession, scenes wliich force him to mirth — to pity and compassion— to admiration — disgust— to fear and astonishment. But before I proceed to reveal them, I must give you a brief sketch of my voyage down the river from the Mouth of the Yellow Stone river to this place, a distance of two hundred miles and which my little note- book says, was performed some- what in the following manner : When I had completed my rambles and my sketches in those regions, and Ba'tiste and Bogard had taken their last spree, and fought their last battles, and forgotten them in the final and affectionate embrace and farewell (all of which are habitual with these game-fellows, when settling up their long-standing accounts with their fellow-trappers of the mountain streams;) and after Mr. M'Kenzie had procured for me a snug little craft, that was to waft us down the mighty torrent; we launched off one fine morning, taking our leave of the Fort, and the friends within it ; and also, for ever, of the beautiful green fields, and hills, and dales, and prairie bluffs, that encompa-ss the enchanting shores of the Yellow Stone. Our canoe, which was made of green timber, was heavy and awkward; but our course being with the current, promised us a fair and successful voyage. Ammunition was laid in in abundance — a good stock of dried buffalo tongues — a dozen or two of beavers' tails — and a good supply of pemioan. Bogard and Ba'tisto occupied tlio middle and bow, with their paddles in tiicir hands ; and I took my seat in the stern of the boat, at the steering oar. Our larder was as I have said ; and added to tliat, some few pounds of fresh buffalo meat. Besides which, and ourselves, our little craft carried several packs of Indian dresses and other articles, which I liad purchasiid of the Indians; and also my canvass and easel, and our culinary articles, wliich were few and simple; consisting of three tin cups, a coffee-pot — one plate — a frying-pan — and a tin kettle. Thug rate und friends, them, an two tho save tho roaming At the handily e who had and receiA In the (the pigeo customs ol any appeaj he had wit Washingto Many We crowding a which he w His beat had been sc his appearaj His keg charms — hij of no earth! place, and t| ful pair of l( converted ir umbrella thj kept spreac seemed to bJ tribe, to be J Of the vf following mi river. The ^onr, throm NORTH AMKKXCAN INDIANS. 117 Thus fitted out and embp "ced, we swept oflF at a ragid rate under the shouts of the ....vages, and the cheers of our friends, who lined the banks as we gradually lost sight of them, and turned our eyes towards St, Louis, which was two thousand miles below us, with nought intervening, saA'^e the wide-spread and wild regions, inhabited by the roaming savage. At the end of our first day's journey, we found ourselves handily encamping with several thousand Assinneboins, who had pitched their tents upon the bank of the river, and received us with every mark of esteem and friendship. In the midst of this group, was my friend Wi-jun-jon (the pigeon's egg head), still lecturing on the manners and customs of the " pale faces." Continuing to relate without any appearance of exhaustion, the marvellous scenes which he had witnessed amongst the white people, on his tour to Washington City. Many were the gazers who seemed to be the whole timo crowding around him, to hear his recitals ; and the plight which he was in, rendered his appearance quite ridiculous. His beautiful military dress, of which I before spoke, had been so shockingly tattered and metamorphosed, that his appearance was truly laughable. His keg of whisky had dealt out to his friends all its charms — his frock-coat, which his wife had thought was of no earthly use below the waist, had been cut of at that place, and the nether half of it supplied her with a beauti- ful pair of leggings ; and his silver-laced hat-baud had been converted into a splendid pair of garters for the same. His umbrella the poor fellow still affectionately held on to, and kept spread at all times. As I before said, his theme seemed to be exhaustless, and he, in the estimation of his tribe, to be an unexampled liar. "^ Of the village of Assinneboins we took leave on the folh^wing morning, and rapidly made our way down the river. The rate of the current being four or five miles per hour, through oi c continued series of picturesque grass- i tt I ' *.< 118 LETTERS AND NOTES ON TUB covered bluffs and knolls, which everywhere had the appearance of an old and highly cultivated country, with houses and fences removed. There is, much of the way, on one side or the other, a bold and abrupt precipice of three or four hundred feet in elevation, presenting itself in an exceedingly rough and picturesque form, to the shore of the river; sloping down from the summit level of the prairies above, which sweep off from the brink of the precipice, almost level, to an unknown distance. It is along the rugged and wild fronts of these cliflfe, whose sides are generally formed of hard clay, that the raountain- sheep dwell, and are often discovered in great numbers. Their habits are much like those of the goat; and iu every respect they are like that animal, except in the horns, which resemble those of the ram sometimes making two entire circles in their coil ; and at the roots, each horn is, in some instances, from five to six inches in breadth. On the second day of our voyage we discovered a num- ber of these animals skipping along the sides of the precipice, always keeping about equi-distant between tbo top and bottom of the ledge ; leaping and vaulting in the most extraordinary manner from point to point, and seeming to cling actually, to the sides of the wall, where neither man nor beast could possibly follow them. We landed our canoe, and entleavored to shoot one of these sagacious animals; and after he had led us a long and fruitless chase, amongst the cliffs, we thought we had fairly entrapped him in such a way as to be sure to bring him, at last, within the command of our rifles, when he suddenly bounded from his narrow foot-liold in the ledge, and tumbled down a distance of more tlian a hundred feet, amongst the fragments of rocks and clay, where I thought we must certainly find his carcass without further trouble; when, to my great surprise, I saw him bounding ofi", and he was almost instantly out of my si^rlit. Bogurd, who was an old hunter, and well ac" 5 nK*n 1 ' fww^m^ 1 TOrW« ,««: 120 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE bluffs ; and the next morning cooked our breakfast and eat it, and rowed on until late in the afternoon; when we stopped at the base of some huge clay bluffd, forming one of the most curious and romantic scenes imaginable. At this spot the river expands itself into the appearance some- what of a beautiful lake ; and in the midst of it, and on and about its sand-bars, floated and stood, hundreds and thousands of white swans and pelicans. Thouo^h the scene in front of our encampment at this place was placid and beautiful ; with its flowing water — its wild fowl — and its almost endless variety of gracefully sloping hills and green prairies in the distance ; yet it was not less wild and picturesque in our rear, where the rugged and vari(;us colored blufl's were grouped in all the wildest fancies and rudeness of Nature's accidental varieties. The whole country behind us seemed to have been dug and thrown up into huge piles, as if some giant mason had been there mixing his mortar and paints, and throwing together his rude models for some sublime structure of a colossal city; — with its walls — its domes — its ramparts — its huge porticoes and galleries — its castles — its fosses and •litches; — and in the midst of his progress, he had abandoned his works to the destroying hand of time, which had already done much to tumble them down, and deface their noble structure; by jostling them together, with all their vivid colors, into an unsystematic and unintelligible mass of sublime ruins. T(j this group of clay blufl&, which line the river for many miles in distance, the voyageurs have very appro- priately given the name of " the Brick-kilns ;" owing to their rod appearance, which may bo discovered in a clear day at the distance of many leagues. By the action of water, or other power, the country seems to have been graded away ; leaving occasionally a solitary mound or bluH', rising in a conical form to the height of two or three hundred feet, generally pointed or rounded at the top, and in some places grouped together in great the to of tho, mg e.'' prairie isolatei action earth, they ai A si hundre( the acti duced ; peculiar occurs ; mounds thing of fifteen fe layer of formed u This £ traveller 3onclusio extinguis The sic strata of down by and the crumbling thence, water wh — carried thousands surface, an Jilace to tl The up red; and It NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 121 great numbers ; some of which having a tabular surface on the top, and co^ ered with a green turf. This fact (as are all of those which are horizontal on their tops, and correspond- ing exactly with the summit level of the wide-spreading prairies in the distance) clearly shows, that their present isolated and rounded forms have been produced by the action of waters ; which have carried away the intervening earth, and lefl them in the picturesque shapes in which they are now seen. A similar formation (or deformation) may be seen in hundreds of places on the shores of the Missouri river, and the actual progress of the operation by which it is pro- duced; leaving yet for the singularity of this place, the peculiar feature, that nowhere else (to my knowledge) occurs ; that the superstratum, forming the tops of these mounds (where they remain high enough to support any- thing of the original surface) is composed, for the depth of fifteen feet, of red pumice ; terminating at its bottom, in a layer of several feet of sedimentary deposit, which is formed into endless conglomerates of basaltic crystals. This strange feature in the country arrests the eye of a traveller suddenly, and as instantly brings him to the sonclusion, that he stands in the midst of the ruins of an extinguished volcano. The sides of these conical bluflfo (which are composed of strata of different colored cla^s), are continually washing down by the effect of the rains and melting of the frost ; and the superincumbent masses of pumice and basalt are crumbling off and falling down to their bases; and from thence, in vast quantities, by the force of the gorges of water which are often cutting their channels between them — carried into the river, which is close by ; and wafted for thousands of miles, floating as light as a cork upon its siirface, and lodging in every pile of drift-wood from this place to tho ocean. The upper part of this layer of pumice is of a brilliant red ; and when the sun is shining upon it, is as bright and K^n -^-im I' fk V f ' MI ff mm mm U ^9|i 1 1 1 i 1 122 LETTEBS AND NOTES ON THE vivid as vermilion. It is porous and open, and its specific gravity but trifling. These curious bluffs must be seen as they are in nature ; or else in a painting, where their colore a'-e faithfully given, or they lose their picturesque beauty, which consists in the variety of their vivid tints. The strata of clay are alternating from red to yellow — white — brown and dark blue ; and so curiously arranged, as to form the most pleasing and singular effects. During the day that I loitered about this strange scene, I left my men stretched upon the grass, by the canoe ; and taking my rifle and sketch-book in my hand, I wandered and clambered through the rugged defiles between the bluffs ; passing over and under the immense blocks of the pumice, that had fallen to their bases; determined, if possible, to find the crater, or source, from whence these strange phenomena had sprung ; but after clambering and squeezing about for .some time, I unfortunately came upon the enormous tracks of a grizzly bear, which, apparently, was travelling in the same direciion (probably for a very different puriose) but a few moments before mo; and my ardor for exploring was instantly so coaled down, that I hastily retraced my steps, and was satisfied with making my drawings, and collecting specimens of the lava and othei '.ninerals in its vicinity. After strolling about during the day, and contemplating the beauty of the scenes that were around me, while I sat upon the pinnacles of these pumice-capped mounds ; most of which time, Bogard and Ba'tiste laid enjoying the pleasure of a "mountaineer's nap" — we met together — took ovir coffee and dried bufliilo tongues — .spread our bufl'alo robes upr i tne grass, and enjoyed during the night the luxury of sleep, that belongs so peculiarly to the tired voyageur in these realms of pure air and dead silence. In the morning, and before sunrise, as usual, Bogard, (who was a Yankee, and a "wide-awake-fellow," just retiring from a ten years' siege of hunting and trapping in the Rocky Mountains,) thrust his head out from under the r gra3p< Ba'tisI muttei Bogan iron s] turned called often " dignity upon u "^," a sketch fastened everyth been wi and Ind and deli been sci and eve stake, hi was no t secrets o we saw the grou mattrass( choosing country bear ; " upon the the path terror of size of ei Well- described defence, means I NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 123 the robe, rubbing his eyes open, and exclaiming as he grasped for his gun, "By dam, look at old Calel will you I'* Ba'tiste, who was more fond of his dreams, snored away, muttering something that I could not understand, when Bogard seized him with a grip, that instantly shook off his iron slumbers. I rose at the same time, and all eyes were turned at onc6 upon Caleb (as the grizzly bear is familiarly called by the trappers in the Eocky Mountains — or more often "Gale," for brevity's sake), who was sitting up in the dignity and fury of her sex, within a few rods, and gazing upon us, with her two little cubs at her side ! here was a '*^," and a subject for the painter; but I had no time to sketch it — I turned my eyes to the canoe which had been fastened at the shore a few paces from us ; and saw that everything had been pawed out of it, and all eatables had been without ceremony devoured. My packages of dresses and Indian curiosities had been drawn out upon the bank, and deliberately opened and inspected. Every thing had been scraped and pawed out, to the bottom of the boat ; and even the rawhide thong, with which it was tied to a stake, had been chewed, and no doubt swallowed, as there was no trace of it remaining. Nor was this peep into the secrets of our luggage enough for her insatiable curiosity — we saw by the prints of her huge paws, that were* left in the ground, that she had been perambulating our humble mattrasses, smelling at our toes and our noses, without choosing to molest us; verifying a trite saying of the country, " That man lying dowa is medicine ' ) the grizzly bear ; " though it is a well-known fact, that man and beast, upon their feet, are sure to be attacked when they cross the path of this grizzly and grim monster, which is the terror of all this country ; often growing to the enormous size of eight hundred or one thousand pounds. Well — whilst we sat in the dilemma which I have just described, each one was hastily preparing his weapons for defence, when I proposed the mode of attack ; by which means I was in hopes to destroy her — capture her young 4 11^ .!.- \ ! i 4r -■" M^ 1 124 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE ones, and bring her skin home as a trophy. My plans, however, entirely failed, though we were all well armed ; for Bogard and Ba'tiste both remonstrated with a vehem- ence that was irresistible; saying that the standing rule in the mountains was " never to fight Caleb, except in self- defence." I was almost induced, however, to attack her alone, with my rifle in hand, and a pair of heavy pistols ; with a tomahawk and scalping-knife in my belt; when Ba'tiste suddenly thrust his arm over my shoulder and pointing in another direction, exclaimed in an emphatic tone, " Voila 1 voila un corps de reserve — Monsr. Catline — voila sa mari 1 allons — allons I d^scendons la rividre, toute de suite! toute de suite 1 Monsr.," to which Bogard added, " these darned animals are too much for us, and we had better be off';" at which my courage cooled, and we packed up and re-embarked as fast as possible ; giving each one of them the contents of our rifles as we drifted off" in the current ; which brought the she-monster, in all her rage and fury, to the spot where we, a few moments before, had passed our most prudent resolve. During the rest of this day, we passed on rapidly, gazing upon and admiring the beautiful shores, which were con- tinually changing, from the high and ragged cliffs, to the graceful and green slopes of the prairie bluffs ; and then to the wide expanded meadows, with their long waving grass, enamelled with myriads of wild flowers. The scene was one of enchantment the whole way ; our chief conversation was about grizzly bears and hair's- breadth escapes ; of the histories of which my companions had volumes in store. — Our breakfast was a late one — cooked and eaten about five in the afternoon ; at which time our demolished iarder was luckily replenished by the unerring rifle of Bogard, which brought down a fine ante- lope, as it was innocently gazing at us, from the bank of the river. We landed our boat and took in our prize ; but there being lo wood for our fire, we shoved off", and soon ran upon the head of an island, that was covered with NORTa AMERICAN INDIANS. 125 immense quantities of raft and drift wood, where we easily kindled a huge fire and ate our delicious meal from a clean peeled log, astride of which we comfortably sat, making it answer admirably the double purpose of chairs and a table. After our meal was finished, we plied the paddles, and proceeded several miles further on our course; leaving our fire burning, and dragging our canoe upon the shore, in the dark, in a wild and unknown spot; and silently spreading our robes for our slumbers, which it is not generally considered prudent to do by the side of our fires, which might lead a war-party upon us, who often are prowling about and seeking an advantage over their enemy. The scenery of this day's travel, as I have before said, was exceedingly beautiful ; and our canoe was often run to the shore, upon which we stepped to admire the endless variety of wild flowers, '* wasting their sweetness on the desert air," and the abundance of delicious fruits that were about us. Whilst wandering through the high grass, the wild sun-flowers and voluptuous lilies were constantly taunting us by striking our faces ; whilst here and there, in every direction, there were little copses and clusters of plum trees and gooseberries, and wild currants, loaded down with their fruit; and amongst these, to sweeten the atmosphere and add a charm to the efiect, the wild rose bushes i.amed planted in beds and in hedges, and every- where were decked out in all the glory of their delicate tints, and shedding sweet aroma to every breath of the air that passed over them In addition to these, wo had the luxury of service- berries, without stint ; and tlie buffalo bushes, which are peculiar to these northern regions, lined the banks of the river and defiles in the bluff's, sometimes for miles together; forminj^j almost impassable hedges, so loaded with the weight of their fruit, that their boughs were everywhere gracefully bonding down and resting on the ground. This last shrub ishcpptrdia,) which may be said to be the ;'^M^^^ -■■'■:' '^y^3>^' .. .#lt' 126 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE most beautiful ornament that decks out the wild prairies, forms a striking contrast to the rest of the foliage, from the blue appearance of its leaves, by which it can be dis- tinguished for miles in distance. The fruit which it produces in such incredible profusion, hanging in clusters to every limb and to every twig, is about the size of ordinary currants, and not unlike them in color and even in flavor; being exceedingly acid, and almost unpala- table, until they are bitten by the frost of autumn, when they are sweetened, and their flavor delicious ; having, to the taste, much the character of grapes, and I am inclined to think, would produce excellent wine. The shrub which bears them resembles some varieties of the thorn, though (as I have said) differs entirely in the color of its leaves. It generally grows to the height of six or seven feet, and often to ten or twelve ; and in groves or hedges, in some places, for miles in extent. While gathering the fruit, and contemplating it as capable of producing good wine, I asked my men this question, " Suppose we three had ascended the river to this point in the spring of the year, and in a timbered bottv. II &' r ^; f4^\ .*! J* J-" 188 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THK The size of these curious little animals is not far from that of a very large rat, and they are not unlike in their appearance. Their burrows, are uniformly built in a lonely desert; and away, both from the proximity of timber and water. Each individual, or each family, dig their hole in the prairie to the depth of eight or ten feet, throwing up the dirt from each excavation, in a little pile, in the form of a cone, which forms the only elevation for them to ascend ; where they sit, to bark and chatter when an enemy is approaching their village. These villages are sometimes of several miles in extent ; containing (I would almost say) myriads of their excavations and little dirt hillocks, and to the ears of their visitors, the din of their barkings is too confused and too peculiar to be described. In the present instance, we made many endeavors to shoot them, but found our efforts to be entirely in vain. As we were approaching them at a distance, each one seemed to be perched up, on liis hind feet, on his appro- priate domicil, with a significant jerk of his tail at every bark, positively disputing our right of approach. I made several attempts to get near enough to "draw a bead" upon one of them; and just before I was ready to fire (and as if they knew the utmost limits of their safety,) they sprang down into their holes, and instantly turning their bodies, shewed their ears and the ends of their noses, as they were peeping out at me ; which position they would hold, until the shortness of the distance subjected their scalps to danger again, from the aim cf a rifle; when they instantly disa])peared from our sight, and all was silence thereafter, about their premises, as I passed them over; until I had so far advanced by them, that their ears were again discovered, and at length themselves, at full length, perched on the tops of their little hillocks and threatening as before ; thus gradually sinking and rising like a wave before and behind me. The holes leading down to their burrows, are four or five inches in diameter, and run down nearly perpen- NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 183 dicular ; where they undoubtedly communicate into some- tiling like a subterraneous city (as I have formerly learned from fruitless endeavors to dig them out,) undermined and vaulted ; by which means, they can travel for a great distance under the ground, without danger from ])ursuit. Their food is simply the grass in the immediate vicinity of their burrows, which is cut close to the ground by their flat, shovel teeth ; and, as they sometimes live twenty miles from any water, it is to be supposed that they get moisture enough from the dew on the grass, on which they feed chiefly at night ; or that (as is generally supposed) they sink wells from their under-ground habitations, by which they descend low enough to get their supply. In th« winter, they are for several months invisible; existing, undoubtedly, in a torpid state, as they certainly lay by no food for that season — nor can they procure any. These curious little animals belong to almost every latitude in the vast plains of prairie in North America: and their villages, which I have sometimes encountered in my travels, have compelled my party to ride several miles out of our way to get by them ; for their burrows are generally within a few feet of each other, and dangerous to the feet and the limbs of our horses.* The " Grand Dome," is, perhaps, one of the most grand and beautiful scenes of the kind to be met with in this country, owing to the perfect appearance of its several huge domes, turrets, and towers. These stupendous works are produced by the continual washing down of the sides of these clay-formed hills; and although, in many instances, their sides, by exposure, have become so hardened, that their change is very slow; yet they are mostly subjected to continual phases, more or less, until ultimately their decomposition ceases, and their sides becoming seeded and covered with a green tur^ which * It is a curious fact that the borrows of the prairie dogs are shared by a certain species of owl; and that the bird and quadruped, Uto happily together. — Editor. .1. 184 LETTERS AND NOTES. protects and hold them (and will hold them) unalterable : with carpets of green, and enamelled with flowers, to be gazed upon with admiration, by the hardy voyageur and the tourist, for ages and centuries to come. On Monday, the seventh day from the mouth of the Yellow Stone River, we floated away from this noble scene ; looking back again and again upon it, wondering at its curious and endless changes, as the swift current of the river, hurried us by, and gradually out of sight of it. We took a sort of melancholy leave of it — but at every bend and turn in the stream, we were introduced to others — and others — and yet others, almost as strange and curious. At the base of one of these, although we had passed it, we with difficulty lauded our cauoe, and I ascended to its top, w^ith some hours' labor ; having to out a foot-hold in the clay with my hatchet for each step, a great part of the way up its sides. So curious was this solitary bluff, standin'^ alone aa it did, to the height of two hundred and fifty feet, with its siJes washed down into hundreds of variegated forms — with large blocks of indurated clay, remaining upon pedestals and columns as it were, and with such a variety of tints; that I looked upon it as a beautiful picture, and devoted an hour or two with my brush, in transferring it to my canvass. On this day, just before night, we landed our little boat in front of the Mandan village : and amongst the hundreds and thousands who flocked towards the river to meet and to greet us, was Mr. Kipp, the agent of the American Fur Company, who has charge o their Establishment at this place. He kindly orderd my canoe to bo taken care of and my things to be carried to his quarters, which was at once done ; and I am at this time reaping the benefits of his genuine politeness, and gathering the pleasures of his amusing and interesting society. ISAI which subject of the ] romanc for a be The: of the ] of the n origin, involved pcculiaij which them a in relatil contend! LETTER No. XL MANDAN VILLAGE. UPPER MISSOURI. I SAID that I was here in the midst of a strange people, which is literally true ; and I find myself surrounded by subjects and scenes worthy the pens of Irving or Cooper — of the pencils of Raphael or Hogarth ; rich in legends and romances, which would require no aid of the imagination for a book or a picture. The Mandans (or See-pohs-kah-nu-mah-kah-kee, " people of the pheasants," as they call themselves), are perhaps one of the most ancient tribes of Indians in our country. Their origin, like that of all the other tribes, is from necessity, involved in mystery and obscurity. Their traditions and peculiarities I shall casually recite in this or future epistles; which when understood, will at once, I think, denominate them a peculiar and distinct race. They take great pride in relating their traditions, with regard to their origin ; contending that they were the^irs^ people created on earth. (135) lili'''- " 'i: '' •il*T%' r:fedM para mw vm i: m ■'™ «ij^-^ilS..i i*"< m "■-) 186 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE Their existence in these regions has not bean from a very ancient period ; and, from what I could learn of their traditions, they have, at a former period, been a very numerous and powerful nation ; but by the continual wars which have existed between them and their neighbors, they have been reduced to their present numbers. This tribe is at present located on the west bank of the Missouri, about one thousand eight hundred miles above St. Louis, aud two hundred below the Mouth of Yellow Stone river. They have two villages only, which are about two miles distant from each other ; and number in all (as near as I can I'arn), about two thousand souls. Their present villages are beautifully located, and judiciously also, for defence against the assaults of their enemies. The site of the lower (or principal) town, in particular is one of the nost beautiful and pleasing that can be seen in the woi.d, and even more beautiful than imagination could ever create. In the very midst of an extensive valley (embraced within a thousand graceful swells and parapets or mounds of interminable green, changing to blue, as tljcy vanish in distance) is built the city, or principal town of the Mandans. On an extensive plain (which is covered with a green turf, as well as the hills and dales, as far as the eye can possiblj' range, without tree or bush to be seen) are to be seen rising from the ground, and towards the heavens, domes — (not "of gold," but) of dirt — and the thousand spears (not "spires") and scalp-poles, &c. &c., (;f the semi-subteraneous village of the hospitable and gentlemanly Mandans. These people formerly (and within the recollection of many of their oldest men) lived fifteen or twenty miles farther down the river, in ten contiguous villages; the marks or ruins of which are yet plainly to be seen. At that period, it is evident, as well from the number of lodges which their villages contained, as from their traditions, that their numbers were much greater than at the present day. NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. IST Tbere are other, and very interesting, traditions and nistorical facts relative to a still prior location and con- dition of these people, of which I shall speak more fally on a future occasion. From these, when they are pro- niul"'ed, I think there may be a pretty fair deduction drawn, that they formerly occupied the lower part of the Missouri, and even the Ohio and Muskingum, and have gradually made their way up the Missouri to where they now are. There are many remains on the river below these places (and, in fact, to be seen nearly as low down as St Louis), which shew clearly the peculiar construction of Mandan lodges, and consequently carry a strong proof of the above position. While descending the river, however, which T shall commence in a few weeks, in a canoe, this will be a subject of interest ; and I shall give it close examination. The ground on which the Mandan village is at present built, was admirably selected for defence ; being on a bank forty or fifty feet above the bed of the river. The greater part of this bank is nearly perpendicular, and of solid rock. The river, suddenly changing its course to a right-angle, protects two sides of the village, which is built upon this promontory or angle ; they have therefore but one side to protect, which is effectually done by a strong .piquet, and a ditch inside of it, of three or four feet in depth. The piquet is composed of timbers of a foot or more in diameter, and eighteen feet high, set firmly in the grotrad at sufTicient distances from each other to admit of guns and other missiles to be fired between them. The ditch (unlike that of civilized modes of fortification) is inside of the piquet, in which their warriors screen their bodies from the view and weapons of their enemies, whilst they are re- loading and discharging their weapons through the piquets. The Mandans are undoubtedly secure in their villages, from the attacks of any Indian nation, and have nothing to fear, except when they meet their enemy on the prairie. Their village has a most novel appearance to the eye of a I !^-i^1 1 mrL ■h 133 LKTTERS AND NOTKS ON TUE Btranger ; their lodges are closely grouped together, leaving but just room enough for walking and riding between them ; and appear from without, to bo built entirely of dirt ; but one is surprised when he enters them, to see the neatness, comfort, and spacious dimensions of these earth- covered dwellings. They all have a circular form, and are from forty to sixty feet in diameter. Their foundations are prepared by digging some two feet in the ground, and forming the floor of earth, by levelling the requisite size for the lodge. These floors or foundations are all perfectly circular, and varying in size in proportion to the number of inmates, or of the quality or standing of the families which are to occupy them. The superstructure is then produced, by arranging, inside of this circular excavation, firmly fixed in the ground and resting against the bank, a barrier or wall of timbers, some eight or nine inches in diameter, of equal height (about six feet) placed on end, and resting against each other, supported by a formidable embankment of earth raised against them outside ; then, renting upon the tops of these timbers or piles, are others of equal size and equal in numbers, of twenty or twenty-five feet in length, resting firmly against each other, and sending their upper or smaller ends towards the centre and top of the lodge ; rising at an angle of forty-five degrees to the apex, or sky-light, which is about three or four feet in diameter, answering as a chimney and a sky-light at the same time. The roof of the lodge being thus formed, is supported by beams passing around the inner part of the lodge about the middle of these poles or timbers, and themselves upheld by four or five large posts passing down to the floor of the lodge. On the top of, and over the poles fonning the roof, is placed a complete mat of willow- boughs, of half a foot or more in thickness, which protects the timbers from the dampness of the earth, with which the lodge is covered from bottom to top, to the depth of two or three feet; and then with a hard or tough clay, which is impervious to water, and which with long use KORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 189 becomes quite hard, and a lounging place for the whole family in pleasant weather — for sage — for > >ing lovers — for dogs and all ; an airing place — a look-out — a place for gossip and mirth — a scat for the solitary gazo and medi- tations of the stern warrior, who sits and contemplates the peaceful mirth and happiness that is breathed beneath him, fruits of his hard-fought battles, on fields of desperate combat with bristling Red Men. The floors of these dwellings are of earth, but so hardened by use, and swept so clean, and tracked by bare and moccassined feet, that they have almost a polish, and would scarcely soil the whitest linen. In the centre, and immediately under the sky-light is the fire-place — a hole of four or five feet in diameter, of a circular form, sunk a foot or more below the surface, and curbed around with stone. Over the fire-place, and suspended from the apex of diverging props or poles, is generally seen the pot or kettle, filled with buffalo meat; and around it are the family, reclining in all the most picturesque attitudes and groups, resting on their buffalo-robes and beautiful mats of rushes. These cabins are so spacious, that they hold from twenty to forty persons — a family and all their connexions. They all sleep on bedsteads similar in form to ours, but generally not quite so high ; made of round poles rudely lashed together with thongs. A buffalo skin, fresh stripped from the animal, is stretched across the bottom poles, and about two feet from the floor ; which, when it dries, becomes much contracted, and forms a perfect sacking-bottom. The fur side of this skin is placed uppermost, on which they lie with great comfort, with a buffalo-robe folded up for a pillow, and others drawn over them instead of blankets. These beds, as far as I have seen them (and I have visited almost every lodge in the village), are uniformly screened with a covering of buffalo or elk skins, oftentimes beauti- fully dressed and placed over the upright poles or frame, like a suit of curtains ; leaving a hole in front, sufficiently spacious for the occupant to pass in and out, to and from 1 140 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE his or her bed. Some of these coverings or curtains are exceedingly beautiful, being cut tastefully into fringe, and handsomely ornamented with porcupine's quills and picture writings or hieroglyphics. From the great number of inmates in these lodges, they are necessarily very spacious, and the number of beds considerable. It is no uncommon thing to see these lodges fifty feet in diameter inside (which is an in^jncnso room), with a row of these curtained beds extending quite around their sides, being some ten or twelve of them, placed four or five feet apart, and the space between them occupied by a large post, fixed quite firm in the ground, and six or seven feet high, with large wooden pegs or bolts in it, on which are hung and grouped, with a wild and startling taste, the arms and armor of the respective proprietor- consisting of his whitened shield, embossed and emblazoned with the figure of his protecting medicine (or mystery), his bow and quiver, his war-club or battle-axe, his dart or javelin — his tobacco pouch and pipe — his medicine-bag and his eagle, ermine, or raven head-dress ; and over all and on the top of the post (as if placed by some conjuror or Indian magician, to guard and protect the spell of wildness that reigns in this strange place), stands forth and in full relief the head and horns of a buffalo, which is, by a village regulation, owned and possessed by every man in the nation, and hung at the head of his bed, which he uses as a mask when called upon by the chiefs, to join in the buffalo-dance, of which I shall say more in a future epistle. This arrangement of beds, of arms, &c., combining the most vivid display and arrangement of colors, of fi -«', of trinkets, of barbed and glistening points and steel, of mysteries and hocus pocus, together with the sombre and smoked color of the roof and sides of the' lodge ; and the wild, and rude and red — the graceful (though uncivil) conversational, garrulous, story-telling and happy, though ignorant and untutored groups, that are smoking their pipes — wooing their sweethearts, and embracing their NORTH AMERICAN' INDIANS. 141 little ones about their peaceful and endeared fire-sides; together with their pots and kettles, spoons, and other culinary articles of their own manufacture, around them ; present altogether, one of the most picturesque scenes to the eye of a stranger, that can be possibly seen ; and far more wild and vivid than could ever be imagined. Reader, I said these people are garrulous, story-telling ' and happy ; this is true, and literally so ; and it belongs to me to establish the fact, and correct the error which seems to have gone forth to the world on this subject. As I have before observed, there is no subject that I know of, within the scope and reach of human wisdom, on which the civilized world in this enlightened age are more incorrectly informed, than upon that of the true manners and customs, and moral condition, rights and abuses, of the North American Indians ; and that, as I have also before remarked, chiefly on account of the difficulty of our culti- vating a fair and honorable acquaintance with them, and doing them the justi je, and ourselves the credit, of a fair and impartial investigation of their true character. The present age of refinement and research has brought every thing else that I know of (and a vast deal more than the most enthusiastic mind ever dreamed of) within the scope and fair estimation of refined intellect and of science; while the wild and timid savage, with his interesting cus- toms and modes has vanished, or his character has become changed, at the approach of the enlightened and intellectual world ; who follow him like a phantom for awhile, and in ignorance of his true character at last turn back to the common business and social transactions of life. Owing to the above difficulties, which have stood in the way, the world have fallen into many egregious errors with regard to the true modes and meaning of the savage, which I am striving to set forth and correct in the course of these epistles. And amongst them all, there is none more common, nor more entirely erroneous, nor more easily refuted, than the current one, that " the Indian is a sour, ( A': V*\ '' If] vj> -ii 142 LETTEnS AND NOTES ON THB morose, reserved and taciturn man." I have heard thig opinion advanced a thousand times and I believe it; but such oertaitily, is not uniformly nor generally the case. I have observed in all my travels amongst the Indian tribwJ, and more particularly amongst these unassuming people, that they are a far more talkative and conversational race than can easily be seen in the civilized world. Thia assertion, like many others I s^hall occasionally make, will somewhat startle the folks at the East, yet it is true. No one can look into the wigwams of these people, or into any little momentary group of them, without being at once struck with the conviction that small-talk, gossip, garrulity, and story-telling, are the leading passions with them, who have little else to do in the world, but to while away their lives in the innocent and endless amusement of the exercise of those talents with which Nature has liberally endowed them, for their mirth and enjoyment. One has but to walk or ride about this little town and its environs for a few hours in a pleasant day, and overlook the numerous games and gambols, where their notes and yelps of exultation are unceasingly vibrating in the atmos- phere ; or peep into their wigwams (and watch the glistening fun that's beaming from the noses, cheeks, and chins, of the crouching, cross-legged, and prostrate groups around the fire ; where the pipe is passed, and jokes and anecdote, and laughter are excessive) to become convinced that it is natural to laugh and be merry. Indeed it would be strange if a race of people like these, who have little else to do or relish in life, should be curtailed in that source of pleasure and amusement; and it would be also strange, if a life-time of indulgence and practice in so innocent and productive a mode of amusement, free from the cares and anxieties of business or professions, should not advance them in their modes, 'and enable them to draw far greater pleasure from such sources, than we in the civilized and business world can possibly feel. If the uncultivated condition of their minds curtails the number of their enjoyments ; yet they NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 143 arc freo from, and independent of, a thousand cares and jealousies, which arise from mercenary motives in tho civilized world; and are yet far ahead of us (in my opin- ion) in tho real and uninterrupted enjoyment of their simple natural faculties. They live in a country and in communities whore it is not customary to look forward into the future with concern, for they live without incurring the expenses of life, Avhich arc absolutely necessary and unavoidable in the enlightened world; and of course their inclinations and faculties aro solely directed to the enjoyment of the present day, with- out the sober reflections on the past or apprehensions of the future. With minds thus unexpanded and uninfluenced by the thousand passions and ambitions of civilized life, it is easy and natural to concentrate their thoughts and their conver- sation upon the little and trifling occurrences of their lives. They are fond of fun and good cheer, and can laugh easily and heartily at a slight joke, of which their peculiar modes of life furnish them an inexhaustible fund, and enable them to cheer their little circle about the wigwam fire-side with endless laughter and garrulity. It may be thought, that I am taking a great deal of pains to establish this fact, and I am dwelling longer upon it than I otherwise should, inasmuch as I am opposing an error that seems to have become current through the world ; and wliich, if it be once corrected, removes a material difiiculty, which has always stood in the way of a fair and just esti- mation of the Indian character. For the purpose of placing the Indian in a proper light before the world, as I hope to do in many respects, it is of importance to me — it is but justice to the savage — and justice to my readers also, that such points should be cleared up as I proceed ; and for the world who inquire for correct and just information, they must take my words for the truth, or else come to this country, and look for themselves into these grotesque circles of never-ending laughter and fun, instead of going to Wash- ' K' I ik.-'- Id ' '&jf»ii^''i^'" 144 LETTERS AND N0TE3 OX THE ington City to gaze on the poor embarrassed Indian who is called there by his " Great Father," to contend with the sophistry of the learned and acquisitive world, in bartering away his lands with the graves and the hunting grounds of his ancestors. There is not the proper place to study the Indian character ; yet it is the place where the sycophant and the scribbler go to gaze and frown upon him — to learn his character and write his history ! — and because he does not speak, and quaffs the delicious beverage which he receives from white men's hands, " he's a speechless brute and a drunkard." An Indian is a beggar in Washington City, and a white man is almost equally so in the Maudan village. An Indian in Washington is mute, is dumb and embarrassed ; and ao is a white man (and for the very same reasons) in this place — he has nobody to talk to. A wild Indian, to reach the civilized world, must needs travel some thousands of miles in vehicles of conveyance to which he is unaccustomed — through latitudes and longi- tudes which are new to him — living on food that he is unused to — stared and gazed at by the thousands and tens of thousands whom he cannot talk to — his heart grieving and his body sickening at the exhibition of white men's wealth and luxuries, which are enjoyed on the land, and over the bones of his ancestors. And at the end of his jour- ney he stands (like a caged animal) to be scanned — to bo criticised — to be pitied — and heralded to the world as a mute — as a brute, and a beggar. A white man, to reach this village, must travel by steam- boat — by canoes — on horseback and on foot ; swim rivers- wade quagmires — fight mosquitoes — patch his moccasins, and patch them again and again, and his breeches ; live on ni« at alone — sleep on the ground the whole way, and tliiiik ar.d dream of his frien''^ he has left behind; and when he gets here, half-starved, and half-naked, and more than half sick, he finds himself a beggar for a place to sleep, and for something to cat: a mute amongst thousands who flock about him, to look and to criticise, and to laugh at him for NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 145 his jaded appearance, and to speak of him as they do of all white men (without distinction) as liars. These people are in the habit of seeing no white men in their country but Traders, and know of no other ; deeming us all alike, and receiving us all under the presumption that we come to trade or barter ; applying to us all, indiscriminately, the epithet of "liars" or Traders. The reader will therefore see, that we mutually suffer in each other's estimation from the unfortunate ignorance, which distance has chained us in ; and (as I can vouch, and the Indian also, who has visited the civilized world) that the historian who would record justly and correctly the char- acter and customs of a people, must go and live among them. 10 ||'''S»'il*(*'>^': .r*'2&--'-s i .1'' ? ../..,. i. ... :*■: cu- '. MANDAN TILLAOI, FROM CATLIN'S FAINTINn. LETTER No. XII. MANDAN VILLAGE, UPPER MISSOURI. In my last, I gave some account of the village, and the customs, and appearances of this strange people, — and I will now proceed to give further details on that subject. I have this morning, perched myself upon the top of one of the earth-covered lodges, which I have before described, and having the whole village beneath and about me, with its sachems— its warriors — its dogs — and its horses in motion — its medicines (or mysteries) and scalp-polos waving over my head — its piquets — its green fields and . (146) '4k,,i, NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. U7 prairies, and river in full view, witli the din and bustle of the thrilling panorama that is about me. I shall be able, I hope, to give some sketches more to the life than I could have done from any effort of recollection. I said that the lodges or wigwams were covered with earth — were of forty or sixty feet in diameter, and so closely grouped that there was but just room enough to walk and ride between them, — that they bad a door by which to enter them, and a hole in the top for the admission of light, and for the smoke to escape, — that the inmates were at times grouped upon their tops in conversations and other amusements, &o.; and yet you know not exactly how they look, nor what is the precise appearance of the strange world that is about me. There is really a newness and rudeness in every thing that is to be seen. There are several hunlr: houses or dwellings about me, and they are purely ut c -they are all covered with dirt — the people are all v-l, and yet distinct from all other red folks I have seen. The horses are wild — every dog is a wolf— the whole moving mass are strangers to me ; the living, in everything, carry an air of intractable wildness about them, and the dead are not buried, but dried upon scaffolds. The groups of lodges around me present a very curious and pleasing appearance, resembling in shape (more nearly than anything else I can compare them to) so many potash- kettles inverted. On the tops of these are to be seen groups standing and reclining, whose wild and picturesque appearance it would be difficult to describe. Stern warriors, like statues, standing in dignified groups, wrapped in their painted robes, with their heads decked and plumed with quills of the war-eagle ; extending their long arms to the east or the west, the scenes of their battles, which they are recounting over to each other. In another direction, the wooing lover, softening the heart of his fair Taih-nah- ta'-a with the notes of his simple lute. On other lodges, and beyond these, groups are engaged in games of thfe " moccasin," or the " platter." Some arc to be seen manu 'l&:^ii^ >m^iz 148 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE faotoring robes and dresses, and others fatigued with, amusements or occupations, have stretched their limbs to enjoy the luxury of sleep, whilst basking in the sun. "With all this wild and varied medley of living beings are mixed their dogs, which seem to be so near an Indian's heart, as almost to constitute a material link of his existence. In the centre of the village is an open space, or public area, of one hundred and fifty feet in diameter, and circular in form, which is used for all public games and festivals, shows and exhibitions ; and also for their "annual religious ceremonies," which are soon to take place, and of which I shall hereafter give some account. The lodges around this open space front in, with their doors towards the centre; and in the tniddle of this circle stands an object of great religious veneration, as I am told, on account of the importance it has in the conduction of those annual religious rites. This object is in form of a large hogshead, some eight or ten feet high, made of planks and hoops, containing within it some of their choicest medicines or mysteries, and religiously preserved unbacked or unscratched, as a symbol of the " Big Canoe," as they call it. One of the lodges fronting on this circular area, and facing this strange object of their superstition, is called the " Medicine Lodge," or council house. It is in this sacred building that these wonderful ceremonies, in commemo- ration of the flood, take place. I am told by the Tradors that the cruelties of these scenes are frightful and abhorrent in the extreme ; and that this huge wigwam, which is now closed, has been built exclusively for this grand celebration. I am c^ery day reminded of the near approach of the season for this strange affiiir, and as I have not yet seen any thing of it, I cannot describe it ; I know it only f'-ora the relations of the Traders who have witnessed parts of it ; and their descriptions are of so extraordinary a character, that I would not be willing to describe until I L. * NOBTH AMEBICAN INDIANS. U9 can see for myself, — which will, in all probability, be in a few days. In ranging the eye over the village from where I am writing, there is presented to the view the strangest mixture and medley of unintelligible trash (independent of the living beings that are in motion), that can possibly be imagined. On the roofs of the lodges, besides the groups of living, are buffaloes' skulls, skin canoes, pots and pottery; sleds and sledges — and suspended on poles, erected some twenty feet above the doors of their wigwams, are displayed in a pleasant day, the scalps of warriors, preserved as trophies; and thus proudly exposed as evidence of their warlike deeds. In other parts are raised on poles the warriors' pure and whitened shields and quivers, with medicine-bags attached ; and here and there a sacrific of red cloth, or other costly stuff, offered up to the Great Spirit, over the door of some benignant chief, in humble gratitude for the blessings which he is enjoying. Such is a part of the strange medley that is before and around me; and amidst them and the blue streams of smoke that are rising from the tops of these hundred "coal-pits," can be seen in distance, the green and bound- less, treeless, bushless prairie ; and on it, and contiguous to the piquet which encloses the village, a hundred scaffolds, on which their " dead live," as they term it. These people never bury the dead, but place the bodies on slight scaffolds just above the reach of human hands, and out of the way of wolves and dogs ; and they are there left to moulder and decay. This cemetery, or place of deposite for the dead, is just back of the village, on a level prairie, and with all its appearances, history, foim, ceremonies, etc., is one of the strangest and most interesting objects to be described in the vicinity of this peculiar race. Whenever a person dies in the Mandan village, and the customary honors and condolence are paid to his remains, and the body dressed in its best attire, painted, oiled, feastod, and supplied with bow and quiver, shield, pipe ^fi fell m. 150 LETTEB3 AND NOTES ON THE and tobacco— knife, flint and steel, and provisions enough to last him a few days on the journey which he is to perform ; a fresh buffalo's skin, just taken from the animal's back, is wrapped around the body, and tightly bound and wound with thongs of raw hide from head to foot. Then other robes are soaked in water, till they are quite soft and elastic, which are also bandaged around the body in the same manner, and tied fast with thongs, which are wound with great care and exactness, so as to exclude the action of the air from all parts of the body. r;; rrsv,; I ;/•!,• "r;; MANDAM BDBIAt. PLACI. " There is then a separate scaffold erected for it, con- Btructed of four upright posts, a little higher than human hands can reach ; and on the tops of these are small poles passing around from one post to the others ; across which are a number of willow- rods jnst strong enough to support the body, which is laid upon them on its back, with its feet carefully presented towards the rising sun NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 161 There are a great number of these bodies resting exactly in a similar way; excepting in some instances where a chief, or medicine-man, may be seen with a few yards of scarlet or blue cloth spread over his remains, as a mark of public respect and esteem. Some hundreds of these bodies may be seen reposing in this manne" in this curious place, which the Indians call, " the " 'la^ ' the dead ;'* and the traveller, who visits this couu^ry to -.udy and learn will not only be struck with the novel appearance of the scene ; but if he will give attention to the respect and devotions that are paid to this sacred place, he will draw many a moral deduction that will last him through life ; he will learn, at least, that filial, conjugal, and paternal affection are not necessarily the results of civilization ; but that the Great Spirit has given them to man in his native state ; and that the spices and improvements of the enlightened world have never refined upon them. ' - ' ' ' ' ' '• -• There is not a day in the year in which one may not see in this place evidences of this feet, that will wring tears from his eyes, and kindle in his bosom a spark of respect and sympathy for the poor Indian, if he never felt it before. Fathers, mothers, wives, and children, may be seen lying under these scaffolds, prostrated upon the ground, with their faces in the dirt, howling forth incessantly the most piteous and heart-broken cries and lamentations for the misfortunes of their kindred; tearing their hair — cutting their flesh with their knives, and doing other penance to appease the spirits of the dead, whose misfortunes they attribute to some sin or omission of their own, for which they sometinies inflict the most excruciating self-torture. When the scaffolds on which the bodies rest, decay and fall to the ground, the nearest relations having buried the rest of the bones, take the skulls, which are perfectly bleached and purified, and place them in circles of an hundred or more on the prairie — placed at e-w •.'f--M> [»i UK 152 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE protected and preserved in tbeir precise positions from year to year, as objects of religious and affectionate veneration. There are several of these «*Golgothas" or circles of twenty or thirty feet in diameter, and in the centre of each ring or circle is a little mound of three feet high, on which uniformly rest two buffalo skulls (a male and female) ; and in the centre of the little mound is erected a " medicine pole," about twenty feet high, supporting many curious articles of mystery and superstition, which they suppose have the power of guarding and protecting this sacred arrangement. Here then to this strange place do these people again resort, to evince their further affections for the dead — not in groans and lamentations, however, for several years have cured the anguish ; but fond affections and endearments are here renewed, and conversations are here held and cherished with the dead. Each one of these skulls is placed upon a bunch of wild sage, which has been pulled and placed under it. The wife knows (by some mark or resemblance) the skull of her husband or her child, which lies in this group ; and there seldom passes a day that she does not visit it, with a dish of the best cooked food that her wigwam affords, which slie sets before the skull at night, and returns for the dish in the morning. As soon as it is discovered that the sage on wliich the skull rests is beginning to decay, the woman cuts a fresh bunch, and places the skull carefully upon it, removing that which was under it. Indepcntlent of the above-named duties, wliich draw the women to this spot, they visit it from inclination, and linger upon it to hold converse and company with the dead. There is scarcely an hour in a pleasant day, but more or less of these women may be seen sitting or laying by tlie skull of their child or husband — talking to it in the most pleasant and endearing language that they can use (as they are wont to do in former days) and seemingly getting an answerback. It is not unfrequently th.; case, that the woman brings her needle-work with her, fpending tl oi b] ov ar siv yet whi and gosi T thes stud Lend irapc bene] en 11. NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 153 the greater part of the day, sitting by the side of the skull of her child, chatting incessantly with it, while she is em- broidering or garnishing a pair of moccasins ; and perhaps, overcome with fatigue, falls asleep, with her arms encircled around it, forgetting herself for hours ; after which she gathers up her things and returns to the village. There is something exceedingly interesting and impres- sive in these scenes, which are so strikingly dissimilar, and yet within a few rods of each other ; the one is the place where they pour forth the frantic anguish of their souls — and afterwards pay their visits to the other, to jest and gossip with the dead. The great variety of shapes and characters exhibited in these groups of crania, render them a very interesting study for the craniologist and phrenologist ; but I appre- hend that it would be a matter of great difficulty (if not of impossibility) to procure them at this time, for the use and benefit of the scientifio world. CIRCLE or SKILLS OK TUB MANDANS FROM CATUN'S PAINTINO. •1 If- r i li , It," •' ' M A. LETTER No. XIIL MANDAN VILLAGE, UPPER MISSOUBI. In several of my former Letters I have given sketches of the village, and some few of the customs of these peculiar people; and I have many more yet in store; some of which will induce the readers to laugh, and others alnK>st dispose thom to weep. But at present, I drop them, and introduce a few of the wild and gentlemanly Mandans themselves; and first, Ha-na-tah-nu-mauh, (the wolf chief.) This man is head-chief of the nation, and familiarly known by the name of "Chef de Loup," as the French Traders call hira; a haughty, austere, and overbearing man, respected and feared by his people rather than loved. The tenure by which this man holJs his office, is that by which the head- (154) KORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 155 chiefs of most of the tribes claim, that of inheritance. It is a gener^, though not an infalUble rule amongst the numerous tribes of North American Indians, that the office of chief belongs to the eldest son of a chief; provided he shows himself, by his conduct, to be equally worthy of it as any other in the nation ; making it hereditary on a very proper condition — ^in default of which requisites, or others which may happen, the office is elective. The dress of this chief was one of great extravagance, and some beauty ; manufactured of skins ; and a great number of quills of the raven, forming his stylish head- dress. The next and second chief of the tribe, is Mah-to-toh-pa (the four bears). This extraordinary man, though second in office is undoubtedly the first and most popular man in the nation. Free, generous, elegant and gentlemanly in his deportment — handsome, brave and valiant; wearing a robe on his back, with the history of his battles emblazoned on it; which would fill a book of themselves, if properly translated. This, readers, is the most extraordinary man, perhaps, who lives at this day, in the atmosphere of Nature's noblemen ; and I shall certainly tell you more of him anon. After him, there are Mah-tahp-ta-ha (he who rushes through the middle); Seehk-hee-da (the mouse-colored feather); San-ja-ka-ko-kah (the deceiving wolf); Mah-to- he-ha (the old bear), and others, distinguished as chiefs and warriors — and there are belles also ; such as Mi-neek-e-sunk- te-ca (the mink ;) and the little gray-haired Sha-ko-ka-mint, and fitly others, who are famous for their conquests, not with the bow or the javelin, but with their small black eyes, which shoot out from under their unfledged brows, and pierce the boldest, fiercest chieftain to the heart. The Mandans are certainly a very interesting and pleasing people in their personal appearance and manners ; differing in many respects, both in looks and customs, from all other tribes which I have seen. They are not a warlike people ; ;-. f , t .1. ,■>■_, . J 7 'r w.%' Jl if ' nKju 1 If ''fl ■i^^^'i^'fi^fl' 166 LKITEIW AND NOTES OS THE for th ^y seldom, if ever, carry war into their enemies' country ; but when invaded, show their valor and courage to bo equal to that of any people on earth. Being a small tribe, and unable to contend on the wide prairies with the Sioux and other roaming tribes, who are ten times more numerous, they have very judicioaslji located themselves iu a permanent village, which is strongly fortified, and ensures their preservation. By this means they have advanced further in the arts of manut'acture; have supplied their lodges more abundantly with the comforts, and even luxu- ries of life, than any Indian nation I know of. The conse- quence of this {?, that this tribe have taken many steps ahead of other tribes in manners and refinements (if I may be allowed to apply the word refinement to Indian life) ; and are therefore familiarly (and correctly) denominated, by the Traders and others, who have been amongst them, " the polite and friendly Mandans." There is certainly great justice in the remark ; and so forcibly have I been struck with the peculiar ease and ele- gance of these people, together with the diversity of com- plexions, the various colors of their hair and eyes — the singularity of their language, and their peculiar and unac- countable customs, that I am fully convinced that they have sprung from some other origin than that of the other North American tribes, or that they are an amalgam of natives with some civilized race. Here arises a question of very great interest and impor- tance for discussion ; and, after further familiarity with their character, customs and traditions, if I forget it not, I will eventually give it further consideration. Suffice it then, for the present, that their personal appearance alone, indepen- dent of their modes and customs, pronounces them at once, as more or less than savage. A stranger in the Mandan village is first struck with the different shades of complexion, and various colors of hair, which he sees in a crowd about him ; and is at once almost disposed to exclaim that " these are not Indians." •r!' :;. NORTH AMERICAK INDIANS. 157 There are a great many of these people whose com- plexions appear as light as half-breeds ; and amongst the women particularly, there are many whose skins are almost white, with the most pleasing symmetry and proportion of features ; with hazel, with grey, and with blue eyes, — with mildness and sweetness of expression, and excessive modesty of demeanor, which render them exceedingly pleasing and beautiful. Why this diversity of complexion I cannot tell, nor can they themselves account for it. Their traditions, so far as I have yet learned them, afford us no information of their having had any knowledge of white men before the visit of Lewis and Clarke, made to their village thirty-three years ago. Since that time there have been but very few visits from white men to this place, and surely not enough to have changed the complexions and the customs of a nation. And I recollect perfectly well that Governor Clarke told me, before I started for this place, that I would find the Mandans a strange people and half white. The diversity in the color of hair is also equally as great as that in the complexion ; for in a numerous group of these people (and more particularly amongst the females, who never take pains to change its natural color, as the men often do), there may be seen every shade and color of hair that can be seen in our own country, with the exception of red or auburn, which is not to be found. And there is yet one more strange and unaccountable peculiarity, which can probably be seen nowhere else on earth ; nor on any rational grounds accounted for, — other than it is a freak or order of Nature, for which she has not seen fit to assign a reason. There are very many, of hy.h. sexes, and of every age, from infancy to manhooa »n*l old age, with hair of a bright silvery grey, and in some instances almost perfectly white. This singular and eccentric appearance is much oftener seen among the women than it is with the men ; for many of the latter who have it, seem ashamed of it, and artfully m 158 LXTTEBS AND NOTES ON THE conceal it, by filling their hair with glue and black and red earth. The women, on the other hand, seem proud of it, and display it often in an almost incredible profusion, which spreads over their shoulders and falls as low as the knee. I have ascertained, on a careful enquiry, that about one in ten or twelve of the whole tribe are what the French call "cheveux gris," or greyhairs; and that this strange and unaccountable phenomenon is not the result of disease or habit, but that it is unquestionably a hereditary character which runs in families, and indicates no inequality in dispo- sition or intellect. And by passing this hair through my hands, as I oftien have, I have found it uniformly to be as coarse and harsh as a horse's mane; differing materially from the hair of other colors, which, amongst the Man- dans, is generally as fine and as soft; as silk. The reader will at once see, by the above facts, that there is enough upon the faces and heads of these people to stamp them peculiar, — when he meets them in the heart of this almost boundless wilderness, presenting such diversities of color in the complexion and hair; when he knows, from what he has seen, and what he has read, that all other primitive tribes known in America, are dark copper- colored, with jet black hair. From these few facts alone, the reader will see that I am amongst a strange and interesting people, and know how to pardon me, if I lead him through a maze of novelty and mysteries to the knowledge of a strange, yet kind and hos- pitable people, whose fate, like that of all their race, is sealed ; — whose doom is fixed, to live just long enough to be imperfectly known, and then to fiali before the fell disease or sword of civilizing devastation. The stature of the Mandans is rather below the ordinary size of man, with beautiful symmetry of form and propor- tion, and wonderful suppleness and elasticity; they are pleasingly erect and graceful, both in their walk and their attitudes ; and the hair of the men, which generally spreads over their backs, falling down to the hams, and sometimes 270BTH AMEBICAK INDIANS. 150 to the ground, is divided into plaits or slabs of two inches in width, and filled with a profusion of glue and red earth or vermilion, at intervals of an inch or two, which becoming very hard, remains in and unchanged from year to year. This mode ■ dressing the hair is curious, and gives to the Mandans the most singular appearance. The hair of the men is uniformly all laid over from the forehead back- wards; carefully kept above and resting on the ear, and thence falling down over the back, in these flattened bunches, and painted red, extending oftentimes quite on to the calf of the leg, and sometimes in such profusion as almost to conceal the whole figure from the person walking behind them. The hair of the women is also worn as long as they can possibly cultivate it, oiled very often, which preserves on it a beautiful gloss and shows its natural color. They often braid it in two large plaits, one falling down just back of the ear, on each side of the head; and on any occasion which requires them to ',' put on their best looks," they pass their fingers through it drawing it out of braid, and spreading it over their shoulders. The Mandan women observe strictly the same custom, which I observed amongst the Crows and Blackfeet (and, in fact, all other tribes I have seen, without a single exception,) of parting the hair on the forehead, and always keeping the crease or separation filled with vermilion or other red paint. This is one of the very few little (and apparently trivial) customs which I have found amongst the Indians, without being able to assign any cause for it, other than that *' they axe Indians," and that this is an Indian fashion. In mourning, like the Crpws and most other tribes, the women are obliged to crop their hair all off; and the usual term of that condolence is until the hair has grown again to its former length. When a man mourns for the death of a near relation the case is quite different ; his long, valued tresses, are of ^ 5<, ,J ^m •-f^ ■I'lr Md 160 LETTERS AWD NOTES ON THE much greater importance, and only a lock or two can be spared. Just enough to tell of his grief to his friends, without destroying his most valued ornament, is doing just reverence and respect to the dead. To repeat what I have said before, the Mandans are a pleasing and friendly race of people, of whom it is pro. verbial amongst the Traders and all who ever have known them, that their treatment of white men in their country has been friendly and kind ever since their first acquain- tance with them— they have ever met and received them, on the prairie or in their villages, with hospitality and honor. They are handsome, straight and elegant in their forms, not tall, but quick and graceful ; easy and polite in their manners, neat in their persons and beautifully clad. When I say " neat in person and beautifully clad," how- ever, I do not intend my readers to understand that such is the case with them all, for among them and most other tribes, as with the enlightened world, there are different grades of society — those who care but little for their personal appearance, and those who take great pains to please themselves and their friends. Amongst this class of personages, such as chiefs and braves, or warriors of dis- tinction, and their families, and dandies or exquisites (a class of beings of whom I shall take due time to speak in a future Letter,) the strictest regard to decency, and cleanli- ness and elegance of dress is observed ; and there are few people, perhaps, who take more pains to keep their persons neat and cleanly than they do. At the distance of half a mile or so above the village, is the customary p'' ice where the women and girls resort every morning in the summer months, to bathe in the river. To this spot they repair by hundreds, every morning at sunrise, where, on a beautiful beach, they can be seen running and glistening in the sun, whilst they aro playing their innocent gambols and leaping into the stream. They all learn to swim well, and the poorest swmmer NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS, 161 amongst them will dash fearlessly into the boiling and eddying current of the Missouri, and cross it with perfect ease. At the distance of a quarter of a mile back from the river, extends a terrace or elevated prairie, running north from the village, and forming a kind of semicircle around this bathing-place ; and on this terrace, which is some twenty or thirty feet higher than the meadow between it and the river, are stationed every morning several sentinels, with their bows and arrows in hand, to guard and protect this sacred ground from the approach of boys or men from any directions. ^ At a little distance below the village, also, is the place where the men and boys go to bathe and learn to swim. After this morning ablution, they return to their village, wipe their limbs dry, and use a profusion of bear's grease through their hair and over their bodies. The art of swimming is known to all the American Indians ; and perhaps no people on earth have taken more pains to learn it, nor any who turn it to better account. There certainly are no people whose avocations of life more often call for the use of their limbs in this way ; as many of the tribes spend their lives on the shores of our vast lakes and rivers, paddling about from their childhood in their fragile bark canoes, which are liable to continual accidents, which often throw the Indian upon his natural resources for the preservation of his life. The 10 are many times also, when out upon their long marches in the prosecution of their almost continued war- fare, when it becomes necessary to plunge into and swim across the wildest streams and rivers, at times when they have no canoes or Craft in which to cross them. I have as yet seen no tribe where this art is neglected. It is learned at a very early age by both sexes, and enables the strong and hardy muscles of the squaws to tiike their child upon the l)ack, and successfully to pass any river that lies in tlieir way. The mode of swimming amongst the Mandaus, as well 11 m, ''^k'&M ..• ).. 162 LKTTERS AND NOTES ON TH. as amongst most of the otbei* tribes, is quite different from that practiced in those parts of the civilized world, which I have had the pleasure yet to visit. The Indian, instead of parting his hands simultaneously under the chin, and making the stroke outward, in a horizontal direction, causing thereby a serious strain upon the chest, throws his body alternately upon the left and the right side, raising one arm entirely above the water and reaching as far forward as he can, to dip it, whilst his whole weight and force are spent upon the one that is passing under him, and like a paddle propelling him along ; whilst this arm is making a half circle, and is being raised out of the water behind him, the opposite arm is describing a similar arch in the air over his head, to be dipped in the water as far as he can reach before him, with the hand turned under, forming a sort of bucket, to act most effectively as it passes in its turn andorneath him. By this bold and powerful mode of swimming, which may want the grace that many would wish to see, I am quite sure, from the experience I have had, that much of the fatigue and strain upon the breast and spine are avoided, and that a man will preserve his strength and his breath mucli longer in this alternate and rolling motion, than he can in the usual mode of swimming, in the polished world. In addition to the modes of bathing which I have above described, the Mandans have another, which is a much greater luxury, and often resorted to by the sick, but far more often by the well and sound, as a matter of luxury only, or perhaps for the purpose of hardening their limbs and preparing them for the thousand exposures and vicissi- tudes of life to which they are continually liable. I allude to their vapor baths, or sudatories, of which each village has several, and which seem to be a kind of public property — accessible to all, and resorted to by all, male and female, old and young, sick and well. In every Mandan lodge is to bo seen a crib or basket, much in the shape of a bathing-tub, curiously woven with ^ii. .[ ITOBTH AMEBICAN INDIANS 168 willow boughs, and sufficiently large to receive any person of the family in a reclining or recumbent posture ; which, when any one is to take a bath, is carried by the squaw to the sudatory for the purpose, and brought back to the wigwam again after it has been used. These sudatories are always near the village, above or below it, on the bank of the river. They are generally built of skins (in the form of a Crow or Sioux lodge which I have before described), covered with buffalo skins sewed tight together, with a kind of furnace in the centre ; or in other words, in the centre of the lodge are two walls of stone about six feet long an\i two and a half apart, and about three feet high ; across and over this space, between the two walls, are laid a number of round sticks, on which the bathing crib is placed. Contiguous to the lodge, and outside of it, is a little furnace something similar, in the side of the bank, where the woman kindles a hot fire, and heats to a red heat a number of large stones, which are kept at these places for this particular purpose ; and having them all in readiness, she goes home or sends word to inform her husband or other one who is waiting, that all is ready ; when he makes his appearance entirely naked, though with a large buffijlo robe wrapped around him. He then enters the lodge and places himself in the crib or basket, either on his back or in a sitting posture (the latter of which is generally preferred), with his back towards the door of the lodge ; when the squaw brings in a large stone red hot, between two sticks (lashed together somewhat in the form of a pair of tongs) and, placing it under him, throws cold water upon it, which raises a profusion of vapor about him. He is at once enveloped in a cloud of steam, and a woman or chi-ld will sit at a little distance and continue to dash water upon the stone, whilst the matron of the lodge is out, and preparing to make her appearance with another heated stone : or he will sit and dip from a wooden bowl, with a ladle made of the mountain-sheep's horn, and throw upon the heated -Ww^y. 164 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE stones, witli his own bands, the water which he is drawing through his lungs and pores, in the next moment in the most dcloctable and exhilarating vapors, as it distils through the mat of wild sage and other medicinal and aromatic herbs, which he has strewed over the bottom oi his basket, and on which he reclines. During all this time the lodge is shut perfectly tight, and he quaffs this delicious and renovating draught to his lungs with deep drawn sighs, and with extended nostrils, until he is drenched in the most profuse degree of perspiration that can be produced ; when he makes a kind of strangled signal, at which the lodge is opened, and he darts forth with the speed of a frightened deer, and plunges headlong into the river, from which he instantly escapes again, wraps his robe around him and " leans" as fast as possible for home. Here his limbs are wiped dry, and wrapped close and tight within the fur of the buffalo robes, in which lie takes his nap, with his feet to the fire ; then oils his limbs and hair with bear's grease, dresses and plumes himself for a visit — a feast — a parade, or a council ; or slicks down his long hair, and rubs his oiled limbs to a polish, with a piece of soft buckskin, prepared to join in games of ball or Tchung-kee. Such is the sudatory or the vapor bath of the Mandans, and, as I before observed, it is resorted to both as an every- day luxury by those who have the time and energy or industry to indulge in it ; and also used by the sick as a remedy for nearly all the diseases which are known amongst them. Fevers are very rare, and in foot almost unknown amongst these people : but in the few cases of fever which have been known, this treatment has been ap- plied, and without the fatal consequences wliich we would naturally predict. The greater part of their diseases are inflammatory rheumatisms, and other chronic diseases ; and for these, tliis mode of treatment, with their modes of life, does admirably well. This custom is similar amongst nearly all of these Mis.souri Indians, and amongst the NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 165 Pawnees, Omahas, and Punclias and other tribes, who have suffered with the small-pox (the dread destroyer of the ludian race), this mode was practiced by the poor creatures, who fled by hundreds to the river's edge, and by hundreds died before they could escape from the waves, into which they had plunged in the heat and rage of a burning fever. Such will yet be the scourge, and sucli the misery of these poor unthinking people, and each tribe to the Eocky Mountains, as it has been with ever_^ tribe between here and the Atlantic Ocean. White men — whisky — tomahawks —scalping knives — guns, powder and ball — small-pox — debauchery— extermination. '^'^A .Lz.^s-i^:^-^^ •^m.i.i" i i ■m4 tM" f r I, If 1 1 [ ' ^ - ' it'/ mm LETTER No. XIV. MANDAN VILLAGE, UPPER MISSOUBL Thk Mandans in many instances dress very neatly, and some of them splendidly. As they are in their native state, theif dresses are all of their own manufacture ; and of course, altogether made of skins of different animals belonging to those regions. There is, certainly, a reigning and striking similarity of costume amongst most of the North Western tribes ; and I cannot say that the dress of the Mandans is decidedly distinct from that of the Crows or the Blackfeet, the Assinncboiiis or the Sioux; yet there are modes of stitching or embroidering, in every tribe, which may at once enable the traveller who is familiar (ICC) u.. NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 167 with their modes, to detect or distinguish the dress of any tribe. These differences consist generally in the fashions of constructing the head-dress, or of garnishing their dresses with the porcupine quills, which they use in great profusion. Amongst so many different and distinct nations, always at war with each other, and knowing nothing at all of each other's languages; and amongst whom, fashions in dress seldom if ever change ; it may seem somewhat strange that we should find these people so nearly following, or imitating each other, in the forms and modes of their dress and ornaments. This must however, be admitted, and I think may be accounted for in a manner, without raising the least argument in favor of the theory of their having all sprung from one stock or one family ; for in their continual warfare, when chiefs or warriors fall, their clothes and weapons usually fall into the possession of the victors, who wear them ; and the rest of the tribe would naturally more or less often copy from or imitate them ; and so also in their repeated councils or treaties of peace, such articles of dress and other manufactures are customarily exchanged, which are equally adopted by the other tribe; and con- sequently, eventually lead to the similiarity which we find amongst the modes of dress, &c., of the different tribes. The tunic or shirt of the Mandan men is very similar in shape to that of the Blackfeet — made of two skins of deer or mountain-sheep, strung with scalp-locks, beads, and ermine. The leggings, like those of the other tribes, of whom I have spoken, are made of deerskins, and shaped to fit the leg, embroidered with porcupine quills, and fringed with scalps from their enemies' heads. Their moccasins are made of buckskin, and neatly ornamented with porcupine quills; — over their shoulders (or in other words, over one shoulder and passing under the other), they very gracefully wear a robe from the young buffalo's back, oilentimes cut down to about half its original size, to make it handy and easy for use. Many of these are also Si, , t J* fcl! I ; J. ^'^''y* i' tlf't ujm 168 LEITERS AND NOTKS ON THE fringed on O"^- side with scalp locks; and the flesh side of the skin curiously ornamented with pictured representations of the creditable events and battles of their lives. Their head-dresses are of various sorts, and many of them exceedingly picturesque and handsome; generally made of warcagles' or ravens' quills and ermine. These are the most costly part of an Indian's dross in all this country, owing to the difliculty of procuring the quills and the fur. The war oagle being the ^Wara avis," and the ormine the rarest animal that is found in tho country. The tail of a war-oagle in this village, pr-^vided it is a jwrfect one, containing some six or eight quills, which are denominated first-rate {dumes, and suitable to arrange in a head-dress, will purchase a tolerable good horse (horses, however, are mucli cheaper here than they tire in most other countries). I have had abundant opportunities of learning the great value which these people sometimes attach to .>uch articles of dress and ornament, as I have been purchasing a great many, which I intend to exhibit in my Gallery of Indian Paintings, that the world may examine them for themselves, and thereby be enabled to judge of the fidelity of my works, and the ingenuity of Indian manufactures. Ill those purchases I have often been surprised at the prices demanded by them; and pcrliaps T could not recite a better instance of the kind, than one which occurod here a few days since; — One of the chiefs, whom I had painted at full length, in a beautiful costume, with head-dress of ^var eagles' ijuills and ermine, extending quite down to his I'ec't; and whom I was soliciting for the purcliase of liis dress complete, was willing to sell to me all but the head- dress; saying, that "he could not part with that, as he Would never be able to get quills and ermine of so good a quality to make another like it." I agreed with him, how- (;ver, for the rest of the dress, and importuned him, from day to day, for the head-dress, until he at length replied, that, if I must have it, he must have two horses for it; the NORTIT AMERICAN INDIANS. 169 bargain was instantly struck — the hoi-ses were procured of the Traders at twenty-five dollars each, and the head-dress secured for my Collection. There is occasionally, a chief or a warrior of so extra- ordinary renown, that ho is allowed to wear horns on his head-dress, which give to his aspect a strange and mnjestic eftect. These are made of about a third part of the horn of a buffalo bull ; the horn having been split from end to end, and a third part of it taken and shaved thin and light, and highly polished. These are attached to tho top of the head-dress on each side, in tho same place that they rise and stand on the head of a buffalo ; rising out of a mat of ermine skins and tails, which hang over the top of the head-dress, somewhat in the form that the large and profuse locks of hair hang and fall over the head of a buffalo bull. The same custom I have found observed among the Sioux, the Crows, the Blackfeet and Assinneboins, and it is one of so striking a character as needs a few more words of observations. There is a peculiar meaning or importance (in their estimation) to this and many other curious and unaccountable appearances in the habits of Indians, upon which the world generally look as things that are absurd and ridiculous, merely because they are beyond the world's comprehension, or because we do not stop to enquire or learn their uses or meaning. I find that the principal cause why we underrate and despise the savage, is generally because we do i it under- stand him ; and the reason why we are ignorant of him and his mod^s, is that we do not stop to investigate — the world liave been too much in the habit of looking at him as altogether inferior — as a beast, a brute; and unworthy of more than a passing notice. If they stop long enough to form an acquaintance, it is but to take advantage of his ignorance and credulitiea — to rob him of the wealth und resources of his country; — to make him drunk with whisky, and visit him with abuses which in his ignorance he never thought of. By this method his first visitors f I •^,i i- - r- < 1 ' r' 170 LETTERS AND NOTES ON TUB entirely overlook antl never understand the meaning of his thousand interesting and characteristic customs ; and at the eamo time, by changing his native modes and habits of life, blot them out from the view of the enquiring world for ever. It is from the observance of a thousand little and appa- rently trivial modes and tricks of Indian life, that the Indian character must bo learned; and, in fact, it is just the same with us if the subject wore reversed : excepting that the system of civilized life would furnish ten apparently useless and ridiculous trifles to one which is found in Indian lifo ; and at least twenty to one which are purely nonsensical and unmeaning. The civilized world look upon a group of Indians in their classic dress, with their few and simple oddities, all of which have their moral or meaning, and laugh at them exces- sively, because they are not like ourselves — we ask, " why do the silly creatures wear such great bunches of quills on their heads? — Such loads and streaks of paint upon their bodies and bear's grease? abominable I" and a thousand other equally silly questions, without ever stopping to think that Nature taught them to do so — and that they all have some definite importance or meaning which an Indian could explain to us at once, if ho were asked and felt disposed to do so — that each quill in his head stood, in the eyes of his whole tribe, as the symbol of an enemy who had fallen by his hand — that every streak of red paint covered a wound which ho had got in honorable combat — and that the bear's grease with which he carefully anoints his body every morning, from head to foot, cleanses and purifies the body, and protects his skin from the bite of muscjuitocs and at the same time preserves him from colds and coughs ■which are usually taken through the pores of the skin. At the same time, an Indian looks among the civilized world, no doubt, with equal, if not much greater, astonisli- ment, at our apparently, as well as really, ridiculous customs and fashions ; but he laughs not, nor ridicules, nor ikk .1 KORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 171 questions, — for his natural good scnso and good manners forbid him, — until he is reclining about the fire-side of his wigwam companions, when he vents forth his just criticisms upon the learned world, who are a rich and just theme for Indian criticism and Indian gossip. An Indian will not ask a white man the reason why he does not oil his skin with bears' grease, or why ho docs not paint his body — or why he wears a hat on his head, or why ho has buttons on the back part of his coat, where tlicy never can be used — or why he wears whiskers, and a shirt collar up to his eyes — or why he sleeps with his head towards the fire instead of his feet — why he walks with his toes out instead of tui-ning them in — or why it is that hundreds of white folks will flock and crowd round a table to see an Indian eat — ^but he will go home to his wigwam fire-side, and " make the welkin ring" with jokes and fun upon the ignorance and folly of the knowing world. A wild Indian thrown into the civilized atmosphere will see a man occasionally moving in society, wearing a cocked hat; and another with a laced coat and gold or silver epaulettes upon his shoulders, without knowing or enquiring the meaning of them, or the objects for which they are worn. Just so a white man travels amongst a wild and untaught tribe of Indians, and sees occasionally one of them parading about their village, with a headdress of eagles' quills and ermine, and elevated above it a pair of beautifully polished buflalo horns; and just as ignorant is he also, of their meaning or importance ; and more so, for the first will admit the presumption that epaulettes and cocked hats amongst the civilized World, are made for some important purpose, — but the latter will presume that horns on an Indian's head are nothing more nor less (nor can they be in their estimation,) than Indian nonsense and stupidity. This brings us to the " corned crest" again, and if the poor Indian scans epaulettes and cocked hats, without enquiring their meaning, and explaining them to his tribe, li 1 rn;iT'' 172 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE it is no reason why I should have associated with the noble dignitaries of these western regions, with horns and ermine on their heads, and then to have introduced the subject without giving some further clue to their import- ance and meaning. For me, this negligence would be doubly unpardonable, as I travel, not to trade but to Iierald the Indian and his dying customs to posterity. This custom then, which I have before observed belongs to all the north-western tribes, is one no doubt of very ancient origin, having a purely classic meaning. No one wears the head-dress surmounted with horns except the dignitaries who are very high in authority, and whose exceeding valor, worth, and power is admitted by all the nation. He may wear them, however, who is not a chief; but a brave, or warrior of such remarkable character, that he is esteemed universally in the tribe, as a man whose ** voice is as loud in council" as that of a chief of the first grade, and consequently his power as great This head-dress with horns is used only on certain occasions, and they are very seldom. When foreign chiefs, Indian agents, or other important personage visit a tribe; or at war parades, at the celebration of a victory, at public festivals, &c., they are worn ; but on no other occasions — unless, sometimes, when a chief sees fit to lead a war- party to battle, he decorates his head with this symbol of power, to stimulate his men ; and throws himself into the foremost of the battle, inviting his enemy to concentrate their shafts upon him. The horns on these head-dresses are but loosely attached at the bottom, so that they easily fall back or forward, according as the head is inclined forward or backward; and by an ingenious motion of the head, which is so slight as to be almost imperceptible — they arc made to balance to and fro, and sometimes, one backward and the other forward like a horse's ears, giving a vast deal of expression and force of character, to the appearance of the chief who NORTH AMEUICAN INDIANS. 173 is wearing them. This, reader, is a remarkable instance (like hundreds of others), for its striking similarity to Jevrish customs, to the kerns (or keren, in Hebrew,) the horns worn by the Abysinian chiefs and Hebrews, as a symbol of power and command ; worn at great parades and celebrations of victories. " The false prophet Zedekiah, made him horna of iron." (1 Kings xxii. 11.) " Lift not your horns on high ; speak not with a stiff neck" (Ps. Ixxv. 5.) This last citation seems so exactly to convey to my mind the mode of raising and changing the position of the horns by a motion of the head, as I have above described, that I am irresistibly led to believe that this custom is now practiced amongst these tribes very nearly as it was amongst the Jews ; and that it has been, like many other customs of which I shall speak more in future epistles, handed down and preserved with very little innovation or change from that ancient people. The reader will see this custom exemplified in the portrait of Mah-to-toh-pa. This man, although the second chief, was the only man in the nation who was allowed to wear the horns; and all, I found, looked upon him as the leader, who had the power to lead all the warriors in timo of war; and that, Ii consequence of tho extraordinary battles which he had fought. 1^1 k I LETTER NO. XV. MANPAN VILLAGE, UPPER MISSOURL A WEEK or more has elapsed since the date of my last Letter, and nothing as yet of the great and curious event — or the Mandan religions ceremony. There is evidently much preparation making for it, however ; and from what I can learn, no one in the nation, save \X\ff.* i'. ri 176 LEITKBS AND NOTES ON THE Keaders, at that moment I was christened with a new and a great name — one by which I am now familiarly hailed, and talked of in this village ; and no doubt will be, as long as traditions last in this strange community. That moment conferred an honor on me, which you as yet do not understand. I took the degree (not of Doctor of Laws, nor Bachelor of Arts) but of Master of Arts— of mysteries — of magic, and of hocus-pocus. I was recognized in tliat short sentence as a "great medicine white man:" and since that time, have been regularly installed medicine or mystery, which is the most honorable degree that could oe conferred upon me here ; and I now hold a place amongst the most eminent and envied personages, the doctor and conjurati of this titled community. To-ho-pe-nee Wash-ee (or medicine white man) is the name I now go by, and it will prove to me, no doubt, of more value than gold, for I have been called upon and feasted by the doctors, who are all mystery-men ; it has been an easy and successful passport already to many strange and mysterious places ; and has put me in posscs,;ioii of a vast deal of curious and interesting information, which I am sure 1 never should have otherwise learned. I am daily growing in the estimation uf the medicine-men and the chiefs ; and by assuming all the gravity and circum- spcction duo from so high a dignitary (and even con- siderably more); and endeavoring to perform now and then sonic art or trick that is unfathomable, 1 am in hopes of supporting my standing, until the great annual ceremony commences ; on which occasion, I may possibly be allowed a seat in the medicinc-hdge by tlie doctors, who are tlie solo conductors of this great source and fountain of all priest- craft and conjuration in this country. After I had fniished the portraits of the two chiefs, and they had returned to their wigwams, and deliberately Bcated themselves by their respective firesides, and silently smoked a pipe or two (according to an universal custom), the} gradually began to tell what had taken place; and at NORTH AMEMCAN INDIANS 177 length crowds of gaping listeiers, with mouths wide open, thronged their lodges ; and a hrong of women and girl^ were about my house, and through every crack and crevice I could see their glistening eyes, which were piercing my hut in a hundred places, fro n a natural and restless propensity, a curiosity to see \ lat was going on within. An hour or more passed in 1 as way, and the soft and silken throng continually incre; ^^t ( 3 mm. 180 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THK the completion of each one's picture, — that they could decide as to the likeness as it came from under the brush ; that they could laugh, and yell, and sing a new song, and smoke a fresh pipe to the health and success of him who had just been safely delivered from the hands and the mystic operation of the " white medicine ." In each of these operations, as they successively took place, I observed that a pipe or two were well filled, and as soon as I commenced painting, the chiefs and braves, who sat around the sides of the lodge, commenced smoking for the success of the picture (and probably as much or more so for the safe deliverance of the sitter from harm while under the operation) ; and so they continued to pass the pipe around until the portrait was completed. In this way I proceeded with my portraits, stopping occasionally very suddenly as if something was wrong, and taking a tremendous pufif or two at the pipe, and streaming the smoke through my nostrils, exhibiting in my looks and actions an evident relief; enabling me to proceed with more facility and succoss, — by flattering and complimenting each one on his good looks after I had got it done, and taking them according to rank, or standing, making it a matter of honour with them, which pleased them exceed- ingly, and gave mo and my art the stamp of respectability at once. I was then taken by the arm by the chiefs, and led to their lodges, where feasts were prepared for me in elegant style, i. e. in the best manner which this country affords ; and being led by the arm, and welcomed to thcin by gentlemen of high and exalted feelings, rendered them in my estimation truly elegant. T was waited upon in due form and ceremony by the medicine-men, who received me upon the old adage, "Similis simili gaudet." I was invited to a feast, and they presented me a doctor's rattle, and a magical wand, or doctor's staff, strung with claws of the grizzly bear, with hoofs of the antelope — with ermine — with wild sago and t4.. I NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 181 bat'B winga — and perftimed wittal with the choice and savoury odour of the pole-cat— a dog was sacrificed and hung by the legs over my wigwam, and I was therefor and thereby initiated into the arcana of medicine or mystery, and considered a Fellow of the Extraordinary Society of Conjurati. Since this signal success and good fortune in my opera- tions, things have gone on very pleasantly, and I have had a great deal of amusement. Some altercation has taken place, however, amongst the chiefs and braves, with regard to standing or rank, of which they are exceedingly jealous; and they must sit (if at all) in regular order, according to that rank ; the trouble is all settled at last, however, and I have had no want of subjects, though a great many have again become alarmed, and are unwilling to sit, for fear, as some say, that they will die prematurely if painted ; and as others say, that if they are painted, the picture will live after they are dead, and they cannot sleep quiet in their graves. I have had several most remarkable occurrences in my painting-room, of this kind, which have made me some everlasting enemies here; though the minds and feelings of the chiefs and medicine-men have not been afifected by them. There has been three or four instances where proud and aspiring young men have been in my lodge, and after gazing at the })ortrait3 of the head chief across the room (which sits looking them in the eyes), have raised their hands before their faces and walked around to the side of the lodge, on the right or left, from whence to take a long and fair side-look at the chief, instead of staring him full in the face (which is a most unpardonable offence in all Indian tribes) ; and after having got in that position, and cast their eyes again upon the portrait which was yet looking them full in the face, have thrown their robes over their heads and bolted out of the wigwam, filled equally with astonishment and indignation ; averring, as they always will in a sullen mood, that they " saw the eyes ^'#-i||;'iv'i:i(«ij '^ ^1 •r .L '^ ,..^' ,i m 18a LETrERS AND NOTES ON THE move," — that as they walked around the room "the eye^ of the portrait followed thoin." With these unfortunate gentlemen, repeated efforts have been made by the Traders, and al.~') by Mio chiefs and doctors, who understand the illusion, to convince them of their error, by explaining the mystery; but 'hey will not hear to any explanation what- ever ; saying, that " what they see with their eyes is alway.s evidence enough lor them ;" that they always " believe their ow i eyes sooner than a hundred tongues," and uU efforts to get tiera a second time to my room, or into my company in au^ place, have proved entirely unsuccessful. T liad trouble brewing also the other day from another sou. ; one of tli ) " "ledicmfs" commenced howling and haranguing around my domicil, amongst the throng that was outside, p ■ 'claiming that all who were inside and being painted wore fools and \\ ould soon die ; and very materially affecting thereby my popularity, I however S(Mit for him and called him in the next morning, having only tl.o interpreter vith me; telling him that I had had mv eye upon him forsrcral days, and had been so well ph-astid with hia looks, that I had taken great pains to find out his hlatory, whi.;h had been explained by all as one of a most extraordinary kmd, and his character and ftanding in his tribe as worthy of my particular notice ; and that I had Several days since resolved that aa soon as I had practiced my hand long enough upon the others, to get the stiflhess out of it (after paddling my canoe so far as I had) and make it to work easily and successfully, I would begin on his portrait, which I was then prepared to comHicnce on that ..alo while I will come, and you may go to work ;" — another pipe was lit and smoked, and ho got up and went off. I prepared my canvass and palette, and whistled away the time until twelve o'clock, before he made his appearance ; having used the whole of the fore-part of the day at his toilette, arranging his dress and ornamenting his body for his picture. At that hour then, bedaubed and streaked with paints of various colors, with bear's grease and charcoal, with medicine-pipes in his hands and foxes' tails attached to his heels, entered Mah-to-he-hah (the old -bear), with a train of his own i)rofession, who seated themselves around him ; and also a number of boys, whom it was requested should remain with him, and whom I supposed it possible might liave been pupils, whom he was instructing in the mysteries of materia medica and haca poca. lie took his position in the middle of the room, waving his eagle calumets in each li md, and singing his medicine-song, which he sings over Ills dying patient, looking me full in the face until I completed his picture, which I painted at full length. His vanity has been completely gratified in the operation ; he lies for hours together, day after day, in my room, in front of his picture, gazing intently upon it ; lights my pipe for inc while I am painting — shakes hands with me a dozen times on each day, and talks of me, and enlarges upon my medicine virtues and my talents, wherever he goes; so tliat t'*.-; ^h-^i ^^^t^f¥^ Mr* 'i 'iP&i.<^ IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 1.1 11.25 IM 12.5 tm"^ 11 U 11.6 Hiotograpliic Sdences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. M580 (716) 873-4503 4^ 1S4 LETTERS AND N0TE3. this new difficulty is now removed, and instead of preach- ing against me, he is one of my strongest and most enthusi< astic friends and aids in the country. There is yet to be described another sort of personage, that is often seen stalking about in all Indian communities, a kind of nondescript, with whom 1 have been somewhat annoyed, and still more amused, since I came to this village, of whom (or of which) I shall give some account in oiy next epistle. LETTER No.XVL . :. . MAND AN VILLAGE, UPPffiJ JUISSOlTi?/. Besides chiefs, and braves and doctors, of whom I have heretofore spoken, there is yet another character of whom I must say a few words before I proceed to other topics. The person I allude to, is the one mentioned at the close of my last Letter, and familiarly known and countenanced in every tribe as an Indian beau or dandy. Such person- ages may be seen on every pleasant day, strutting and parading around the village in the most beautiful and unsoiled dresses, without the honorable trophies however of scalp-locks and claws of the grizzly bear attached to their costume, for with those things they deal not. They are not peculiarly anxious to hazard their lives in equal and honorable combat with the one, or disposed to cross the path of the- other; but generally remain about the (185) 1' -. -«*W',.:: 186 LETTKRS AND NOTES ON THE village, to take care of the women, and attire themselves ia the skins of such animal as they can easily kill, without seeking the rugged cliffs for the war-eagle, or vbiting the haunts of the grizzly bear. They plume themselves with swan's-down and quills of ducks, with braids and plaits of sweet-scented grass and other hannless and unmeaning ornaments, which have no other merits than they them- selves have, that of looking pretty and ornamental. These clean and elegant gentlemen, who are very few in each tribe, are held in very little estimation by the chiefs and braves ; inasmuch as it is known by all, that they have a most horrible aversion to nrms, and are denominated "faint hearts" or "old women" by the whole tribe, and are therefore but little respected. They seem, however, to be tolerably well contented with the appellation, together with the celebrity they have acquired amongst the women and children for the beauty and elegance of their personal appearance ; and most of them seem to take and enjoy their share of the world's pleasures, although they are looked upon as drones in society. These gay and tinselled bucks may be seen on a pleasant day in all their plumes, astride of their pied or dappled ponies, with a fan in the right hand, made of a turkey's tail — with whip and a fly-brush attached to the wrist of the same hand, and underneath them a white, beautiful and soft pleasure-saddle, ornamented with porcupine quills and ermine, parading through and lounging about the village for an hour or so, when they will cautiously bend their course to the suburbs of the town, where they will sit or recline upon their horses for an hour or two, overlooking the beautiful games where the braves and the young aspirants are contending in manly and athletic amusements; — when they are fatigued v,''th this severe effort, they wend their way back again, '• T their fine white saddle of doe'sskin, which is wada^v, with bufl&lo's hair, turn out their pony — take a little refreshment, smoke a pipe, fan themselves to sleep, and doze away the rest of the day. NOBTH AHEBICAK INDIANS. 187 Whilst I have been painting, from day to day, there have been two or three of these fops continually strutting and taking their attitudes in front of my door ; decked out in all their finery, without receiving other benefit or other information, than such as they could discover through the cracks and seams of my cabin. The chiefs, I observed, passed them by without notice, and of course, without inviting them in; and they seemed to figure about my door from day to day in their best dresses and best attitudes, as if in hopes that I would select them as models, for my canvass. It was natural that I should do so, for their costume and personal appearance was entirely more beautiful than anything else to be seen in the village. ^ My plans were laid, and one day when I had got through with all of the head men, who were willing to sit to be painted, and there were two or three of the chiefs lounging in my room, I stepped to the door and tapped one of these fellows on the shoulder, who took the hint, and stepped in, well- pleased and delighted with the signal and honorable notice I had at length taken of him and his beautiful dress. Readers, you cannot imagine what was the expression of gratitude which beamed forth in this poor fellow's face, and how high his heart beat with joy and pride at the idea of my selecting him to be immortal, alongside of the chiefs and worthies whose portraits he saw arranged around the room ; and by which honor he, undoubtedly, considered himself well paid for two or three weeks of regular painting, and greasing, and dressing, and standing alternately on one leg and the other at the door of my premises. Well, I placed him before me, and a canvass on my easel, and "chalked him out" at full length. He was truly a beautiful subject for the brush, and I was filled with enthusiasm — his dress from head to foot was of the skins of the mountain-goat, and dressed so neatly, that they were almost as soft and as white as Canton crape — around the bottom and the sides it was trimmed with 188 LKTTERS AND NOTES ON THE ennine, and porcupine quills of beautiful dyes garnished it in a hundred parts ; — his hair which was long, and spread over his back and shoulders, extending nearly to the ground, was all combed back and parted on his forehead like that of a woman. Ho was a tall and fine figure, with ease and grace in his movements, that were well worthy of a man of better caste. In his left hand he held a beautiful pipe — and in his right hand he plied his fan, and on his wrist was still attached his whip of elk's horn, and his fly. brush, made of the buffalo's tail. There was nought about him of the terrible, and nought to shock the finest, chastest intellect. I had thus fur progressed, with high- wrought feelings of pleasure, when the two or three chiefs, who had been seated around the lodge, and whose portraits I had before painted, arose suddenly, and wrapping themselves tightly in their robes, crossed my room with a quick and heavy step, and took an informal leave of my cabin. I was apprehensive of their displeasure, though I continued my work; and in a few moments the interpreter came furiously into my room, addressing me thus : — " My God, Sir I this never will do ; you have given great offence to the chiefs — they have made complaint of your conduct to me — they tell me this is a worthless fellow — a man of no account in the nation, and if you paint his picture, you must instantly destroy theirs ; you have no alternative, my dear Sir — and the quicker this chap is out of your lodge the better." The same matter was explained to my sitter by the interpreter, when he picked up his robe, wrapped himself in it, plied his fan nimbly about his face, and walked out of the lodge in silence, but with quite a consequential smile, taking his old position in front of the door for awhile, after which he drew himself quietly off without further exhibition. So highly do Mandan braves and worthies value the honor of being painted ; and so little do they value a man, however lavishly Nature may have NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 189 bestowed her master touches upon him, who has not the pride and noble bearing of a warrior. I spoke in a former Letter of Mah-to-toh-pa (the four bears), the second chief of the nation, and the most popular man of the Mandans — a high-minded and gallant warrior, as well aa a polite and polished gentleman. Since I painted his portrait, as I before described, I have received at his hands many marked and signal attentions ; some of which I must name to you, as the very relation of them will put you in possession of many little forms and modes of Indian life, that otherwise might not have been noted. About a week since, this noble fellow stepped into my painting-room about twelve o'clock in the day, in full and splendid dress, and passing his arm through mine, pointed the way, and led me in the most gentlemanly manner through the village and into his own lodge, where a feast was prepared in a careful manner and waiting our arrival. The lodge in which he dwelt was a room of immense size, some forty or fifty feet in diameter, in a circular form, and about twenty feet high — with a sunken curb of stone in the centre, of five or six feet in diameter and one foot deep, which contained the fire over which the pot was boiling. I was led near the edge o* this curb, and seated on a very handsome robe, most ingeniously garnished and painted with hieroglyphics ; and he seated himself gracefully on another one at a little distance from me; with the feast prepared in several dishes, resting on a beautiful rush mat, which was placed between us. The simple feast which was spread before us consisted of three dishes only, two of which were served in wooden bowls, and the third in an earthen vessel of their own manufacture, somewhat in shape of a bread-tray in our own country. This last contained a quantity of pemican and marrow-fat; and one of the former held a fine brace of buffalo ribs, delightfully roasted; and the other was filled with a kind of paste or pudding, made of the flour of the "pommc blanche" as the French call it, a delicious turnip 1 190 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE of the prairie, finely flavored with the buffalo berries, which are collected in great quantities in this country, and used with divers dishes in cooking, as we in civilized countries use dried currants, which they very much resemble. i A handsome pipe and a tobacco-pouch made of the otter skin, filled with k'nick-k'neck (Indian tobacco), laid by tho side of the feast ; and when we were seated, mine host took up his pipe, and deliberately filled it ; and instead of lighting it by the fire, which he could easily have done, he drew from his pouch his flint and steel, and raised a spark with which he kindled it. He drew a few strong whiffs through it, and presented the stem of it to my mouth, through which 1 drew a whiff or two while he held the stem in his hands. This done, he laid down the pipe, and drawing his knife from his belt, cut off a very small piece of the meat from the ribs, and pronouncing the words "Ho-pe-ne-chee wa-pa-shee" (meaning a medicine sacrifice), threw it into the fire. He then (by signals) requested me to eat, and I com* menced, after drawing out from my belt my knife (which it is supposed that every man in this country carries about him, for at an Indian feast a knife is never offered to a guest). Reader, be not astonished that I sat and ate my dinner alone, for such is the custom in this strange land. In all tribes in these western regions it is an invariable rule that a chief never eats with his guests invited to a ft. it; but while they eat, he sits by, at their service, and ready to wait upon them; deliberately charging and lighting the pipe which is to be passed around after the feast is over. Such was the case in the present instance, ftnd while I was eating, Mah-to-toh-pa sat cross-legged before me, cleaning his pipe and preparing it for a cheerful smoke when I had finished my meal. For this ceremony I observed he was making unusual preparation, and I observed as I ate, that after he had taken enough of the k'nick-k'neck or bark of the red willow, from his pouch, he NORTH AMSBICAN INDIANS. 191 rolled out of it also a piece of the "cIANB. 196 matter of neces-iity for a obief (who must be liberal, keep open doors, and entertain, for the support of his popu* larity) to have in his wigwam a sufficient number of such handmaids or menials to perform the numerous duties and drudgeries of so large and expensive an establishment There are two other reasons for this custom which operate with equal, if not with greater force than the one above assigned. In the first place, these people, though far behind the civilized world in acquisitiveness, have still more or less passion for the accumulation of wealth, or, in other words, for the luxuries of life ; and a chief, excited by a desire of this kind, together with a wish to be able to furnish his lodge with something more than ordinary for the entertainment of his own people, as well as strangers who fall upon his hospitality, sees fit to marry a number of wives, who are kept at hard labor during most of the year; and the avails of that labor enable him to procure thoso luxuries, and give to his lodge the appearance of respecta- bility which is not ordinarily seen. Amongst those tribes who trade with the Fur Companies, this system is carried out to a great extent, and the women are kept for the greater part of the year, dressing buffalo robes and other skins for the market; and the brave or chief, who has the greatest number of wives, is considered the most affluent and envied man in the tribe; for his taMe is most bountifully supplied, and his lodge the most abundantly furnished with the luxuries of civilized manufacture, who has at the year's end the greatest number of robes to vend to the Fur Company. The manual labor amongst savages is all done by the women ; and as there are no daily laborers or persons who will " hire oui^ to labor for another, it becomes necessary for him who requires more than the labor or services of one, to add to the number by legalizing and compromising by the ceremony of marriage, his stock of laborers ; who can thus, and thus alone, be easily enslaved, and the results of their labor turned to good account. }t:p^ i': - ;:;.V > '■ M * !.<( .i - From the enslaved and degraded condition in which the women are held in the Indian country, the world would naturally think that theirs must be a community formed of incongruous and unharmonizing materials; and conse- quently destitute of the fine, reciprocal feelings and attachments which Sow from the domestic relations in the civilized world ; yet it would be untrue, and doing injustice to the Indians, to say that they were in the least behind us in conjugal, in filial, and in paternal affection. There is no trait in the human character which is more universal than the attachments which flow from these relations and there is no part of the human species who KORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 199 have a stronger aflfection and a higher regard for them thnn the North American Indians. There is no subject in the Indian character of more importance to be rightly understood than this, and none cither that has furnished me more numerous instances and more striking proofe, of which I shall make use on a future occasion, when I shall say a vast deal more of marriage — of divorce — of polygamy — and of Indian domestic relations. For the present I am scribbling about the looks and usages of the Indians who are about me and under my eye ; and I must not digress too much into general remarks, lest I lose sight of those who are near me, and the first to be heralded. Such, then, are the Mandans — ^their women are beautiful and modest, — and amongst the respectable families, virtue is as highly cherished and as inapproachable, as in any society whatever ; yet at the same time a chief may marry a dozen wives if he pleases, and so may a white man ; and if either wishes to marry the most beautiful and modest girl in the tribe, she is valued only equal, perhaps, to two horses, a gun with powder and ball for a year, five or six pounds of beads, a couple of gallons of whisky, and a handful of awls. The girls of this tribe, like those of most of these north- western tribes, marry at the age of twelve or fourteen, and some at the age of eleven years ; and their beauty from this fact, as well as from the slavish life they lead, soon after marriage vanishes. Their occupations are almost continual, and they seem to go industriously at them, as if from choice or inclination, without a murmur. Tho principal occupations of the women in this village, consist in procuring wood and water, in cooking, dressing robes and other skins, in drying meat and wild fruit, and raising corn (maize). The Mandans are somewhat of agriculturists, as they raise a great deal of com and some pumpkins and squashes. This is all done by the women, who make their hoes of the shoulder-blade of the buffalo 1 I I; '''.■ , (. n % 200 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE or the elk, and dig the ground over instead of ploughing it, which is consequently done with a vast deal of labor. They raise a very small sort of corn, the ears of which aro not longer than a man's thumb. This variety is well adapted to their climate, as it ripens sooner than other varieties, which would not mature in so cold a latitude. The green corn season is one of great festivity with them, and one of much importance. The greater part of their crop is eaten during these festivals, and the remainder is gathered and dried on the cob, before it has ripened, and packed away in ^'caches'* (as the French call them), holes dug in the ground, some six or seven feet deep, the insides of which are somewhat in the form of a jug, and tightly closed at the top. The com, and even dried meat and pemican, are placed in these caches, being packed tight around the sides, with prairie grass, and effectually pre- served through the severest winters. Corn and dried meat are generally laid in in the fall, in sufficient quantities to support them through the winter. These are the principal articles of food during that long and inclement season ; and in addition to them, they oftentimes have in store great quantities of dried squashes and dried -'■ pommes blanches,'" a kind of turnip which grows in great abundance in these regions, and of which I have before spoken. These are dried in great quanties, and pounded into a sort of meal, and cooked with the dried meat and corn. Great quantities also of wild fruit of different kinds are dried and laid away in store for the winter season, such as buffalo berries, service berries, strawberries, and wild plums. The buffalo meat, however, is the great staple and " staff of life" in this country, and seldom (if ever) fails to afford them an abundant and wholesome means of subsistence. There are, from a fair computation, something like two hundred and fifty thousand Indians in these western regions, who live almost exclusively on the flesh of these animals, through every part of the year. During the commun NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 201 flummer and fall months they use the meat fresh, and cook it in a great variety of ways, by roasting, broiling, boiling, stewing, smoking, &c., ; and by boiling the ribs and joints with the marrow in them, make a delicious soup, which is universally used, and in vast quantities. The Mandans, I find, have no regular or stated times for their meals, but generally eat about twice in the twenty-four hours. The pot is always boiling over the fire, and any one who is hungry (either of the household or from any other part of the village) has a right to order it taken off, and to fall to eating as he pleases. Such is an unvarying custom amongst the North American Indians, and I very much doubt, whether the civilized world have in their institutions any system which can properly be called more humane and charitable. Every man, woman, or child in Indian communities is allowed to enter any one's lodge, and even that of the chief of the nation, and eat when they are hungry, provided misfortune or necessity has driven them to it. Even so can the poorest and most worthless drone of the nation ; if he is too lazy to hunt or to supply him- self, he can walk into any lodge and every one will share with him as long as there is anything to eat. He, how- ever, who thus begs when he is able to hunt, pays dear for his meat, for he is stigmatized with the disgraceful epithet of a poltroon and a beggar. The Mandans, like all other tribes, sit at their meals crossed-legged, or rather with their ancles crossed in front of them, and both feet drawn close under their bodies ; or, which is very often the case also, take their meals in a reclining posture, with the legs thrown out, and the body resting on one elbow and fore-arm, which are under them. The dishes from which they eat are invariably on the ground or floor of the lodge, and the group resting on buffalo robes or mats of various structure and manufacture. The position in which the women sit at their meals and on other occasions is different from that of the men, and one which they take and rise from again, with great ease 202 LKTTEBS AND NOTES ON THK and much grace, by merely bending the knees both together, inclining the body back and the head and Bhoulders quite forward, they squat entirely dows to the ground, inclining both feet either to the right or the left. In this position they always rest while eating, and it is both modest and graceful, for they seem, with apparent ease, to assume the position and rise out of it, without using their hands in any way to assist them. > These women, however, although graceful and civil, and ever so beautiful or ever so hungry, are not allowed to sit in the same group with the men while at their meals. So far as I have yet travelled in the Indian country, I never have seen an Indian woman eating with her husband. Men form the first group at the banquet, and women, and children and dogs all come together at the next, and these gormandize and glut themselves to an enormous extent, though the men very seldom do. It is time that an error on this subject, which has gone generally abroad in the world, was corrected. It is every- where asserted, and almost universally belived, that the Indians are " enormous eaters ;" but comparatively speak- ing, I assure my readers that this is an error. I venture to say that there are no persons on earth who practice greater prudence and self-denial, than the men do (amongst the wild Indians,) who are constantly in war and in the chase, or in their athletic sports and exercises ; for all of which they are excited by the highest ideas of pride and honor, and every kind of excess is studiously avoided ; and for a very great part of their lives, the most painful absti- nence is enforced upon themselves, for the purpose of pre- paring their bodies and their limbs for these extravagant exertions. Many a man who has been a few weeks along the frontier, amongst the drunken, naked and beggared part of the Indian race, and run home and written a book on Indians, has, no doubt, often seen them eat to beastly excess; and ho has seen them also guzzle whisky (and perhaps sold it to them) till he has seen them glutted and so, it isl KOBTH AMERICAN INDIAITS. 208 besotted, without will or energy to move ; and many and thousands of such things oan always be seen, where white people have made beggars of them, and they have nothing to do but lie under a fenoe and beg a whole week to get meat and whisky enough for one feast and one carouse ; but amongst the wild Indians in this country there are no beggars — no drunkards — and every man, from a beautiful natural precept, studies to keep his body and mind in such a healthy shape and condition as will at all times enable him to use his weapons in self-defence, or struggle for the prize in their manly games. As I before observed, these men generally eat but twice a day, and many times not more than once, and those meals are light and simple compared with the meals that are swallowed in the civilized world ; and by the very people also, who sit at the festive board three times a day, making a jest of the Indian for his eating, when they actually guzzle more liquids, besides their eating, than would fill the stomach of an Indian, s rj n .< r* ' i i > * There are, however, many seasons and occasions in the year with all Indians, when they fast for several days in succession ; and others where thoy can get nothing to eat ; and at such times (their habits are such) they may be seen to commence with an enormous meal, and because they do so, it is an insufficient reason why we should for ever remain under so egregious an error with regard to a single custom of these people. I have seen so many of these, and lived with them, and travelled with them, and oftentimes felt as if I should starve to death on an equal allowance, that I am fully convinced I am correct in saying that the North American Indians, taking them in the aggregate, even where they have an abundance to subsist on, eat less than any civil- ized population of equal numbers, that I have ever travelled amongst. Their mode of curing and preserving the buffalo meat is somewhat curious, and in fact it is almost incredible also ' 204 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE for it is all cured or dried in the sun, without the aid of salt or smoke 1 The method of doing this is the same amongst all the tribes, from this to the Mexican Provinces, and is as follows : — The choicest parts of the flesh from the buffalo are cut out by the squaws, and carried home on their backs or on horses, and there cut •' acrosa the grain," in such a manner as will take alternately the layers of lean and fat ; and having prepared it all in this way, in strips about half an inch in thickness, it is hung up by hundreds and thousands of pounds on poles resting on crotches, out of the reach of dogs or wolves, and exposed to the rays of the sun for several days, wlien it becomes so effectually dried, that it can be carried to any part of the world without damage. This seems almost an unaccountable thing, and the more so, as it is done in the hottest months of the year, and also in all the different latitudes of an Indian country. So singular a fact as this can only be accounted for, I consider, on the ground of the extraordinary rarity and purity of the air which we meet with in these vast tracts of country, which are now properly denominated " the great buffalo plains," a series of exceedingly elevated plateaus of steppes or prairies^ lying at and near the base of the Bocky Mountains. It is a fact then, which I presume will be new to most of the world, that meat can be cured in the sun without the aid of smoke or salt; and it is a fact equally true and equally surprising also, that none of these tribes use salt in any way, although their country abounds in salt springs; and in many places, in the frequent walks of the Indian, the prairie may be seen, for miles together, covered with an incrustation of salt as white as the drifted snow. I have, in travelling with Indians, encamped by such places, where they have cooked and eaten their meat, when I have been unable to prevail on them to use salt in any quantity whatever. The Indians cook their meat more than the civilized people do, and I have long since learned. f=:=- NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 205 from necessity, that meat thus cooked can easily be eaten and relished too, without salt or other condiment. The fact above asserted applies exclusively to those tribes of Indians which I have found in their primitive state, living entirely on meat ; but everywhere along our frontier, where the game of the country has long since been chiefly destroyed, and these people have become semi-civilized, raising and eating, as we do, a variety of vegetable food, they use (and no doubt require,) a great deal of salt ; and in many instances use it even to destruc- tive excess. (') ^-^'r^:. 'VI ! V LETTER No. XVm. ^> ' MANDAN VILLAQB, VPPER MISSOURI. Thk MandanB, like all other tribes lead lives of idleness and leisure ; and of course, devote a great deal of time to their sports and amusements, of which they have a great variety. Of these, dancing is one of the principal, and may be seen in a variety of forms: such as the buffalo dance, the boasting dance, the begging dance, the scalp dance, and a dozen other kinds of dances, all of which have their peculiar characters and meanings or objects. These exercises are exceedingly grotesque in their appearance, and to the eye of a traveller who knows not their meaning or importance, they are an uncouth and frightful display of starts, and jumps, and yelps, and jarring gutturals, which are sometimes truly terrifying- 206 NORTH AMERICAN IVDTAVS. 207 lliit when one gives them a little attention, and has been lu<-ky enough to be initiated into ilioir myateriou-i ineaJiing tlioy become a subject of the most intense and exciting interest. Every dance has its peculiar step, and every step hoa its moaning ; every danoe, also, has its peculiar song, and that is so intricate and mysterious oftentimes, that not one in ten of the young men who are dancing and singing it, know the meaning of the song which they are chanting over. None but the medicine-men are allowed to under- stand them; and even they are generally only initiated into these secret arcana, on the payment of a liberal stipend for their tuition, which requires much application and study. There is evidently a set song and sentiment for every dance, for the songs are perfectly measured, and sung in exact time with the beat of the drum ; and always with an uniform and invariable set of sounds and expres- sion, which clearly indicate certain sentiments, which are expressed by the voice, though sometimes not given in any known language whatever. They have other dances and songs which are not so mystified, but which are sung and understood by every person in the tribe, being sung in their own language, with much poetry in them, and perfectly metred, but without rhyme. On these subjects I shall take another occasion to say more ; and will for the present turn your attention to the style and modes in which some of these curious trans- actions are conducted. My ears have been almost continually ringing since I came here, with the din of yelping and beating of the drums ; but I have for several days past been peculiarly engrossed, and my senses almost confounded with the stamping, and grunting, and bellowing of the buffalo dance, which closed a few days since at sunrise (thank Heaven) and which I must needs describe to you. Buffaloes, it is known, are a sort of roaming creatures, congregating occasionally in huge masses, and strolling away about the country from east to west, or from north to lilJ !l m ill II '■-'m' ffiV: Irr '..'■•M'^^te' B^ ■■:■ ■ '- 1 ; :k i 1 i ■ • 1 i 1 208 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE south, or just where their -vhims or strange fancies may lead them ; and the Mandans are sometimes, by this means most unceremoniously left without any thing to eat ; and being a small tribe, and unwilling to risk their lives by going far from home in the face of their more powerful enemies, are oftentimes left almost in a state of starvation. In any emergency of this kind, every man musters and brings out of his lodge his mask (the skin of a buffalo's head with the horns on), which he is obliged to keep in readiness for this occasion ; and then commences the bufl'alo dance, of which I have above spoken, which is held for the purpose of making "buffalo come" (as they term it), of inducing the buffalo herds to change the direction of their wanderings, and beud. their course towards the Mandan village, and graze about on the beautiful hills and bluffs in its vicinity, where the Mandans can shoot them down and cook them as they want them for food. For the most part of the year, the young warriors and hunters, by riding out a mile or two from the village, can kill moat in abundance; and sometimes large herds of these animals may be seen grazing in full view of the village. There are other seasons also when the young men have ranged about the country as far as they are willing to risk their live?, on account of their enemies, without fiiidiii"' meat. This sad intelligence is brought back to the cliiefs and doctors, who sit in solemn council, and consult on the most expedient measures to be taken, until they are sure to decide upon the old and only expedient which " never lias failed." The chief issues his orders to his runners or criers, who proclaim it through the village — and in a few minutes tlio (lance begins. The place where this strange operation is carried on is in the public area in the centre of tlie village, and in front of tlio great niodicine or mystery lodge. About ten or fifteen Mandans at a time join in the dance, each one with the skin of the buffalo's head (or mask) with the horns on, placed over his head, and in hio l^and his NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. a09 favorite bow or lance, > th whicli he is used to slay the buffalo. I mentioned that this dance always had the desired effect, that it never fails, nor can it, for it cannot be stopped (but is going incessantly day and night) until "buffalo come." Drums are beating and rattles are shaken, and songs and yells incessantly are shouted, and lookers-on stand ready with masks on their heads, and weapons in hand, to take the place of each one as he becomes fatigued, and jumps out of the ring. During this time of general excitement, spies or Hoohers''^ are kept on the hills in the neighborhood of the village, who, when they discovsr buffaloes in sight, give the appropriate signal, by "throwing ttieir robes," which is instantly seen in the village, and understood by the whole tribe. At this joyful intelligence there is a shout of thanks to the Great Spirit, and more especially to the mystery- man, and the dancers, who have been the immediate cav^e of their success/ There is then a brisk preparation for the chase — a grand hunt takes place. The choicest pieces of the victims are sacrificed to the Great Spirit, and then a surfeit and a carouse. These dances have sometimes been continued in this village two and three weeks without stopping an instant, until the joyful moment when buffaloes made their appear- ance. So they never fail ; and they think they have been the means of bringing them in. Every man in the Mandan village (as I have before said) is obliged by a village regulation, to keep the mask of the bufliilo, hanging on a post at the head of his bed, which he can use on his head whenever ho is called upon by the chiefs, to dance for the coming of buffaloes. The mask is put over the head, and generally has a strip of the skin hanging to it, of the whole length of the animal, with the tail attached to it, which, passing down over the back of the dancer, is dragging on the ground. When one becomes flitigued of the exercise, he signifies it by bending quite 14 ' wHi th *•■ *-i 210 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE forward, and sinking his body towards the ground ; when another draws a bow upon him and hits him with a blunt arrow, and he falls like a buffalo— is seized by the bye- Btaaders, who drag him out of the ring by the heels, brandishing their knives about him; and having gone through the motions of skinning and cutting him up, they let him off", and his place is at once supplied by another, who dances into the ring with his mask on ; and by this taking of places, the scene is easily kept up night and day, until the desired effect has been produced, that of "making buffalo come." The day before yesterday, though it commenced in joy and thanksgiving to the Great Spirit for the signal success which had attended their several days of dancing and sup. plication, it ended in a calamity which threw the village of the Mandans into mourning and repentant tears, and that at a time of scarcity and great distress. The signal was given into the village on that morning from the top of a distant bluff", that a band of buffaloes were in sight, though at a considerable distance off", and every heart beat with joy, and every eye watered and glistened with glad- ness. The dance had lasted some three or four days, and now, instead of the doleful tap of the drum and the begging chaunts of the dancers, the stamping of horses was heard as they were led and galloped through the village — young men were throwing oft' their robes and their shirts, — were seen snatching a handful of arrows from their quivers, and stringing their sinewy bows, glancing their eyes and their smilcij at their sweethearts, and mounting their ponies. There had been a few minutes of bustle and boasting, whilst bows were twanging and spears were polishing by running their blades into the ground — every face and every eye was filled with joy and gladness — horses were pawing and snufTmg in fury for the onset, when Louiaon Frduie, an interpreter of the Fur Company, galloped through the village with his rifle in his hand and bis NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 211 powder-horn at his side ; his head and waist were bandaged with handkerchiefs, and his shirt sleeves rolled up to his shoulders — the hunter's yell issued from his lips and was repeated through the \illage; he flew to the bluffs, and behind him and over the graceful swells of the prairie, galloped the emulous youths, whose hearts were beat-ng high and quick for the onset In the village, where hunger had reigned, and starvation vras almost ready to look them in the face, all was instantly turned to joy and gladness. The chiefs and doctors who had been for some days dealing out minimum rations to the community from the public crib, now spread before their subjects the contents of their own private caches, and the last of every thing that could be mustered, that they might eat a thanksgiving to the Great Spirit for his goodness in sending them a supply of buffalo meat. A general carouse of banqueting ensued, which occupied the greater part of the day ; and their hidden stores which might have fed an emergency for several weeks, were nearly consumed — bones were half picked, and dishes half emptied and then handed to the dogs. I was not forgotten either, in the general surfeit ; several large and generous wooden bowls of pemican and other palatable food were sent to my paiiting-room, and I received them in this time of scarcity with great pleasure. After this general indulgence was over, and the dogs had licked the dishes, their usual games and amusements ensued — and hilarity and mirth, and joy took possession of, and reigned in, every nook and corner of the village ; suddenly in the midst of this, screams and shrieks were heard! and echoed everywhere. Women and children Bcramblcd to the tops of their wigwams, with their eyes and their hands stretched in agonizing earnestness to the prairie, whilst blackened warriors ran furiously through every winding maze of the village, and issuing their jarring gutturals of vengeance, as they snatched their deadly weapons from their lodges, and struck the reddened \i\Xlf ..JH'I 1 1 ii\l4 m I r* ■S^^^l 212 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE post ns tbey furiously passed it by I Two of their hunters were bending their course down the sides of the bluff towards the village, and another broke suddenly out of a deep ravine, and yet another was seen dashing over and down the green hills, and all were goading on their horses at full speed I and then came another, and another, and all entered the village amid the shouts and groans of the villagers who crowded around them : the story was told in - their looks, for one was bleeding, and the blood that flowed from his naked breast had crimsoned his milk white steed as it had dripped over him ; another grasped in his left hand a scalp that was reeking in blood — and in the other his whip — another grasped nothing, save the reins in one hand and the mane of the horse in the other, havinw thrown his bow and his arrows away, and trusted to the fleetness of his horse for his safety ; yet the story was audibly told, and the fatal tragedy recited in irregular and almost suffocating ejaculations — the names of the dead were in turns pronounced and screams and shrieks burst forth at their recital — murmurs and groans ran through the village, and this happy little community were in a momeut smitten with sorrow and distraction. Their proud baud of hunters who had started full of glee and mirth in the morning, had been surrounded by their enemy, the Sioux, and eight of them killed. The Sioux who had probably reconnoitred their village during the night, and ascertained that they were dancing for buffaloes laid a stratagem to entrap them in the following manner: — Some six or eight of them appeared the next mornin'' (on a di.stant bluff, in sight of their sentinel) under the skins of buffaloes, imitating the movements of those animals whilst grazing; and being discovered by the sentinel, the intelligence was telgraphed to the villa^^c which brought out their hunters as I have described. The masked buffaloes were seen grazing on the top of a lii<'h bluff, and when the hunters had approached within half a mile or so of them, they suddenly disappeared over the NOBTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 218 hill. Louison Frfenid, who was leading the little band of hunters, became at that moment suspicious of so strange a movement, and came to a halt, " Look !" (said a Mandan, pointing to a little ravine to the right, and at the foot of the hill, from which suddenly broke some forty or fifty furious Sioux on fleet horses and under full whip, who were rushing upon them); they •wheeled, and in front of them came another band, more furious, from the other side of the hill 1 they started for home, poor fellows, and strained every nerve ; but the Sioux were too fleet for them ; and every now and then, the whizzing arrow and the lance were heard to rip the flesh of their naked backs, and a grunt and a groan, as they tumbled from their horses. Several miles were run in this desperate race ; and Frfenid got home, and several of the Mandans, thougb eight of them were killed and scalped by the way. So ended that day, and the hunt ; but many a day and sad, will last the grief of those whose hearts were broken on that unlucky occasion. This day, though, my readers, has been one of a more joyful kind, for the Great Spirit, who was indignant at so fla-^rant an injustice, has sent the Mandans an abundance of buffaloes; and all hearts have joined in a general thanksgiving to Eim for his goodness and justice. :i:l-ii ri J.I I 1 1 ■'■>% If' i'^H) m ■■' i. '%ip LETTER No. XIX. MANDAN "PILLAGE, UPPER MISSOURI In my last letter I gave an account of the buflfalo dance, and in future epistles may give some descriptions of a dozen other kinds of dance, which these people have in common with other tribes ; but in the present letter I shall make an endeavor to confine my observations to several o^her customs and forms, which are very curious and peculiar to the Maudans. Of these, one of the most pleasing is the sham-fight and sham scalp-dance of the Mandan boys, which is a part of their regular exercise, and constitutes a material branch of tlieir education. During the pleasant mornings of tL satu- mer, the little boys between the age of seven and fifteen are (214) NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 216 called out, to the number of several hundred, and being divided into two companies, each of which is headed by some experienced warrior, who leads them on, in the character of a teacher, they are led out into the prairie at sunrise, when this curious discipline is regularly taught them. Their bodies are naked, and each one has a little bow in his left hand, and a number of arrows made of large spears of grass, which are harmless in their effects. Each one has also a little belt or girdle around his waist, in which he carries a knife made of a piece of wood and equally harmless— on the tops of their heads are slightly attached small tufts of grass, which answer as scalps, and iu this plight, they follow the dictates of their experienced leaders, who lead them through the judicious evolutions of Indian warfare — of feints — of retreats — of attacks — and at last to a general fight. Many manoeuvres are gone through, and eventually they are brought up face to face, within fifteen or twenty feet of each other, with their leaders at their head stimulating them on. Their bows are bent upon each other and their missiles flying, whilst they are dodging and fending them off". If any one is struck with an arrow on any vital part of his body, he is obliged to fall, and his adversary rushes up to him, places his foot upon him, and snatching from bis belt his wooden knife, grasps hold of his victim's scalp-lock of grass, and making a feint at it with his wooden knife, twitches it off and puts it into his belt and enters again into the ranks and front of battle. This mode of training generally lasts an hour or more in the morning, and is performed on an empty stomach, affording them a rigid and wholesome exercise, whilst they are instructed in the important science of war. Some five or six miles of ground arc run over during these evolutions, giving suppleness to their limbs and strength to their mus- cles, which last and benefit them through life. After this exciting exhibition is ended, they all return to their village, where the chiefs and braves pay profound l^"-! mi M El ^: ■A ■^ S16 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THB attention to their vaunting, and applaud them for their artifice and valor. Those who have taken scalps then step forward, bran- dishing them and making their boasts as they enter into the scalp-dance (in which they are also instructed by their leaders or teachers), jumping and yelling — brandishing their scalps, and reciting their sanguinary deeds, to the great astonishment of their tender-aged sweethearts, who are gazing with wonder upon them. The games and amusements of these people are in most respects like those of other tribes, consisting of ball plays — game of the moccasin, of the platter — feats of archery — horse-racing, &c. ; and they have yet another, which may be said to be their favorite amusement, and unknown to the other tribes about them. The game of Tchung-kec, a beautiful athletic exercise, which they seem to be almost unceasingly practicing whilst the weather is fair, and they have nothing else of moment to demand their attention. Tiiis game is decidedly their favorite amusement, and is played near to the village on a pavement of clay, which has been used for that purpose until it has become as smooth and hard as a floor. For this game two champions form their respective parties, by choosing alternately the most famous players, until their requisite numbers are made up. Their bett'ngs are then made, and their stakes are held by some of the chiefs or others present. The play commences with two (one from each party), who start off upon a trot, abreast of each other, and one of them rolls in advance of them, on the pavement, a little ring of two or three inches in diameter, cut out of a stone ; and each one follows it up with his " tchung-kee"' (a stick of six feet in length, with little bits of leather projecting from its sides of an inch or more in length), which he throws before him as he runs, sliding it along upon the ground after the ring, cndc ivoring to place it in such a position when it stops, that the ring may fall upon it, and receive one of the little projections of leather through it, which counts for game, NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 217 one, or two, or four, according to the position of the leather on which the ring is lodged. The last winner always has the rolling of the ring, and both start and throw the tchung- kee together ; if either fails to receive the ring or to lie in a certain position, it is a forfeiture of the amount of the number he is nearest to, and ho loses his throw; when another steps into his place. This game is a very difficult one to describe, so as to give an exact idea of it, unless one can see it played — it is a game of great beauty and fine bodily exercise, and these people become excessively fasci- nated with it; often gambling away every thing they possess, and even sometimes, when everything else was gone, have been known to stake their liberty upon the issue of these games, offering themselves as slaves to their opponents in case they get beaten. Feasting snd fasting are important customs observed by the Mandans, as well as by most other tribes, at stated times and for particular purposes. These observances are strictly religious and rigidly observed. There are many of these forms practiced amongst the Mandans, some of which are exceedingly interesting, and important also, in forming a correct estimate of the Indian character ; and I shall at a future period take particular pains to lay them before my readers. fxrijicing is also a religious custom with these people, and is performed in many different modes, and on numerous occasions. Of this custom I shall also speak more fully hereafter, merely noticing at present, some few of the hundred modes in which these offerings are made to the Good and Evil Spirits. Human sacrifices have never been made by the Mandans, nor by any of the north- western tribes (so far as I can learn) excepting the Pawnees of the Platte ; who have, undoubtedly, observed such an inhuman practice in former times, though they have relinquished it of late. The Mandans sacrifice their fingers to the Great Spirit, and of their worldly goods, the best and the most costly ; if a horse or a dog, it must be • ■■mm .ri 213 LETTERS AND N0TK3 ON" THE the favorite one ; if it is an arrow from their quiver, they will select the most perfect one as the most effective gift- if it is meat, it is the choicest piece cut from the buffalo or other animal ; if it is anything from the stores of the Traders, it is the most costly— it is blue or scarlet cloth, which costs thorn in this country an enormous price, and is chiefly used for the purpose of hanging over their wigwams to decay, or to cover the scaffolds where rest the bones of their departed relations. Of these kinds of sacrifices there are three of an inter- esting nature, erected over the great medicine-lodge in the centre of the village — they consist of ten or fifteen yards of blue and black cloth each, purchased from the Fur Coi-i. pany at fifteen or twenty dollars per yard, which are folded up so as to resemble human figures, with quills in tbe,lr heads and masks on their faces. These singular-looking figures, like "scare crotvs^" are erected on poles about thirty feet high, over the door of the mystery-lodge, and there are left to decay. There hangs now by the side of them another, which was added to the number ^ few days since, of the skin of a white buffalo, which will remain there until it decays and falls to pieces. This beautiful and costly skin, when its history is known, will furnish a striking proof of the importance which they attach to these propitiatory offerings. But a few weeks since, a party of Mandans returned from the Mouth of the Yellow Stone, two hundred miles above, with information that a party of Blackfeet were visiting that place on business with the American Fur Company ; and that they had with them a white buffalo robe for sale. This was looked upon as a subject of great importance by the chiefs, and one worthy of public consideration. A wliite buffalo robe is a great curiosity, even in the country of buffaloes, and will always command an almost increiiible price, from its extreme scarcity ; and then, from its being the most costly article of traffic in these regions, it is usually converted into a sacrifice, being offered to the til ^ I NORTH AMERICAN INDIAXa 219 Great Spirit, as the most acceptable gift that oan be prO' cured. Amongst the vast herds of buffaloes which graze on these boundless prairies, there is not one in an hundred thousand, perhaps, that is white; and when such an one is obtained, it is considered great medicine or mystery. On the receipt of the intelligence above mentioned, the chiefs convened in council, and deliberated on the expe- diency of procuring the white robe from the Blackfeet; and also of appropriating the requisite means, and devising the proper mode of procedure for effecting the purchase. At the close of their deliberations, eight men were fitted out on eight of their best horses, who took from the Fur Company's store, on the credit of the chiefs, goods exceed- ing even the value of their eight horses ; and they started for the Mouth of the Yellow Stone, where they arrived in due time, and made the purchase, by leaving the eight horses and all the goods which they carried; returning on foot to their own village, bringing home with them the white robe which was looked upon by all eyes of the villagers as a thing that was vastly curious, and con- taining (as they express it) something of the Great Spirit. This wonderful anomaly laid several days in the chief's lodge, until public curiosity was gratified ; and then it was taken by the doctors or high-priests, and with a great deal of form and mystery consecrated, and raised on the top of a long pole, over the medicine-lodge; where it now stands in a group with the others, and will stand as an offering to the Great Spirit, until it decays and fulls to the ground. This Letter as I promised in its commencement, being devoted to some of the customs peculiar to the Mandans, and all of which will be new to the world, I shall close, after recording in it an account of a laughable farce, which was enacted in this village when I was on my journey up the river, and had stopped on the way to spend a day or two in the Mandan village. Readers, did you ever hear of ^^ Rain Makers T^ If not, sit still, and read on ; but laugh not — keep cool and sober, -i^--! --■-=.:*-' 4«. ; :■•^ ,'«T: m^r, ■ -.' ; ' ■ t ■it- , ■ M : i^'m nm 1 vHVv- 220 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE or elso you may laugh in tho heginntnff, and cry at the end of my story. Well, I introduce to you a new character- not a doctor or a high-priest, yet a medicine-man, and one of the highest and most respectable order, a " Bain Maker T^ Such dignitaries live in the Mandan nation, aye, and '* ram stoppers'^ too ; and even those also amongst their conjuratt ■who, like Joshua of old, have even essayed to stop the sun in his course ; but from the inefTiciency of their medicine or mystery, have long since descended into insignifieunce. The Mandans, raise a great deal of corn; but some- times a most disastrous drought visits the land, destructive to their promised harvest. Such was tho case when I arrived at the Mandan village on the steam-boat, Yellow- Stone. Rain had not fallen for many a day, and the dear little girls and the ugly old squaws, altogether (all of whom had fields of corn,) were groaning and crying to their lords, and imploring them to intercede for rain, that their little patches, which were now turning pale and yellow, might not be withered, and they be deprived of the pleasure of their customary annual festivity, and the joyful occasion of the "roasting cars," and the "green corn dance." The chiefs and doctors sympathized with the distress of the women, and recommended patience. Great deliberation, they said, was necessary in these cases ; and though they resolved on making the attempt to produce rain for the benefit of the corn ; yet they very wisely resolved that to begin too soon might ensure their entire defeat in the endeavor ; and that the longer they put it off, the more certain they would be of ultimate success. So, after a few days of further delay, when the importunities of the Avomcu had become clamorous, and even mournful, and almost insupportable, the medicine-men assembled in the council- house, with all their mystery apparatus about them — with an abundance of wild sage, and other aromatic herbs, with a fire prepared to burn them, ' '♦ their savory odors might bo sent forth to the Great S irit. The lodge was H mh ki J NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. closed to all the villagcra, except some ten or fifteen young men, who were willing to hazard the dreadful alternative of making it rain, or aufl'cr the everlasting disgrace of having made a fruitless essay. They, only, were allowed as witnesses to the hocus poem and conjuration devised by the doctors inside of the medicine -lodge ; and they were called up by lot, each one in his turn, fo spend a day upon the top of the lodge, to test the potency of his medicine ; or, in other words, to see how far his voice might bo heard and obeyed amongst the clouds of the heavens; whilst the doctors were burning incense in the wigwam below, and with their songs and prayers to the Great Spirit, for success, were sending forth grateful fumes and odors to Him "who lives in the sun and commands the thunders of Heaven." Wah-kee (the shield) was the first who ascended the wigwam at sunfisc ; and he stood all day, and looked foolish, as he was counting over and over his string of mystery-beads — the whole village were assembled around him, and praying for his success. Not a cloud appeared — the day was calm and hot; and at the setting of the sun, he descended from the lodge and went home — " his medicine was not good," nor can he ever be a medicine-man. Oni-pah (the elk) was the next ; he ascended the lodge at sunrise the next morning. His body was entirely naked, being covered with yellow clay. On his left arm he carried a beautiful shield, and along lanco in his right; and on his hctid the skin of a raven, the bird that soars amidst the clouds, and above the lightning's glare — ho flourished his shield and brandished his lance, and raised his voice, but in vain ; for at sunset the ground was dry and the sky was clear ; the squaws wero crying, and their corn was withering at its roots. War-rah-pah (the beaver) was the next ; he also spent his breath in vain upon the empty air, .nnd came down at night — and Wak-a-dah-ha-hee (the white buffalo's hair) took the stand the next morning. He is a small, but 'm-^.i I ■* ' ' '''■ _., t" ■■'-A\'i'i'] ;' ^^fi|i {» l^^ -- ■■ - -.J. '■-f : -« •■'♦i** '■ ■ ; k'Ai '■•' ' '1 W:: ^ r^. i 222 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE beautifully proportioned young man. He was dressed in a tunic and leggings of the skins of the mountain- sheep, splendidly garnished with quills of the porcupine, and fringed with locks of hair taken by his own hand from the heads of his enemies. On his arm ho carried his shield, made of the buffalo's hide— its boss was the head of the war-eagle — and its front was ornamented with " red chains of lightning." In his left hand he clenched his sinewy bow and one single arrow. The villagers were all gathered about him ; when he threw up a feather to decide on the course of the wind, and he commenced thus : — *' My friends ! people of the pheasants ! you see me here a sacrifice — I shall this day relieve you from great distress, and bring joy amongst you ; or I shall descend from this lodge when the sun goes down, and live amongst the dogs and old women all my days. My friends ! you saw which way the feather flew, and I hold my shield this day in the direction where the wind comes — the lightning on my shield will draw a great cloud, and this arrow, which is selected from my quiver, and which is feathered with the quill of the white swan, will make a hole in it. My friends ! this hole in the lodge at my feet, shows me the medicine-men, who are seated in the lodge below me and crying to the Great Spirit ; and through it comes and passes into my nose delightful odors, which you see rising in tlic smoke to the Great Spirit above, who rides in clouds and commands the winds I Three days they have sat here, my friends, and nothing has been done to relieve your distress. On the first day was Wah-kee (the shield), he could do nothing ; he counted his beads and came down — his medicine was not good — his name was bad, and it kept off the rain. The next was Om-pah (the elk) ; on his head the raven was seen, who flies above the storm, and he failed. War-rah-pa (the beaver) was the next, my friends ; iuc beaver lives uruier the water, and ho never wants it to rain. My friends 1 I see you are in great distress, and nothing has yet been done; this shield belonged to my ^-<-bi: NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 223 father the "White Buffalo ; and the lightning you see on it is red ; it was taken from a black cloud, and that cloud will come over us to-day I am the white buffalo's hair — and I am the son of my father." It happened on this memorable day about noon, that the steam-boat Yellow Stone, on her first trip up the Missouri Kiver, approached and landed at the Mandan Village, as I have described in a former epistle. I was lucky enough to be a passenger on this boat, and helped to fire a salute of twenty guns of twelve pounds calibre, when we first came in sight of the village, some three or four miles below. These- guns introduced a new sound into this strange country, which the Mandans at first supposed to be thunder ; and the young man upon the lodge, who turned it to good account, was gathering fame in rounds of applause, which were repeated and echoed through the whole village; all eyes were centred upon him — chiefs envied him — mothers' hearts were beating high whilst they were decorating and leading up their fair daughters to offer him in marriage, on his signal success. The medicine-men had left the lodge, and came out to bestow upon him the envied title of '* medicine-man,''^ or " doctor^^ which he had so deservedly won — wreaths were prepared to decorate his brows, and eagle's plumes and calumets wore in readiness for him ; his friends were all rejoiced — his enemies wore on their faces a silent gloom and hatred ; and his old sweethearts, who had formerly cast him off, gazed intensely upon him, as they glowed with the burning fever of repentance. During all this excitement, "Wak-a-dah-ha-hee kept hia position, assuming the most commanding and threatening attitudes; brandishing his shield in the direction of the tliuudcr, although there was not a cloud to be seen, until he, poor follow, being elevated above the rest of the village, espied to his inexpressible amazement, the steamboat ploughing its way up the windings of the river below; puffing her steam from her pipes, and sending forth the ,V-1. 224 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE thunder from a twelve-pounder on her deck I * * * The "White Buffaloe's Hair stood motionless and turned pale, he looked awhile, and turned to the chief and to the multitude, and addressed them with a trembling lip_''My friends, we will get no rain I — there are you see no clouds • but my medicine is great — I have brought a thunder-boat f look and see it ; the thunder you hear is out of her mouth, and the lightning which you see is on the waters 1" At this intelligence, the whole village flew to the tops of their wigwams, or to the bank of the river, from whence the steamer was in full view, and ploughing along, to their utter dismay and confusion. In this promiscuous throng of chiefs, doctors, women children and dogs, was mingled "Wak-a-dah-ha-hce (the white buffalo's hair), having descended from his high place to mingle with the frightened throng. Dismayed at the approach of so strange and unaccount- able an object, the Mandans stood their ground but a few moments ; when, by an order of the chiefs, all hands were ensconsed within the piquets of their village, and all the warriors armed for a desperate defence. A few moments brought the boat in front of the village, and all was still and quiet as death ; not a Mandan was to be seen upon the banks. The steamer was moored, and three or four of the chiefs soon after walked boldly down the bank and on to her deck, with a spear in one hand and the calumet or pipe of peace in the other. The moment they stepped on board they met (to their great surp.-iso and joy) their old frienJ, Major Sanford, their agent, which circumstance put an instant end to all their fears. Tlic villagers were soon apprized of the fact, and the whole race of the beautiful and friendly Mandans was paraded on the bank of the river, in front of the steamer. The " rain maker," whose apprehensions of a public calamity brought upon the nation by liis extraordinary medicine, had, for the better security of his person from aj>prchen(led vengeance, secreted himself in some secure NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 225 place, and was tho last to come forward, and the last to be convinced that this visitation was a friendly one from the white people ; and that his medicine had not in the least been instrumental in bringing it about. This information, though received by him with much caution and suspicion, at length gave him great relief, and quieted his mind as to his danger. Yet still in his breast there was a rankling thorn, though he escaped the dreaded vengeance which he had a few moments before apprehended as at hand ; as he had the mortification and disgrace of having failed in his mysterious operations. lie set up, (during the day, in his conversation about the strange arrival), his medicines, as the cause of its approach ; asserting everywhere and to every- body, that he knew of its coming, and that he had by his, magic brought the occurrence about. This plea, however, (lid not get him much audience ; and in fact, everything e]"fi was pretty much swallowed up in the guttural talk, and bustle, and gossip about the mysteries of the " thunder- boat ;" and so passed the day, until just at the approach of evening, when the "White Buffalo's Hair" (more watchful of such matters on this occasion than most others) observed that a black cloud had been jutting up in the horizon, and was almost directly over the village! In an instant his shield was on his arm, and his bow in his hand, and he attain upon the lodge 1 stiffened and braced to tho last sinew, he stood, with his face and his shield presented to the cloud, and his bow drawn. He drew the eyes of the whole village upon him as he vaunted forth his super- human powers, and at the same time commanding the cloud to come nearer, that ho might draw down its contents upon the heads and the corn-fields of the Mandans! In thia wise he stood, waving his shield over his head, stamping liis foot and frowning as he drew his bow and threatened tlio heavens, commanding it to rain — his bow was bent, and tho arrow drawn to its head, was sent to tho cloud, and he exclaimed, "My friends, it is donel Wak-a-dah-ha-hee's arrow has entered that black cloud, and the Mandans will 15 ! f' 't r !f 3'rfr ,.'tt- .■ ; ■ ;*?»,... *' >f , /M'k vf "'^ , if'''" ^ . t '. '> "1?"- > '"A .,... i-M^ 226 LETTERS AND NOTES ON" THK be wet with the waters of the skies!" His predictions were true; — in a few moments the cloud was over the village, and the rain fell in torrents. He stood for some time wielding his weapons and presenting his shield to the sky, while he boasted of Ua power and the efficacy of his medr'cme, to those who had been about him, but were now driven to the shelter of their wigwams. He, at length, finished his vaunts and his threats, and descended from his high place (in which he had been perfectly drenched), prepared to receive the honors and the homage that were due to one so potent in his mysteries ; and to receive the style and title of ^^medicine-man." This is one of a hundred different modes in which a man in Indian countries acquires the honorable appellation. This man had "made it rain," and of course was to receive more than usual honors, as he had done much more than ordinary men could do. All eyes were upon him, and all were ready to admit that he was skilled in the magic art ; and must be so nearly allied to the Great or Evil Spirit, that he must needs be a man of great and powerful influence in the nation, and well entitled to the style of doctor or medicine-man. Readers, there are two facts relative to these strange transactions, which are infallibly true, and should needs be made knovni. The first is, that when the Mandans undertake to make it rain, they never fail to succeed, for their ceremonies never i ,op until rain begins to fall. The second is equally true, and is this : — that he who has once "mocfc it rain" never attempts it again ; his medicine is undoubted — and on future occasions of the kind, he stands aloof, who has once done it in presence of the whole village, giving an opportunity to other young men who are ambitious to signalize themselves in the same way. During the memorable night of which I have just spoken, the steamboat remained by the side of the Mandan village, and the rain that had commenced falling continued to pour down its torrents until midnight ; black thunder roared, NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 227 and livid lightning flashed until the heavens appeared to he lit up with one unceasing and appalling glare. In this frightful moment of consternation, a flash of lightning buried itself in one of the earth-covered lodges of the Mf ndans, and killed a beautiful girl. Here was food and fuel fresh for their superstitions ; and a night of vast tumult and excitement ensued. The dreams of the new- made medicine-man were troubled, and he had dreadful apprehensions for the coming day — for he knew that he was subject to the irrevocable decree of the chiefs and doctors, who canvass every strange and unaccountable event, with close and superstitious scrutiny, and let their vengeance fall without mercy upon its immediate cause. He looked upon his well-earned fame as likely to be withheld from him ; and also considered that his life might perhaps be demanded as the forfeit for this girl's death, which would certainly be charged upon him. He looked upon himself as culpable, and supposed the accident to- have been occasioned by liis criminal desertion of his post, when the steamboat was approaching the village. Morning came, and he soon learned from some of his friends, the opinions of the wise men ; and also the nature of the tribunal that was preparing for him ; he sent to the prairie for his three horses, which were brought in, and he mounted the medicine-lodge^ around which, in a few moments, the villagers were all assembled. "My Friends! (said ho) I see you all around me, and I am before you ; my medicine, you see, is great — it is too great — I am young, and I was too fast — I knew not when to stop. The wig- wam of Mahsish is laid low, and many are the eyes that weop for Ko-ka (the antelope); Wak-a-dah-ha-hee gives three horses to gladden the hearts of those who weep for Ko-ka ; his medicine was great — his arrow pierced the black cloud, and the lightning came, and the thunder-boat also I who says the medicine of Wak-a-dah-ha-hee is not strong ?" At the end of this sentence an unanimous shout of '\-.Mt '-Mi 228 LErrERS AND NOTES. approbation ran through the crowd, and the "Hair of the White BufTalo" descended amongst them, where he was greeted by shakes of the hand ; and amongst whom he now lives and thrives under the familiar and honorable appella- tion of the "Bia Double Medicine." LETTER NO. XX. MANDAN VILLAGE, UPPER MISSOURI. This day has been one of unusual mirth and amusement amongst the Mandans, and whether on account of some annual celebration or not, I am as yet unable to say, though I think such is the case ; for these people have many days whicli, like this, are devoted to festivities and amusements. Their lives, however, are lives of idleness and ease, and almost all their days and hours are spent in innocent amusements. Amongst a people who have no office hours to attend to — no professions to study, and of whom but very little time is required in the chase, to supply their families with food, it would be strange if they did not practice many games and amusements, and also become exceedingly expert in them. I have this day been a spectator of games and plays until I am fatigued with looking on ; and also by lending a hand, which I have done ; but with so little success as only to attract general observation, and as generally to (229) I Mm. f *» si- 280 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE excite tlio criticisms and laughter of tbe squaws and little children. I have seen a fair exhibition of their archery this day, in a favorite amusement which they call the " game of the arrow,''^ where the young men who are the most distin- guished in this exercise, assemble on the prairie at a little distance from the village, and^ having paid, each one, his " entrance-fee," such as a shield, a robe, a pipe, or other article, step forward in turn, shooting their arrows into the air, endeavoring to see who can get the greatest number flying in the air at one time, thrown from the same bow. For this, the number of eight or ten arrows are clenched in the left hand with the bow, and the first one which is thrown is elevated to such a degree as will enable it to remain the longest time possible in the air, and while it is flying, the others are discharged as rapidly as possible; and he who succeeds in getting the greatest number up at once, is " best," and takes the goods staked. In looking on at this amusement, the spectator is sur- prised ; not at the great distance to which the arrows are actually sent; but at the quickness of fixing them on the string, and di^scharging them in succession ; which is no doubt, the result of great practice, and enables the most expert of them to get as many as eight arrows up before the first one reaches the ground. For the successful use of the bow, as it is used through all this region of country on horseback, and that invariably at full speed, the great object of practice is to enable the bowman to draw the bow with suddenness and instant effect; and also to repeat the shots in the most rapid manner. As their game is killed from their horses' backs while at the swiftest rate — and their enemies fought in the same way ; and as the horse is the swiftest animal of the prairie, and always able to bring his rider alongside, within a few paces of his victim ; it will easily be seen that the Indian has little u.so in throwing his arrow more than a few paces ; when he leans quite low on his horse's side, service. They thong, length, with a n the anir — when NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 281 and drives it with astonishing forr , capable of producing iDStant death to the buffalo, or any other animal in the country. The bows which are generally in use in these regions I have described in a former Letter, and the effects produced by them at the distance of a few paces is almost beyond belief, considering their length, which is not often over three, — and sometimes not exceeding two and a half feet. It can easily be seen, from what has been said, that the Indian has little use or object in throwing the arrow to any great distance. And as it is very seldom that they can be seen shooting at a target, I doubt very much whether their skill in such practice would compare with that attained to in many parts of the civilized world ; but with the same weapon, and dashing forward at fullest speed on the wild horse, without the use of the rein, when the shot is required to be made with the most instantaneous effect, I scarcely think it possible that any people can be found more skilled, and capable of producing more deadly effects with the bow. The horses which the Indians ride in this country are iavariably the wild horses, which are found in great num- bers on the prairies; and have, unquestionably, strayed from the Mexican borders, into which they were introduced by the Spanish invaders of that country ; and now range and subsist themselves, in winter and summer, over the vast plains of prairie that stretch from the Mexican frontiers to Lake Winnipeg on the north, a distance of three thou- sand miles. These horses are all of small stature, of the pony order; but a very hardy and tough animal, being able to perform for the Indians a continual and essential service. They are taken with the &mo, which is a long halter or thong, made of raw-hide, of some fifteen or twenty yards in length, and which the Indians throw with great dexterity ; with a noose at one end of it, which drops over the head of the animal they wish to catch, whilst running at full speed — when the Indian dismounts from his own horse, and ' «i i. mw-* A^; H ■ ^-i m: K 'f f '." '1 Mv ( *- }, 232 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE holding to the end of the laso, chokes the animal down and afterwards tames and converts him to his own use. Scarcely a man in these regions is to be. found, who is not the owner of one or more of these horses ; and in many instances of eight, ton, or even twenty, which he values as his own personal property. The Indians are hard and cruel masters ; and, added to their cruelties is the sin that is familiar in the Christian world, of sporting with the limbs and the lives of these noble animals. Horse-racing here, as in all more enlightened communities, is one of the most exciting amusements, and one of the most extravagant modes of gambling. I have been this day a spectator to scenes of this kind, whicli have been enacted in abundance, on a course which they have, just back of their village ; and although I never had the least taste for this cruel amusement in my own country, yet, I must say, I have been not a little amused and pleased with the thrilling effect which these exciting scenes have produced amongst so wild and picturesque a group. Besides these, many have been the amusements of this day, to which I have been an eye-witness; and since writing the above, I have learned the cause of this unusual expres- sion of hilarity and mirth ; which was no more nor less than the safe return of a small war-party, who had been so long out without any tidings having been received of them — that they had long since been looked upon as sacrificed to the fates of war and lost. This party was made up of the most distinguished and desperate young men of the tribe, who had sallied out against the Riccarees, and taken the most solemn oath amongst themselves never to return without achieving a victory. They had wandered long and faith- fully about the country, following the trails of their enemy ; when they were attacked by a numerous party, and lost several of tlieir men and all their horse-?. In tliis condition, to evade the scrutiny of their enemy, who were closely investing the natural route to their village; they took a 1_, NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 288 circuitoug range of the country, to enable them to return with their lives, to their village. In this plight, it seems, I had dropped my little canoe alongside of them, while descending from the Mouth of Yellow Stone to this place, not many weeks since ; where they had bivouacked or halted, to smoke and consult on the best and safest mode of procedure. At the time of meeting them, not knowing anything of their language, they were unable to communicate their condition to me, and more probably were afraid to do so even if they could have done it, from apprehension that we might have given some Recount of them to their enemies. ^sivjj;, M,>::. I u t» . •/' M '.. I I - ff'l' .. . xmU It ..'.'.'Mi vi.'j. *o.%f i rr.(.\i ,,i LETTER No. XXL MANDAN VILLAGE, UPPER MISSOURI In a former Letter I gave some account of Mah-to-toh-pa (the four bears), second chief of the Mandans, whom I said I had painted at full length, in a splendid costume. Mah-to-toh-pa had agreed to stand before me for bis portrait at an early hour of the next morning, and on that day I sat with my palette of colors prepared, and waited till twelve o'clock, before he could leave his toilette with feelings of satisfaction as to the propriety of his looks and the arrangement of his equipments ; and at that time it was announced, that "Mah-to-toh-pa was coming in fall dress I'' I looked out of the door of the wigwam, and saw him approaching with a firm and elastic step, accompanied by a great crowd of women and children, who were gazing on him with admiration, and escorting him to my room. No tragedian ever trod the stage, nor gladiator even entered the Roman Forum, with more grace and manly dignity than did Mah-to-toh-pa enter the wigwam, where I was in (234) 'i.Ll i :in' luii I « . * \^ /l I • •* • <^x^ »4» *?'*'..,■ 'Sf'-Vf^fS;^ ^r*-^^:!*. r*^- k ,* W^ !i *ik,'*tj ^\i t -;» ift i . 1 Si 5-i •^^»pi ,V IB*"' ;«?t I ' m i;i X .d..,.Jii,l NORTH AMKBICAN INDIANS. 285 readiness to receive him. He took his attitude before me, and with the sternness of a Brutus and the stillness of a statue, he stood until the darkness of night broke upon the solitary silence. His dress, which was a very splendid one, was complete in all its parts, and consisted of a shirt or tunic, leggings, moccasins, head-dress, necklace, shield, bow and quiver, lance, tobacco-sack, and pipe ; robe, belt, and knife; medicine-bag, tomahawk, and war club, or po-ko-mO'Jcon. : ' < !. ' '.'il! m;' The shirt, of which I have spoken, was made of two skins of the mountain-sheep, beautifully dressed, and sewed together by seams which rested upon the arms ; one skin banging in front, upon the breast, and the other falling down upon the back ; the head being passed between them, and they falling over and resting on the shoulders. Across each shoulder, and somewhat in the form of an epaulette, was a beautiful band ; and down each arm from the neck to the hand was a similar one, of two inches in width (and crossing the other at right angles on the shoulder) beauti- fully embroidered with porcupine quills worked on the dress, and covering the seams. To the lower edge of these bands the whole way, at intervals of half an inch, were attached long locks of black hair, which he had taken with his own hand frc m the heads of his enemies whom he had slain in battle, aud which he thus wore as a trophy, and also as an ornament to his dress. The front and back of the shirt were curiously garnished in several parts with porcupine quills and paintings of the battles he had fought, and also with the representations of the victims that had fallen by his hand. The bottom of the dress was bound or hemmed with ermine skins, and tassels of ermines' tails were suspended from the arms and the shoulders. The Leggings, which were made of deer skins, beautifully dressed, and fitting tight to the leg, extended from the feet to the hips, and were fastened to a belt which was passed around the waist. These, like the shirt, had a similar baud, worked with porcupine quills of richest dyes, passing down * »4 (1 i.** )■>'■. t '•«) »'/' 1- " J., *■'■ 5, jf' t v* 286 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE the seam on the outer part of the leg, and fringed also the whole length of the leg, with the scalp-locks taken from his enemies' heads. The Moccasins were of buckskin, and covered in almost every part with the beautiful embroidery of porcupines' quills. The ffead-dress, which was superb and truly magnificent consisted of a crest of war-eagles' quills, gracefully falling back from the forehead over the back part of the head, and extending quite down to his feet ; set the whole way in a profusion of ermine, and surmounted on the top of the head, with the horns of the buffalo, shaved thin and highly polished. The Necklace was made of fifty huge claws or nails of the grizzly bear, ingeniously arranged on the skin of an otter, and worn, like the scalp-locks, as a trophy — as an evidence unquestionable, that he had contended with and overcame that desperate enemy in open combat. His Shield was made of the hide of the buffalo's neck, and hardened with the glue that was taken from its hoofs; its boss was the skin of a pole-cat, and its edges were fringed with rows of eagles' quills and hoofs of the antelope. His Bow was of bone, and as white and beautiful as ivory ; over its back was laid, and firmly attached to it, a coating of deers' sinews, which gave it its elasticity, and of course death to all that stood inimically before it. Its string was three stranded and twisted of sinews, which many a time had twanged and sent the whizzing death to animal and to human victims. The Quiver was made of a panther's skin and hung upon his back, charged with its deadly arrows; some were poisoned and some were not; they were feathered with hawks' and eagles' quills; some were clean and innocent, and pure, and others were stained all over, with animal and human blood that was dried upon them. Their blades or points were of flints, and some of steel ; and altogether were a deadly magazine. ^4 ^ I f' i'^ NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 237 The Lcvnce or spear was held in his left hand ; its blade was two-edged and of polished steel, and the blood of several human victims was seen dried upon it, one over the other ; its shaft was of the toughest ash, and ornamented at intervals with tufts of war-eagles' quills. His Tobacco-sack was made of the skin of an otter, and tastefully garnished with quills of the porcupine ; in it was carried his k^nick-Fncck, (the bark of the red willow, which is smoked as a substitute for tobacco,) it contained also his flint and steel, and spunk for lighting. His Pipe, which was ingeniously carved out of the red steatite (or pipestone,) the stem of which was three feet long and two inches wide, made from the stalk of the young a ill , xbout half its length was wound with delicate braids ol *' • ■'rcupine's quills, so ingeniously wrought as to represc . . " . ires of men and animals upon it. It was also ornamented with the skins and beaks of wood-peckers' heads, and the hair of the white buffalo's tail. The lower half of the stem was painted red, and on its edges it bore the notches he had recorded for the snows (or years) of his life. His Bohe was made of the skin of a young buffalo bull, •with the fur on one side, and the other finely and deli- cately dressed ; with all the battles of his life emblazoned on it by his own hand. His Belt, which was of a substantial piece of buckskin, was firmly girded around his waist ; and in it were worn his tomahawk and scalping-knife. His Medicine-bag was the skin of a beaver, curiously ornamented with hawks' bills and ermine. It was held in his right hand, and his po-lco-mo-kon (or war-club) which was made of a round stone, tied up in a piece of rawhide, and attached to the end of a stick, somewhat in the form of .1 sling, was laid with others of his weapons at his feet. Such was the dress of Mah-to-toh-pa when he entered my wigwam to stand for his picture ; but such I have not entirely represented it in his portrait ; having rejected such '4-# :||^^^t J^ J. 1 1, I V -1 '^ ^ Xr-t \^-kiL u I 238 LBTTEBS AND NOTES ON TUB trappings and ornaments as interfered with the grace and simplicity of the figure. He was beautifully and extrava- gantly dressed ; and in this he was not alone, for hundreds of others are equally elegant. In plumes, and arms, and ornaments, he is not singular; but in laurels and wreaths he stands unparalleled. His breast has been bared and scarred in defence of his country, and his brows crowned with honors that elevate him conspicuous above all of his nation. There is no man amongst the Mandans so gene- rally loved, nor any one who wears a robe so justly famed and honorable as that of Mah-to-toh-pa. The following was, perhaps, one of the most extraordi- nary exploits of this remarkable man's life, and is well attested by Mr. Kipp, and several white men, who were living in the Mandan village at the time of its occurrence. In a skirmish, near the Mandan village, when they were set upon by their enemies, the Riccarees, the brother of Mah-to-toh-pa was missing for several days, when Mah-to- toh-pa found the body shockingly mangled, and a hand- some spear left piercing the body through the heart. The spear was by him brought into the Mandan village, where it was recognized by many as a famous weapon belongiir^ to a noted brave of the Riccarees, by the name of Won-ga- tap. This spear was brandished through the Mandan village by Mah-to-toh-pa (with the blood of his brother dried on its blade), crying most piteously, and swearing that he would some day revenge the death of his brother with the same weapon. It is almost an incredible fact, that ho kept this spear with great care in his wigwam for the space of four years, in the fruitless expectation of an opportunity to use it upon the breast of its owner ; when his indignant soul, impatient of further delay, burst forth in the most uncontrollable frenzy and fury ; he again brandished it through the village, and said, that the blood of his brother's heart which as seen on its blade was yet fresh, and called loudly for revenge. •' Let every Mandan (said he) be NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 289 ailent, and let no one sound the name of Mah-lo-toli-pa — let no one ask for him, nor where he has gone, until you hear him sound the war-cry in front of the village, when he will enter it and shew you the blood of Won-ga-tap. The blade of this lance shall drink the heart's blood of Won-ga- tap, or Mah-to-toh-pa mingles his shadow with that of his brother." With this he sallied forth from the village, and over the plains, with the lance in his hand; his direction was towards the Riccaree village, and all eyes were upon him, though none dared to speak till he disappeared over the distant grassy bluffe. He travelled the distance of two hundred miles entirely alone, with a little parched corn in his pouch, making his marches by night, and laying secreted by days, until he reached the Riccaree village ; where (being acquaijited with its shapes and its habits, and knowing the position of the wigwam of his doomed enemy) he loitered about in disguise, mingling himself in the obscure throng; and at last, silently and alone, observed through the rents of the wigwam, the last motions and movements of his victim, as he retired to bed with his wife : he saw him light his last pipe and smoke it " to its end" — he saw the last whiflF, and saw the last curl of blue smoke that faintly steeped from its bowl — he saw the village awhile in darkness and silence, and the embers that were covered in the middle of the wigwam gone nearly out, and the last flickering light which had been gently playing over them ; when he walked softly, but not slyly, into the wigwam and seated himself by the fire, over which was hanging a large pot, with a quantity of cooked meat remaining in it ; and by the side of the fire, the pipe and tobacco-pouch which had just been used ; and knowing that the twilight of the wigwam was not sufficient to dis- close the features of his face to his enemy, he very deliberately turned to the pot and completely satiated the desperate appet ite, which he had got in a journey of six or seven days, with little or nothing to eat; and then, as m '^p:^'" ' ^ f. !■'. ;i^ 1./^'^ 't. l;.: , 240 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE deliberately, charged and lighted the pipe, and sent (no doubt in every whiff that he drew through its stem) a prayer to the Great Spirit for a moment longer for the con- summation of his design. Whilst eating and smoking, the wife of his victim, while laying in bed, several times inquired of her husband, what man it was who was eating in their lodge ? to which, he as many times replied, " It's no matter ; lot him eat, for he is probably hungry." Mah-to-toh-pa knew full well that his appearance would cause no other reply than this, from the dignitary of the nation ; for, from an invariable custom amongst these Northern Indians, any one who is hungry is allowed to walk into any man's lodge and eat. Whilst smoking his last gentle and tremulous whiffs on the pipe, Mah-to-toh-pa (leaning back, and turning gradually on his side, to get a better view of the position of his enemy, and to see a little more distinctly the shapes of things) stirred the embers with his toes (readers, I had every word of this from his own lips, and every attitude and gesture acted out with his own limbs), until he saw his way was clear ; at which moment, with his lance in his hands, he rose and drove it through the body of his enemy, and snatching the scalp from his head, he darted from the lodge — and quick as lightning, witli the lance in one hand, and the scalp in the other, made his way to the prairie ! The village was in an uproar, but he was off, and no one knew the enemy who had struck the blow. Mah-to-toh-pa ran all night, and lay close during the days ; thanking the Great Spirit for strengthening his heart and his arm to this noble revenge ; and prayed fervently for a continuance of his aid and pro- tection till he should get back to his own village. His prayers were hoard ; and on the sixth morning, at sunrise, Mah-to-toh-pa descended the blufis, and entered the village amidst deafening .shouts of apj^lause, while he brandished and showed to his people the blade of his lance, with the blood of his victim dried upon it, over that of his brother ; and the scalp of Wou-ga-tap suspended from its handle. ''Ill NORTH AMEEICAK INDIANS. 241 In the portrait of which I am speaking, there will be seen an eagle's quill balanced on the hilt of the lance, severed from its original position, and loose from the weapon. When I painted his portrait, he brought that quill to my wigwam in his left hand, and carefully balanc- ing it on the lance, as se. n i' ; painting, he desire'' ■^". to bo very exact with it, hav appear as separate u .n, and unconnected with, the lance ; and to represent a spot of blood which was visible upon it. I indulged him in his request, and then got from him the following explanation : — " That quill (said he) is great medicine ! it belongs to the Great Spirit, and not to me — when I was running out of the lodge of Won-ga-tap, I looked back and saw that quill hanging to the wound in his side ; I ran back, and pulling it out, brought it home in my left hand, and I have kept it for the Great Spirit to this day !" "Why do you not then tie it onto the lance again, where it came off?" " Hush-sh (said he), if the Great Spirit had wished it to be tied on in that place, it never would have come off; he has been kind to me, and I will not olYend him." A party of about one hundred and fifty Shienne warriors had made an assault upon the Mandan village at an early hour one morning, and driven off a considerable number of horses, and taken one scalp. Mah-to-toh-pa, vv'ho was then a young man, but filmed as one of the most valiant of the Mandans, took the lead of a party of fifty warriors, all he could at that time muster, and went in pursuit of the enemy ; about noon of the second day, they came in sight of the Shiennes ; and the Mandans seeing their enemy much more numerous than they had expected, were generally disposed to turn about and return without attacking them. They started to go back, when Mah-to-toh-pa galloped out in front upon the prairie, and plunged his lance into the ground ; the blade was driven into the earth to its hilt — lie made another circuit around, and in that circuit tore from his breast his reddened sash, which he hung upon its 16 »m*%. •. r » ) 242 LETTERS AXD NOTES ON TUB handle as a flag, calling out to the Mandans, " What ! have we come to this ? we have dogged our enemy two days, and now when we have found them, are we to turn about and go back like cowards? Mah-to-toh-pa's lance, which is red with the blood of brave men, has led you to the sight of your enemy, and you have followed it ; it now stands firm in the ground, where the earth will drink the blood of Mah-to-toh-pa 1 you may all go back, and Mah-to-toh-pa will fight them ilone I" During this manceuvre, the Shiennes, who had discovered the Mandans behind them, had turned about and were gradu- ally approaching, in order to give them battle; the chief of the Shienne war-party seeing and understanding the diffi. culty, and admiring the gallant conduct of Mah-to-toh-pa galloped his horse forward within hailing distance, in front of the Mandans, and called out to know " who he was who had stuck down his lance and defied the whole enemy alono?" " I am Mah-to-toh-pa, second in comand of the brave and valiant Mandans." '• I have heard often of Mah to-tohpa, he is a great war- rior — dares Mah-to-toh-pa to come forward and fight this battle with me alone, and our warriors will look on ?" " Is he a chief who speaks to Mah-to-toh-pa ?" "My scalps you see hanging to my horse's bits, and here is my lance with the ermine skins and the war-eagle's tail!" " You have said enough." The Shienne chief made a circuit or two at full gallop on a beautiful white horse, when he struck his lance into the ground, and left it standing by the side of the lance of Mah- to-toh-pa, both of which were waving together their little red flags — tokens of blood and defiance. The two parties then drew nearer, on a beautiful prairie, and the two, full- plumed chiefs, at full speed, drove furiously upon each other ! both firing their guns at the same monient. They passed each other a little distance and whcelec, when Mah- totoh-pa drew oft' his powder-horn, and by liolding it up, Khcwed his adversary that the bullet had ihattered it to KORTH AMERICAN IKDIANS. 248 pieces and destroyed his ammunition ; he then threw it from him, and his gun also — drew his bow from his quiver, and ail arrow, with his shield upon his lefl; arm 1 The Shienne instantly did the same; his horn was thrown off, and his gun Avas thrown into the air — his shield was balanced on his arm — his bow drawn, and quick as lightning, they were both on the wing for a deadly combat ! Like two soaring eagles in the open air, they made their circuits around, and the twangs ot their sinewy bows were heard, and the war-whoop, as they dashed by each other, parrying off the whizzing arrows with their shields 1 Some lodged in their legs and others in their arms but both protected their bodies with their bucklers of bull's hide. Deadly and many were the shafts that fled from their murderous bows. At length the horse of Mah- totoh-pa fell to the ground with an arrow in his heart ; his rider sprang upon his feet prepared to renew the combat ; but the Shienne, seeing his adversary dismounted, sprang from his horse, and driving him back, presented the face ol his shield towards his enemy, inviting him to come on 1 — a few shots more were exchanged thus, when the ShiennCj having discharged all his arrows, held up his empty quiver and dashing it furiously to the ground, with his bow and his shield; drew and brandished his naked knife 1 " Yes ! " said Mah-to-toh-pa, as he threw his shield and quiver to the earth, and was rushing up — he grasped for his knife, but his belt had it not ; he had left it at home ! his bow was in his hand, with which he parried his antagonist's blow and f'lled him to the ground 1 A desperate struggle now ensued for the knife — the blade of it was several times drawn through the right hand of Mah-to-toh-pa inflicting the most frightful wounds, while he was severely wounded in several parts of the body. He at length succeeded, however, in wrest- ing it from his adversary's hand, and plunged it to his heart. By this time the two parties had drawn up in close view of each other, and at the close of the battle, Mah-to-toh-pa held up, and claimed in deadly silence, the knife and scalp of the noble Shienne chief. fll i r m MANDAN UKDICINR LODOE. LETTER No. XXII. MANDAN VILLAGE, VPFER MISSOVRT. Oh I ^^ horribile visu—et mirabile dictu/" Thank God, it is over, that I have seeu it, and am ablo to tell it to the world. The annual religmu ceremony, of four days, of wliich I have so often "poken and which I have so long been wishing to sec, has at last been enacted in this village; and I have, fortunately, been able to see and to nudcrstand it in most of its bearings, whiot was more than I Lad reason to expect ; for no white man, in all probability, Las ever been before admitted to the medicine-lodge during these most remarkable and appalling scenes. Well and truly has it been aaid, that the Mandans are a strange and peculiar people ; and most correctly had I been informed, that this was an important and interesting scene, by those who had, on former occasions, witnessed such (241) II' .1 NORTH AMEBICAIT INDIANS. 245 parts of it as are transacted out of doors, and in front of the viedicine'lodge. Since the date of my last Letter, I was lucky enough to have painted the medicine man, who was high-priest on this grand occasion, or conductor of the ceremonies, who had me regularly installed doctor or "wificKane/" and who, on the morning when those grand refinements in mysteries commenced, took me by the arm, and led me into the medicine-lodge, where the Fur Trader, Mr. Kipp, and his two clerks accompanied me in close attendance for four (lays ; all of us going to our own quarters at sun-down, and returning again at sun-rise the next morning. I took my sketch-book with me, and have made many and faithful drawings of what we saw, and full notes' of everything as translated tome by the iaterpreter ; and since the close of that horrid and frightful scene, which was a week ago or more, I have been closely ensconced in an eartb-covered wigwam, witli a fine sky-light over my head with ray palette and brushes endeavoring faithfully to put the whole of what we saw upon canvass, which my companions all agree to be critically correct, and of the fidelity of which they have attached their certificates to the backs of the paintings. I have made four paintings of these strange scenes, containing several hundred figures, representing the transactions of each day ; and if I live to get them home, they will be found to be exceedingly curious and interesting. ! shudder at the relation, or even at the thought of these barbarous and cruel scenes, and am almost ready to shrink from the task of reciting them after I have so long promised some account of them. I entered the medicine-house of these scenes, as I would have entered a church, and expected to see something extraordinary and strange, but yet in the form of worship or devotion; but alas I little did I expect to see the interior of their holy temple turned into a slaughter-house, and its floor strev/'ed with the blood of its fanatic devotees. Little did I think that I was I il !»■( ii m if \r- ] m I S .si " ^ 246 LETTERS AND N0TE3 ON THE entering a house of God, where His bliaded worshippers were to pollute its sacred interior with their blood, and propitiatory suffering and tortures — surpassing, if possiblo, the cruelty of the rack or the inquisition ; but such the scene has been, and as sueh I will endeavor to describe it. The " Mandan religiotis ceremony'^ then, as I believe it is very justly denominated, is an annual transaction, held in their medicine-lodge onee a year, as a great relic 10U3 anniversary, and for several distinct objects, as I shall in a few minutes describe ; during, and after which, they look with implicit reliance for the justification and approval of the Great Spirit. All of the Indian tribes, as I have before observed, aro religious — are worshipful — and many of them go to altnost incredible lengths (as will be seen in the present instance and many others I may recite) in worshipping the Groat Spirit ; denying and humbling themselves before Ilim for the same purpose, and in the same hope as wo do, perhaps in a more rational and acceptable way. The tribes, so far as I have visited them, all distinctly believe in the existence of a Great (or Good) Spirit, aa Evil (or Bad Spirit,) and also in a future existence ami future accountability, according to their virtues and vices in tills world. So far the North American Indians would seem to bo one family, and sucli an unbroken theory amongst them; yet with regard to the manner and form, and time and place of that accountability — to the con- structions of virtues and vices, and the modes of appeasini' and propitiating the Good and Evil Spirits, they aro found with all the changes and variety which fortuitous oir- cumstances, and fictions, and fables have wrought upon them. If from their superstitions and their ignorance, there arc oftentimes obscurities and mysteries thrown over and around their .system, yet these affect not the theory itself, which is ovorywhcre essentially the same — and which, if it be not correct, has this much to command the admiration NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 247 of tbo enlightened world, that they worship with grcot eincerity, and all according to one creed. The Mandans believe in the existence of a Great (or Good) Spirit, and also of an Evil Spirit, who they say existed long before the Good Spirit, and is far superior in power. They all believe also in a future state of existence, and a future administration of rewards and punishments, and (so do all other tribes that I have yet visited) they believe those pu i ishmcnts are not eternal, but commensurate with their sins. These people living in a climate whore they suffer from cold in the severity of their winters, have very naturally reversed our ideas of Heaven and Hell. The latter they describe to be a country very far to the north, of barren and hideous aspect, and covered with eternal snows and ice. The torments of this freezing place they describe as most excruciating; whilst Heaven they suppose to be in a warmer and delightful latitude, where nothing is felt but the keenest enjoyment, and where the country abounds in buffidoes and other luxuries of life. The Great or Good Spirit they believe dwells in the former place for the purpose of there meeting those who have offended him; increasing the agony of their sufferings, by being himself present, administering the penalties. The Bad or Evil Spirit they at the same time suppose to reside in Paradise, still tempting the happy ; and those who have gone to the regions of punishment they believe to be torturec'. for a time proportioned to the amount of their transgrc •: .iis, and that they are then to be transferred to the land of the happy, where they arc again liable to the temptations of the Evil Spirit, and answerable again at a future period for their new offences. Such is the religious creed of the Mandans, and for the purpose of appeasing the Good and Evil Spirits, and to secure their entrance into those "fields Elysian," or beauti- ful hunting grounds, do the young men subject themselves to the horrid and sickening cruelties to be described in tbo following pages. ' «^"-it, 1 i . V*-*- I ( 248 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE There are other three distinct objects for which those religious ceremonies are held, which are as follow: — First, they are held annually as a celebration of the event of the subsiding of the Flood, which they call Mee- nee-ro-Ica-ha-sha, (sinking down or settling of the waters.) Secmidly, for the purpose of dancing what they call, Bel-lohck-na-].ic (the bull-dance); to the strict observance of which they attribute the coming of buffaloes to supply them with food during the season ; and Thirdly and lastly, for the purpose of conducting all tlie young men of the tribe, as they annually arrive to the age of manhood, through an ordeal of privation and torture, which, while it is supposed to harden their muscles and prepare them for extreme endurance, enables the chiefs who are spectators to the scene, to decide upon their comparative bodily strength and ability to endure the extreme privations and sufferings that often fall to the lots of Indian warriors ; and that they may decide who is the most hardy and best able to lead a war-party in case of extreme exigency. This part of the ceremony, as I have just witnessed it, is truly shocking to behold, and will almost stagger iIk; belief of the world when they read of it. Tlie scene is too terrible and too revolting to be seen or to be told, were it not an essential part of a whole, which will be new to the civilized world, and therefore worth their knowing. The bull-dance, and many other parts of these ceremonies are exceedingly grotesque and amusing, and that part of them which has a relation to the Deluge is harmless and full of interest. In the centre of the Mandan village is an open, circular area of one hundred and fifty feet in diameter, kept always clear, as a public ground, for the display of all their public feasts, parades, &c. and around it are their wigwams placed as near to each other as they can well stand, their doors facing tiie centre of this public area. In the middle of this ground, which is trodden like a ■tUli ii If [a NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 249 hard pavement, is a curb (somewhat like a large hogshead standing on its end) made of planks (and bound with hoops), some eight or nine feet high, whioh they religiously preserve nd protect from year to year, free from mark or scratch, and which they call the "big canoe" — it is undoubtedly a symbolic representation of a part of their traditional history of the Flood ; which it is very evident, from this and numerous other features of this grand ceremony, they have in some way or other received, and are here endeavoring to perpetuate by vividly impressing it on the minds of the whole nation. This object of superstition, from its position, as the very centre of the village is the rallying point of the whole nation. To it their devotions are paid on various occasions of feasts and religious exercises during the year; and in this extra- ordinary scene it was often the nucleus of their mysteries and cruelties, as I shall shortly describe them, and becomes an object worth bearing in mind, and worthy of being understood. This exciting and appalling scene, then, which is familiarly (and no doubt correctly) called the "Mandan religious ceremony," commences, not on a particular day of the year, (for these people keep no record of days or weeks), but a particular season, which is designated by the full expansion of the willow leaves under the bank of the river; for according to their tradition, "the twig that the bird brought home was a willow bough, and had full-grown leaves on it," and the bird to which they allude, is the mourning or turtle-dove, which they took great pains to point out to me, as it is often to be seen feeding on the sides of their earth covered lodges, and which, being, as they call it, a medicine-bird, is not to be destroyed or harmed by any one, and even their dogs are instructed not to do it injury. On the morning of which this strange transaction com- menced, I was sitting at breakfast in the house of the Trader, Mr. Kipp, when at sunrise, we were suddenly ' !'•' II mm m %. ^1 ShJ mMi: . ,.r'-.'.. ■*■..- r ■-».■ 250 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE Startled by the shrieking and screaming of the women, and barking and howling of dogs, as if an enemy were actually storming their village. "Now we have itl" (exclaimed mine host, as he sprang from the table), "the grand ceremony has commenced! drop your knife and fork, Monsr. and get your sketch-book as soon as possible, that you may lose nothing, for the very moment of commencing is as curious as anything else of this strange affair." T seized my sketch-book, and all hands of us were in an instant in front of the medicine- lodge, ready to see and to hear all that was to take place. Groups of women and children were gathered on the tops of their earth-covered wigwams, and all were screaming, and dogs were howling, and all eyes directed to the prairies in the West, where was beheld, at a mile distant, a solitary individual descending a prairie bluff, and making his way in a direct line towards the village ! The whole community joined in the general expression of great alarm, as if they were in danger of instant des- truction ; bows were strung and thrumed to test their elasticity — their horses were caught upon the prairie and run into the village — warriors were blackening their faces, and dogs were muzzled, and every preparation made, as if for instant combat. During this deafening din and confasion within the piquets of the village of the Mandans, the figure discovered on the prairie continued to approach with a dignified step and in a right line towards the village ; all eyes were upon him, and he n.i length made his appearance (without oppo- sition) within the piquets, and proceeded towards the centre of the village, where all the chiefs and braves stood ready to receive him, which they did in a cordial manner, by shaking hands with him, recognizing him as an old acquaintance, and pronouncing his name Nu-mohkmuck-a- nah (the first or only man). The body of this strange personage, which was chiefly naked, was painted with white clay, so as to resemble at a little distance, a white NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 251 man ; he wore a robe of four white wolf skins falling back over hia shoulders ; on his head he had a splendid head- dress made of two ravens' skins, and in his left hand he cautiously carried a large pipe, which he seemed to watch and guard as something of great importance. After passing the chiefs and braves as described, he approached the medicine or mystery lodge, which he had the means of opening, and which had been religiously closed during the year except for the performance of these religious rites. Having opened and entered it, he called in four men whom he appointed to clean it out, and put in readiness for the ceremonies, by sweeping it and strewing a profusion of green willow-boughs over its floor, and with them decora- ting its sides. Wild sage also, and many other aromatic herbs they gathered fruin the prairies, and scattered over its floor ; and over these were arranged a curious group of buffalo and human skulls, and other articles, which were to be used during this strange and unaccountable trans- action. During the whole of this day, and while these prepara- tions were making in the medicine-lodge^ Nu-mohk-muck- a-nah (the first or only man) travelled through the village, t^topping in front of every man's lodge, and crying until the owner of the lodge came out, and asked who he was, and what was the matter ? to which he replied by relating the sad catastrophe which had happened on the earth's surface by the overflowing of the waters, saying that " he was the only person saved from the universal calamity; that he landed his big canoe on a high mountain in the west, where he now resides; that he had come to open the medicine-lodge, v\'hich must needs receive a present of some cJgcd-tool from the owner of every wigwam, that it may be sacrificed to the water ; for he says, " if this is not done, there will be another flood, and no one will bo saved, as it was with such tools that the big canoe was made." Having visited every lodge or wigwam in the village, during the day, and having received such a present at 1 '■!•'< M .[:,!: 262 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE each, as a hatchet, a knife, &o. (which is undoubtedly always prepared and ready for the occasion,) he returned at evening and deposited them in the medicine-lodge, where they remained until the afternoon of the last day of the ceremony, when, as the final or closing scene, they were thrown into the river in a deep place, from a bank thirty feet high, and in presence of the whole village; from whence they can never be recovered, and where they were undoubtedly, sacrificed to the Spirit of the Water. During the first night of this strange character in the village, no one could tell where lie slept ; and every person both old and young, and dogs, and all living things were kept within doors, and dead silence reigned every where. On the next morning at sunrise, however, he made his appearance again, and entered the medicine-lodge ; and at his heels (in ^' Indian file " i. e., single file, one following in another's tracks) all the young men who were candidates for the self-tortures which were to be inflicted, and for the honors that were to be bestowed by the chiefs on those who could most manfully endure them. There were on this occasion about fifty young men who entered the lists, and as they went into the sacred lodge, each one's body was chiefly naked, and covered with clay of different colors ; some were red, others were yellow, and some were covered with white clay, giving them the appearance of white men. Each one of them carried in his right liand his medicine-hag — on his left arm, his shield of the bull's hide — in his left hand his bow and arrows, with his quiver slung on his back. When all had entered the lodge, they placed themselves in reclining postures around its sides, and each one had suspended over hia head his respective weapons and medicine, presenting altogether, one of the most wild and picturesque scenes imaginable. Nu-mohk-muck-a nah (the first or only man) was in the midst of them, and having lit and smoked his medicine- pipe for their success; and having addressed them in a NORTH AMKEICAN INDIANS. 258 short speech, stimulating aud encouraging them to trust to the Great Spirit for His protection during the severe ordeal they were about to pass through ; he called into the lodge an old medicine or mystery-man, whose body was painted yellow, and whom he appointed master of ceremo- nies during this occasion, whom they denominated in their language 0-kee-pah Ka-se-kah (keeper or conductor of the ceremonies.) He was appointed, and the authority passed by the presentatioji of the medicine-pipe, on which they consider hangs all the power of holding and conducting all these rites. After this delegated authority, had thus passed over to the medicine-man ; Nu-mohk-muck-a-nah shook hands with him, and bade him good bye, saying " that he was going back to the mountains in the west, from whence he should assuredly return in just a year from that time, to open the loage again." He then went out of the lodge, and passing through the village, took formal leave of the chiefs in the same manner, and soon disappeared over the bluffs from whence he came. No more was seen of this surpris- ing character during the occasion ; but I shall have some- thing yet to say of him and his strange office before I get through the Letter. To return to the lodge — the medicine or myStery-raan just appointed, and who had received his injunctions from Nu-mohk-muck-a-nah, was left sole conductor and keeper ; and according to those injunctions, it was his duty to lie by a small fire in the centre of the lodge, with his medicine- pipe in his hand, crying to the Great Spirit incessantly, watching the young men, and preventing entirely their escape from the lodge, and all communication whatever with people outside, for the space of four days and nights, during which time they were not allowed to eat, or drink, or to sleep, preparatory to the excruciating self-tortures which they were to endure on the fourth day. I mentioned that I had made four paintings of these strange scenes, and the first one exhibits the interior of the I tl'! 1. 'mm m ill i. |k,,.,:i^TiBf' ;fe^^rf^* *■*!■. t^,., 'b ■', if )!; •I :\:m .|h Uiii 254 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE medicine -lodge at this moment; with the young men all reclining around its sides, and the conductor or mystery- man lying by the fire, crying to the Great Spirit. It was just at this juncture that I was ushered into this sacred temple of their worship, with my companions which was, undoubtedly, the first time that their devotions had ever been trespassed upon by the presence of pale faces ; and in this instance had been brought about in the following strange and unexpected manner. I had most luckily for myself, painted a full-length portrait of this great magician or high-priest, but a day previous to the commencement of the ceremonies (in which I had represented him in the performance of some of his mysteries), with which he had been so exceedingly pleased as well as astonished (as " he could see its eyes move,") that I must needs be, in his opinion, deeply skilled in magic and mysteries, and well-entitled to a respectable rank in the craft, to which I had been at once elevated by the unanimous voice of the doctors, and regularly initiated, and styled Te-ho-pee-nee-wash-ee-ivaska-jHXfska, the white medicine (or Spirit) painter. With this very honorable degree which had just been conferred upon me, I was standing in front of the medicine- lodge early in the morning, with my companions by my side, endeavoring to get a peep, if possible, into its sacred interior ; when this master of ceremonies, guarding and con- ducting its secrets, as I before described, came out of the door and taking me with a firm professional affection by the arm, led me into this sanctum sanctorum, which was strictly guarded from, even a peep or a gaze from the vulgar, by a vestibule of eight or ten feet in length, guarded with a double screen or door, and two or three dark and frowning sentinels with spears or war-clubs in their hands. I gave the wink to my companions as I was passing in, and the potency of my medicine was such as to gain them a quiet admission, and all of us were comfortably NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 255 placed on elevated seats, ■which our conductor soon prepared for us. We were then in full view of everything that transpired in the lodge, having before us the scene exactly. To this seat we returned every morning at sunrise, and remained until sun-down for four days, the whole time which these strange scenes occupied. In addition to the preparation? nd arrangements of the interior of this sanctuary, as before described, there was a curious, though a very strict arrangement of buffalo and human skulls placed on the floor of the lodge, and between them (which were divided into two parcels), and in front of the reclining group of young candidates, was a small and very delicate scaffold, elevated about five feet from the ground, made of four posts or crotches, not larger than a gun-rod, and placed some four or five feet apart, sup- porting four equally delicate rods, resting in the crotches ; thus forming the frame of the scaffold, which was completed by a number of still smaller and more delicate sticks, transversly resting upon them. On the centre of this little frame rested some small object, which I could not exactly understand from the distance of twenty or thirty feet which intervened between it and my eye. I started several times from my seat to approach it, but all eyes were instantly upon me, and every mouth in the assembly dent forth a hush — sh — ! which brought me back to my seat again ; and I at length quieted my stifled curiosity as well as I could, upon learning the fact, that so sacred was that object, and so important its secrets or mysteries, that not I alone, but even the young men, who were passing the ordeal, and all the village, save the conductor of the mysteries, were stopped from approaching it, or knowing what it was. This little mystery- thing, whatever it was, had the ap- pearance from where I sat, of a small tortoise, or frog, lying on its back, with its head and legs quite extended, and wound and tasselled off with exceedingly delicate red and 1^ 26B LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE blue, and yellow ribbons or tassels, and other bright colored ornaments ; and seemed, from the devotions paid to it, to be the very nucleus of their mysteries — the sane- tissimus sanctorum, from which seemed to emanate all the sanctity of their proceedings, and to which, all seemed ♦,o be paying the highest devotional respect. This strange, yet important essence of their mysteries, I made every enquiry about; but got no further information of, than what I could learn by my eyes, at ~ ) distance at which I saw it, and from the silent respect which I saw paid to it. I tried with the doctors, and all of the fraternity answered me, that that was " great-medicine," assuring mo that it " could not be told." So I quieted my curiosity as well as I could, by the full conviction that I had a degree or two yet to take before I could fathom all the arcana of Indian superstitions; and that this little, seemingly wonderful, relic of antiquity, symbol of some grand event or " secret too valuable to be told," might have been at last nothing but a silly bunch of strings and toys, to which they pay some great peculiar regard ; giving thereby to some favorite Spirit or essence an ideal existence, and which, when called upon to describe, they refuse to do so, calling it " Great Medicine" for the very reason that there is nothing in it to reveal or describe. Immediately under the little frame or scaffold described, and on the floor of the lodge was placed a knife, and by the side of it a bundle of splints or skewers, which were kept in readiness for the infliction of the cruelties directly to be explained. There were seen also, in this stage of the affair, a number of cords of rawhide, hanging down from the top of the lodge, and passing through its roof, with which the young men were to bo suspended by the splints passed tlirougli their flesh, and drawn up by men placed on the top of the lodge for the purpose, as will be described in a few moments. There were also four articles of great veneration and importance lying on the floor of the lodge, which were '^■'•'U.iij^ NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 257 sacks, containing in each, some three or four gallons of water. These also were objects of superatitious regard, and made with great labor and much ingenuity ; each one of them being constructed of the skin of the buffalo's neck, and most elaborately sewed together in the form of a large tortoise lying on its back, with a bunch of eagle's quills appended to it as a tail ; and each of them having a stick, shaped like a drum-stick, lying on them, with which, in a subsequent stage of these ceremonies, as will be seen, they are beaten upon by several of their mystery-men, as a part of the music for their strange dances and mysteries. By the side of these sacks which they call Eeh-tech-ka, are two other articles of equal importance, which they call Eeh-na- dee (rattles), in the form of a gourd-shell made also of dried skins, and used at the same time as the others, in the music (or rather noise and din) for their dances, &c. These four sacks of water have the appearance of very great antiquity ; and by enquiring of my very ingenious friend and patron, the medicine-man, after the ceremonies were over, he very gravely told me, that "those four tor- toises contained the waters from the four quarters of the world — that these waters had been contained therein ever since the settling down of the waters I " I did not think it best to advance any argument against so ridiculous a theory, and therefore could not even enquire or learn, at what period they had been instituted, or how often, or on what occasions, the water in them had been changed or replenished. I made several propositions, through my friend Mr. Kipp, the trader and interpreter, to purchase one of these strange things by offering them a very liberal price; to which I received in answer that these, and all the very numerous articles used in these ceremonies, being a society propcrtij were medicine, and could not be sold for any consiiieration ; so I abandoned all thoughts of obtaining anything, except what I have done by the medicine operation of my pencil, which was applied to everything, and even 17 m '^^^ , m 'T ' m L^. 260 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE the whole nation, who are generally gathered around, on the tops of the wigwam.s or otherwise, as spectators, whilst the young men are reclining and lasting in the lodge as above described. On the lirst day, this " bull t/ance" is given once to each of the cardinal points, and the mcdicino-man smokes his pipe in those directitnis. On the second day, twice to each; three times to each on the third day, and/oi/r times to each on the fourth. As a signal for the dancers and other characters (as well as the public) to assemble the old man, master of ceremonies, with the medicine- pipe in hand, dances out of the lodge, singing (or rather crying) forth a most pitiful lament, until he approaches tlic big canoe, against which ho leans, with the pipe in his hand, and continues to cry. At this instant, four very aged and patriarchal looking men, whoso bodies are painted red, and who have been guarding the four sides of the lodge, enter it and bring out the four sacks of water, wliich they place near the big canoe, where they seat themselves by the side of them and commence thumping on them with the mallets or drumsticks which have been lying on thoni; and another brandishes and shakes the eeh-na-decs or rattles, and all unite to them their voices, raised to the highest pitch possible, as the music for tho bull-dance, which is then commenced and continued for fifteen minutes or inoro in perfect time, and without cessation or intermission. When the music and dancing stop, which arc always per- fectly simultaneous, the whole nation raise the huzz:il and a deafening shout of approbation ; the master of ceremonies dances back to the medicine-lodge, and the old men rctura to their former place; the sacks of water and all, rest as bcforCi until by the same method, they arc again called into a similar action. The supernumeraries or other characters who play their parts in this grand spectacle, are numerous and well wortli description. By the side of the big canoe arc seen two men with tho skins of grizzly bears thrown over tlioin, using the skins as a nia.sk, over their heads. These raven- ^^..uii 170BTU AMERICAN INDIANS. 261 ous animtils aro continually growling and threatening to devour every thing before them and interfering With the forms of the religious ceremony. To appease them, tho women aro continually bringing and placing before them dishes of meat, which are as often snatched up and carried to the prairie, by two men whose bodies arc painted black and their heads white, whom they call bald eagles, who aro darting by them, and grasping their food from before them as they pass. These aro again chased upon the plains by a hundred or more small boys who are naked, with their bodies painted yellow and their heads white, whom thoy call Cabris or antelopes ; who at length get the food away from them and devour it, thereby inculcating (perhaps) tho beautiful moral, that by the disi)ensations of Providence, his bountiful gifts will fall at lust to the hands of tho innocent. During the intervals! between these dances, all these characters, except those from tho modicine-lodgc, retire to a wigwam close by, which they use on the occasion also as a sacred place, being occupied exclusively by them while they are at rest, and also for the purpose of painting and ornamenting their bodies for the occasion. During each and every one of these dances, the old men who beat upon the sacks and sing, are earnestly chanting forth their supplications to the Groat Spirit, for the contin- uation of his inOuencc in sending them buflaloes to supply them with food during tho year; they aro administering courage and fortitude to the young men in tho lodge, by tolling them, that " the Great Spirit has opened his ears in their behalf — that the very atmosphere all about them is peace — that their women and children can hold the mouth of the grizzly bear — that they have invoked froni day to day 0-ke-hee-de (the Evil Spirit) — that they are still chal- lenging him to come, ard yet he has not dared to make his appearance ! " But alas ! in the last of these dances, on the fourth day, in the midst of all their mirth and joy, and about noon, and W^.J Us**!**"' ' ] fc« 262 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE in the hciglit of all these exultations, an instani. scream burst forth from the tops of the lodges! — men, woman dogs and all, seemed actually to howl and shudder with alarm, as they fixed their glaring eye-balls upon the prairie bluff, about a mile in the west, down the side of which a man was seen descending at full speed towards the village! This strange character darted about in a zig-zag course iu all directions on the prairie, like a boy in pursuit of ^ butterfly, until he approached the piquets of the villa"-e when it was discovered that his body was entirely naked and painted as black as a negro, with pounded charcoal and bear's grease ; his body was therefore everywhere of a siiining black, except occasionally white rings of an inch or more in diameter, which were marked here and there all over him; and frightful indentures of white around his mouth, resembling canine teeth. Added to his hideous appearance, he gave the most frightful shrieks and screams as he dashed through the village and entered the terrified group, which was composed (in that (Quarter) chiefly of females, who had "assembled to witness the amusements which were transpiring around the "big viunoe." This unearthly looking creature carried in his two hands a wand or staff of eight or nine feet in Ljngtii, with a red ball at the end of it, whi'^h he continually slid on the ground a-head of him as he ran. All eyes in the village, save those of the persuns engaged in the dance, were centred upon him, and he made a desperate rush towards the women, who screamed for protection as they were endeavoring to retreat ; and falling in groups upon each other as tliey were struggling to get out of his reach. In this moment of general terror and alarni tliero was an in.stant check ! and all for a few moments were as silent as death. The old master of ceremonies, who had run from his position at the big canoe, had met this monster of fiends, and having thrust the medicinejtipc before him, held him still and immoveable under its charm i This check gave — Jll ^i;l li-J.A,:"- NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 263 the females an opportunity to get out of his reach, and •when they were free from their danger, though all hearts beat yet with the instant excitement, their alarm soon cooled down into the most exorbitant laughter, and shouts of applause at his sudden defeat, and the awkward and ridiculous posture in which he was stopped and held. The old man was braced stiff by his side, with his eye-balls glaring him in the face, whilst the medicine-pipe held in its mystic chains his Satanic Majesty, annulling all the powers of his magical wand, and also depriving him of the powers of locomotion 1 Surely no two human beings ever pre- sented a more striking group than these two individuals did for a few moments, with their eye-balls set in direst mutual hatred upon each other; both struggling for the supremacy, relying on the potency of their medicine or mystery. The one held in check, with his bodj' painted black, representing (or rather assuming to bo) his sable majesty, 0-kce-hee-de (the Evil Spirit), frowning vengeance on the other, who sternly gazed him back with a look of exultation and contempt, as he held him in check and disarmed under the charm of his sacred mystery-pipe. When the superior powers of the medicine-pipe (on which hang all th.'se annual mysteries) had been thiis fully tested and acknowledged, and the women had had requisite time to withdraw from the reach of this fiendish monster, the pipe was very gradually withdrawn from before him, and ho seemed delighted to recover the use of his limbs again, and power of changing his position from the exceedingly unpleasant and really ridiculous one ho appeared in, and was compelled to maintain, a few moments before; rendered more superlatively ridiculous and laughable, from the further information, which I am constrained to give, of the plight in which this demon of terror and vulgarity made his entree into the midst of the Mandan village, and to the centre and nucleus of their first and greatest religious ceremony. In this plight, he pursued the groups of females, 1 fl 1 HHI 1,"* ilHlBH i i Mfl it.,i- iialsr ■^*i.Ai 261 LETTEKS AND NOTES ON THE spreading dismay and alarm wbcrcvor ho went, and consc. qucntly producing the awkward and exceedingly laughable predicament in which he was placed by the sudden check from the medicine-pipe, as I have above stated, when all eyes were iptently fixed upon him, and all joined in rounds of applause for the success of the magic spell that was placed upon him; all voices were raised in shouts of satisfaction at his defeat, and all eyes gazed ui)on him ; of chiefs and of warriors — matrons and even of their tondcr- aged and timid daughters, whose education had taught them to receive the moral of these scenes without the shock of impropriety, that would have startled a more fastidious and consequently sensual-thinking people. After this he paid his visits to throe others of the ei'dit in succession, receiving as before the deafening shouts of approbation which pealed from every mouth in the multi- tude, who were all praying to the Great Spirit to send them buftuloes to supply them with food during the season, and who attribute the coming of buffaloes for this purpose entirely to the strict and critical observance of this ridiculous and disgusting part of the ceremonies. During the half hoar or so that he had been jostled about amongst man and beasts, to the great amusement and .satisfaction of the lookers-on, ho seemed to have become exceedingly exhausted, and anxiously looking out for some feasible mode of escape. In this awkward predicament he became the laughing- Btock and butt for the women, who being no longer afraid of him, were gathering in groups around, to tease and tantalize him; and in the midst of this dilemma, w1-ich soon became a very sad one — one of the women, who Aoh up behind him with both hands full of yellow dirt — dashed it into his face and eyes, and all over him, and his body being covered with grease, took instantly a different hue. lie .seemed heart-broken at tliis signal disgrace, and com- menced crying most vehemently, when another caught his icaii'l fium his hand, and broke it across her knee. It was NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 265 gnatched for by others, who broke it still into bits, and then threw them at him. His power was now gone — his boilily strength was exhausted, and he made a bolt for the prairie — he dashed through the crowd, and made his way through the piquets on the back part of the village, where were placed for the purpose, an hundred or more women and girls, who escorted him as he ran on the prairie for half a mile or more, beating him with sticks, and stones, and dirt, and kicks, and cufifs, until he was at length seen escaping from their clutches, and making the best of his retreat over the prairie bluffs, from whence he first appeared. At the moment of this signal victory, and when all eyes lost sight of him as he disappeared over the blufife, the whole village united their voices in shouts of satisfaction. The bull-dance then stopped, and preparations were instantly made for the commencement of the cruelties which were to take place within the lodge, leaving us to draw, from what had just transpired the following beautiful moral : — That in the midst of their religious ceremonies, the ~-^vil Spirit (0-kce-hce-de) made his entree for the purpc -.^ of doing mischief, and of disturbing their worship — thai Vits was held in check, and deieated by the superior iufluoic:^ and virtue of the medicine-pipe^ and at last, driven in disgrace out of the village, by the very part of tue com- inunity whom he came to abuse. At the close of this exciting scene, preparations were made, as above stated, by the return of the master of cere- monies and musicians to the medieine-lodgc, where also were admitted at the same time a number of men, who were to be instruments of the cruelties to be inflicted; and also the chief and doctors of the tribe, who were to look on, and boar witness to, and decide upon, the coniparativo degree of fortitude, with which the young men sustain themselves in this most extreme and excruciating ordeal. The chiefs having seated themselves on one side of tho 1 * s^Ub i Wr:% ! 0rM i'\Hi »;«/'-! 1 1 K J. uTAHHIHIHi! »' '•N i, kl ^' ifflH^mi, ISiiirl^" ^?S~*t ■' : ■ ■ ■ i i fl :..._^i'iVii.»U!ti-H.i J ll 1 ^li!..^:' >i 1 mISM ' ■ u.mtl M^MBB^HMBU I "iVMfl^MHni /rfimHi ■. m ■■■ 1 266 LETTERS AND NOTES OS THE lodge, dressed out ia tlieir robes and splendid head-dresses — the band of music seated and arranged themselves in another part; and the old master of ceremonies havinn' placed himself in front of a small fire in the centre of the lodge, with his " big pipe" in his hands, and commenced smoking to the Great Spirit, with all possible vehemence for the success of these aspirants. Around the sides of the lodge are seen, still reclining, as I have before mentioned a part of the group, whilst others of them have pas.seil the ordeal of self-tortures, and have been removed out of the lodge ; and others still are seen in the very act of submitting to them, which were inflicted in the following manner:— After having removed the sayictissimus sanctorum, or little scaffohl, of which I before spoke, and having removed also the buffalo and human skulls from the floor, and attached them to the posts of the lodge; and two men having taken their positions near the middle of the lodge, for tlie pur- pose of inflicting the tortures — the one with the scalpin^- knife, and the other with the bunch of splints (which I have before mentioned) in his hand ; one at a time of the young fellows, already emaciated with fasting, and thirsting, and waking, for nearly four days and nights, advanced from the side of the lodge, and placed himself on his hands and feet, or otherwise, as best suited ibr the performance of the operation, where he submitted to the cruelties in the following manner : — An inch or more of tlie flesh on each shoulder, or each breast was taken up between llie thumb and finger by the man who held the knife in liis right hand; and the knife, which had been ground sharp on both edges, and then hacked and notched with the bla be turned, faster and faster — and there is no hu; j ot escape from it, nor chance for the slightest relief ;. itil by fainting, [As voice falters, and his struggling cea.M:s, and he hangs, apparently, a still and lifeless corpse! When he is, by turning, gradually brought to this condition, which is generally done within ten or fifleen minutes, there is a close scrutiny passed upi n hitn among his tormentors, who are checking and holding each NORTH AMERICAN INPIANS. 269 other back as long as the least struggling or tremor can be discovered, lest he should be removed, before be is (aa they term it) " entirely dead. " When brought to this alarming and most frightful con- dition, and the turning has gradually ceased, as his voice and his strength have fiiven out, leaving him to hang entirely still, and apparently lifeless ; when his tongue is distended from his mouth, and his medicine-bag, which he has affectionately and siiperstitiously clung to with his left hand, has dropped to the ground ; the signal is given to the men on top of the lodge, by gently striking the cord with the pole below, when they very gradually and care- fully lower him to the ground. In this helpless condition he lies, like a loathsome corpse to look at, though in the keeping (as they call it) of the Great Spirit, whom he trusts will protect him, and enable him to get up and walk away. As soon as he is lowered to the ground thus, one of the bystanders advances, and pulls out the two splints or pins from the breasts and shoulders, thereby disengaging him from the cords by which he has been hung up ; but leaving all the others with their weights, &c., hanging to his flesh. In this condition he lies for six or eight minutes, until he gets strength to rise and move himself, for no one is allowed to assist or offer him aid, as he is here enjoying the most valued privilege which a Mandixn can boast of, that of "trusting his liie to the keeping of the Great Spirit," in this time of extreme peril. As soon as he is seen to get strength enough to rise on liis hands and feet, and drag his body around the lodge, ho crawls with the weights still hanging to his body, to another part of the lodge, where there is another Indian Hitting with a hatchet in his hand, and a dried buffalo skull bL'fore hiiu ; and lierc, in the most earnest and humble manner, by holding up the little finger of his left hand to the Great Spirit, he expresses to Him, in a speech of a few words, his willingness to give it as a sacrifice; when he I tf-W'A , >\ If" ^>i Mfw 270 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE lays it on the dried buffalo skull, when the other chops it off near the hand, with a blow of the hatchet ! Nearly all of the young men whom I saw passing this horrid ordciil, gave, in the above manner, the little finfor of the loft hand ; and I saw also several, who immediately alterwards (and apparently with very little concern or emotion), with a similar speech, extended in the same way the /ore-finger of the same hand, and that too was struck off; leaving on the hand only the two middle fingers and the thumb ; all which they deem absolutely essential for holding tlie bow, the only weapon for the left hand. One would think that this mutilation had thus been carried quite far enough ; but I have since examined several of the head chiefs and dignitaries of the tribe, who have also given, in this manner, the little finger of the right hand, which is considered by them to be a much greater sacrifice than both of the others ; and I have found also a number of their most famous men, who furnish mo incontestable proof, by five or six corresponding scars ou each arm, and each breast, and each log, that they had so many times in their lives submitted to this almost in* credible operation, Avhich seems to be optional with them- and the oflcner they volunteer to go through it, the more llvmous they become in the estimation of their tribe. No bandages are applied to the fingers which have been amputated, nor any arteries taken up ; nor is any attention whatever, paid to them or the other wounds ; but they aro left (as tliey say) " for the Great Spirit to cure, who will surely take good care of them." It is a reinaikable fact (which I learned from a close inspection of thjir wounds from day to day) that the bleeding is but very slight and soon ceases, probably from the fact of their extreme exhaustion and debility, cau.scd by want of sustenance and sleep, which checks the natural circulation, and admirably at the same time prepares them to meet the severitv of these tortures without the same degree of .sensibility and NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 271 pain, which, under other circumstances, might resnlt in inflammation and death. During the whole of the time of this cruel part of these niost extraordinary inflictions, the chiefs and dignitaries ot tlie tribe are looking on, to decide who are the hardiest and " stoutest hearted" — who can hang the longest by his flesh before ho faints, and who will be soonest up, after he has been down ; that they may know whom to appoint to lead a war party, or place at the most honorable and desperate post. The four old men are incessantly beating upon the sacks of water and singing the whole time, with their voices strained to the highest key, vaunting forth, for the encouragement of the young men, the power and efficacy of the medicine-pipe^ which has disarmed the monster 0-kee- liee-de (or Evil Spirit), and driven him from the village, and will be sure to protect them and watch over them through their present severe trial. As soon as six or eight had passed the ordeal as above described, they were led out of the lodge, with their weights hanging to their flesh, and dragging on the ground, to undergo another^ and a still more appalling mode of suffering in the centre of the village, and in pre- sence of the whole nation, in the manner as follows : — The signal for the commencement of this part of the cruelties was given by the old master of ceremonies, who again ran out as in the buffalo-dance, and leaning against the big canoe, with his medicine-pipe , iu his hand began to cry. This was done several times in the afternoon, as often as tliere were six or eight who had passed the ordeal just described within the lodge, who were then taken out in the open area, in the presence of the whole village, with the buffalo skulls and other weignts attached to their flesh, and dragging on the ground I There were then in readiness, and prepared for the purpose, about twenty young men, selected of equal height and equal age; with their bodies clueHy naked, with beautiful (and similar) head-dresses oi war-eagles' quills, on their heads, and a wreath made of I m U. i 272 LETTKR3 AND NOTES ON THE willow boughs held in the hands between them, co- voting them in a chain or circle in which they run around tho big canoe, with all possible speed, raising their voices in Horeams and yeli^s to the highest pitch that was possible, and k cp- ing the curb or big canoe in the centre, as their nucleus. Then were led forward the young men who wcr further to suffer, and being placed at equal distances apart, and outside of the ring just describ(3d, each one was taken in cl arge of two athletic young men, fresh and strong, who slopped up to him, one on cacli side, and by wrapping a broad li ither strap around his wrists, without tying it grasped it firm underneath the hand, and stood prepared for what they call Fh-ke-nah-ha-nnh-pick (the last race). This the spectator looking on would suppose was most c Trectly named, for he would think it was the last race they coul i possibly run in this world. In this condition they stand, pale and ghastly, from nb- stincii •c and loss of blood, untd all are prepared, and the word is given, when all start and run around, outside of the other rinf; ; and ea !i poor fellow, with his weights dragging on the ground; and his furious conductor by his side who hurry hiin forward by the wrists, struggles in the desperate emulation to run longer without "dying" (as they call it) than his comrades, who arc fainting around hi in and sinlciiig down, like himself, where their bodies arc dragged with all possible speed, and often with their faces in the dirt. In the commencement of this dance or race they all start at a moderate pace, and their speed being gradually increased, the pain becomes so oxcru' iating that their languid and exhausted frames give out, and they are dragged by their wri.>ts until they are disengaged from the weights that were attached to their flesh, and this must bo done by such violent force as to tear the flesh out with the splint, which (as they say) can never be pulled out endwise, without oflending the Great Spirit and defeating the object for which they have thus far sufTcred. The splints or skewers which are put through the breast and the shoulders, take up a part of tho t) ■ rf o 11 [n » '1, i^^H vl i^^^^l iir "1 ro nt ^y ifl he ''^^1 vo ''^H ut bo NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 273 pectoral or trapezius muscle, which is necessary for the support of the great weight of their bodies, and which, as I have before mentioned, are withdrawn as ho is lowered down — but all the others, on the legs and arms, seem to bo very ingeniously, passed throufr'. the flesh and integuments witliout taking up the muscle, and even these to be broken out require so violent a force that most of the po> r, 'Hows fainted under the operation, and when they were ireed from the last of the buffalo skulls and other weights, (Moh was often done by some of the bystanders throwing nght of their bodies on to them as they were dragging on the ground) they were in every instance dropped by the persons who dragged them, and their bodies were left appearing like nothing but a mangled and a loathsome corpse ! At this strange and frightful juncture, the two men who had dragged them, fled through the crowd and away upon the prairie, as if they were guilty of some enormous crime, and were fleeing from summary vengeance. Each poor fellow, having thus patiently and manfully endured the privations and tortures devised for him, and (in this last struggle with the most appalling effort) torn himself loose from them and his tormentors, he lies the second time, in the " keeping (as he terms it) of the Great Spirit," to whom he issues his repeated prayers, and entrusts his life: and in whom he reposes the most implicit confi- dence for his preservation and recovery. As an evidence of this, and of the high value which these youths set upon this privilege, there is no person, not a relation or a chief of the tribe, who is allowed, or who would dare, to step for- ward to offer an aiding hand, even to save his life ; for not only the rigid customs of the nation, and the pride of the individual who has entrusted his life to the keeping of the Great Spirit, would sternly reject such a tender ; but their superstition, which is the strongest of all arguments in an Indian community, would alone, hold all the tribe in fear and dread of interfering, when they consider they have so good a reason to believe that the Great Spirit has under- 18 fe! Pm W'Mn '»■ m. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I iM lAO ■15 ui m !2.2 I IL25IU |,.6 ^ 6" ► .>. ^. ^ ^ /y ^!»'-'* Photographic Sciences Corporation 33 WfST MAIN SltilT WfUTIt.N.V. USM |7I«) •73-4»03 •%-■ ^ ^^ 274 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE taken the special care and protection of his devoted wor- shippers. In thib "last race," which was the struggle that finally closed their sufferings, each one was dragged until he fainted, and was thus left, looking more like the dead than the living : and thus each one laid, until, by the aid of the Great Spirit, he was in a few minutes seen gradually rising, and at last reeling and staggeriag, like a drunken man through the crowd (which made way for him) to his wig- wam, where his friends and relatives stood ready to take him into hand and restore him. In this frightful scene, as in the buffalo-dance, the whole nation was assembled as spectators, and all raised the most piercing and violent yells and screams they could possibly produce, to drown the cries of the suffering ones, that no heart could even be touched with sympathy for them. I have mentioned before, that six or eight of the young men were brought from the medicine-lodge at a time, and when they were thus passed through this shocking ordeal, the medicine-men and the chiefs returned to the interior, where as many more were soon prepared, and underwent a similar treatment; and after that another batch, and another, and so on, until the whole number, some forty- five or fifty had run in this sickening circle, and, by leaving their weights, had opened the flesh for honorable scars, I said all, but there was one poor fellow though (and I shudder to tell it,) who was dragged around and around the circle, with the skull of an elk hanging to the flesh on one of his legs, — several had jumped upon it, but to no eflect, for the splint was under the sinew, which could not be broken. The dragging became every instant more and more furious, and the apprehensions for the poor fellow's life, apparent by the piteous howl which was set up for him by the multitude around; and at last tlie medicine-man ran, with his medicine-pipe in his hand, and held them in check, when the body was dropped, and left upon the ground, with the skull yet hanging to it. The NOIWH AMERICAN INDIANS. m devoted wor- ler batcli, and boy who was an extremely interesting ana fine-looking youth, soon recovered his senses and his strength, looking deliberately at his torn and bleeding limbs ; and also with the most pleasant smile of defiance, upon the misfortune which had now fallen to his peculiar lot, crawled through the crowd (instead of walking, which they are never again at liberty to do until the flesh is torn out, and the article left) to the prairie, and over which, for the distance of half a mile, to a sequestered spot, without any attendant, where he laid three days and three nights, yet longer, without food, and praying to the Great Spirit, until suppuration took place in the wound, and by the decaying of the flesh the weight was dropped and the splint also, which he dare not extricate in another way. At the end of this, he crawled back to the village on his hands and knees, being too much emaciated to walk, and begged for something to eat, which was at once given him, and he was soon restored to health. These extreme and difficult cases often occur, and I learn that in such instances the youth has it at his option to get rid of the weight that is thus left upon him, in such way as he may choose, and some of those modes are far more extra- ordinary than the one which I have just named. Several of the Traders, who have been for a number of years in the habit of seeing this part of the ceremony, have told me that two years since, when they were looking on, there was one whose flesh on the arms was so strong that the weights could not be left, and he dragged them with his body to the river by the side of the village, where he set a stake fast in the ground on the top of the bank, and fastening cords to it, he let himself half-way down a perpendicular wall of rock, of twenty-five or thirty feet, where the weight of his body was suspended by the two cords attached to the flesh of his arms. In this awful condition he hung for several days, equi-distant from the top of the rock and the deep water below, into which he at last dropped and saved himself by swimming ashore I 276 LBTTBBS AND NOTES ON THE I need record no more of these shocking and disgusting instances, of which I have already given enough to con. vinoe the world of the correctness of the established fact of the Indian's superior stoicism and power of endurance although some recent writers have, from motives of envy from ignorance, or something else, taken great pains to cut the poor Indian short in everything, and in this, even as if it were a virtue. I am ready to accord to them in this particular, the palm ; the credit of outdoing anything and everybody, and of enduring more than civilized man ever aspired to or ever thought of. My heart has sickened also with disgust for so abominable and ignorant a custom, and still I stand ready with all my heart, to excuse and forgive them for adhering so strictly to an ancient celebration, founded in superstitions and mysteries, of which they know not the origin, and constituting a material part and feature in the code and forms of their religion. Reader, I will return with you a moment to the medicine-lodge, which is just to be closed, and then we will indulge in some general reflections upon what has passed, and in what, and for what purposes this strange batch of mysteries has been instituted and perpetuated. After these young men, who had for the last four days occupied the medicine-lodge, had been operated on, in the manner above described, and taken out of it, the old medicine-man, master of ceremonies, returned, (still crying to the Great Spirit) sole tenant of that sacred place, and brought out the "edged tools," which I before said had been collected at the door of every man's wigwam, to be given as a sacrifice to the water, and leaving the lodge | securely fastened, he approached the bank of the river, i when all the medicine-men -attended him, and all the nation were spectators; an their presence he threw them from a high bank into very deep water, from which! they cannot be recovered, and where they are, correctlyl speaking, made a sacrifice to the water. This part of thel )N THE jcking and disgusting riven enougli to con^ the established fact of power of endurance, from motives of envy, taken great pains to iiing, and in this, even in this particular, the ng and everybody, and nan ever aspired to or kened also with disgust ustom, and still I stand J and forgive them for celebration, founded in bich they know not the [ part and feature in the ou a moment to the be closed, and then we lections upon what has at purposes this strange ited and perpetuated, id for the last four days jeen operated on, in the aken out of it, the old es, returned, (still crying f that sacred place, and which I before said had rery man's wigwam, to he r, and leaving the lodge I 'the bank of the river, ended him, and all the their presence he threvr J deep water, from which where they are, correctly water. This part of the NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 277 affair took place just exactly at sun -down, and closed the scene, being the end or finale of the Mandan religious ceremony. The strange country that I am in — its excitements — its accidents and wild incidents which startle me at almost every moment, prevent me from any very elaborate disqui- sition upon the above remarkable events at present; and even had I all the time and leisure of a country gentleman, and all the additional information which I am daily pro- curing, and daily expect to procure hereafter in explanation of these unaccountable mysteries, yet do I fear that thers would be that inexplicable difficulty that hangs over most of the customs and traditions of these simple people, who have no history to save facts and systems from falling inta the most absurd and disjointed fable and ignorant fiction. What few plausible inferences I have as yet been able to draw from the above strange and peculiar transactions I will set forth, but with some diffidence, hoping and trusting that by further intimacy and familiarity with these people I may yet arrive at more satisfactory and important results. That these people should have a tradition of the Flood is by no means surprising; as I have learned from every tribe I have visited, that they all have some high mountain in their vicinity, where they insist upon it the big canoe landed ; but as these people should hold an annual celebra- tion of the event, and the season of that decided by such circumstances as the full leaf of the willow, and the medicine-lodge opened by such a man as Nu-mohk-muck-a- nah (who appears to be a white man), and making his appearance "from the high mountains in the West;" and some other circumstances, is surely a very remarkable thing, and requires some extraordinary attention. This Nu-mohk-muck-a-nah (first or only man) is un- doubtedly some mystery or medicine-man of the tribe, who has gone out on the prairie on the evening previous, and having dressed and painted himself for the occasion, comes into the village in the morning, endeavoring to keep up 278 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE the semblance of reality ; for their tradition says, that at a very ancient period such a man did actually come from the "West — that his body was of the white color, as this man's body is represented — that he wore a robe of four white wolf skins — his head-dress was made of two raven's skins — and in his left hand was a huge pipe. He said, " he was at one time the only man — he told them of the destruction of every thing on the earth's surface by water — that he stopped in his big canoe on a high mountain in the West where he landed and was saved. *' That the Mandans, and all other people were bound to make yearly sacrifices of some edged-tools to the water, for of such things the big canoe was made. That he instructed the Mandans how to build their medicine-lodge, aad taught them also the forms of these annual ceremonies* and told them that as long as they made these sacrifices and performed their rites to the full letter, they might be assured of the fact, that they would be the favorite people of the Almighty, and would always have enough to eat and drink ; and that so soon as they should depart in one tittle from these forms, they might be assured, that their race would decrease, and finally run out ; and that they miwht date their nation's calamity to that omission or neglect." These people have, no doubt, been long living under the dread of such an injunction, and in the fear of departing from it ; and while they are living in total ignorance of its origin, the world must remain equally ignorant of much of its meaning, as they needs must be of all Indian customs resting on ancient traditions, which soon run into fables having lost all their system, by which they might have been construed. This strange and unaccountable custom, is undoubtedly peculiar to the Mandans ; although, amongst the Minata. rees, and some others of the neighboring tribes, they have seasons of abstinence and self-torture, somewhat similar, but bearing no other resemblance to this than a mere feeble eflbrt or form of imitation. NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 279 It would seem from their tradition of the willow branch, and the dove, that these people must have had some proximity to some part of the civilized world ; or that missionaries or others have been formerly among them, inculcating the Christian religion and the Mosaic account of the Flood ; which is, in this and some other respects, decidely different from the theory which most natural people have distinctly established of that event. There are other strong, and almost decisive proofs in my opinion, in support of the assertion, which are to be drawn from the diversity of color in their hair and complexions, as I have before described, as well as from their tradition just related, of the ^^ first or only man^^ whose body was white, and who came from the "West, telling them of the destruc- tion of the earth by water, and instructing them in the forms of these mysteries ; and, in addition to the above, I will add the two following very curious stories, which I had from several of their old and dignified chiefs, and which are no doubt standing and credited traditions of the tribe. " The Mandans (people of the pheasants) were the first people created in the world, and they originally lived inside of the earth ; they raised many vines, and one of them had grown up through a hole in the earth over head, and one of their young men climbed up it until he came out on the top of the ground, on the bank of the river, where the Mandan village stands. He looked around, and admired the beautiful country and prairies about him — saw many buffaloes — killed one with his bow and arrows, and found that its meat was good to eat. He returned, and related what he had seen ; when a number of others went up the vine with him, and witnessed the same things. Amongst those who went up, were two very pretty young women, who were favorites of the chiefs, because they were virgins ; and amongst those who were trying to get up, was a very large and fat woman, who was ordered by the chiefs not to go up, but whose curiosity led her to try it as soon as she got a secret opportunity, when there was no one J 280 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE present. When she got part of the way up, the vine broke under the great weight of her body, and let her down. She was very much hurt by the fall, but did not die. The Mandans were very sorry about this; and she was disgraced for being the cause of a very great calamity which she had brought upon them, and which could never be averted ; for no more could ever a.scend, nor could those descend who had got up; but they built the Mandaa village, where it formerly stood, a great ways below on the river ; and the remainder of the people live under ground to this day." The above tradition is told with great gravity by their chiefs and doctors or mystery-men ; and the latter profess to hear their friends talk through the earth at certain times and places, and even consult them for their opinions and advice on many important occasions. The next tradition runs thus : — •'At a very ancient period, 0-kee-hee-de (the Evil Spirit the black fellow mentioned in the religious ceremonies) came to the Mandan village with Nu-mohk-muck-a-nah (the first or only man) from the West, and sat down by a woman who had but one eye, and was hoeing com. Her daughter, who was very pretty came up to her, and the Evil Spirit desired her to go and bring some water; but wished that before she started, she would come to him and eat some buffalo meat. Ho told her to take a piece out of bis side, which she did and ate it, which proved to be buffalo-fat. She then went for the water, which she brought, and met them in the village where they had walked, and they both drank of it — nothing more was done. " The friends of the girl soon after endeavored to disgrace her, by telling her that she was enciente, which she did not deny. She declared her innocence at the same time, and boldly defied any man in the village to come forward and accuse her. This raised a great excitement in the village, and as no one could stand forth to accuse her, she was NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 281 looked upon as great medicine. She soon afler went off secretly to the upper Mandan village where the child was born. "Great search was made for her before she was found; as it was expected that the child would also be great medicine or mystery, and of great importance to the exist- ence and welfare of the tribe. They were induced to this belief from the very strange manner of its conception and birth, and were soon confirmed in it from the wonderful things which it did at an early age. They say, that amongst other miracles which he performed, when the Mandans were like to starve, he gave them four buffalo bulls, which filled the whole village — leaving as much meat as there was before they had eaten ; saying that these four bulls would supply them for ever. Nu-mohk-muck- a-nah (the first or only man) was bent on the destruction of the child, and after making many fruitless searches for it, found it hidden in a dark place, and put it to death by throwing it into the river. •' When 0-kee-hee-de (the Evil Spirit) heard of the death of this child, he sought for Nu-mohk-muck-a-nah with intent to kill him. He traced him a long distance, and at length found him at Heart River, about seventy miles below the village, with the big medicine-pipe in his hand, the charm or mystery of which protects him from all his enemies. They soon agreed, however, to become friends, smoked the big pipe together, and returned to the Mandan village. The Evil Spirit was satisfied; and Nu-mohk- muck-a-nah told the Mandans never to pass Heart River to live, for it was the centre of the world, and to live beyond it would be destruction to them ; and he named it Nat-oom- pa-sa-hah (heart or centre of the world)." Such are a few of the principal traditions of these people, which I have thought proper to give in this place, and I have given them in their own way, with all the imper- fections and absurd inconsistencies which should bo ex- pected to characterize the history of all ignorant and p * ii 282 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE superstitious people who live in a state of simple and untaught nature, with no other means of perpetuating historical events, than by oral traditions. I advance these vague stories then, as I have done, and shall do in other instances, not in support of any theory but merely as I have heard them related by the Indians • and preserved them, as I have everything else that I could meet in the Indian habits and character, for the information of the world, who may get more time to theorize than I have at present ; and who may consider better than I can how far such traditions should be taken as evidence of the facts, that these people have for a long period preserved and perpetuated an imperfect knowledge of the Deluge — of the appearance and death of a Saviour — and of the trans- gressions of mother Eve. I am not yet able to learn from these people whether they have any distinct theory of the creation ; as they seem to date nothing further back than their own existence as a people; saying (as I have before mentioned), that they were the first people created; involving the glaring absurd- ities that they were the only people on earth before the Flood, and the only one saved was a white man ; or that they were created inside of the earth, as their tradition says ; and that they did not make their appearance on its outer surface until after the Deluge. When an Indian story is told, it is like all other gifts, " to be taken for what it is worth," and for any seeming inconsistency in their traditions tliere is no remedy ; for as far as I have tried to reconcile them by reasoning with, or questioning them, I have been entirely defeated; and more than that, have generally incurred their distrust and ill-will. One of the Mandau Doctors told me very gravely a few days since, that tlie earth was a large tortoise, that it carried the dirt on its back — that a tribe of people, who are now dead, and Avhose faces were white, used to dig down very deep in this ground to catch badgers; and that one day they stuck a knife through the tortoise-shell, and it sunk down so that NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 288 tho water ran over its baok, and drowned all but one man. And on the next day while I was painting his portrait, he told me there were four torloiaes, — one in the North — one in the East— one in the South, and one in the West ; that each one of these rained ten days, and the water ooverod over the earth. These ignorant and conflicting accounts, and both from the same man, give as good a demonstration, perhaps, of what I have above mentioned, as to the inefficiency of Indian traditions as anything I could at present mention. Thoy might, perhaps, have been in this instance however the creeds of different sects, or of different priests amongst them, who often advance diametrically opposite theories and traditions relative to history and mythology. And however ignorant and ridiculoua they may seem, they are yet worthy of a little further consideration, as relating to a number of curious circumstances connected with the unaccountable religious ceremonies which I have just described. The Mandan chiefs and doctors, in all their feasts, where the pipe is lit and about to be passed around, deliberately propitiate the good-will and favor of the Great Spirit, by extending the stem of the pipe upwards before they smoke it themselves ; and also as deliberately and as strictly offering the stem to the four cardinal pointe in succession, and then drawing a whiff through it, passing it around amongst the group. Tho anmuil religious ceremony invariably lasts four days, and the other following circumstances attending these strange forms, and seeming to have some allusion to the four cardinal points, or the " four tortoises," seem to me to be worthy of further notice. Four men are selected by Nu-mohk-muck-a-nah (as I have before said), to cleanse out and prepare the medicine-lodge for the occasion — one he calls from the north part of the village— one from the east — one from the south, and one from the west. The four sacks of water, in form of large tortoises, resting on the ,tt. '*v; N^* Wt s^" m HI '13 PiU ■ ,• • il ^'1^ ' U :q M ^hm iltl 284 LITTERS AND NOTES ON THE floor of the lodge and before described, would seem to be typical of the same thing ; and also the four buffalo, and the four human skulls resting on the floor of the sarao lodge — the four couples of dancers in the " bull-dance," as before described ; and also the four intervening dancers in the same dance, and also decribed. The bull-dance in front of the medioine-lodge, repeated on the four days, is danced four times on the first day, tight times on the second, twtlve times on the third, and tixixcn times on the/oi/r/A ; (adding four dances on each of the /our days,) which added together make forty^ the exact number of days that it rained upon the earth according to the Mosaic account, to produce the Deluge. There are four sacrifices of black and blue cloths erected over the door of the medicine-lodge — the visits of Oh-keehee-de (or Evil Spirit) wjere paid to four of the buffaloes in the buffalo- dance, as above described ; and in every instance, the young men who underwent the tortures before explained, had /our splints or skewers run through the flesh on their legs— /our through the arms and /our through the body. Such is a brief account of these strange scenes which I have just been witnessing, and such my brief history of the Mandans. I might write much more on them, giving yet a volume on their stories and traditions ; but it would be a volume of fables, and scarce worth recording. A nation of Indians in their primitive condition, where there are no historians, have but a temporary historical existence, for the reasons above advanced, and their history, what can be certainly learned of it, may be written in a very small compass. I have dwelt longer on the history and customs of these people than I have or shall on any other tribe, in all probability, and that from the fact that I have found them a very peculiar people, as will have been seen by my notes. From these very numerous and striking peculiarities in their personal appearance — their customs — traditions and ii=-' VORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 285 langungo, I have been led conclusively to believe that they arc a people of decidedly a dlQuront origin from that of any other tribe in these regions. ■ ' From these reasons, as well as from the fact that they are a small and feeble tribe, against whom the powerful tribe of Sioux are waging a deadly war with the prospect of their extermination ; and who with their limited numbers, are not likely to hold out long in their struggle for existence, I have taken more pains to portray their whole character, than my limited means will allow me to bestow upon other tribes. From the ignorant and barbarous and disgusting customs just recited, the world would naturally infer, that these people must be the most cruel and inhuman beings in the world — yet, such is not the case, and it becomes my duty to say it; a better, more honest, hospitable and kind people, as a community, are not to be found in the world. No set of men that ever I associated with have better hearts than the Mandans, and none are quicker to embrace and welcome a white man than they are — none will press him closer to his bosom, that the pulsation of his heart may be felt, than a Mandan ; and no man in any country will keep his word and guard his honor more closely. The shocking and disgusting custom that I have just described, sickens the heart and even the stomach of a traveller in the country, and he weeps for their ignorance — he pities them with all his heart for their blindness, and laments that the light of civilization, of agriculture and religion cannot be extended to them, and that their hearts which are good enough, could not be turned to embrace something more rational and conducive to their true happiness. Many would doubtless ask, whether such a barbarous cus- tom could be eradicated from these people? and whether their thoughts and tastes, being turned to agriculture and religion, could be made to abandon the dark and random li M ^\ * • . m ^ i] v. " mil. 286 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE channel in wbich thoy are drudging, and made to flow in the light and life of civilization ? To this query I answer yes. Although this is a custom of long standing, being a part of their religion ; and pro- bably valued as one of their dearest rights ; and notwith- standing the difficulty of making inroads upon the religion of a people in whose country there is no severance of opinions, and consequently no division into different sects with different creeds to shake their faith ; I still believe and I know, that by a judicious and persevering effort, this abominable custom, and others, might be extinguished, and the beautiful green fields about the Mandan village might be turned into productive gardens, and the waving green bluffs that are spread in the surrounding distance, might be spotted with lowing kine instead of the sneaking wolves and the hobbled war-horses that are now stalking about them. All ignorant and superstitious people, it is a well-known fact, are the most fixed and stubborn in their religious opinions, and perhaps the most difficult to divert from their established belief, from the very fact that they are the most difficult to reason with. Here is an ignorant race of human beings, who have from time immemorial been in the habit of worshipping in their own way, and of enjoy- ing their religious opinions without ever having heard any one to question their correctness; and in these op'nions they are quiet and satisfied, and it requires a patient, gra- dual, and untiring effort to convince such a people that they are wrong, and to work the desired change in their belief, and consequently in their actions. It is decidedly my opinion, however, that such a thing can bo done, and I do not believe there is a race of wild people on earth where the experiment could be more suc- cessfully made than amongst the kind and hospitable Mandans, nor any place where the Missionary labors of pious and iniustrious men would be more sure to succeed, or more certain to be rewarded in the world to come. NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 287 I deem such a trial of patience and perseverance with these people of great importance, and well worth the experiment. One which I shall hope soon to see accom- plished, and which, if properly conducted, I am sure will result in success. Severed as they are from the contam- inating and counteracting vices which oppose and thwart most of the best efforts of the Missionaries along the fron- tier, and free from the almost fatal prejudices which they have there to contend with ; they present a better field for the labor of such benevolent teachers than they have yet worked in, and a far better chance than they have yet had of proving to the world that the poor Indian is not a brute — that he is a human and a humane being, that he is capa- ble of improvement — and that his mind is a beautiful blank on which anything can be written if the proper means bo taken. The Mandans being but a small tribe, of two thousand only, and living all in two villages, in sight of each other, and occupying these permanently, without roaming about like other neighboring tribes, offer undoubtedly, the best opportunity for such an experiment of any tribe in the country. The land about their villages is of the best quality for ploughing and grazing, and the water just such as would be desired. Their villages are fortified with piquets or stockades, which protect them from the assaults of their enemies at home ; and the introducion of agricul- ture (which would supply them with the necessaries and luxuries of life, without the necessity of continually expo- sin'' their lives to their more numerous enemies on tho plains, when they are seeking in the chase the means of their subsistnce) would save them from the continual wastes of life, to which, in their wars and the chase they are continually exposed, which are calculated soon to result in their extinction. T deem it not folly nor idle to say that these people can he saved, nor officious to suggest to some of the very many excellent and pious men, who are almost throwing away 288 LETTERS AND NOTES. the best energies of their lives along the debased frontier, that if they wo aid introduce the ploughshare and their prayers amongst these people, who are so far separated from the taints and contaminating vices of the frontier, they would soon see their most ardent desires accom- plished and be able to solve to the world the perplexing enigma, by presenting a nation of savages, civilized and christianized (and consequently saved), in the heart of the American wilderness. LETTER No. XXIII. MINATAREE VILLAGE, UPPER MISSOURI Soon after witnessing the curious scenes described in the former Letters, I changed my position to the place from whence I am now writing — to the village of the Minatarees, which is also located on the west bank of the Missouri river, and only eight miles above the Mandans. On my way down the river in my eanoe, I passed this village without ^.ttcnding to their earnest and clamorous iavitations for me to come ashore, and it will thus be seen that I am retrograding a little, to see all that is to be seen in this singular country. I liave been residing here some weeks, and am able already to say of these people as follows : 19 (289) 290 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE The Minatarees (people of the willows) are a small tribe of about one thousand five hundred souls, residing in three villages of earth-covered lodges, on the banks of Knifo river ; a small stream, so called, meandering through a beautiful and extensive prairie, and uniting its waters with the Missouri. This small community is undoubtedly a part of the tribe of Crows, of whom I have already spoken, living at the base of the Rocky Mountains, who have at some remote period, either in their war or hunting excursions, been run off by their enemy, and their retreat having been prevented have thrown themselves upon the hospitality of the Man- dans, to whom they have looked for protection, and under whose wing they are now living in a sort of confederacy ready to intermarry and also to join, as they often have done, in the common defence of their country. In language and personal appearance, as well as in many of their customs, they are types of the Crows: yet having adopted and so long lived under its influence, the I '^stem of the Mandans, they are much like them in many respects, and continually assimilating to the modes of their patrons and protectors. Amongst their vague and various traditions they have evidently some disjointed authority for the manner in which they came here ; but no account of the time. They say, that they came poor — without wigwams or horses — were nearly all women, as their warriors had been killed off in their flight ; that the Man- dans would not take them into their village, nor let them come nearer than where they are now living, and there assisted them to build their villages. From these circum- stances their wigwams have been constructed exactly in the same manner as those of the Mandans which I have already described, and entirely distinct from any custom to be seen in the Crow tribe. Notwithstanding the long familiarity in which they have lived with the Mandans, and the complete adoption of most of their customs, yet it is almost an unaccountable NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 291 fact, that there is scarcely a man in the tribe who can speak half a dozen words of the Mandan language; although on the other hand, the Mandans are most of them able to converse in the Minataree tongue ; leaving us to conclude, either that the Minatarees are a very inert and stupid people, or that the Mandan language (which is most probably the case) being different from any other language in the country, is an exceedingly difficult one to learn. The principal village of the Minatarees which is built upon the bank of the Knife river contains forty or fifty earth-covered wigwams, from forty to fifty feet in diameter, and being elevated, overlooks the other two which are on lower ground and almost lost amidst their numerous corn fields and other profuse vegetation which cover the earth with their luxuriant growth. The scenery along the banks of this little river, from village to village, is quite peculiar and curious ; rendered extremely so by the continual wild and garrulous groups of men, women, and children, who are wending their way along' its winding shores, or dashing and plunging through its blue waves, enjoying the luxury of swimming, of which both sexes seem to be passionately fond. Others are paddling about in their tub-like canoes, made of the skins of buffaloes ; and every now and then, are to be seen their sudatories, or vapor-baths, where steam is raised by throwing water on to heated stones ; and the patient jumps from his sweating-house and leaps into the river in the highest state of perspiration, as I have more fully described whilst speaking of the bathing of the Mandans. The chief sachem of this tribe is a very ancient and patriarchal looking man, by the name of Eeh-tohk-pah- siice-poc-shah (the black moccasin), and counts, undoubtedly, more than an hundred snows. I have been for some days an inmate of his hospitable lodge, where he sits tottering with age, and silently reigns sole monarch of his little community around him, who are continually dropping in to cheer his sinking energies, and render him their ^i#:sJ ; ;i,;.^.,':r. «W;''i:'i^ m:- 292 LBTTEBS AND NOTES ON THK homage. His voice and hia sight are nearly gone; hut the gestured of his hand are yet energetic and youthful and freely speak the language of his kind heart. I have been treated in the kindest manner by this old chief; and have painted his portrait as he was seated on the floor of his wigwam, smoking his pipe, whilst he was recounting over to me some of the extraordinary feats of his life, with a beautiful Crow robe wrapped around him and his hair wound up in a conical form upon his head and fastened with a small wooden pin, to keep it in its place. This man has many distinct recollections of Lewis and Clarke, who were the first explorers of this country, and LONO KNIFE — CAPTAIN LEWIS. who crossed the Rocky Mountains thirty years ago. It will be seen by reference to thoir very interesting history NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 293 of their tour, that they were treated with great kindness by this man ; and that they in consequence constitu+'^d him chief of the tribe, with the consent of his people ; and he has remained their chief ever since. lie enquired very earnestly for " Red Hair" and " Long Knife" (as he had ever since termed Lewis and Clarke), from the fact, that one had red hair (an unexampled thing in his country), and the other wore a broad sword which gained for him the appellation of " Long Knife." I have told him that "Long Knife" has been many years dead ; and that " Red Hair" is yet living in St. Louis, and no doubt would be glad to hear of him ; at which he seemed much pleased, and has signified to me that he will make me bearer of some peculiar dispatches to him.* The name by which these people are generally called (Grosventres) is one given them by the French Traders, and lias probably been applied to them with some degree of propriety or fitness, as contradistinguished from the Man- dans, amongst whom these Traders were living ; and who are a small race of Indians, being generally at or below the average stature of man ; whilst the Minatarees are generally tall and heavily built. There is no tribe in the western wilds, perhaps, who are better entitled to the style of war- like, than the Minatarees ; for they, unlike the Mandans, are continually carrying war into their enemies' country ; oftentimes drawing the poor Mandans into unnecessary broils, and suffering so much themselves in their desperate war executions, that I find the proportion of women to the number of men as two or three to one, through the tribe. The son of Black Moccasin, whose name is Ee-a-ohin- che-a (the red thunder,) and who is reputed one of the most * About a year after writing the above, and whilst I was in St. Lonis, I had the pleasure of presenting the complimenta of this old veteran to General Clarke ; and also of shewing to him the portrait, whicii he instantly rccoguized amongst hundreds of others ; saying, that " they had considered the Black Moccasin quite an old man when they ap- pointed him chief thirty-two years ago. 't«l 294 LETTKRa AND NOTES ON THE desperate warriors of his tribe, I have also painted at full length, iu his war-dress, with his bow in his hand, hia quiver slung, and his shield upon his arm. In this plight satis head-dress, sans robe, and sans everything that might be an useless incumbrance — with the body chiefly naked and profusely bedaubed with rod and black paint, so as to form an almost perfect disguise, the Indian warriors inva- riably sally forth to war; save the chief, who always plumes himself, and leads on his little band, tenderino- himself to his enemies a conspicuous mark, with all hia ornaments and trophies upon him; that his enemies if they get him, may get a prize worth the fighting for. Besides chiefs and warriors to be admired in this little tribe, there are many beautiful and voluptuous lookinw women, who are continually crowding in throngs, and gazing upon a stranger; and possibly shedding more bewitching smiles from a sort of necessity, growing out of the great disparity in numbers between them and the rougher sex, to which I have before alluded. From the very numerous groups of these that have from day to day constantly pressed upon mo, overlooking the operations of my brush ; I have been unable to get more than one who would consent to have her portrait painted owing to some foar or dread of harm that might eventually ensue in consequence; or from a natural coyness or timidity, which is surpassing all description amongst these wild tribes, when iu presence of strangers. The one whom I have painted is a descendant from the old chief; and though not the most beautil'ul, is yet a fair sample of them, and dressed in a beautiful costume of tlio mountain-sheep skin, handsomely garnished with porcu- pine quills and beads. This girl was almost compelled to stand for her picture by her relatives who urged her on, whilst she modestly declined, ofl'ering as her excuse that " she was not j)retfy enough, and that her picture would he laughed at." This was either ignorance or excessive art ou her part; for she was certainly more than comely, and thf NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. SM beauty of her name, Scet-ae-boa (the midday sun,) is quite enough to make up for a deficiency, if there were any, in the beauty of her face. I mentioned that I found these people raising abundance of com or maize ; and I have happened to visit them in the season of their festivities, which annually take place when the ears of corn are of the proper size for eating. The green corn is considered a great luxury by all those tribes who cultivate it; and is ready for eating as soon as the ear is of full size, and the kernels are expanded to their full growth, but are yet soft and pulpy. In this green state of the corn, it is boiled and dealt out in great profu- sion to the whole tribe, who feast and surfeit upon it whilst it lasts ; rendering thanks to the Great Spirit for the return of this joyful season, which they do by making sacrifices, by dancing, and singing songs of thanksgiving. This joy- ful occasion is one valued alike, and conducted in a similar manner, by most of the tribes who raise the corn, however remote they may be from each other. It lasts but for a week or ten days ; being limited to the longest term that the corn remains in this tender and palatable state ; during which time all hunting, and all war-excursions, and all other avocations, are positively dispensed with ; and all join in the most excessive indulgence of gluttony and con- viviality that can possibly be conceived. The fields of corn are generally pretty well stripped during this excess ; and the poor improvident Indian thanks the Great Spirit for the indulgence he has had, and is satisfied to ripen merely the few ears that are necessary for his next year's planting, without reproaching himself for his wanton lavishness, which has laid waste his fine field, and robbed him of the golden harvest, which might have gladdened his heart, with those of his wife and little children, through the cold and dreariness of winter. The most remarkable feature of these joyous occasions is the green com dmice, which is always given as preparatory ^1 M'?C 111} I ' »i' r'*A^flii ".^-• 296 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE to the feast, and by most of tho tribes in the following manner: — At tbo usual season, and the time when from outward ap*^ iaranco of tho stalks and ears of corn, it is supposed to bo nearly ready for use, several of the old women who arc the owners of fields or patches of corn (for such are the pro- prietors and cultivators of all crops in Indian countries, tho men never turn their hands to such degrading occupations) are delegated by tho medicine-men to look at tho corn-fields every morning at sun-rise and bring into tho council-house where the kettle ia ready, several ears of corn, the husks of which the women are not allowed to break open or even to peep through. The women then are from day to day dis- charged and the doctors left to decide, imtil from repeated examinations they como to the decision that it will do ; when they dispatch runners or criers, announcing to every part of tho village or tribe that the Great Spirit has been kind to them, and they must all meet on the next day to return thanks for his goodness. That all must empty their stom- achs, and prepare for tho feast that is approaching. On the day appointed by the doctors, the villagers arc all assembled, and in the midst of tho group a kettle is hung over the fire and filled with tho green corn, which is well boiled, to be given to the Great Spirit, as sf, sacrifice neces- sary to be made before any one can indulge the cravings of his appetite. "Whilst this first kettleful is boiling, four nicdi- cino-men, with a stalk of the corn in one hand and a rattle (shc-sho-quoi) in tho other, with their bodies painted with white clay, dance around tho kettle, chanting a song of thanksgiving to the Groat Spirit to whom tho offering is to be made. At the samo time a number of warriors are dancing around in a more extended circle, with stalks of the corn in their hands, and joining also in the song of thanksgiving, whilst the villagers are all assembled and looking on. During this scene there is an arrangement of wooden bowls laid upon the ground, in which the feast is to I NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 297 be dealt out, each one having iu it a spoon made of the buffalo or mouutain-ahecp's horn. Ill this wise the dance continues until the doctors decide that the corn is sufliciently boiled ; it then stops for u few moments, and again assumes a different form and a different song, whilst the doctors are placing the ears on a little scaf- fold of little sticks, which they erect immediately over the firo where it is entirely consumed, as they join again in the dance around it. The fire is then removed, and with it the ashes, which together are buried in the ground and new fire is originated on the same spot where the old one was, by friction, which is done by a desperate and painful exertion by three men seated on the ground, facing each other and violently drill- ing the end of a stick into a hard block of wood by rolling it between the hands, each one catching it in turn from the others without allowing the motion to stop until smoke, and at last a spark of fire is seen and caught in a piece of punk, when there is great rejoicing in the crowd. With this a fire is kindled, and the kettleful of corn again boiled for the feast, at which the chiefs, doctors, and warriors are seated: and afler this an unlimited license is given to the whole tribe, who surfeit upon it and indulge in all their favorite amusements and excesses, until the fields of corn are exhausted, or its ears have become too hard for their comfortable mastication. Such are the general features of the green corn festivity and dance amongst most of the tribes; and amongst some there are many additional forms and ceremonies gone through, preparatory to the indulgence in the feast. Some of the southern tribes concoct a most bitter and nau- seating draught, which they call asceoh. (the black drink), which they drink to excess for several days previous to the feast ; ejecting everything from their stomachs and intestines, enabling them, after this excessive and painful purgation, to commence with the green corn upon an empty and keen stomach. '■"Ik >''^'''>li' '•^- ■■ ■» -^ % M 1'. ''■* ■ -^4 ;'J;-.,|M'*:t?:^'!^ *:■!'*.;■ '^"^'-''IP^ffl ir ■V'te*;^ , ,„ l''lB~'^'^S •t;Ai4' !#5^ . ''}■■'■] 4 -■> . ■ ■ ▲ OHIEP OP TUK CBOW INDIANS — PROM CATLIN'S FAINTINO, LETTER No. XXIV. MINATAREE VILLAGE, UPPER MISSOURI. Epistles from such a strange place as this, where I have no desk to write from, or mail to send them by, are hastily scribbled off in my note-book, as I can steal a little time from the gaze of the wild group that is continually about me; and instead of sending them, keeping them to bring with mo when I make my retreat from the country. (298) NOBTU AMERICAN INDIANS. 299 The only place where I can Batisfactojily mako I 'oho entries is in tho shade of some se'iucstored troo, t) which I occasionally resort, or more often from my bed (from wliich I am now writing), enclosed by a sort of curtainsi made of the skins of oiks or buffaloes, completely encompassing me, where I am reclining on a sacking-bottom, made of the buffalo's hide ; making my entries and notes of the incidents of tho past day, amidst the roar and unintelligible din of savage conviviality that is going on under tho samo roof, and under my own eye, whenever I feel disposed to apply it to a small aperture which brings at once tho whole interior and all its inmates within my view. There are at this time some distinguished guests, besides myself , in the lodge of the Black Aloccasin ; two chiefs or leaders of a party of Crows, who arrived here a few days since, on a visit to their ancient friends and relatives. The consequence has been, that feasting and carousing have been the " order of the day" hero for some time ; and I have luckily been a welcome participator in their entertain- ments. A distinguished chief of the Minatarees, with several others in company, has been for some months past on a visit to tho Crows and returned, attended by somo remarkably fine-looking fellows, all mounted on fine horses. I have said something of these fine specimens of the human race heretofore ; and as I have been fastening more of them to the canvass within the few days past, I must use this occasion to add what follows : — I think I have said that no part of the human race could present a more picturesque and thrilling appearance on horseback than a party of Crows, rigged out in all their plumes and trappings — galloping about and yelping, in what they call a war-parade, i. e. in a sort of tournament oi sham-fight, passing rapidly through the evolutions of battle, and vaunting forth the wonderful character of their mili- tary exploits. This is an amusement, of which they aro excessively fond; and great preparations are invariably made for these occasional shows. M.iiii«. if 800 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE No tribe of Indians on the Continent are better able to produce a pleasing and thrilling effect in these scenes, nor any more vain, and consequently better prepared to draw pleasure and satisfaction from them, than the Crows. They may be justly said to be the most beautifully clad of all the Indians in these regions, and bringing from the base of the Rocky Mountains a fine and spirited breed of the wild horses, have been able to create a great sensation amongst the Minatarees, who have been paying them all attention and all honors for some days past. From amongst these showy fellows who have been entertaining us and pleasing themselves with their extra- ordinary feats of horsemanship, I have selected one of the most conspicuous, and transferred him and his horse, with arms and trappings, as faithfully as I could to the canvass for the information of the world, who will learn vastly more from lines and colors than they could from oral or written delineations. I have painted him as he sat for me, balanced on his leaping wild horse, with his shield and quiver slung on his back, and his long lance decorated with the eagle's quills trailed in his right hand. His shirt and his leggingn, and moccasins, were of the mountain-goat skins, beautifully dressed ; and their seams everywhere fringed with a pro- fusion of scalp-locks taken from the heads of his enetaies slain in battle. His long hair, which reached almost to the ground whilst he was standing on his feet, was now lifted in the air, and floating in black waves over the hips of his leaping charger. On his head, and over his shining black locks, he wore a magnificent crest or head-dress, made of the quills of the war-eagle and ermine skins; and on his horse's head also was another of equal beauty and precisely the same in pattern and material. Added to these ornaments there were yet many others which con- tributed to his picturesque appearance, and amongst them a beautiful netting of varioas colors, that complotely covered and almost obscured the horse's head and neck, NORTH AMERICiVN INDIANS. 801 and extended over its buck o^d its hips, terminating in a most extravagant and magnii. 3nt crupper, embossed and fringed with rows of beautiful shells and porcupine quills of various colors. With all these picturesque ornaments and trappings upon and about him, with a noble figure, and the bold stamp of a wild gentleman on his face, added to the rage and spirit of his wild horse, in time with whose leaps he issued his startling (though smothered) yelps, as he gracefully leaned to and fro, leaving his plumes and his plumage, his long locks and his fringes, to float in the wind, he galloped about ; and felt exceeding pleasure in displaying the extraordinary skill which a lifetime of practice and experiment had furnished him in the beautiful art of riding and managing his horse, as well as in displaying to advantage his weapons and ornaments of dress, by giving them the grace of motion, as they were brandished in the air and floating in the wind. In a former Letter I have some account of the form of the head peculiar to this tribe which may well be recorded as a national characteristic, and worthy of further atten- tion, which I shall give it on a future occasion. This striking peculiarity is quite conspicuous in the portrait of which I have just spoken, exhibiting fairly, the semi-lunar outline of the face of which I have before spoken, and which strongly characterizes them as distinct from any relationship or resemblance to the Blackfeet, Shienncs, Knistencaux, Maudans, or other tribes now existing in these regions. The peculiar character of which I am speaking, like all other national characteristics, is of course met by many exceptions in the tribe, though the greater part of the men are thus strongly marked with a bold and prominent anti-angular nose, with a clear and rounded arch, and a low and receding forehead; the frontal bono oftentimes appearing to have been compressed by some effort of art, in a certain degree approaching to the horrid distortion thus produced amongst the Flatheads beyond mhn:]- 802 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE the Rocky Mountains. I learned however from repeated inquiries, that no such custom is practiced amongst them but their heads, such as they are, are the results of a natural growth, and therefore may well be offered as the basis of a national or tribal character. I recollect to have seen in several publications on the antiquities of Mexico, many rude drawings made by the ancient Mexicans, of which the singular profiles of these people forcibly remind me, almost bringing me to the conclusion that these people may be the descendants of the race who have bequeathed those curious and inexplicable remains to the world, and whose scattered remnants, from dire and unknown necessities of those dark and veiled ages that have gone by, have been jostled and thrown alonfr through the hideous and almost impenetrable lab3Tinth3 of the Rocky Mountains to the place of their destination where they now live. I am stopped, however, from advancing such as a theory, and much prefer to leave it to other hands, who may more easily get over difficulties which I should bo afraid to encounter in the very outset, from the very important questions raised in my mind, as to the correctness of those rude and ignorant outlines, in truly establishing the looks and character of a people. Amongst a people so ignorant and so little advanced in the arts as the ancient Mexicans were, frorrf whose tracings those very numerous drawings are copied, I think it would be assuming a great deal too much for satisfactory argu- ment, to claim that such records were to set up to the world the looks and character of a people who have sunk into oblivion, when the heads of horses and other animals, drawn by the same hands, are so rude and so much out of drawing as scarcely to be distinguished, one from the other. I feel as if such rude outlines should be received witli great caution and distrust, in establishing the character of a people. Since writing the above I have passed through many vicissitudes, and witnessed many curious scenes worthy of NORTH AMERICJ^N INDIANS. 308 relating, some of which I will scri' iLle now, and leave the rest for a more leisure occasion. I have witnessed many of the valued games and amusements of this tribe, and made sketches of them ; and also have painted a number of portraits of distinguished warriors and braves which will be found in my collection. I have just been exceedingly amused with a formal and grave meeting which was called around me, formed by a number of young men, and even chiefs and doctors of the tribe who have heard that I was great medicine, and a great chief, took it upon themselves to suppose that I might (or perhaps must) be a man of influence amongst the " pale faces, " and capable of rendering them some relief in a case of very great grievance, under which they repre- sented that they were suffering. Several most profound speeches were made to me, setting forth these grievances, somewhat in the following manner: — They represented, that about five or six years ago an unknown, small animal —not far differing in size from a ground squirrel, but with a long, round tail, shewed himself slily about one of the chiefs wigwams, peeping out from under the pots and kettles, and other such things ; which they looked upon as great medicine — and no one dared to kill it ; but hundreds came to watch and look at it. On one of these occasions, one of the spectators saw this strange animal catching and devouring a small " deer mouse, " of which little and very destructive animals their lodges contained many. It was then at once determined that this had been an act of the Great Spirit, as a means of putting a stop to the spolia- tions committeil by these little sappers, who where cutting their clothing, and other manufactures to pieces in a lamentable manner. Councils had been called and solemn decrees issued for the countenance and protection of thia welcome visitor and its progeny, which were soon ascer- tained to be rapidly increasing, and calculating soon to rid them of these thousands of little depredators. It was soon, however, learned from one of the Fur Traders, that this ''\} m i ' ^.y,,i ;'i|.^; "i™. 804 LETTERS AXD NOTES ON THE distinguished object of their superstition (which my man Ba'tiste familiarly calls ^^ Monsr. Bata.pon") had, a short time before, landed himself from one of their keel boats which had ascended the Missouri river for the distance of eighteen hundred miles ; and had taken up its residence without introduction or invitation, in one of their earth- covered wigwams. This information, for a while, curtailed the extraordinary respect they had for some time been paying to it ; but its continual war upon these little mice, which it was using for its food, in the absence of all other nutriment, continued to command their respect, in spite of the manner in which it had been introduced; being unwlling to believe that it had come from that source, even, without the agency in some way of the Great Spirit. Having been thus introduced and nurtured, and their numbers having been so wonderfully increased in the few last years, that every wigwam was infested with them, — that their caches, where they bury their corn and other provisions, were robbed and sacked ; and the very pave- ments under their wigwams were so vaulted and sapped, that they were actually fulling to the ground ; they were now looked upon as a most disastrous nuisance, and a jiublic calamity, to whicu it was the object of this meeting to call my attention, evidently in hopes that I might he able, to designate some successful mode of relieving tliein from this real misfortune. I got rid of them at last, bv assuring them of my deep regret for their situation, wliich was, to be sure, a very unpleasant one; and told them, that there was really a great deal of medicine in the thing, and that I should therefore be quite unwilling to have anythin"- to do with it. Ba'tiste and Bogard, who are yet my daily and almost hourly companions, took to themselves a great deal of fun and anitisemcnt at the end of this interview, by suggesting many remedies for the evil, and enjoying many hearty laughs ; after which, Ba'tiste, Bogard and I, took our hats; and I took my sketch-book in hand, and we NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS, 805 started on a visit to the upper town of tlie Minatarees, whioli is half a mile or more distant, and on the other bank of the Knife Biver, which we crossed in the following manner : — The old chief, having learned that we were to cross the river, gave direction to, one of the women of his numerous household, who took upon her head a skin-canoe (more familiarly called in this country, a bull-boat), made in the form of a large tub, of a buffalo's skin, stretched on a frame of willow boughs, which she carried to the water's edge ; and placing it in the water, made signs for us three to get into it. When we were in, and scatal flat on its bottom, with scarce room in any way to adjust our legs and our feet (as we sat necessarily facing each other), she stepped before the boat, and pulling it along, waded towards the deeper water, with her back towards us, carefully with the other hand attending to her dress, which seemed to be but a light slip, and floating upon the surface until the water was above her waist, when it was instantly turned off, over her head, and thrown ashore; and she boldly plunged forward, swimming and drawing the boat with one hand, which she did with apparent ease. In this manner we were conveyed to the middle of the stream, where we were soon surrounded by a dozen or more beautiful girls, from twelve to fifteen and eighteen years of age, who were at that time bathing on the opposite shore. They all swam in a bold and graceful manner, and as confidently as so many otters or beavers; and gathering around us, with their long black hair floating about on the water, whilst their faces were glowing with jokes and fun, which they wore cracking about us, and which we could not understand. In the midst of this delightful little aquatic group, we three sat in our little skin-bound tub (like the "three wise men of Gotham, who went to sea in -a bowl," &c.), floating uk)iig down the current, losing sight, and all thoughts, of the shore, which was equi-distant from us on either side; whilst we were amusing ourselves with the playfulness of • 20 806 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE these dear littlo creatures avIio were floating about under the clear blue water, catching their hands on to the sides of our boat ; occasionally raising one-half of their bodies out of the water, and sinking again, like so many mermaids. In the midst of this bewildering and tantalizing enter- tainment, in which poor Ba'tiste and Bogard, as well as myself, were all taking infinite pleasure, and which we supposed was all intended for our especial amusement; wo found ourselves suddenly in the delightful dilemma of floating down the current in the middle of the river- and of being turned round and round to the excessive amuse- ■ ment of the villagers, who were laughing at us from the shore, as well as these little tryos, whose delicate hands were besetting our tub on all sides; and for an escape from whom, or for fending off, wo had neither an oar, or any thing else, that we could wield in self-defence^ or self- preservation. In this awkward predicament, our feelings of excessive admiration were i.nmediately changed, to those of exceeding vexation, as we now learned that they had peremptorily discharged from her occupation our iixir con- ductress, who had undertaken to ferry us safely across the river; and had also very ingeniously laid their plans, of which we had been ignorant until the present moment, to extort from us in this way, some little evidences of our liberality, which, in fact, it was impossible to refuse them after so liberal and bewitching an exhibition on their part as well as from the imperative obligation which the awkvrardness of our .situation had laid us umler. I had some awls in my pockets, which I presented to them, and also a few strings of beautiful beads, which I placed over their (iclioate necks as they raised them out of the water by the side of our boat; after which ihey all joined in con- ducting our craft to the shore, by swimming by the sides of, and behind it, pushin.^ it along in the dire<^tion where they designed to land it, until the water became so shallo*, tliat their feet were uj)on the bottom, when they waded along with great coyness, dragging us towards the shore, NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 80T as long as their bodies, in a crouching position, could possibly be half concealed under the water, when they gave our boat the last push for the shore, and raising a loud and exulting laugh, plunged back again into the river; leaving us the only alternative of sitting still where Ave were, or of stepping out into the water at half leg deep, and of wading to the shore, which we at once did, and soon escaped from the view of our little tormenters, and the numerous lookers-on, on our way to the upper village, which I have before mentioned. Hero I was very politely treated by the Yellmv Moccasin., quite an old man, and who seemed to be chief of this band or family, constituting their little community of thirty or forty lodges, averaging, perhaps, twenty persons to each. I was feasted in this man's lodge — and afterwards invited to accompany him and several others to a beautiful prairie, a mile or so above the village, where the young men and young women of this town, and many from the village below, had assembled for their amusements ; the chief of which seemed to be that of racing their horses. In the midst of these scenes, after I had been for some time a looker-on, and had felt some considerable degree of sym- pathy for a fine-looking young fellow, whose horse had been twice beaten on the course, and whoso losses had been considerable; for which, his sister, a very modest and pretty girl, was most piteously howling and crying. I selected and brought forward an ordinary-looking pony, tliat was evidently too fat and sleek to run agumst his fine- limbed little horse that had disappointed his high hopes ; and I began to comment extravagantly upon its muscle, &c., when I discovered him evidently cheering up with the hope of getting me and my pony on to the turf with him ; for which he soon made me a proposition ; and I, having lauded the limbs of my little nag too much to "back out," agreed to run a short race with him of half a mile, for three yards of scarlet cloth, a knife, and half a dozen strings of beads, which I was willing to stake against a handsome i« I v^ hi 808 LETTERS AND NOTES OV THE pair of loggings, which he was wearing at the time. The greatest imaginable excitement was now raised amongst the crowd by this arrangement; to see a white man pre- paring to run with tin Indian jockey, and that with a scrub of a pony, in whose powers of running no Indian liad the least confidence. Yet, there was no one in the crowd, who dared to take up the several other little bets I was willinf^ to tender (merely for their amusement, and for their final exultation ;) owing, undoubtedly, to the bold and confident manner in which I had ventured on the merits of this little horse, which the tribe had all overlooked; and needs must have some medicine about it. So far was this panic carried, that even my champion was ready to withdraw ; but hia friends encouraged him at length, and we galloped our horses off to the other end of the course, where we were to start ; and where we were accompanied by a number of horsemen, who were to witness the " set off." Some considerable delay here took place, from a condition, which was then named to mo, and which I had not observed before, that in all the races of this day, every riiler was to run entirely denuded, and ride a naked horse! Here I was completely balked, and having no one by me to interpret a word, I was quite at a loss to decide what was best to do. I found, however, that remon- strance was of little avail; and as I had volunteered in tliis thing to gratify and flatter them, I thought it best not positively to disjdease them in this; so I laid off my clothes, and straddled the naked back of my round and glossy little pony, by the side of my competitor, wlio was also mounted and stripped to the skin, and panting with a restless anxiety for the start. Reader! did you ever imagine that in the middle of a man's h/>: there could be a thought or a feeling so 7iew to him, as to throw him instantly back to infancy ; with a new world and a new genius before him — started afresh, to navigate and l^reatho the elements of naked and un- tasted liberty, which clothe him in their cool and silken •'•*i<-it" NOIITU AMERICAN INDIANS. 809 robes that float about him ; and wafting their life-inspiring folds to his inmost lungs ? If your never have boon inspired with such a feeling, and have been in the habit of believing that you have thought of, and imagined a little of every thing, try for a moment, to disrobe your mind and your body, and help me through feelings to which I cannot give utterance. Imagine yourselves as I was, with my trembling little horse underneath me, and the cool atmosphere that was floating about, and ready, more closely and familiarly to embrace me, as it did, at the next moment, when we " were ofl'," and struggling for the goal and the prize. Though ray little Pegasus seemed to dart through the clouds, and I to be wafted on the wings of Mercury, yet my red adversary was leaving me too far behind for further competition ; and I wheeled to the left, making a circuit on the prairie, and came in at the starting point, much to the satisfaction and exultation of the jockeys ; but greatly to the murmuring disappointment of the women and children, who had assembled in a dense throng to witness the " coming out" of the " white medicine-man." I clothed myself instantly, and came back, acknowledging my defeat, and the superior skill of my competitor, as well as the wonderful muscle of his little charger, which pleased him much; ard his sister's lamentations were soon turned to joy, by the receipt of a beautiful scarlet robe, and a pro- fusion of vari-colored beads, which were speedily paraded oil her copper-colored neck. After I had seen enough of these amusements, I suc- ceeded with some difficulty, in pulling Ba'tiste and Bogard from amongst the groups of women and girls, where they seemed to be successfully ingratiating themselves; and we trudged back to the little village of earth-covered lodges, which were hemmed in, and almost obscured from the eye, by the fields of corn and luxuriant growth of wild suu-flowers, and other vegetable productions of the soil, whose spontaneous growth had reared their heads in such m:h rfflii 810 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE profusion, as to appear all but like a donso and formidable forest. We loitered about tliis little village awhile, looking into most of its lodges, and traeing its winding avenues, after which we recrossed the river and wended our way buck again to head-quarters, from whence we started in tlie morning, and where I am now writing. This day's ramble showed to us all the inhabitants of this little tribe, exeept a portion of their warriors who are out on a war excursiou against the Riccarecs; and I have been exceedingly pleased with their general behaviour and looks, as well as with their numerous games and amusements, in many of which I have given them great pleasure by taking a part. The Minatarecs, as I have before said, are a bold, darinf and warlike tribe; quite diflercnt in these respects from tlieir neighbors the Mandans, carrying war continually in their enemies' country, thereby exposing their lives and diminishing the number of their warriors to that dcreo that I find two or three women to a man, through the tribe. They are bold and fearless in the cliasc nlso, and in their eager pursuits of the bison, or buffaloes, their feats are such as to excite tlic astonishment and admiration of all who behold them. Of these scenes I have witnessed many since I came into tliis country, and amongst them all, nothing have I seen to compare with one to which I was an eye-witness a few mornings since, and well worthy of being described. The Minatarees, as well as the Mandans, had eulTei'ed for some months past for want of meat, and had indulged in the most alarming fears, that the lierds ot buffaloes were emigrating so fur off from them, that there was great danger of their actual stiirvation, when it was suddenly announced through the village one morning at an early hour, that a herd of buffaloes was in sight, when an hundred or more young men mounted tlieir horses with weapons in band and steered their course to the prairies. The chief informed me that one of his horses was in readi- J " '■ ^'^-Aj,'. NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 811 neas for mo at tho door of his wigwam, and that I had better go and see the curious affair. I accepted his polite offer, and mounting tho steed, galloped off with the huntora to the prairies, where we soon descried at a distance, a fine herd of buffaloes, grazing, when a halt and a council were ordered, and the mode of attack was agreed upon. I had armed myself with my pencil and my sketch-book only, and consequently took my position generally in the rear, where I could see and appreciate every manoeuvre. Tho plan of attack, which in this country is familiarly called a ^^ surround,^^ was explicitly agreed upon, and tho hunters who were all mounted on their " buffalo horses" and armed with bows and arrows or long lances, divided into two columns, taking opposite directions, and drew tlicinselves gradually around tho herd at a mile or more distance from them ; thus forming a circle of horsemen at equal distances apart, who gradually closed in upon tliem with a moderate pace, at a signal given. The unsuspecting herd at length " got tho wind" of the approaching enemy and lied in a mass in the greatest confusion. To the point where they were aiming to cross tho line, the horsemen were seen at full speed, gathering and forming in a column, brandishing their weapons and yelling in the most frightful manner, by which means they turned the black and rush- ing mass which moved off in an opposite direction where tlioy were again met and foiled in a similar manner, and wheeled back in utter confusion ; by which time the horse- men had closed iu from all directions, forming a continuous line around them, whilst the poor affrighted animals were eddying about in a crowded and confused mass, hooking and climbing upon each other ; when the work of death commenced. I had rode up in the rear and occupied an elevated position at a few rods distance, from which I could (like the general of a battle-field) survey from my horse's back, the nature and the progress of the grand nicled ; but (unlike him) without tho power of issuing a command or in any way directing its issue. ?: r'ti • !■■ Hi: ^ I'iJ^i^ !J ..Jn Win.)' 312 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE In this grand turmoil, a cloud of dust was soon raised which in parts obscured the throng where tlio Imntorii were gallo])ing their horses around and driving the whizzing arrows or their long lances to the hearts of these noble animals; which in many instances, becoming infu. riated with deadly wounds in their sides, erected their shaggy manes over their blood-shot eyes and furiously plunged forwards at the sides of their assailants' horses sometimes goring them to death at a lunge, and i)uttiiiir their dismounted riders to flight for their lives; sometimes their dense crowd was opened, and the blinded horsemen too intent on their prty amidst the cloud of dust, were heuimcd and wedged in amidht the crowding beasts, over whose backs they were obliged to leap for security, leavinir their horses to the fate tliat might await them in the results of this wild and desperate war. Many were the bulls that turned upon their asaailants and met them with desperate resistance; and many were the warriors who were dismounted, and saved themselves by the suj)erior muscles of their legs; some who were closely pursued by the bulls, wheeled suddenly around and snatching the part of a buffalo robe from around their waists, threw it over the horns and the eyes of the infuriated beast, and dartin" by its side drove the arrow or the lance to its heart, (^tilers suddenly dashed off upon the prairies by the side of the iillVi;jlited animals which had escaped from the throng, and closely escorting them for a few rods, brought down their hearts' blood in streams, and their huge carcasses upon the green and enamelled turf. In this way this grand hunt soon resolved itself into a rlesperatc l)aitle ; and in the space of fifteen minutes, resulted in the total destruction of the whole herd, which in oil their strength and fury were doomed, like every beast and living thing else, to full before the destroying liands of mighty man. I had sat in trembling silence upon la horse, and wit- nessed this extraordinary scene, which allowed not one of NORTH AMEUICAN INDIAlfS. 813 those animals to escape out of my sight. Many plunged off upon the prairie fur u distance, but were overtaken and killed; and although 1 could not distinctly estimate tho number that were slain, yd I am sure that some hundreds of these noble animals fell in this grand mcloo. The scene after tho battle was over was novel and curious in the extreme ; the hunters were moving about amongst tho dead and dying animals, leading their horses by their halters, and claiming their victims by their private marks upon their arrows, which they were drawing from tho wounds in the animals' sides. Amongst tho poor affrighted creatures that had occasion- ally dashed through tho ranks of their enemy, and sought safety in flight upon tho prairie (and in some instances, had undoubtedly gained it), I saw them stand awhile, looking back, when they turned, and, as if bent on their own destruction, retraced their steps, and mingled them- selves and their deaths with those of tho dying throng. Others had fled to a distance on tho prairies, and for want of company, of friends or of foes, had stood and gazed on till the battle-scene was over; seemingly taking pains to stay, and hold their lives in readiness for their destroyers, until the general destruction was over, when they fell easy victims to their weapons — making the slaughter complete. After this scene, and after arrows had been claimed and recovered, a general council was held, when all hands wero seated on the ground, and a few pipes smoked ; after which, all mounted their horses and rode back to tho village. A deputation of several of the warriors was sent to tho chief, who explained to him what had been their success ; and the same intelligence was soon comunicated by little sciuads to every family in the village ; and preparations were at once made for securing the meat. For this pur- pose, some hundreds of women and children, to whose lot fall all the drudgeries of Indian life, started out upon the trail, which led them to the battle-field, wli jro they ?.pent the day in skinning the animals, and cutting up the moat, '* ti -;| 814 LETTERS AND NOTES. ■wliich was mostly brouglit into the villages on their backs, as they tugged and sweated under their enormous antl cruel loads. I rode out to see this curious scene ; and I.regret exceed- ingly that I kept no memorandum of it in my sketch-book. Amidst the throng of women and children, that had been assembled, and all of whom seemed busily at work, were many superannuated and disabled nags, which they had brought out to a.ssist in carrying in the meat ; and at least one thousand semi-loup dogs, and whelps, whose keen ap. petites and sagacity had brought them out, to claim their shares of this abundant and sumptuous supply. I stayed and inspected this curious group for an hour or more during which time, I was almost continually amused by the clamorous contentions that arose, and generally ended, in desperate combats ; both amongst the dogs and women, who seemed alike tenacious of their local and recently accjuired rights; and disposed to settle their claims by " tooth and nail" — by manual and brute force. When T had seen enough of this I rode to the top of a beautiful prairie bluft', a mile or two from the scene, where I was exceedingly amused by overlooking the route that laid between this and the village, which was over the undulating green fields for several miles, that laid beneath me ; over which there seemed a continual string of women dogs and horses, for the rest of the day, passing and repassing as they were busily bearing home their heavy burthens to the village, and in their miniature appearance which the distance gave them, not unlike to a busy com- munity of ants as they are sometimes seen, sacking and transporting the treasures of a cupboard, or the sweets of a Bugar-bowl. LETTER No. XXV. LITTLE MANDAN VILLAGE, UPPER MISSOURI In speaking of the Mandans, in a former Letter, I men- tioned that they were living in two villages, which are* about two miles apart. Of their principal village I have given a minute account, which precludes the necessity of my saying much of their smaller town, to which I des- cended a few days since, from the Minatarees ; and where I find their modes and customs, precisely the same as I have heretofore described. This village contains sixty or eighty lodges, built in the same manner as those which I have already mentioned, and I have just learned that they have been keeping the annual ceremony here, precisely in the same manner as that which I witnessed in the lower or larger town, and have explained. I have been treated with the same hospitality here that was extended to me in the other village ; and have painted the portraits of several distinguished persons, which has (315) "l4»-* MW'i |lir_ 816 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE astonished and pleased them very much. The operation of my brush always gains me many enthusiastic friends wherever I go amongst these wild folks; and in this village I have been unusually honored and even afflicted by the friendly importunities of one of these reverencing parasites, who (amongst various other offices of hospitality and kindness which he has been bent upon extending to me), has insisted on, and for several nights been indulged in, the honor as he would term it, of offering his body for my pillow, which /have not had the heart to reject, and of course he had not lacked the vanity to boast of, as an act of signal kindness and hospitality on his part, towards a great and a distinguished stranger/ I have been for several days suffering somewhat with an influenza, which has induced me to leave my bed, on the side of the lodge, and sleep on the floor, wrapped in a buffalo rube, with my feet to the fire in the centre of the room, to which place the genuine politeness of my constant and watchful friend has as regularly drawn him, where his irresistible importunities have brought me, night after night, to the only alternative of using his bedaubed and bear-greased body for a pillow. Being unwilling to deny the poor fellow the satisfaction he seemed to be drawing from this singular freak, I took some pains to inquire into his character ; and learned that he was a Riccaree brave, by th(; name of Pah-too-ca-ra (he who strikes), who is here with several others of his tribe, on a friendly visit (though in a hostile village), and living as they are, uni)rotectod, except by the mercy of their cucniies. I think it probable, therefore, that he is ingeni- ously endeavoring thus to ingratiate himself in my affections, and consequently to insure my guardianship and influence for his protection. Bo this as it may, he is rendering mo many kind services, and I have in return traced him on my canvass for immortality. The Riccaree village, is beautifully situated on the west bank of the river, two hundred miles below the Mandau.s ; NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 817 and built very much in the same manner ; being consti- tuted of one hundred and fifty earth -covered lodges, which are in part surrounded by an imperfect and open barrier of piquets set firmly in the ground, and of ten or twelve feet in height. This village is built upon an open prairie, and the grace- fully undulating hills that rise in the distance behind it are everywhere covered with a verdant green turf, without a tree or a bush any where to be seen. The view was taken fi'om the deck of the steamer when I was on my way up the river ; and probably it was well that I took it then, for so hostile and deadly are the feelings of these people towards the pale faces, at this time, that it may be deemed most prudent for me to pass them on my way down the river, without stopping to make them a visit. They cer- tainly are harboring the most resentful feelings at this time towards the Traders, and others passing on the river; and no doubt, that there is great danger of the lives of any white men, who unluckily fall into their hands. They have recently sworn death and destruction to every Avhite man, who comes in their way ; and there is no doubt, that they are ready to execute their threats. When Lewis and Clark first visited these people thirty years since, it will be found by a reference to their history, that the Riccarecs received and treated them with great kindness and hospitality ; but owing to the system of trade, and the manner in which it has been conducted in this co'imtry, they have been inflicted with real or imaginary abuses, of which they are themselves, and the Fur Traders, the best judges ; and for which they are now harboring the most inveterate feelings towards the whole civilized race. The Riccarecs are unquestionably a part of the tribe of Pawnees, living on the Platte River, some hundreds of miles below this, inasmuch as their language is nearly or quite the same ; and their personal appearance and customs as similar as could be reasonably expected amongst a 818 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE people so long since separated from their parent tribe and continually subjected to innovations from the neighboring tribes around them ; amongst whom, in their erratic wan- derings in search of a locatior., they have been jostled about in the character, alternately, of friends and of foes. I shall resume my voyage down the river in a few days in my canoe; and I may, perhaps, stop and pay these people a visit, and consequently, be able to say more of them ; or, I may be hauh'l in, to the shore, and my boat plundered, and my " scalp danced" as they have dealt quite recently with the last trader, who has dared for several years past, to continue his residence ^vith them, after they had laid fatal hands on each one of his comrades before him, and divided and shared their goods. Of the Mandans, who are about me in this little villat^e I need say nothing, except that they are in every respect the s.ime as those I have described in the lower villafro— and in fact, I believe this little town is rather a summer residence for a few of the noted families, than anythino- else • as T am told that none of their wigwams are tenanted through the winter. I shall leave them in the morninT and take up my residence a few days longer with my hospitable friends Mr. Kipp, ^fah-to-toh-pa, &c., in the large village ; and then with my canvass and easel, and paint-pots in my canoe ; with Ba'tiste and Bogard to paddlo and my own oar to steer, wend my way again oa the mighty Missouri toward my native land, bidding ever- lasting farewell to the kind and hospitable Mandans. In taking this final leave of them, which will be done with some decided feelings of regret, and in receding from their country, I shall look back and reflect upon them and their curious and peculiar modes with no tunall degree of pleasure, as well as surprise; inasmuch as their hospitality and friendly treatment have fully corroborated my fixed belief that the North American Indian in his primitive state is a high-minded, hospitable and honorable being — and their singular and peculiar customs have raised an NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 819 irresistible belief in my mind that they have had a different origin, or are of a different compound of character from any other tribe that I have yet seen, or that can be probably seen in North America. In coming to such a conclusion as this, the mind is at once filled with a flood of inquiries as to the source from which they have sprung, and eagerly seeking for the evidence which is to lead it to the most probable and cor- rect conclusion. Amongst these evidences of which there are many, and forcible ones to be met with amongst these people, and many of which I have named in my former epistles, the most striking are those which go, T think, decidedly to suggest the existence of looks and of customs amongst them, bearing incontestible proofs of an amalgam of civilized and savage; and that in the absence of all proof of any recent proximity of a civilized stock that could in any way have been engrafted upon them. These facts then, with the host of their peculiarities which stare a traveller in the face, lead the mind back in search of some more remote and rational cause for such striking singularities ; and in this dilemma, I have been almost disposed (not to advance it as a theory but) to enquire whether here may not be found, yet existing, the remains of the Welsh colony — the followers of Madoc ; who history tells us, if I recollect right, started with ten ships, to colonize a country which he had discovered in the Western Ocean ; whose expedition I think has been pretty clearly traced to the mouth of the Mississippi, or the coast of Florida, and whose fate further than this seems sealed in unsearchable mystery. I am travelling in this country as I have before said, not to advance or to prove theories, but to see all I am able to see, and to tell it in the simplest and most intelligible manner I can to the world, for their own conclusions, or for theories I may feel disposed to advance, and be better able to defend after I got out of this singular country ; where all the powers of one's faculties are required, and IHIIlil N» +1 ■'■(1 ill 1 ' w \ Hi Wi m B V HHUit:' V A T HUT B ' 820 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE much better employed I consider, in helping him &lon«..? in the body of the Work. See Appendix A. tl 'I't i:": LETTER No. XXVI. MOUTH OF TETOX RIVER, UPPER MISSOURI Since writing tlie above Letter I have descended the Missouri, a distance of six or seven hundred miles, in my little bark, with Ba'tiste and Bogard, my old " ComjMgn&ns du voijage" and have much to .say of what we tluee did and what we saw on our way, which will be given anon. I am now in the heart of the country belonging to the numerous tribe of the Sioux or Dahcotas, and have Indian faces and Indian customs in abundance around ine. This tribe is one of the most numerous in North America, and also one of the most vigorous and warlil chief, a youth of eighteen years, dis- tinguished hi- 1 1 a singular manner the day before our steamer reacheu their village, by taking to himself four vnves in otxe day ! This extraordinary and unprecedented freak of his, was just the thing to make him the greatest sort of medicine in the eyes of his people ; and probably he may date much of his success and greatness through life, to this bold and original step, which suddenly raised him into notice and importance. The old chief Shoodega-cha, of whom I have spoken above, considering his son to have arrived at the age of maturity, fitted him out for house-keeping, by giving him a handsome wigwam to live in, and nine horses, with many other valuable presents; when the boy, whose name is Hongskay-de (the great chief,) soon laid his plans fur the proud and pleasant epoch in his life, and consummated tliem in the following ingenious and amusing manner. "Wishing to connect himself with, and consequently to secure the countenance of some of the most influential men in the tribe, he had held an interview with one of the most distinjxuishcd ; and easily (being the son of a chief,) made an arrangement for the hand of his daughter, which ho * k-Vt u ""it] 832 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE was to receive on a certain day, and at a certain hour, for which he was to give two horses, a gun, and several pounds of tobacco. This was enjoined on the father as a profound secret, and as a condition of the espousal. In like manner he soon made similar arrangements with three other leading men of the tribe, each of whom had a young and beautiful daughter, of marriageable age. To each of the fathers he had promised two horses, and other presents similar to those stipulated for in the first instance, and all under the same injunctions of seoresy, until the hour approached, when he had announced to the whole tribe that he was to be married. At the time appointed, they all assembled, and all were in ignorance of the fair hand that was to be placed in his on this occasion. He had got some of his young friends who were prepared to assist him to lead up the eight horses. He took two of them by the halters, and the other present"? agreed upon in his other hand, and advancing to the first of the parents, whose daughter was standing by the side of him, saying to him, •' you promised me the hand of your daughter on this day, for which I was to give you two horses." The father assented with a " ugh!" receiving the presents, and givinn^ his child ; when some confusion ensued from the simulta- neous remonstrances, which were suddenly made by the other three parents, who had brought their daughters forward, and were shocked at this sudden disappointment, as well as by the mutual declarations they were making, of similar contracts that each one had entered into with him ! As soon as they could be pacified, and silence was restored, he exultingly replied, "You have all acknowledged in public your promises with me, which I shall expect you to fulfil. I am here to perform all the engagements which I have made, and I expect you all to do the same." — No more was said. He led up the two horses for each, and delivered the other presents; leading off to his wigwam liis four brides — taking two in each hand, and commenced at NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 833 once upon his new mode of life ; reserving only one of his horses for his own daily use. I visited the wigwam of this young installed medicine- man several times, and saw his four modest little wives seated around the fire, where all seemed to harmonize very well ; and for aught I could discover, were entering very happily on the duties and pleasures of married life. I selected one of them for her portrait, and painted it, Mong- shong-shaw (the bending willow), in a very pretty dress of deer skins, and covered with a young buftalo's robe, which was handsomely ornamented, and worn with much grace and pleasing eftect. Mr. Chouteau of the Fur Company, and Major Sanford, the agent for the Upper Missouri Indians, were with me at this time ; and both of these gentlemen, highly pleased with so ingenious and innocent a freak, felt disposed to be liberal, and sent them many presents from the steamer. The ages of these young brides were probably all between twelve and fifteen years — the season of life in which most the girls in this wild country contract marriage. It is a surprising fact, that women mature in these regions at that early age, and there have been some instances where marriage has taken place, even at eleven ; and the juvenile mother has been blest with her first oflfepring at the age of twelve ! ' : ' These facts are calculated to create surprise and almost incredulity in the mind of the reader, but there are circum- stances for his consideration yet to be kno^vn, which will in a manner account for these extraordinary facts. There is not a doubt but there is a more early approach to maturity amongst the females of this country than in civilized communities, owing either to a natural and constitutional difference, or to the exposed and active lifo they lead. Yet there is another and more general cause of early marriages (and consequently apparent maturity), which arises out of the modes and forms of the country, where most of the marriages are contracted with the ^'il ' "M '.:i. , * 1 1! '!?hu,, SS4 LETTERS AND NOTES. parents, hurried on by the impatience of the applicant and prematurely accepted and consummated on the part of the parents, who are often impatient to be in receipt of the presents they are to receive as the price of their daughters. There is also the facility of dissolving the marriage contract in this country, which does away with one of the most serious difficulties which lies in the way in the civilized world, and calculated greatly to retard its consummation, which is not an equal objection in Indian communities. Education and accomplishmenti^, again iu the fashionable world, and also a time and a season to flourish and show them off, necessarily engross tliat part of a young lady's life, when the poor Indian girl, who finds herself weaned from the familiar embrace of her parents with her mind and her body maturing, and her thoughts and her passions straying away in the world for some theme or some pleasure to cling to, easily follows their juvenile and ardent dictates, prematurely entering on that system of life, consisting in reciprocal dependence and protection. In the instance above described, the young man was in no way censured by his people, but most loudly applauded ; for in this country polygamy is allowed ; and in this tribe, where there are two or three times the number of women that there are of men, such an arrangement answers a good purpose, whereby so many of the females arc provided for and taken care of; and particularly so, and to the great satisfaction of the tribe, as well as of the parties and families concerned, when so many fall to the lot of a chief, or the son of a chief, into whose wigwam it is considered an honor to be adopted, and where they are the most sure of protection. LETTER No. XXVII. MOUTH OP TETON RIVER, VrPER MISSOURI. When' we were about to start on our way up the river from the village of the Puncahs, we found that they were packing up all their goods and preparing to start for the prairies, farther to the West, in pursuit of buffaloes, to dry meat for their winter's supplies. They took down their wigwams of skins to carry with them, and all were flat to the ground and everything packing up ready for the start. My attention was directed by Major Sanford, the Indian Agent, to one of the most miserable and helpless looking objects that I ever had seen in my life — a very aged and emaciated man of the tribe, who, he told me, was to be exposed. The tribe were going where hunger and dire necessity compelled them to go, and this pitiable object, who had once been a chief, and a man of distinction in hia tribe, who was now too old to travel, being reduced to mere skin and bones, was to bo left to starve, or meet with such death as might fall to his lot, and his bones to be picked by the wolves I I lingered around this poor old forsaken (335) » "i-..?* 336 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE patriarch for hours before we started, to indulge the tears of sympathy which were flowing for the sake of this poor benighted and decrepit old man, whose worn-out limbs were no longer able to support him ; their kind and faithful offices having long since been performed and his body and his mind doomed to linger into the withering agony of decay, and gradual solitary death. I wept, and it was a pleasure to weep, for the painful looks, and the dreary prospects of this old veteran, whose eyes were dimmed, whose venerable loclis were whitened by an hundred years, whose limbs were almost naked, and trembling as he sat by a small fire which his friends had left him, with a few sticks of wood within his reach and a bufl'alo's skin stretched upon some crotches over his head. Such was to be his only dwelling, and such the chances for his life, with only a few half picked bones tliat were laid within his reach, and a dish of water, without weapon or means of any kind to replenish them, or strength to move his body from its fatal locality. In this sad plight I mournfully contemplated this miserable remnant of existence, who had unluckily outlived the fates and acci- dents of wars to die alone, at death's leisure. His friciids and his children bad all left him, and were preparing iu a little time to be on the march. He had told them to leave him, "he was old," he said "and too feeble to march." "My children," said he, "our nation is poor, and it is necessary that you should all go to the country where you can get meat, — my eyes are dimmed and my strength is no more ; my days are nearly all numbered, and I am a burthen to my children — I cannot go, and I wish to die. Keep your hearts stout, and think not of me ; I am no longer good for anything." In this way they had finished the ceremony of exposing him, and taken their final leave of him. I advanced to the oLl man, and was undoubtedly the la.st human being who held converse with him. \ sat by the side of him, and though he could not distinct!;- see me, ho shook mo heartily by the hand and smiled, evidently NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 887 aware that I was a white man, and that I sympathized with his inevitable misfortune. I shook hands again with him, and left him, steering my course towards the steamer which was a mile or more from me, and ready to resume her voyage up the Missouri.* This cruel custom of exposing their aged people, belongs, I think, to all the tribes who roam about the prairits, making severe marches, when such decrepit persons are totally unable to go, unable to ride or to walk, — when they have no means of carrying them. It often becomes absolutely necessary in such cases that they should be left; and they uniformly insist upon it, saying, as this old man did, that they are old and of no further use — that they left their fathers in the same manner — that they wish to die, and their children must not mourn for them. From the Puncah village, our steamer made regular progress from day to day towards the mouth of the Teton, from where I am now writing ; passing the whole way a country of green fields, that came sloping down to the river on either side, forming the loveliest scenes in the world. From day to day we advanced, opening our eyes to something new and more beautiful every hour that we progressed, until at last our boat was aground ; and a day's work of Bounding told us at last, that there was no possi- bility of advancing further, until there should be a rise in the river, to enable the boat to get over the bar. After laying in the middle of the river about a week, in this unpromising dilemma, Mr. Chouteau started off twenty men on foot, to cross the plains for a distance of two * When pajsing by tho sito of the Puiicah village a few months after this, in my canoe, I went ashore with my men, and found the poles and tho buffalo skin, standing as they were left, over the old man's head. The firebrands were lying nearly as I had left them, and I found at a few yards distant the skull, and others of his bones, which had been piekcd and cleaned by tlie wolves ; which is probably all that any human being can ever know of his final and melancholy fate. 22 illil^n 838 LETTERS AND NOTES OX TUBS hundred miles to Laidlaw's Fort, at the mouth of Teton river. To this expedition, I immediately attached myself- and having heard that a numerous party of Sioux were there encamped, and waiting to see the steamer, I packed on the backs, and in the hands of several of the men, such articles for painting, as T might want; canvass, paints, and brushes, with my sketch-book slung on my back, and my rifle in my hand, and I started off with them. We took leave of our friends on the boat, and mountin'^ the green bluffs, steered our course from day to day over a level prairie, without a tree or a bush in sight, to relieve the painful monotony, filling our canteens at the occasional little streams that wo passed, kindling our fires with dried buffalo dung, which we collected on the prairie, and stretching our tired limbs on the level turf whenever we were overtaken by night. We were six or seven days in performing this march ; and it gave me a good opportunity of testing the muscles of my legs, with a number of half-breeds and Frenchmen, whose lives are mostly spent in this way, leading a novice a cruel, and almost killing journey. Every rod of our way was over a continuous prairie, with a verdant green turf of wild grass of six or eight inches in height ; and most of the way enamelled Avith wild flowers, and filled with a profusion of strawberries. For two or three of the first days, the scenery was monotonous, and became exceedingly painful from the fact, that we were (t( use a phrase of the country) "out of sight of land," i. e. out of sight of anything rising above the horizon, which was a perfect straight lino around us, like that of the blue and boundless ocean. The pedestrian over such a discouraging sea of green, without a landmark before or behind him; without a beacon to lead him on, or define his progress, feels weak and overcome when night falls ; and he stretclies his exhausted limbs, apparently on the same spot where he had slept the night before, with the same prospect before and behind him; the same grass, so one ad m' wel whi rest NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 889 and the same wild flowers beneath and about him; the same canopy over his hoau, and the same cheerless sea of green to start upon in the morning. It is difficult to describe the simple beauty and serenity of these scenes of solitude, or the feelings of feeble man, whose limbs are toiling to carry him through them — without a hill or tree to mark his progress, and convince him that he is not, like a squirrel in his cage, after all his toil, standing still. One commences on peregrinations like these, with a light heart, and a nimble foot, and spirits as buoyant as the very air that floats along by the side of him ; but his spirit soon tires, and he lags on the way that is rendered more tedious and intolerable by the tantalizing mirage that opens before him beautiful lakes, and lawns, and copses; or by the looming of the prairie ahead of him, that seems to rise in a parapet, and decked with its varied flowers, phanton- likc, flies and moves along before him. I got on for a couple of days in tolerable condition, and with some considerable applause; but my half-bred com- panions took the lead at length, and left me with several other novices far behind, which gave me additional pangs ; and I at length felt like giving up the journey, and throwing myself upon the ground in hopeless despair. I was not alone in my misery, however, but was cheered and encouraged by looking back and beholding several of our party half a mile or more in the rear of me, jogging along, and sulTering more agony in their new experiment than I was sufieritig myself. Their loitering and my murmurs, at length, brouglxt our leaders to a halt, and we held a sort of council, in which I explained that the pain in my feet was so intolerable, that I felt as if I could go no further ; when one of our half-breed leaders stepped up to me, and addressing me in French, told me that I must " turn my toes irC as the Indians do, and that I could then go on very well. We halted a half hour, and took a little refreshment, whilst the little Frenchman was teaching his lesson to the rest of my fellow-novices, when we took up our march 840 LBTTEBS AKD NOTES ON Tnn again; and I soon found upon trial, that by turning my toea in, my feet went more easily tlirough the grass; and by turning the weight of n.y body more equally on the toes (enabling each one to support its proportionable part of the load, instead of throwing it all on to the joints of the big toea, which is done when the toes arc turned out;) I soon got relief, and made my onward progress very well. I rigidly adhered to this mode, and found no difficulty on tho third and fourth days, of taking the lead of the whole party, which I constantly led until our journey was completed.* On this journey we saw immense herds of buffaloes ; and although we had no horses to run them, wo successfully approached them on foot, and supplied ourselves abundantly with fresh meat. After travelling for several days, wc came in sight of a high range of blue hills in distance on our left, which rose to the height of several hundred feet above the level of the prarics. These hills were a con- spicuous landmark at last, and some relief to us. I was told by our guide, that they were called the Bijou Ilills, from a Fur Trader of that name, who had had his tr.idiii<'- house at the foot of them on the banks of tho Mis.souri river, whore he was at last destroyed by the Sioux Indians. Not many miles back of this range of hills, we came in contact with an immense saline, or "salt meadow," a.s they are termed in this country, which turned ua out of our path, * On this march wo wpre all travelling in moccasins, which being niadu without any soles, according to the Indian custom, had but littlo sup- port for the foot underneath ; and consequently, soon subjected us to excruciating jmiu, whilst walking according to the civilized mode, with the toes turned out. From this very painful oxpcrienco I learned to my complete satisfaction, that man in u state of nature who walks on his naked feet rnunt walk with his toes turned in, that each may perform the duties assigned to it in proportion to its size and strength; and that civilized man can walk with his toes turned out if he chooses, if he will use a stiff sole under hi.s feet, and will be content at last to put up with an acquired deformity of the big toe joint, which too many know to be a frequent and painful occurrence. KORTU AMERICAN INDIANS, Ml and compoUcd us to travel several miles out of our way, to get by it ; wc came suddenly upon a groat depression of the prairie, which extended for several miles, and as wo stood upon its green banks, which wore gracefully sloping down, wo could overlook some hundreds of acres of the prairio which were covered with an incrustation of salt, that appeared tho samo as if the ground was everywhere covered with snow. These scenes, I am told, are frequently to bo met with in these regions, and certainly present the most singular and startling eftect, by tho sudden and unexpected contrast between their snow-white appearance, and tho green fields that hem them in on all sides. Through each of theso meadows there is a meandering small stream which arises from salt springs, throwing out in the spring of tho year great quantities of water, which flood over these meadows to tho depth of three or four feet ; and during tho heat of summer being exposed to tho rays of the sun, entirely evaporates, leaving the incrustation of muriate on tho surface, to the depth of one or two inches. These places are tho constant resort of buffaloes, which congregate in thousands about them, to lick up the salt ; and on ap- proaching the banks of this place we stood amazed at the almost incredible numbers of these animals, which were in sight on tho opposite bank, at the distance of a mile or two from us, where they were lying in countless numbers, on the level praries above, and stretching down by hundreds, to lick at the salt, forming in distance, large masses .n black, most pleasingly in contrast with the snow white, und and the vivid green, which I have before mentioned. After several days' toil in tho manner above mertioned, all the way over soft and green fields, and amntod with many pleasing incidents and accidents of the chase, wc arrived, pretty well jaded, at Fort Pierre, mouth of Teton River, from whence I am now vyiiting ; where for the first time I was introduced to Mr. M'Kenzie (of whom I have before spoken), to Mr. Laidlaw, mine host, and Mr. Ilalsey, V m ^Ui' *' ill 'tH s ' Vt m I . ■f-'' || 'i. J; ?■ r '1' ^ :!-- 11 ' f 342 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE a chief clerk in the establishment; and after, to the head chief and dignitaries of the great Sioux nation, who were here encamped about the Fort, in six or seven hundred skin lodges, and waiting for the arrival of the steamer, which they had heard, was on its way up the river, and which they had great curiosity to sec. After resting a few days, and recovering from the fatigues of my journey, having taken a fair survey of the Sioux village, and explained my views to the Indians, as well as to the gentlemen whom I have above mamed ; I commenced my operations with the brush, and first of all painted the portrait of the head-chief of the Sioux (the one horn), whom I have before spoken of. This truly noble fellow sat for his portrait, and it was finished before any one of the tribe knew anything of it; several of the chiefs and doctors were allowed to see it, and at last it was talked of through the village ; and of course, the greater part of their numbers were at once gathered around me. Nothiiitr short of hanging it out of doors on the side of my wigwam would in any way answer them ; and here I liad the pecu- liar satisfaction of beholding, through a small hole I had made in my wigwam, the high admiration and respect they all felt for their chief, as well as the very great c-^timatioii in which they held me as a painter and a magician, confer- ring upon me at once the very distinguished appellation of Eo-cha-/,oo-kali-ga-wakon (the medicine painter). After the exhibition of this chief's picture, there was much excitement in the village about it ; the doctors generally took a decided and noisy stand against the operations of my brush; hai.tnguing the populace, and predicting bad luck, and premature death, to all who sub- mitted to so strange and unaccountable an operation ! My business for some days was entirely at a stand for want of sitters; for the doctors were opposing me with all their force; and the women and children were crying, with tlieir hands over their mouths, making the most pitiful and doleful la'uents, which I never can explain to my readers' t.ii NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 813 but for some just account of which, I must refer them to my friends M'Kcnzie and Halsey, who overlooked, with infinite amusement, these curious scenes and are able, no doubt, to give them with truth and effect to the world. In this sad and perplexing dilemma, this noble chief stepped forw -d, and addressing himself to the chiefs and the doctors, to the braves and to the women and children, he told them to be quiet, and to treat me with friendship ; that I had been travelling a great way to see them, and smoke with them ; that I was great medicine, to be sure ; that I was a great chief, and that I was the friend of Mr. Laidlaw and Mr. M'Kcnzie, who had prevailed upon him to sit for his picture, and fully assured him that there was no harm in it. His speech had the desired effect, and I was shaken hands with by hundreds of their worthies, many of whom were soon dressed and ornamented, prepared to sit for their portraits.* * Several years after I painted the portrait of this extraordinary man, and whilst I was delivering my Lectures in the City of New York, I first received intelligence of his death, in the following singular manner : — I was on the platform in my Lecture-room, in the Stuy vesant Institute, with an audience of twelve or fourteen hundred persons, in the midst of whom were seated a delegation of thirty or forty Sioux Indians nnder the charge of Major Pilchcr, their agent ; and I was successively passing before their eyes the portraits of a number of Stoux chiefs, and making my remarks upon them. The Sioux instantly recognized each one as it was exhibited, which tlioy instantly hailed by a sharp and startling yelp. But when the portrait of this chief was placed before them, instead of the usual recognition, each one placed his hand over liis mouth, and gave a " hush — sh — " and hung down their heads, their usual expressions of grief in case of a death. From this sudden emotion, I knew instantly, that the chief must be dead, and so expressed my belief to the audience. I stopped uiy Lecture a few moments to con- verse with Major Pilchcr who was by my side, and who gave me the following extraordinary account of his death, which I immediately re- lated to the audience ; and which being translated to the Sioux Indians, their chief arose and addressed himself to the audience, saying that the account was true, and that Ilu-wan-je-tah was killed but a few days before they left home. Tlic account which Major Pilchcr gave was nearly as follows ;— l» f ■rt lilt'" tm^^ ,,J' vStS ^> M 1^^ 344 LETTERS AND NOTES. " But a few \reeks before I left the Sioux country with the dQlegation Ila-wan-jo-tah (the one horn) had in some way been the accidental cause of the death of his only son, a very fine youth ; and so great was the anguish of his mind at times, that he became frantic and insane. In one of these modes he mounted his favorite war-horse with his bow and his arrows in his hand, and dashed off at full speed upon the prairies repeating the most solemn oath, " that he would slay the first liviiif thing that fell in his way, be it man or beast, or friend or foe." " No one dared to follow him, and after ho had been absent an hour or two, his horse came back to the village with two arrows in his body, and covered with blood ! Fears of the most serious kind were now entertained for the fate of the chief, and a party of warriors immediately mounted their horses, and retraced the animal's tracks to the place of the tragedy, where they found the body of their chief horribly mangled and gored by a buffalo bull, whose carcass was stretched by the side of him. " A close examination of the ground was then made by the Indians who ascertained by the tracks, that their unfortunate chief, under his unlucky resolve, had met a buffalo bull in the season when they are very stubborn, and unwilling to run from any one ; and had incensed the animal by shooting a number of arrows into him, which had brought him into furious combat. The chief had then dismounted, and turned his horse loose, having given it a couple of arrows from his bow, which i"remony, wherein the poor Indian sees fit to sacrifice his faithful companion to bear testimony to the sacredness of his vows of friend- ship, and invite his friend to partake of its flesh, to remind him forcibly of the reality of the sacrifice, and the solemnity of his professions. The dog, amongst all Indian tribes, is more esteemed and I. ore valued than amongst any part of the civilized world; the Indian who has more time to devote to his company, and whose untutored mind more nearly assimi- lates to that of his faithful servant, keeps hini closer company, and draws him nearer to his heart ; they hunt together, and are equal sharers in the chase — their bed is one ; and on the rocks, and on their coats of arms they carve his image as the symbol of fidelity. Yet, with all of these he will end his allcction with tliis faithful follower, and with tears in his eyes, offer him as a sacrifice to seal the pledge he has made to man ; because a feast of venison, or of buffalo meat, is what is due to every one who enters an Indian's wigwam ; and of course, conveys but a passive or neutral evidence, that generally goes for nothing. I have .«at at many of these feasts, and never could but appreciate the moral and solemnity of them. I have seen the master take from the bowl the head of his victim, and descant on its former affection and fidelity with tears in his eyes. And I have seen guests at the same time by the side of me, jesting and sneering at the poor Indian's folly NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 853 and stupidity; and I Imvo said in my heart, that they never deaervcd a name so good or so honorable as that of the poor animal whose bones they were picking. At the feast which I have been describing above, each of us tasted a little of the meat, and passed the dishes on to the Indians, who eoon demolished everything they con- tained. Wo all agreed that the meat was well cooked, iv 1 bccmed to be well-flavored and palatable food; and no doubt, could have been eaten with a good relish, if wc had been hungry, and ignorant of the nature of the food wo were eating. The flesh of these dogs, though apparently relished by the Indians, is, undoubtedly inferior to the venison and buffalo's meat, of which feasts are constantly made where friends are invited, as they are in civilized society, to a pleasant and convivial party; from which fact alone, it would seem clear, that they have some extraordinary motive, at all events, for feasting on the flesh of that useful and faithful animal ; even when, as in the instance I have been describing, their village is well supplied with fresh and dried meat of the buffalo. The dog-feast is given, I believe, by all tribes in North America ; and by them all, I think, this faithful animal, as well as the horse, is sacrificed in several different way*, to appease offended Spirits or Deities, whom it is considered necessary that they should conciliate in this way; and when done, is invariably done by giving the beat in the h id or the keunel. IT I ilk ii il ^<\ MUim LETTER No. XXIX. MOUTH OF TETON RIVER, UPPER MISSOUItL Another curious ancl disgusting scene I witnessed in the after part of the day on which we were honored with the dog feast. In tliis I took no part, but was suHlciently near to it, when standing some rods off" and witnessing the cruel operation. I was called upon by one of the clerks in the Establishment to ride up a mile or so, near the banks of the Teton River, in a little plane at the base of the bluff?!, where were grouped some fifteen or twenty lodges of the Ting-ta-to-ah band, to sec a man (as they sai f% « T/ji*-. NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 861 Kocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean) bears on its blade the impress of G. E., which they will doubtless understand. The above weapons, as well as the bow and lance, of which I have before spoken, are all carried and used on horseback with great effect. The Indians in this country of green fields, all ride for their enemies, and also for their game, which is almost invariably killed whilst their horses are at full-speed. They are all cruel masters for their horses; and. in war or the chase, goad them on with a heavy and cruel whip, the handle of which is generally made of a large prong of the elk's horn or of wood, and the lashes of rawhide are very heavy ; being braided, or twisted, or cut into wide straps. These are invariably attached to the wrist of the right arm by a tough thong, so that they can be taken up and used at any moment, and dropped the next, without being lost. During the time that I was engaged in painting my portraits, I was occasionall}'' inducing the young men to give me their dances, a great variety of which they gave me by being slightly paid; which I was glad to do, in order to enable me to study their character and expression thoroughly, which I am sure I have done ; and I shall take pleasure in shewing them to the world when I get back. The dancing is generally done by the young men, and considered undignified for the chiefs or doctors to join in. Yet so great was my medicine, that chiefs and medicine' men turned out and agreed to compliment me with a dance. I looked on with great satisfaction; having been assured by the Interpreters and Traders, that this was the highest honor they had ever known them to pay to any stranger amongst them. In this dance, which I have called " the dance of the chiefs," for want of a more significant title, was given by fifteen or twenty chiefs and doctors ; many of whom were very old and venerable men. All of them cs,me out in their bead-dresse3 of war-eagle quills, with a spear or staff in the left hand, and a rattle in the right. It was given in |i 't-^ \^^ 862 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE the midst of the Sioux village, in front of the head chief's lodge ; and beside the medicine-men who beat on the drum, and sang for the dance, there were four younf» women standing in a row, and chanting a sort of choru3 for the dancers ; forming one of the very few instances that I ever have met, where the women are allowed to take any part in the dancing, or other game or amusement, with the men. This dance was a very spirited thing, and pleased me much, as well as all the village, who were assembled around to witness what most of them never before had seen, their aged and venerable chiefs united in giving a dance. As I have introduced the scalping-knife above, it may be well for me to give some further account in this place of the custom and the mode of taking the scalp ; a custom practiced by all the Nortli American Indian^., which is done when an enemy is killed in battle, by grasping the left hand into the hair on the crown of the head, and passing the knife around it through the skin, tearing off a piece of the skin with the hair, as large as the palm of the hand, or larger, which is dried, and often curiously orna- mented and preserved, and highly valued as a trophy. The scalpling is an operation not calculated of itself to take life, as it only removes the skin, without injuring the bone of the head ; and necessarily, to be a genuine scalp, must contain and show the crown or centre of the head; that part of the skin which lies directly over what the phre- nologists call " self-esteem," where the hair divides and radiates from the centre ; of which they all profess to be strict judges, and able to decide whether an effort has been m;ide to produce two or more scalps from one head. Besides taking the scalp, the victor generally, if he has time to do it without endangering his own scalp, cuts off and brings home the rest of the hair, which his wife will divide into a great many small locks, and with them fringe off the seams of his shirt and his leggings, which also are NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 863 yfonx as trophies and ornaments to the dress, and then are familiarly called " acalp-locka." Of these there are many dresses in my Collection, which exhibit a continuous row from the top of each shoulder, down the arms to the wrists, and down the seams of the leggings, from the hips to the feet, rendering them a very costly article to buy from the Indian, who is not sure tliat his success in his military exploits will over enable him to replace them. The scalp, then, is a patch of the skin taken from the head of an enemy killed in battle, and preserved and highly appreciated as the record of a death produced by the hand of the individual who possesses it ; and may oftentimes during his life, be of great service to a man living in a community where there is no historian to enrol the names of the famous — to record the heroic deeds of the brave, who have gained their laurels in mortal combat with their enemies ; where it is as lawful and as glorious to slay an enemy in battle, as it is in Christian communities, and where the poor Indian is bound to keep the record himself, or be liable to lose it and the honor, for no one in the tribe will keep it for him. As the scalp is taken then as the evidence of a death, it will easily be seen, that the Indian has no business or inclination to take it from the head of the living ; which I venture to say is never done in North America, unless it be, as it sometimes has happened, where a man falls in the heat of battle, stunned with the blow of a weapon or a gunshot, and the Indian, rushing over his body, snatches off his scalp, supposing him dead, who afterwards rises from the field of battle, and easily recovers from this superficial wound of the knife, wearing a bald spot on his head during the remainder of his life, of which we have freiiueut occurrences on our Western frontiers. The scalp must be from the head of an enemy also, or it subjects its possessor to disgrace and infamy who carries it. There may be many instances where an Indian is justified in the estimation of his tribe in taking the life of one of his own people ; and their laws are such, ua S64 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE ;^«- oftentimes make it his imperative duty ; and yet no circum- stances, however aggravating, will justify him or rolcuse him from the disgrace of taking the scalp. Thorc i no custom practiced by the Indians, for which they are more universally condemned, than that of taking the scalp; nnd, at the same time, I think there ia surno excuse for them, inasmuch as it is a general custom of tlio countr-', and founded, like many other apparently al surd and r Jiculous customs of these people, in one of the necessities (•'' Indian life, which necessities we are free from in the civiL/.ed worhl, and which customs, of course, wo need not and ilo noi practice. From an ancient custom '■ lie out of mind," the w rriors of thc>o tribes have been in the habit of going to war, expecting to take the scalps of their eueicies whom they may slay in battle, and all eyes of the tribe are upon them, making it their duty to do it; so from custom it is every man's right, and liis duty also, to CO itinue and koep up a regulation of his society whicli it is not in his power as an individual, to abolish or correct, if he saw tit to do it. One of the pi-iiicipal denunciations against the customs of 'taking the sc.dp, is on account of its alleged cruelty, whicli it cortuinly has not : as the criidty would be in tlio killing, and not in the act of cutting the skin from a man's head after he is dead. To say the most of it, it is a dis- gusting custom, and ' wish I could bo quite sure that the civilized and Christian world (who kill hundreds, to where the poor Indians kill one), do not often treat their enemies dead, in equally as indecent and disgusting a manner, as the Indian does by taking the scalp. If the reader thinks that I am taking too much pains to defend the Indians for this, and others of th(dr seemingly abominable customs, he will bear it in mind, that I have lived with these people, until I have learned the necessities of Indian life in which these customs arc founded; and also, that I have met with so many acts of kindness and hospitality at the hands of the poor Indian, that I feel If. -P NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 865 bound, when I can do it, to render what excuse I can for a pcoplo, who are dying with bn^kcn hearts, and never can speak in the civilized worhi in their own defence. And oven yet, reader, if your education, and your reading of Indian cruelties and "^nuian barbarities — of scalps, and scalping-knives', and scalping, should liavo osssified a corner of your heart against these unforti'iato people, and would shut out their advocate, I will uinuy you no longer on this subject, but withdraw, and 1 von to cherish the very beautiful, humane and parenta \\ that was carried out by the United States and ijiitish Governments during the last, and the revolutionary war.«, when they mutually employed thousands of their " Bed children" to aid and to bleed, in fighting their battles, and paid them, according to contract, so many pounds, shillings and pence or so many dollars and cents for every " scalji'^ of a " red" or a " blue coat" they could bring in! The most usual way of preparing and dressing the scalp is that of stretching it on a little hoop at the end of a stick two or three feet long, for the purpose of " dancing it," as as they term it ; which will be described in the scalp-dance, in a few moments. There are many again, which are small, and not "dressed;" sometimes not larger than a crown piece, and hung to different parts of the dress. In public shows and parades, they are often suspended from the bridle bits or halter when they are paraded and carried as trophies. Sometimes they are cut out, as it were into a string, the hair forming a beautiful fringe to line the handle of a war-club. Sometimes they are hung at the end of a club, and at other times, by the order of the chief, are hung out, over the wigwams, suspended from a pole, which is called the ^^ scalp-pole." This is often done by the chief of a village, on a pleasant day, by his erecting over his wigwam a pole with all the scalps that he had taken, arranged upon it, at the sight of which all the chiefs and warriors of the tribe, who had taken scalps, "follow suit;" enabling every member of the community to stroll about mm Wli:']ii"r IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) ^O ^^4^^^ /. <• *i'^% d ^ :/, 1.0 I.I 1.25 1^128 |2.5 1^ 1^ 12.2 It 1*0 1.8 U 11.6 ''^ 7 Photographic Sciences Corporation <*..^ <*^..1^ 33 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14580 (716) 873-4503 ^^^ w z« 866 LETTERS AND NOTES. the village on that day and " count scalps," learning thereby the standing of every warrior, which is decided in a great degree by the number of scalps they have taken in battles with their enemies. So much for scalps and scalping, of which I shall yet say more, unless I should unluckily lose one before I out of the country get LETTER No. XXX. MOUTH OP TETON RIVER, UPPER MISSOURI. In the last letter I gave an account of many of the weapons and other manufactures of these wild folks ; and as this has been a day of packing and casing a great many of these things, which I have obtained of the Indians, to add to my Mus^e Indiennc, I will name a few more, which I have just been handling over ; some description of which may be necessary for the reader in endeavoring to appreciate some of their strange customs and amusements, which I am soon to unfold. The process of " smohing the shieM^ is a very curious, as well as an important one in their estimation. For this purpose a young man about to construct him a shield, digs a hole of two feet in depth, in the ground, and as large in diameter as he designs to make his shield. In this he builds a fire, and over it, a few inches higher than the ground, he stretches the raw hide horizontally over the fire, with little pegs driven (367) S63 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE through holes made near the edges of the skin. This skin is at first, twice as large as the size of the required shield ■ but having got his particular and best friends (who are invited on the occasion,) into a ring, to dance and sing around it, and solicit the Great Spirit to instil into it the power to protect him harmless against his enemies, he spreads over it the glue, which is rubbed and dried in, as the skin is heated ; and a second busily drives other and other pegs, inside of those in the ground, as they are gradually giving way and being pulled up by the con- traction of the skin. By this curious process, which ia most dexterously done, the skin is kept tight whilst it contracts to one-half of its size, taking up the glue and increasing in thickness until it is rendered as thick and hard as required (and his friends have pleaded lono- enough to make it arrow, and almost ball proof), when the dance ceases, and the fire is put out. When it is cooled and cut into the shape that he desires, it is often painted with his medicine or totem upon it, the figure of an eagle, an owl, a buffalo or other animal, as the case may be, which he trusts will guard and protect him from harm; it is then fringed with eagles's quills, or other ornaments he may have chosen, and slung with a broad leather strap that crosses his breast. These shields are carried by all the warriors in these regions, for their protection in battles, which are almost invariably fought from their horses' backs. Of pipes, and the custom of smoking, I have already spoken ; and I then said, that the Indians use several substitutes for tobacco, which they call K^nick K^ncck For the carrying of this delicious weed or bark, and pre- serving its flavor, the women construct very curious jiouches of otter, or beaver or other skins, which are ingeniously ornamented v' "lorcupine quiUs and beads, and generally carried hanj^^-g across the left arm, con- taining a quantity of the precious narcotiCf with flint aod steel, and punk, for lighting the pipe. The musical instruments used amongst these people aro KOBTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 869 few, and exceedingly rude and imperfect, consisting chiefly of rattles, drums, whistles, and lutes, all of which are used in the different tribes. Their rattles (or She-she-quois) most generally used, are made of rawhide, which becomes very hard when dry, and charged with pebbles or something of the kind, which produce a shrill noise to mark the time in their dances and songs. Their drums are made in a very rude manner, often- times with a mere piece of rawhide stretched over a hoop, very much in the shape of a tambourine ; and at other times are made in the form of a keg, with a head of raw- hide at each end ; on these they beat with a drum-stick, which oftentimes itself is a rattle, the bulb or head of it being made of rawhide and filled with pebbles. In other instances the stick has, at its end, a little hoop wound and covered with buck-skin, to soften the sound ; with which they beat on the drum with great violence, as the chief and heel-inspiring sound for all their dances, and also as an accompaniment for their numerous and never-ending songs of amusement, of thanksgiving, and medicine or metai. The mystery whistle, is another instrument of their invention, and very ingeniously made, the sound being produced on a principle entirely different from that of any wind instrument known in civilized inventions; and the notes produced on it, by the sleight or trick of an Indian boy, in so simple and successful a manner, as to baffle entirely all civilized ingenuity, even when it is seen to be played. An Indian boy would stand and blow his notes on this repeatedly, for hundreds of white men who might be lookers-on, not one of whom could make the least noise on it, even by practising with it for hours. When I first saw this curious exhibition, I was charmed with the peculiar sweetness of its harmonic sounds, and completely perplexed, (as hundreds of white men have no doubt been before me, to the great amusement and satisfaction of the women and children,) as to the mode in which the sound was produced, even though it was repeatedly played 24 870 LETTERS AND XOTES ON THE immediately before my eyes, and handed to me for niy vain and amusing endeavors. The sounds of this little simple toy are liquid and sweet beyond description ; and though here only given in harmonies, I am inclined to think, might, by some ingenious musician or musical instrument-maker, bo modulated and converted into some- thing very pleasing, The War-uhistle is a well known and valued little instrument, of six or nine inches in length, invariably made of the bone of the deer or turkey's leg, and generally ornamented with porcupine quills of different colors which are wound around it. A chief or leader carries this to battle with him, suspended generally from his neck, and worn under his dress. This little instrument has but two notes, which are produced by blowing in the ends of it. The note produced in one end, being much more shrill than the other, gives the signal for battle, whilst the other sounds a retreat ; a thing that is distinctly heard and under- stood by every man, even in the heat and noise of battle where all are barking and yelling as loud as possible, and of OQurse unable to hear the commands of their leader. ■. There is yet another wind instrument which I have added to my Collection, and from its appearance would seem to have been borrowed, in part, from the civilized world. This is what is often on the frontier called a ^^ deer- skin Jlute/^ a "Winnebago courting flute," a "tsal-eet- quash-to," &c. ; it is perforated with holes for the fingers, sometimes for six, at others for four, and in some instances for three only, having only so many notes with their octaves. These notes are very irregularly graduated, showing clearly that they have very little taste or ear for melody. These instruments are blown in the end, and the sound produced much on the principle of a whistle. In the vicinity of the Upper Mississippi, I often and familiarly heard this instrument, called the Winnebago courting flute ; and was credibly informed by traders and others in those regions, that the young men of that tribe NORTH AMEBICAN INDIANS. 371 meet with signal sucess, oftentimes, in wooing their sweet- hearts with its simple notes, which they blow for hours together, and from day to day, from the bank of some stream — some favorite rock or log on which they are seated, near to the wigwam which contains the object of their tender passion; until her soul is touched, and she re- sponds by some welcome signal, that she is ready to repay the young Orpheus for his pains, with the gift of her hand and her heart. How true these representations may have been made, I cannot say, but there certainly must have been some ground for the present cognomen by which it is known in that country. From these rude and exceedingly defective instruments, it will at once be seen, that music has made but little progress with these people ; and the same fact will be still more clearly proved, to those who have an opportunity to hear their vocal exhibitions, which are daily and almost hourly serenading the ears of the traveller through their country. Dancing is one of the principal and most frequent cmusements of all the tribes of Indians in America ; and, in all of these, both vocal and instrumental music are in- troduced. These dances consist in about four different steps which constitute all the different varieties ; but the figures and forms of these scenes are very numerous, and produced by the most violent jumps and contortions, ac- companied with the song and beats of the drum, which are given in exact time with their motions. It has been said by some travellers, that the Indian has neither harmony nor melody in his music, but I am unwilling to subscribe t6 such an assertion : although I grant, that for the most part of their vocal exercises, there is a total absence of what the musical world would call melody: their songs being made up chiefly of a sort of violent chaunt of harsh and jarring gutturals, of yelps and barks, and screams, which are given out in perfect time, not only with "method (but with harmony) in their madness." 372 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE There are times too, as every traveller of the Indian country will attest, if he will recall them to his recollection when the Indian lays down by his fire-side with his drum in his hand, which he lightly and almost imperceptibly touches over, as he accompanies it with his stifled voice of dulcet sounds that might come from the most tender and delicate female. These quiet and tender songs are very different from those which are sung at their dances, in full chorus and violent gesticulation ; and many of them seem to be quite rich in plaintive expression and melody, though barren of change and variety. Dancing, I have before said, is one of the principal and most valued amusements of the Indians, and much more frequently practised by them than by any civilized so- ciety ; inasmuch as it enters into their forms of worship, and is often their mode of appealing to the Great Spirit — of paying their usual devotions \o their mcdicinQ — and of honoring and entertaining strangers of distinction in their country. Instead of the "giddy maze" of the quadrille or the country dance, enlivened by the cheering smiles and graces of silkeped beauty, the Indian performs his rounds with jumps, and starts, and yells, much to the satisfaction of his own exclusive self, and infinite amusement of the gentler sex, who are always lookers on, but geldom allowed so great a pleasure, or so signal an honor, as that of joining with their lords in this or any other entertainment. Whilst staying with these people on my way up the river, I was repeatedly honored with the dance, and I as often hired them to give them, or went to overlook where they were performing them at their own pleasure, in pursuance of their peculiar customs, or for their own amusements, that I might study and correctly herald them to future ages. I saw so many of their different varieties of dances amongst the Sioux, that I should almost be disposed to denominate them the ^^ dancing Tndians.^^ It would ac- NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 878 tually seem as if they had dances for every thing. And in 80 large a village there was scarcely an hour in any day or night, but what the beat of the drum could somewhere be heard. These dances are almost as various and diflferent in their character as they are numerous — some of them so exceedingly grotesque and laughable, as to keep the by- standers in an irresistible roar of laughter — others are calculated to excite his pity, and forcibly appeal to his sympathies, whilst others disgust, and yet others terrify and alarm him with their frightful threats and contortions. All the world have heard of the " bear-dance,^^ though I doubt whether more than a very small proportion have ever seen it ; here it is. The Sioux, like all the others of these western tribes, are fond of bear's meat, and must have good stores of the " bear's grease " laid in, to oil their long and glossy locks, as well as the surface of their bodies. And they all like the fine pleasure of a bear hunt, and also a participation in the bear dance, which is given several days in succession, previous to their starting out, and in which they all join in a song to the Bear Spirit; which they think holds somewhere an invisible existence, and must be consulted and conciliated before they can enter upon the excursion with any prospect of success. For this grotesque and amusing scene, one of the chief medicine- men placed over his body the entire skin of a bear, with a war-eagle's quill on his head, taking the lead in the dance, and looking through the skin which formed a masque that hung over his face. Many others in the dance wore masques on their faces, made of the skin from the bear's head; and all, with the motions of their hands, closely imitated the movements of that animal ; some representing its motion in running, and others the peculiar attitude and hanging of the paws, when it is sitting up on its hind feet, and looking out for the approach of an enemy. This grotesque and amusing masquerade oftentimes is continued at intervals, for several days previous to the starting of a party on the bear hunt, who would scarcely count upon a 87:t LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE tolerable prospect of success, without a strict adherence to this most important and indispensable form I Dancing is done here too, as it is oftentimes done in the enlightened world, to get favors— to buy the world's goods; and in both countries danced with about ei^ual merit, except that the Indian has surpassed us in honesty by christening it in his own country, the *^ beggar's dance!^ This spirited dance, was given, not by a set of heggara though, literally speaking, but by the first and most inde- pendent young men in the tribe, beautifully dressed, (i. e. not dressed at all, except with their breech-clouts or hdts^ made of eagles' and ravens' quills,) with their lances, and pipes, and rattles in their hands, and a medicineman beating the drum, and joining in the song at the highest key of his voice. In this dance every one sings as loud as he can halloo ; uniting his voice with the others, in an appeal to the Great Spirit, to open the hearts of the by- standers to give to the poor, and not to themselves; assuring them that the Great Spirit will be kind to those who are kind to the helpless and poor. The Scalp-dance is given as a celebration of a victory; and amongst this tribe, as I learned whilst residing with them, danced in the night, by the light of their torches, and just before retiring to bed. "When a war party returns from a war excursion, bringing home with them the scalps of their enemies, they generally "dance them" for fifteen nights in succession, vaunting forth the most extravagant boasts of their wonderful prowess in war, whilst they bran- dish their war weapons in their hands. A number of young women are selected to aid (though they do not actually join in the dance), by stepping into the centre of the ring, and holding up the Scalps that have been recently taken, whilst the warriors dance (or rather jumj)\ around in a circle, brandishing their weapons, and barking and yelping in the most frightful manner, all jumping on both feet at a time, with a simultaneous stamp, and blow, and thrust of their weapons ; with which it would seem as if NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 875 tlioy wore actually cutting and carving each other to pieces. During these frantic leaps, and yelps, and thrusts, every man distorts his face to the utmost of his muscles, darting about his glaring eye-balls and snapping his teeth, as if he were in the heat (and actually breathing through his infla- ted nostrils the very hissing death) of battle 1 No descrip- tion that can be written, could evet convey more than a feeble outline of the frightful effects of these scenes enacted in the dead and darkness of night, under the glaring light of their blazing flambeaux ; nor could all the years allotted to mortal man, in the least obliterate or deface the vivid impress that one scene of this kind would leave upon his memory. The precise object for which the scalp is taken, is one which is definitely understood, and has already been ex- plained ; but the motive (or motives), for which this strict ceremony is so scrupulously held by all the American tribes over the scalp of an enemy, is a subject, as yet not satisfactorily settled in my mind. There is no doubt, but one great object in these exhibitions is public exultation ; yet there are several conclusive evidences, that there are other and essential motives for thus formally and strictly displaying the scalp. Amongst some of the tribes, it is the custom to bury the scalps after they have gone through this series of public exhibitions; which may in a measure have been held for the purpose of giving them notoriety, and of awarding public credit to the persons who obtained them, and now, from a custom of the tribe, are obliged to part with them. The great respect which seems to be paid to them whilst they use them, as well as the pitying and mournful song which they howl to the manes of their unfortuniite victims ; as well as the precise care and solem- nity with which they afterwards bury the scalps, sufliciently convince me that they have a superstitious dread of the spirits of their slain enemies, and many concilatory offices to perform, to ensure their own peace; one of which is the ceremony above described. LETTER No. XXXT. MOUTH OP TETON RIVER, UPPER MISSOURI. In former Letters I have given some account of the Bisons, or (as tbey are more familiarly denominated in this country) Buffaloes, which inhabit these regions in numerous herds ; and of which I must say yet a little more. These noble animals of the ox species, and which have been so well described in our books on Natural History, are a subject of curious interest and great importance in this vast wilderness; rendered peculiarly so at this time, like the history of the poor savage; and from the same consideration, that they are rapidly wasting away at the approach of civilized man — and like him and his character, in a very few years, to live only in books or on canvass. The word buffalo is undoubtedly most incorrectly applied to these animals, and I can scarcely tell why they have been so called; for they bear just about as much resemblance to the Eastern buffalo, as they do to a zebra or to a common ox. How nearly they may approach to the bison of Europe, which I never have had an opportunity to see, and which, I am inclined to think, is now nearly extinct, I am unable to say; yet if I were to judge from the numerous engravings I have seen of those animals, and (376) KORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 877 descriptions I have road of them, T should be inclined to think, there was yet a wide difference between the bison of the American prairies, and those in the North of Europe and Asia. The American bison, or (as I shall hereafter call it) buffalo, is the largest of the ruminating animals that is now living in America; and seems to have been spread over the plains of this vast country, by the Great Spirit, for the use and subsistence of the red men, who live almost exclusively on their flesh, and clothe themselves with their skins. Their color is a dark brown, but changing very much as the season varies from warm to cold ; their hair or fur, from its great length in the winter and spring, and exposure to the weather, turning quite light, and almost to a jet black, when the winter coat is shed off, and a new growth is shooting out. The buffalo bull often grows to the enormous weight of two thousand pounds, and shakes a long and shaggy black mane, that falls in great profusion and confusion over his head and shoulders ; and oftentimes falling down quite to the ground. The horns are short, but very largo, and have but one turn, t. e. they are a simple arch, without the least approach to a spiral form, like those of the common ox, or of the goat species. The female is much smaller than the mole, and always distinguishable by the peculiar shape of the horns, which are much smaller and more crooked, turning their points more in towards the centre of the forehead. One of the most remarkable characteristics of the buffalo, is the peculiar formation and expression of the eye, the ball of which is very large and white, and the iris jet black. The lids of the eye seem always to be strained quite open, and the ball rolling forward and down ; so that a consider- able part of the iris is hidden behind the lower lid, while the pure white of the eyeball glares out over it in an arch, in the shape of a moon at the end of its first quarter. These animals are, truly speaking, gregarious, but not migratory — they graze in immense and almost incredible I w 878 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE numbers at times, and roam about and over vast tracts of country, from East to West, and from "West to Edst, as often as from North to South ; which has often been sup- posed they naturally and habitually did to accommodate themselves to the temperature of the climate in the differ- ent latitudes. The limits within which they are found in America, are from the thirtieth to the fifty-fifth degrees of North latitude ; and their extent from East to West, which is from the border of our extreme Western frontier limits, to the Western verge of the Rocky Mountains, is defined by quite different causes, than those which the degrees of temperature have proscribed to them on the North and the South. Within these twenty-five degrees of latitude, the buffaloes seem to flourish, and get their living without the necessity of evading the rigor of the climate, for which Nature seems most wisely to have prepared them by tlie greater or less profusion of fur, with which she has clothed them. It is very evident that, as high North aa Lake Winnepeg, seven or eight hundred miles North of this, the buffalo subsists itself through the severest winters ; getting its food chiefly by browzing amongst the timber, and by pawing through the snow, for a bite at the grass, which in those regions is frozen up very suddenly in the beginning of the winter, with all its juices in it, and consequently furnishes very nutritious and efficient food ; and often, if not gene- rally, supporting the animal in better flesh during these difficult seasons of their lives, than they are found to be in, in the thirtieth degree of latitude, upon the borders of Mexico, where the severity of winter is not known, but during a long and tedious autumn, the herbage, under the influence of a burning sun, is gradually dried away to a mere husk, and its nutriment gone, leaving these poor creatures, even in the dead of winter, to bask in the warmth of a genial sun, without the benefit of a green or juicy thing to bite at. The place from whore T am now writing, may be said to NORTH A5IERICAN INDIANS. 879 be the very heart or nucleus of the buffiilo country, about equi-distant between the two extremes ; and of course, the most congenial temperature for them to flourish in. The finest animals that graze on the prairies are to be found in this latitude; and I am sure I never could send from a better scource, some further account of the death and des- truction that is dealt among these noble animals, and •hurrying on their final extinction. The Sioux are a bold and desperate set of horsemen, and great hunters ; and in the heart of their country is one of the most extensive assortments of goods, of whisky, and other saleable commodities, as well as a party of the most indefatigable men, who are constantly calling for every robe that can be stripped from these animals' backs. These are the causes which lead so directly to their rapid destruction ; and which open to the view of the traveller so freshly, so vividly, and so familiarly, the scenes of archery —of lancing, and of death-dealing, that belong peculiarly to this wild and shorn country. The almost countless herds of these animals that are sometimes met with on these prairies, have been often spoken of by other writers, and may yet be seen by any traveller who will take the pains to visit these regions. The " running season" which is in August and September, is the time when they congregate in such masses in some places, as literally to blacken the prairies for miles together. It is no uncommon thing at this season, at these gatherings, to see several thousands in a mass, eddying and wheeling about under a cloud of dust, which is raised by the bulls as they are pawing in the dirt, or engaged in desperate combats, as they constantly are, plunging and butting at each other in the most furious manner. In these scenes, the males are continually following the females, and the whole mass are in constant motion; and all bellowing (or "roaring") in deep and hollow sounds; which, mingled altogether, appear at the distance of a mile or two, like the sound of distant thunder. 'A 880 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE During the season whilst they are congregated together in these dense and confused masses, the remainder of the country around for many miles, becomes entirely vacated: and the traveller may spend many a toilsome day, and many a hungry night, without being cheered by the sight of one ; where, if he retraces his steps a few weeks after, he will find them dispersed, and grazing quietly in little families and flocks, and equally stocking the whole country. In the heat of summer, these huge animals, which, no doubt, suffer very much with the great profusion of their long and shaggy hair of fur, often graze on the low grounds in the prairies, where there is a little stagnant water lying amongst the grass, and the ground underneath being saturated with it, is soft, into which the enormous bull, lowered down upon one knee, will plunge his horns, and at last his head, driving up the earth, and soon making an excavation in the ground, into which the water filters from amongst the grass, forming for him in a few moments, a cool and comfortable bath, into which he plunges like a hog in his mire. In this delectable laver, he throws himself flat upon his side, and forcing himself violently around, with his horns and his huge hump on his shoulders presented to the sides, he ploughs up the ground by his rotary motion, sinking himself deeper and deeper in the ground, continually enlarging his pool, in which he at length becomes nearly immersed ; and the water and mud about him mixed into a complete mortar, which changes his color, and drips in streams from every part of him as he rises up upon his feet, a hideous monster of mud and ugliness, too frightful and too eccentric to be described ! It is generally the leader of the herd that takes upon him to make this excavation ; and if not (but another one opens the ground), the leader (who is conqueror) marches forward, and driving the other from it plunges himself into it ; and having cooled his sides, and changed his color to a walking mass of mud and mortar ; he stands in the pool until NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 881 inclination induces him to step out, and give place to the next in command, who stands ready ; and another, and another, who advance forward in their turns, to enjoy the luxury of the wallow; until the whole band (sometimes an hundred or more) will pass through it in turn; each one throwing his body around in a similar manner ; and each one adding a little to the dimensions of the pool, while he carries away in his hair an equal share of the clay, which dries to a grey or whitish color, and gradually falls off. By this operation, which is done, perhaps, in the space of half an hour, .a circular excavation of fifteen or twenty feet iu diameter, and two feet in depth, is completed, and left for the water to run into, which soon fills it to the level of the ground. To these sinks, the waters lying on the surface of the prairies, are continually draining, and in them lodging their vegetable deposits ; which, after a lapse of years, fill them up to the surface with a rich soil, which throws up au unusual growth of grass and herbage ; forming conspicuous circles which arrest the eye of the traveller, and are calculated to excite his surprise for ages to come. Many travellers who have penetrated not quite far enough into the Western country to see the habits of these animals, and the manner in which these mysterious circles are made ; but who have seen the prairies strewed with their bleached bones, and have beheld these strange circles, which often occur in groups, and of different sizes — have come home with beautiful and ingenious theories (which must needs be made), for the origin of these .singular and unaccountable appearances, which, for want of a rational theory, have generally been attributed to fairy feet, and gained the appellation of "fairy circles^ Many travellers, again, have supposed that these rings were produced by the dances of the Indians, which are oftentimes (and in fact most generally) performed in a circle ; yet a moment's consideration disproves such a probability, inasmuch as the Indians always select the ground for their a «'* 1 —if I 882 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE dancing near the sites of tlieir villages, and that always on a dry and hard foundation : when these " fairy circles" are uniformly found to be on low and wet ground. As my visit to these parts of the " Oreat Far Wesf^ has brought me into the heart of the buffalo country, where I have had abundant opportunities of seeing this noble animal in all its phases — its habits of life, and every mode of its death ; I shall take the liberty of being yet a little more particular, and of rendering some further accounts of scenes which I have witnessed in following out my sporting propensities in these singular regions. The chief hunting amusement of the Indians in these parts consists in the chase of the buffalo, which is almost invariably done on horseback, with bow and lance. In this exercise, which is highly prized by them, as one of their most valued amusements, as well as for the principal mode of procuring meat for their subsistence, they become ex- ceedingly expert ; and are able to slay these huge animals with apparent ease. The Indians in these parts are all mounted on small, but serviceable horses, which are caught by them on the prairies, where they are often running wild in numerous bands. The Indian, then, mounted on his little wild horse, which has been through some years of training, dashes off at full speed amongst the herds of buffaloes, elks, or even antelopes, and deals his deadly arrows to their hearts from his horse's back. The horse is the fleetest animal of the prairie, and easily brings his rider alongside of his game, which falls a certain prey to his deadly shafts, at the distance of a few paces. In the chase of the buffalo, or other animal, the Indian generally "strips" himself and his horse, by throwing off his shield and quiver, and every part of his dress, which might be an encumbrance to him in running ; grasping his bow in his left hand, with five or six arrows drawn from his quiver, and ready for instant use. In his right hand (or attached to the wrist) is a heavy whip, which he uses NORTH AMERICAN INDIAX3. 383 w^ithout mercy, and forces his horse alongside of his game at the swiftest speed. These horses are so trained, that the Indian has little use for the rein, which hangs on the neck, whilst the horse approaches the animal on the right side giving his rider the chance to throw his arrow to the left ; which he does at the instant when the horse is passing — bringing him opposite to the heart, which receives the deadly weapon "to the feather." T7hen pursuing a large herd, the Indian generally rides close in the rear, until he selects the animal he wishes to kill, which he separates from the throng as soon as he can, by dashing his horse between it and the herd, and forcing it off by itself; where he can approach it without the clanger of being trampled to death, to which he is often liable by too closely escorting the multitude. No bridle whatever is used in this country by the Indians, as they have no knowledge of a bit. A short halter however, which answers in place of a bridle, is in general use ; of which they usually form a noose around the under jaw of the horse by which they get great power over the animal ; and which they use generally to stop rataer than guide the horse. This halter is called by the French Traders in the country, Varret, the stop, and has great power in arresting the speed of a horse ; though it is extremely dangerous to use too freely as a guide, interfering too much with the freedom of his limbs, for the certainty of his feet and security of his rider. When the Indian then has directed the course of his steed to the animal which he has selected, the training of the horse is such, that it knows the object of its rider's selection, and exerts every muscle to give it close company ; while the halter lies loose and untouched upon his neck, and the ritlcr leans quite forward, and off from the side of his horse, mth his bow drawn, and ready for the deadly shot, which is given at the instant he is opposite to the animal's body. The horse being instinctively afraid of the animal (though he generally brings his rider within the reach of the end of nm^'.u. ■ •s V ■.'•*• •!"'■ ■? i ■/,'*'»'. v,,,. • , ■.-■.L- 'Mii »■-■ - - J f / r - 'i km'--'. ,' ■,1: 884 LETTEBS AND NOTES ON THE his bow), keeps his eye strained upon the furious enemy he is sc closely encountering; and the moment he has approached to the nearest distance required, and has passed the animal, whether the shot is given or not, he gradually sheers off to prevent coming on to the horns of the infuriated beast, which often are instantly turned, and presented for the fatal reception of its too familiar attendant. These frightful collisions often take place, notwithstanding the sagacity of the horse, and the caution of its rider ; for in these extraordinary (and inexpressible) exhilarations of chase, which seem to drown the prudence alike, of instinct and reason, both horse and rider often seem rushing on to destruction, as if it were mere pastime and amusement. For the novice in these scenes there is much danger of his limbs and his life, and he finds it a hard and desper- ate struggle that brings him in at the death of these huge monsters, except where it has been produced by hands that have acquired more sleight and tact than his own. "With the Indian, who has made this the every day sport and amusement of his life, there is less difl&culty and less danger; he rides without " loosing his breath," and his unagitated hand deals certainty in its deadly blows. In the dead of the winters which are veyy long and severely cold in this country, where horses cannot be brought into the chase with any avail, the Indian runs upon the surface of the snow by the aid of his snow shoes, which buoys him up, while the great weight of the buffaloes, sinks them down to the middle of their sides, and completely stopping their progress, ensures them certain and easy victims to the bow or lance of their pursuers. The snow iu these regions often lies during the winter, to the depth of three and four feet, being blown away from the tops and sides of the hills in many places, which are left bare for the buffaloes to graze upon, whilst it is drifted in the hollows and ravines to a very great depth, and rendered almost entirely impassable to these huge animals, which when closely pursued by their enemies, endeavor to plunije NORTH AMEUICAX IXLIAN3. 885 through it, but nro soon wedged in and almost unable to move where they fall an easy prey to the Indian, who runs up lightly upon his snow shoes and drives his lance to their hearts. The skins are then stripped off, to be sold to the Fur Traders, and the carcasses left to be devoured by the wolves. This is the season in which the greatest number of these animals are destroyed for their robes — they are most easily killed at this time, and their hair or fur being longer and more abundant, gives greater value to the robe. The Indians generally kill and dry meat enough in the fall, when it is fat and juicy, to last them through the win- ter: so that they have little other object for this unlimited slaughter, amid the drifts of snow, than that of procuring their robes for traffic with their Traders. The snow shoes are made in a great many forms, of two and three feet in length, and one foot or more in width, of a hoop or hoops bent around for the frame, with a netting or web woven across with strings of rawhide, on which the feet rest, and to which they are fastened with straps somewhat like a skate. With these the Indian will glide over the snow with astonishing quickness, without sinking down, or scarcely leaving his track where he has gone. The poor buffaloes have their enemy man, besetting and beseiging them at all times of the year, and in all the modes that man in his superior wisdom has been able to devise for their destruction. They struggle in vain to evade his deadly shafts, when he dashes amongst them over tho plains on his wild horse — they plunge into the snow- drifts whoro they yield themselves an easy prey to their destroyers, and they also stand unwittingly and behold him, unsuspected under the skin of a white wolf, insinuating himself and his fatal weapons into close company, when they are peaceably grazing on the level prairies and shot down before they are aware of their danger. Tliere are several varieties of the wolf species in this country, the most formidable and most numerous of which are white, often sneaking about in gangs or families of fifty 25 ^i.ir 886 LBTfEUS A:JD notes ON THE or sixty in numbers, appearing in distance, on the green prairies like nothing but a flock of sheep. Many of these animals grow to a very great size, being I should think, quite a match for the largest Newfoundland dog. At pre- sent whilst the buffaloes are so abundant, and these fero- cious animals are glutted with the buffalo's flesh, they are harmless, and everywhere sneak away from man's presence ; which I scarcely tliink will be the case after the buffaloes are all gone, and they are left, as they must be, with scarcely anything to eat. They always are seen following about in the vicinity of herds of bufl'aloes and stand ready to pick the bones of those that the hunters leave on the ground, or to overtake aud devour those that are wounded, which fall an easy prey to them. While the herd of buffaloes are together, they seem to have little dread of the wolf, and allow them to come in close company with them. nuirriNO thb BurrxLO in disguibb. The Indian then has taken advantage of this fact, and often places himself under the skin of this animal, and crawls >'ORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 887 for half a mile or more on his hands and knoes, until he approaches within a few rods of the unsuspecting group, and easily shoots down the fattest of the throng. The buffalo is a very timid animal, and shuns the vicin- ity of man with the keenest sagacity ; yet when overtaken, and harassed or wounded, turns upon its assailants with the utmost fury, who have only to seek safety in flight. In their desperate resistance the finest horses are often des- troyed; but the Indian, with his superior sagacity and dexterity, generally finds some effective mode of escape. During the season of the year whilst. the calves are young, the male seems to stroll about by the side of the dam, as if for the purpose of protecting the young, at which time it is exceedingly hazardous to attack them, as they are sure to turn upon their pursuers, who have often to fly to each other's assistance. The buffalo calf, during the first six months is red, and has so much the appearance of a red calf in cultivated fields, that it could easily be mingled and mistaken amongst them. In the fall, when it changes its hair it takes a brown coat for the winter, which it always retains. In pursuing a large herd of buffaloes at the season when their calves are but a few weeks old, I have often been exceedingly amused with the curious manoeuvres of these shy little things. Amidst the thundering confusion of a throng of several hundreds or several thousands of these animals, there will be many of the calves that lose sight of their dams ; and being left behind by the throng, and the swift passing hunters, they endeavor to secrete themselves, when they are exceedingly put to it on a level prairie, where nought can be seen but the short grass of six or eight inches in height, save an occasional bunch of wild sage, a few inches higher, to which the poor affrighted things will run, and dropping on their knees, will push their noses under it, and into the grass, where they will stand for hours, with their eyes shut, imagining themselves securely hid, whilst they are stand- ing up quite straighw upon their hind feet and can easily bo i " w J'^lli '♦'■JS" . r ;s 888 LETTERS AND X0TE3 ON TUB scou at several miles distance. It is a familiar amusement for us accustomed to these scenes, to retreat back over the ground where we have just escorted the herd, and approach these little trembling things, which stubbornly maintain their positions, with their noses pushed under the grass, and their eyes strained upon us, as we dismount from our horses and are passing around them. From this fixed position they are sure not to move, until hands are laid upon thorn, and then for the shins of a novice, we can extend our sympathy ; or if he can preserve the skin on his bones from the furious buttings of its head, we know how to con- gratulate him on his signal success and good luck. In these desperate struggles for a moment, the little thing is con- quered, and makes no further resistance. And I have often, in concurrence with a known custom of the country, held my hands over the eyes of the calf, and breathed a few strong breaths into its nostrils ; after which I have, with my hunting companions, rode several miles into our encampment, with the little prisoner busily following the heels of my horse the whole way, aa closely and as affec- tionately as its instinct would attach it to the company of its dam 1 This is one of the most extraordin^y things that I have met with in the habits of this wild country, and although I had often heard of it, and felt unable exactly to believe it, I am now willing to bear testimony to the fact, from the numerous instances which I have witnessed since I came into the country. During the time that I resided at this post, in the spring of the year, on my way up the river, I assisted (in numerous hunts of the buffalo, with the Fur Company's men,) in bringing in, in the above manner, several of these little prisoners, which sometimes followed foi^va or six miles close to our horses' heels, and even into the Fur Company's Fort, and into the stable where our horses were led. In this way, before I left for the head waters of the Missouri, I think we had collected about a dozen, which Mr. Laidlaw was successfully raising with the NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 889 aid of a good milch cow, and which were to be committed to the care of Mr. Chouteau to be transported by the return of the steamer, to his extensive plantation in the vicinity joi St. Louia.* It is truly a melancholy contemplation for the traveller in this country, to anticipate the period which is not far distant, when the last of these noble animals, at the hands of white and red men, will fall victims to their cruel and improvident rapacity ; leaving these beautiful green fields, a vast and idle waste, unstocked and unpeopled for ages to come, until the bones of the one and the traditions of the other will have vanished, and left scarce an intelligible trace behind. That the reader should not think me visionary in these contemplations, or romancing in making such assertions, I will hand him the following item of the extravagances which are practiced in these regions, and rapidly leading to the results which I have just named. When I first arivcd at this place, on my way up the river, which was in the month of May, in 1832, and had taken up my lodgings in the Fur Company's Fort, Mr. Laidlaw, of whom I have before spoken, and also his chief clerk, Mr. Halsey, and many of their men, as well as the chiefs of the Sioux, told me, that only a few days before I arrived, (when an immense herd bf buflaloes had showed themselves on the opposite side of the river, almost black- ening the plains for a great distance,) a party of five or six hundred Sioux Indians on horseback, forded the river about mid-day, and spending a few hours amongst them recrossed the river at sun-down and came into the Fort with fourteen hundred fresh buffalo tongues, which were * The fate of these poor little prisoners, I was informed on my return to St. Louis a year afterwards, was a very disastrous one. The steamer having a distance of sixteen hundred miles to perform, and lying a week or two on sand bars, in a country where milk could not bo procured, they all perished but one, which is now flourishing in the cxtcDbivc fields of this gentleman. m 890 LETTERS AXD NOTES ON THE thrown down in a mass, and for which they required hut a few gallons of whiaky, which was soon demolished indulging them in a little, and harmless carouse. This profligate waste of the lives of these nohlo and use% ful animals, when, from all that I could learn, not a skin or a pound of the meat (except the tongues), was brought in fully supports me in the seemingly extravagant predictions that I have made as to their extinction, which I am certain is near at hand. In the above extravagant instance, at a season when their skins were without fur and not worth taking off, and their camp was so well stocked with fresh and dried meat, that they had no occasion for using the flesh, there is a fair exhibition of the improvident character of the savage, and also of his recklessness in catering for his appetite, so long as the present inducements are held out to him in his country, for its gratification. In this singular country, where the poor Indians have no laws or regulations of society, making it a vice or an impropriety to drink to excea*!, they think it no harm to indulge in the delicious beverage, as long as they are able to buy whisky to drink. They look to white men as wiser than themselves, and able to set them examples—- they see none of these in their country but sellers of whisky, who are constantly tendering it to them, and most of them setting the example by using it themselves; and they easily acquire a taste, that to be catered for, where whisky is sold at sixteen dollars per gallon, soon impove- rishes them, and must soon strip the skin from the last buffalo's back that lives in their country, to "be dressed by their squaws" and vended to the Traders for a pint of diluted alcohol. From the above remarks it will be seen, that not only the red men, but red men and white, have aimed destruc- tion at the race of those animals; and with thetn, leasts have turned hunters of buffaloes in this country, slaying them, however, in less numbers, and for fur more laudable purpose than that of selling their skins. The white wolves, NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN'S. 891 of which *I havo spoken in a former epistle, ftllow tho herds of bufl'aloes as I have paid, from one season to another, glutting themselves on tlu carcasses of those that fall by tho deadly shaftH of their enemi'^s, or linger witli disease or old age to bo dispatched by these sneaking cormorants, who aro ready at all times kindly to relieve them from tho pangs of a lingering death. Whilst tho herd is together the wolves never attack them, as they instantly gather for combined resistance, which they effectually make. But when the herds are travelling, it often happens that an aged or wounded one, lingers at a distance behind, and when fairly out of sight of the herd, is sot upon by these voracious hunters, which often gather to the number of fifty or more, and are sure at last to torture him to death, and use him up at a meal. The buffalo, however, is a huge and furious animal, and when his retreat is cut off, makes desperate and deadly resistance, contending to tho last moment for the right of life — and oftentimes deals death by wholesale, to his canine assailants, which he is tossing into the air or stamping to death under his feet. During my travels in these regions, I have several times come across such a gang of these animals surrounding an old or a wounded bull, where it would seem, from appear- ances, that they had been for several days in attendance, and at intervals desperately engaged in the eftbrt to take his life. But a short time since, as one of my hunting companions and myself were returning to our encampment with our horses loaded with meat, we discovered at a distance, a huge bull, encircled with a gang of white wolves ; we rode up as near as we could without driving them away, and being within pistol shot, we had a remark- ably good view, where I sat for a few moments and made a sketch in my note-book ; after which, we rode up and gave the signal for them to disperse, which they instantly did, withdrawing themselves to the distance of fifty or sixty l'5 rods, when we found, to our great surprise, that the &. ■'* ■ '■':'%^ '- . -H 892 LETTERS AXD NOTES OS THE nnimal had made desperate resistance, until his eyes were entirely eaten out of his head — the gristle of his nose was mostly gone — his tongue was half eaten off, and the skin and flesh of his legs torn almost literally into strings. In this tattered and torn condition, the poor old veteran stood bracing up in the midst of his devourers, who had ceased hostilities for a few minutes, to enjoy a sort of parley, recovering strength and preparing to resume the attack in a few moments again. In this group, some were reclining, to gain breath, whilst others were sneaking about and licking their chaps in anxiety for a renewal of the attack; and others, less lucky, had been crushed to death by the feet or the horns of the bull. I rode nearer to the pitiable object as he stood bleeding and trembling before me, and said to him, " Now is your time, old fellow, and you had better be off." Though blind and nearly destroyed, there seemed evidently to be a recognition of a friend in me, as he straightened up, and trembling with excitement, dashed off at full speed upon the prairie, in a straight line. We turned our horses and resumed our march, and when we had advanced a mile or more, we looked back, and on our left, where we saw again the ill-fated animal surrounded by his tormentors, to whose insatiable voracity he unques^ tionably soon fell a victim. Thus much I wrote of the buffaloes, and of the accidents that befall them, as well as of the fate that awaits them ; and before I closed my book, I strolled out one day to the shade of a plum-tree, Avhere I laid in the grass on a favorite bluff, and wrote thus: — " It is generally supposed, and flimiliarly said, that a man ^falls' into a reverie ; but I seated myself in the shade a few minutes since, resolved to force myself into one ; and for tliis purpose I laid open a stnall poekct-map of North America, and excluding my thoughts from every otlicr object in the worM, I .so *n succeeded in producing the desired illusion. I'hi.-; little chart, over which I bent, was Been in all its parts, as nu'Jiing but the green and vivid ii. .1 NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 893 reality. I was lifted u'^ upon an imaginary pair of wings, which easily raised an ' held me floating in the open air, from whence I could behold beneath me the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans — the great cities of the East, and the mighty rivers. I could see the blue chain of the great lakes at the North — the Rocky Mountains, and beneath them and near their base, the vast, and almost boundless plains of grass, which were speckled with the bands of grazing buffaloes 1 " The world turned gently around, and I examined its surface; continent after continent passed under my eye, and yet amidst them all, I saw not the vast and vivid green, that is spread like a carpet over the Western wilds of my own country. I saw not elsewhere in the world, the myriad herds of buffaloes — my eyes scanned in vain, for they were not. And when I turned again to the wilds of my native land, I beheld them all in motion 1 For the distance of several hundred miles from North to South, they were wheeling about in vast columns and herds — some were scattered, and ran with furious wildness — some lay dead, and others were pawing the earth for a hiding- place — some were sinking down and dying, gushing out their life's blood in deep drawn sighs — and others were contending in furious battle for the life they possessed, and the ground that they stood upon. They had long since assembled from the thickets, and secret haunts of the deep forest, into the midst of the treeless and bushless plains, as the place for their safety. I could see in an hundred places, amid the wheeling bands, and on their skirts and flanks, the leaping wild horse darting among them. I saw not the arrows, nor heard the twang of the sinewy bows that sent them; but I saw their victims fall! — on other steeds that rushed along their sides, I saw the glistening lances, which seemed to lay across them ; their blades wore blazing in the sun, till dipped in blood, and then I lost them! In other parts (and there were many), the vivid flash ofjire-arms was soon — their victims fell too, and over ■•"tuiii r 894 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE their dead bodies hung suspended in air, little clouds of whitened smoke, from under which the flying horsemen had darted forward to mingle again with, and deal death to, the trampling throng. " So strange were men mixed (both red and white) with the countless herds that wheeled and eddyed about, that all below seemed one vast extended field of battle — whole armies, in some places, seemed to blacken the earth's surface; — in other parts, regiments, battalions, wings, platoons, rank and file, and ^^ Indian fiW^ — all were in motion : and death and destruction seemed to be the watch-word amongst them. In their turmoil, they sent up great clouds of dust, and with them came the mingled diu of groans and trampling hoofs, that seemed like the rum- bling of a dreadful cataract, or the roaring of distant thunder. Alternate pity and admiration harrowed up in my bosom and my brain, many a hidden thought; and amongst them a few of the beautiful notes that were once Bung, and exactly in point ; * Quadrupedante putrem sonitu quatit ungula campum. ' Even such was the din amidst the quadrupeds of these vast plains. And from the craggy cliffe of the Rocky Mountains also were seen descending into the valley, the myriad Tartars who had not horses to ride, but before their well-drawn bows the fattest of the herds were falling. Hundreds and thousands were strewed upon the plains — they were flayed, and their reddened car- casses left; and about them bands of wolves, and dogs, and buzzards were seen devouring them. Contiguous, and in sight, were the distant and feeble smokes of wigwams and villages, where the skins were dragged, and dressed for white man's luxury I where they were all sold for whisky, and the poor Indians laid drunk and were crying. I cast my eyes into the towns and cities of the East, and there I beheld buffiilo robes hanging at almost every door for traffic ; and I saw also the curling smokes of a thousand Stills — and I said, ' Oh insatiable man, is tliy avarice such ! wouldst thou tear the skin from the back of the last NOBTU AMERICAN INDIANS. 895 animal of this noble race, and rob thyfelhw-man of his tneatf and/or it give him poiaon I ' " * * * » * *» «»» «#« Many are the rudenesses and wilds in Nature's works which are destined to fall before the deadly axe and deso- lating hands of cultivating man; and so amongst her ranks of living^ of beasts and human, we often find noble stamps, or beautiful colors, to which our admiraaon clings ; and even in the overwhelming march of civilized improvements and refinements do we love to cherish their existence, and lend our efforts to preserve them in their primitive rudeness. Such of Nature's works are always worthy of our preservation and protection ; and the further we become separated (and the face of the country) froni that pristine wildness and beauty, the more pleasure does the mind of enlightened man feel in recurring to those scenes, whore he can have them preserved for his eyes and his mind to dwell upon. Of such " rudenesses and wilds," Nature has no where presented more beautiful and lovely scenes, than those of the vast prairies of the West ; and of man and heast, no nobler specimens than those who inhabit them — the Indian and the buffalo — joint and original tenants of the soil, and fugitives together from the approach of civilized man; they have fled to the great plains of the "West, and there, under an equal doom, they have taken up their last abode, where their race will expire, and their bones will bleach together. It may be that power is right and voracity a virtue ; and that these people, and these uoble animals, are righteously doomed to an issue that will not be averted. It can be easily proved — we have a civilized science that can easily do it, or anything else that may be required to cover the iniquities of civilized man in catering for his unholy appe- tites. It can be proved that the weak and ignorant have no rights — that there can be no virtue in darkness — that God's gifts have no meaning or merit until they are appropriated 896 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE by civilized man — by him brought into the light, and con- verted to hid use and luxury. We have a mode of reasoning (I forget what it is called) by which all this can be proved, and even more. The word and the system are entirely of civilized origin ; and latitude is admirably given to them in proportion to the increase of civilized wants which often require a judge to overrule the laws of nature. I say that ive can prove such things ; but an Indian cannot. It is a mode of reasoning unknown to him in his nature's simplicity, but admirably adapted to subserve the interests of the enlightened world, who are always their own judges when dealing with the savage ; and who, in the present refined age, have many appetites that can only be lawfully indulged, by proving God's laws defective. It is not enough in this polished and extravagant a^e that we get from the Indian his lands, and the very clothes from his back, but the food from their mouths must be stopped, to add a new and useless article to the fashionable world's luxuries. The ranks must be thinned, and the race exterminated, of this noble animal, and the Indians of the great plains left without the means of supporting life, that white men may figure a few years longer, enveloped in bufialo robes — that they may spread them, for their pleasure and elegance over the backs of their sleighs, and trail them ostentatiously amidst the busy throng, as things of beauty and elegance that had been made for them! Ecader ! listen to the following calculations, and forget them not. The buffaloes (the quadrupeds from whose backs your beautiful robes were taken, and whose myriads were once spread over the whole country, from the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean) have recently fled before the appalling appearance of civilized man, and taken up their abode and pasturage amid the almost boundless prairies of the West. An instinctive dread of their deadly Iocs, wlio made an easy prey of them whilst grazing in the forest, has lead tlieni to seek the midst of the vast and NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 897 treeless plains of grass, as the spot where they would be least exposed to the assaults of their enemies ; and it is ex- clusively in those desolate fields of silence (yet of beauty) that they are to be found — and over these vast steppes, or prairies, have they fled like the Indian, towards the "set- ting sun ;" until their bands have been crowded together, and their limits confined to a narrow strip of country on this side of the Rooky Mountains. This strip of country, which extends from the province of Mexico to Lake "Winnepeg on the North is almost one entire plain of grass, which is, and ever must be, useless to cultivating man. It is here, and here chiefly, that the buffiiloes dwell ; and with, and hovering about them, live and flourish the tribes of Indians, whom God made for the enjoyment of that fair land and its luxuries. It is a melancholy contemplation for one who has travelled, as I have, through these realms, and seen this noble animal in all its pride and glory, to contemplate it so rapidly wasting from the world, drawing the irresistible conclusion, too, which one must do, that its species is soon to be extinguished, and with it the peace and happiness (if not the actual existence) of the tribes of Indians who are joint tenants with ihem, in the occupancy of these vast and idle plains. And what a splendid contemplation too, when one (who has travelled these realms, and can duly appreciate them) imagines them as they might in future be seen, (by some great protecting policy of government) preserved in their pristine beauty and wildness, in a magnificent parh, where the world could see for ages to come, the native Indian in his classic attire, galloping his wild horse with sinewy bow, and shield and lance, amid the fleeting herds of elks and buffaloes. What a beautiful and thrilling specimen for America to preserve and hold up to the view of her refined citizens and the world, in future ages! A nation's Parh, containing man and beast, in all the wildness and fresh- ness of their nature's beauty ! :if FS'- i- W'.i" «1 UiTf f- y, I ¥ ■ J? 898 LETTERS AND K0TE3 ON THE I would ask no other monument to my memory, nor any other enrolment of my name amongst the famous dead than the reputation of having been the founder of such an institution. Such scenes might easily have been preserved, and still could be cherished on the great plains of the West, with- out detriment to the country or its borders ; for the tracts of country on which the buffaloes have assembled, are uniformly sterile, and of no available use to cultivating man. It is on these plains, which are stocked with buffaloes that the finest specimens of the Indian race are to be seen. It is here, that the savage is decorated in the richest cos- tume. It is here, and here only, that his wants are all satisfied, and even the luxuries of life are afforded him in abundance. And here also is he the proud and honorable man (before he has had teachers or laws, about the im- portant wants, which beget meanness and vice) ; stimulated by ideas of honor and vii-tue, in which the Go'l of Nature has certainly not curtailed him. There are, by a fair calculatio'i, more than three hun dred thousand Indians, who are now subsisted on the flesh of the buffaloes, and by those animals supplied with all the luxuries of life which they desire, as they know of none others. The great variety of uses to which they convert the body and other parts of that animal, are almost in- credible to the person who has not actually dwelt amongst these people, and closely studied their modes and customs. Every part of their flesh is converted into food, in one shape or another, and on it they entirely subsist. The robf^s of the animals are worn by the Indians instead of blankets — their skins when tanned, are used as coverings for their lodges and for their beds; undressed, they are used for constructing canoes — for saddles, for bridles— I'arrC'ts, lasos, and thongs. The horns are shaped into ladles and spoons — the brains are used for dicssin-; tl;o skins— th >ii' bones are used for saddle trees — for war clubs, NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 899 and scrapers for graining the robes— and others are broken up for the marrow-fat which is contained in them. Their sinews are used for strings and backs to their bows — for thread to string their beads and sew their dresses. The feet of the animals are boiled, with their hoofs, for the glue thoy contain, for fastening their arrow-points, and many other uses. The hair from the head and shoulders, which is long, is twisted and braided into halters, and the tail is used for a fly brush. In this wise do these people convert and use the various parts of this useful animal, and with all these luxuries of life about them, and their numerous games, they are happy (God bless them) in the ignorance of the disastrous fate that awaits them. Yet this interesting community, with its sports, its wildnesses, its languages, and all its manners and customs, could be perpetuated, and also the buffaloes, whose numbers would increase and supply them with food for ages and centuries to come, if a system of non-intercourse could be established and preserved. But such is not to be the case —the buffalo's doom is sealed, and with their extinction must assuredly sink into real despair and starvation, the inhabitants of theso vast plains, which afford for the Indians, no other possible means of subsistence ; and they must at last fall a prey to wolves and buzzards, who will have no other bones to pick. It seems hard and cruel, (does it not ?) that we civilized people with all the luxuries and comforts of the world about us, should be drawing from the backs of t1 ^se useful animals the skins for our luxury, leaving their carcasses to be devoured by the wolves — that we should draw from that country, some one hundred and fifty or two hundred thousand of their robes annually, the greater part of which arc taken from animals that are killed expressly for the robe, at a season when the meat is not cured and preserved, and for each of which skins the Indian has received but a pint of whisky. Such is the fact, and that number or near it arp annually i' ^s Mi 400 LETTER3 AND NOTES ON THE destroyed, in addition to the number that is necessarilv killed for the subsistence of three hundred thousand Indians, who live entirely upon them. It may be said perhaps, that the Fur Trade of these great western realms which is now limited chiefly to the purchase of buffalo robes is of great and national importance, and should and must be encouraged. To such a suggestion I would reply, by merely enquiring (independently of the poor Indians' disasters,) how much more advantageously would such a capital be employed, both for the weal of the country and for the owners, if it were invested in machines for the manufacture of woolen robes, of equal and superior value and beauty ; thereby encouraging the growers of wool, and the industrious manufacturer, rather than cultivating a taste for the use of buffalo skins ; which is just to be acquired and then, from necessity, to be dispensed with, when a few years shall have destroyed the last of the animals producing them. It may be answered, perhaps, that the necessaries of life are given in exchange for these robes ; but what, I would ask, are the necessities in Indian life, where they have buffaloes in abundance to live on ? The Indian's necessities are entirely artificial — are all created ; and when the buffaloes shall have disappeared in his country, which will be within eight or ten years, I would ask, who is to supply him with the necessarie3 of life then ? and I would ask, further, (and leave the question to be answered ten years hence), when the skins shall have been stripped from the back of the last animal, who is to resist the ravages of three hundred thousand starving savages; and in their trains, one million five hundred thousand wolves, whom direst necessity will have driven from their desolate and gamcless plains, to seek for the means of subsistence along our exposed frontier? God has everywhere supplied man in a state of Nature, with the necessaries of life, and before we de. troy the game of his country, or teach him new desires, he ^as no wants that are not satisfied. NORTn AMERICAN INDIANS. 401 Amongst the tribes who have been impoverished and repeatedly removed, the necessaries of life are extended with a better grace from the hands of civilized man; ninety thousand of such have already been removed, and they draw from Government some five or six hundred thousand dollars annually in cash ; which money passes immediately into the hands of white wen, and for it the necessaries of life may be abundantly furnished. But who, I would ask, are to furnish the Indians who have been instructed in this unnatural mode — living upon such necessaries, and even luxuries of life, extended to them by the hands of white men, when those annuities are at an end, and the skin is stripped from the last of the animals which God gave them for their subsistence ? Eeader, I will stop here, lest you might forget to answer these important queries — these are questions which I know will puzzle the world — and, perhaps it is not right that I should ask them. » * * » ****** * * Thus much I wrote and painted at this place, whilst on my way up the river : after which I embarked on the steamer for the Yellow Stone, and the sources of the Missouri, through which interesting regions I have made a successful Tour ; and have returned, as will have been seen by the foregoing narrations, in my canoe, to this place, from whence I am to descend the river still further in a few days. If I ever get time, I may give further Notes on this place, and of people and their doings, which I met with here ; but at present, I throw my note- book, and canvass, and brushes into my canoe, which will he launched to-morrow morning, and on its way towards St. Louis, with myself at the steering-oar, as usual; and with Ba'tiste and Bogard to paddle, of whom, I beg the reader's pardon for having said nothing of late, though they have been my constant companions. Our way is now over the foaming and muddy waters of the Missouri, and amid snags and drift logs (for there is a sweeping freshet on her 26 > |i :P|::n:;--';i 402 LETTERS AND NOTES. waters), and many a day will pass before other Letters will come from me ; and possibly, the reader may have to look to my biographer for the rest. Adieu. . , ■ r r f , 1 -u- . LETTER No. XXXH. FORT LEAVENWORTH, LOWER MISSOURI. The readers, I presume, will have felt some anxiety for me and the fate of my little craft, after the close of my last Letter ; and I have the very great satisfaction of announcing to them that we escaped snags and sawyers, and every other clanger, and arrived here safe from the Upper Missouri, where my last letters were dated. We, (th \ ''^lA^ifjfcii :ii 410 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE journey to the " beautiful hunting grounds of the shades of his flithers" — with his flint and steel, and his tinder, to light his pipe by the way. The scalps that he had taken from his enemies' heads, could be trophies for nobody else, and were hung to the bridle of his horse — he was in full dress and fully equipped ; and on his head waved, to the last moment, his beautiful head-dress of the war-eagle's plumes. In this plight, and the last funeral honors having been performed by the medicine-men, every warrior of his band painted the palm and fingers of his right hand with vermilion ; which wab stamped, and perfectly impressed on the milk-white sides of his devoted horse. This all done, turfs were brought and placed around the feet and legs of the horse, and gradually laid up to its sides ; and at last, over ^he back and head of the unsuspec- ting animal, and last of all, over the head and even the eagle plumes of its valiant rider, where altogether have smouldered and remained undisturbed to the present day. This mound which is covered with a green turf, and spotted with wild flowers, with its cedar post in its centre, can easily be seen at the distance of fifteen miles, by the voyageur, and forms for him a familiar and useful land- mark. ' "Whilst visiting this mound in company with Major Sanford, on our way up the river, I discovered in a hole made in the mound, by a *' ground hog" or other animal, the skull of the horse ; and by a little pains, also came at the skull of the chief, which I carried to the riverside, and secreted till my return n my canoe, when I took it in, and brought with me to this place, where I now have it, with others which I have collected on my route. There have been some very surprising tales told of this man, which will render him famous in history, whether they be truth or matters of fiction. Of the many, one of the most current is, that he gained his celebrity and authority by the most diabolical series of munhirs in his own tribe ; by administering arsenic (with which he had NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 41i ■been supplied by the Fur Traders) to such of his enemies as he wished to get rid of — and even to others in his tribe whom he was willing to sacrifice, merely to establish his superhuman powers, and the most servile dread of the tribe, from the certainty with which his victims fell around him, precisely at the times he saw fit to predict their death 1 It has been said that he administered this potent drug, and to them unknown medicine, to many of his friends as well as to foes; and by such an inhuman and unparalleled depravity, succeeded in exercising the most despotic and absolute authority in his tribe, until the time of his death ! This story may be true, and it may not. I cannot contradict it; and I am sure the world will forgive me, if I say, I cannot believe it. If it be true, two things are also true ; the one, not much to the credit of the Indian character ; and the other, to the everlasting infamy of the Fur Traders. If it be true, it furnishes an instance of Indian depravity that I never have elsewhere heard of in my travels ; and carries the most conclusive proof of the incredible enormity of white man's dealings in this country ; who, for some sinister purpose must have introduced the poisonous drug into the country, and taught the poor chief how to use it ; whilst they were silent accessories to the murders he was committing. This story is said to have been told by the Fur Traders ; and although I have not always the highest confidence in their justice to the Indian, yet, I cannot for the honor of my own species, believe them to be so depraved and so wicked, nor so weak, as to reveal such iniquities of this chief, if they were true, which must directly implicate themselves as accessories to his most wilful and unprovoked murders. Such he has been heralded, however, to future ages, as a murderer — like hundreds and thousands of other.-^, as " horse thieves" — as " drunkards" — as *' rogues of the first order," &c., &c., — by the historian who catches but a glaring story (and perhaps fabrication) of their lives, and has no time nor disposition to enquire into and record 412 LETTERS AND NO'j.ES ON THE their long and brilliant list of virtues, which must be lost in the shade of infamy, for want of an historian. I have learned much of this noble chieftain, and at a proper time shall recount the modes of his civil and military life — how he exposed his life, and shed his blood in rescuing the victims to horrid torture, and abolished that savage custom in his tribe — how he led on and headed his brave warriors, against the Sacs and Foxes ; and saved the butchery of his women and children — how he received the Indian agent, and entertained him in his hospitable Avrigwara, in his village — and how he conducted and acquitted himself on his embassy to the civilized world. So much I will take pains to say, of a man whom I never saw, because other historians have taken equal pains just to mention his name, and a solitary (and doubtful j act of his life, as they have said of hundreds of others, for the purpose of consigning him to infamy. How much more kind would it have been fo.,- the historian, who never saw him, to have enumerated with this, other characteristic actions oi' his life (for the verdict of th ■ world) ; or to have allowed, in charity, his bones and his n.ime to have slept in silence, instead of calling them up from the grave, to thrust a dagger through them, and throw them back again. Book-making now-a-days, is done for money-making; and he who takes the Indian for his theme, and cannot go and sec him, finds a poverty in his matter that naturally begets error, by grasping at every little tale that is brought or fabricated by their enemies. Such books are standards, because they are made for white man's reading only ; and licrald the character of a people who never can disprove them. They answer the purpose for which they are written ; and the poor Indian who has no redress, stands stigmatized and branded, as a murderous wretch and boast. If the system of book-making and newspaper printing were in operation in the Indian country awhile, to herald NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 413 the iniquities and liorriblo barbarities of white men in these Western regions, which now are sure to be overlooked ; I venture to say, tliat chapters would soon be printed, which would sicken the reader to his heart, and set up the Indian, a fair and tolerable num. There is no more b.-autifil prairie country in the world, than that which is to be seen in this vicinity. In looking back from this bluff, towards the West, there is, to an aln.ost boundless extent, one of the most beautiful scenes imaginable. The surface of the country is gracefully and slightly undulating, like the swells of the retiring ocean after a heavy storm. And everywhere covered with a beautiful green tuif, and with occasional patches and clusters of trees. The soil in this region is also rich, and capable of making one of the most beautiful and pro- ductive countries in the world. Ba'tiste and Bogard used their rifles to some effect during the day that we loitered here, and also gathered great quantities of delicious grapes. From this lovely spot we embarked the next morning, and glided through constantly changing scenes of beauty, until we landed our canoe at the base of a beautiful series of grass-covered bluffs, which, like thousands and thousands of others on the banks of this river, are designated by no name, that I know of. My canoe was landed at noon, at the base of these picturesque hills — and there rested till the next morning. As soon as we were ashore, I scrambled to their summits, took my easel, and canvass and brushes, to the top of the bluff* and painted two views from the same spot ; the one looking up, and the other down the river. The reader, by imagining th:;se hills to bo five or six hundred feet high, and every foot of them, as far as they can be discovered iu distance, covered with a vivid green turf, whilst the sun is gilding one side, and throwing a cool shadow on the other, will be enabled to form something like an adequate idea of the shores of the Missouri. From this enchanting ^1 " 1 - i» .1 >f.i'< 414 LETTERS AND NOTES ON THE spot there was nothing to arrest the eye from ranging over its waters for the distance of twenty or thirty miles, whore it quietly glides between its barriers, formed of thousands of green and gracefully sloping hills, with its rich and allu- vial meadows, and woodlands — and its hundred islands covered with stately cotton-wood. The rains are wearing down the clay-bluffs, cutting gullies or sluices behind them, and leaving them at last to stand out in relief, in these rounded and graceful forms, until in time they get seeded over, and nourish a growth of green grass on their sides, which forms a turf, and protects their surface, pre- serving them for centuries, in the forms that are here seen. The tops of the highest of these bluffs