Edwin James

“ Between three and four hundred mounted Indians, dressed in their richest habiliments of war, were rushing around us in every direction, with streaming feathers, war weapons, and with loud shouts and yells. The few whom we had observed in advance of the main body, and whom, as they came near, we recognized to be the chief men, presented a perfect contrast to the others in their slow movements, and simplicity of dress. ”

“ Father, Amongst my people, I believe, there is not an individual that has injured you. If any one of the other bands can say they have, let them speak.
Father, This medal which hangs upon my breast, I received from my red-headed father below (Governor {291} 349 Clarke) . I listened to his words, and on my return I told them to my people, and they believed.
Father, You see that I am old; but I do not recollect that myself, or any of my people, ever injured any of the whites.
Father, Neither my hands, nor those of my young men, have ever been stained with the blood of the Americans. ”

“ It is, in their estimation, no proof either of valour or good sense, for a warrior to advance into the plain, stand still, and suffer his enemy to take deliberate aim, in order to shoot him down, when such a course of conduct can be avoided; but they say that when a warrior goes to battle, it is a duty, which is due to himself, to his nation, and to his friends, to avail himself of every possible advantage over his enemy, and even to kill him, if he can, without any risk of his own person. But a warrior must never yield in battle ”

“ You are all great men. I am a poor obscure individual. It has, however, become my duty to inform you, that the chiefs and warriors of my nation, sometime ago, held a council for the purpose of concerting measures, to terminate amicably, the cruel and unwelcome war, that has so long existed between us, and chose me, all insignificant as I am, to {36} bring to you this pipe which I hold in my hand. I have visited your village, that we might all smoke from the same pipe, and eat from the same bowl, with the same spoon, in token of our future union in friendship. ”

“ Those Indians who have been useful to the nation, such as brave warriors or good hunters, pass over with ease, and arrive safely at the A-pah-he, or ancient village. But the worthless Indians slip off from the bridge or footway, into the stream that foams beneath in the swiftness of its course, which hurries them into oblivion, or Lethe. ”

“ Such is sometimes the violence of the displeasure of his squaw, that he is obliged, through prudential motives, to take refuge in a neighbouring lodge, where he solaces himself with the pipe, until he supposes there is no longer danger of being provoked beyond endurance, so as to be tempted to chastise her; a discipline which she seems rather to solicit than avoid, that she may have a sufficient excuse for wreaking her vengeance on her rival, and for giving free vent to her sentiments and opinions upon her husband, in language of the most superlatively indecent and opprobrious nature. ”

“ The trader, as in duty bound, tasted of the contents, but he would have preferred the agency of the finger of the squaw, to that of the old breech-clout of the husband.
An unknown stranger is led to the lodge of the principal chief, where the inhabitants collect to see him, and do not hesitate to gratify their curiosity, by looking steadfastly in his face. The stranger, if an Indian, appears perfectly at his ease, not seeming to notice the crowd that surrounds him, in order that he may not encounter their eyes. ”

“ They stretched from north to south like an immense wall, occupying all that portion of the horizon lying to the north-west, west, and south-west. We could now see the surface of the plain, extending almost unvaried to the base of the first ridge, which rises by an abrupt ascent above the commencement of the snow. ”

“ The relatives bedaub their persons with white clay, scarify themselves with a flint, cut out pieces of their skin and flesh, pass arrows through their skin; and, if on a march, they walk barefoot at a distance from their people, in testimony of the sincerity of their mourning.
For a considerable time, they nightly visit the grave of the deceased, to lament over it. A sorrowing relative may be seen, of a bleak wintry night, bending over the grave, clad in a scanty robe, which scarcely conceals the middle of the back, as an additional self-punishment and unequivocal manifestation of grief. ”

“ The Omawhaw seldom renders himself unhappy with gloomy anticipations of the future, but almost literally takes "no care for the morrow." He will say to his squaw, "cook what meat you have, for the Wahconda will give us more to-morrow, and if not to-morrow, next day, and if never, let us eat what we have got."
{7} They have but little mechanical ingenuity, but an individual of this nation, who is now no more, without acquiring any knowledge of the white people, as far as we could learn, mended the guns and traps of his countrymen, when not too seriously injured. ”

“ In the crevices of the rocks where a scanty soil has accumulated, is here and there planted a hardy evergreen, whose short and gnarled trunk, recurved and inflexible branches, proclaim the storms it has withstood, and the centuries during which it has vegetated. ”

“ On the summits of some of the dry sandy ridges, we saw a few of the plants called Adam's needles, (yucca angustifolia) thriving with an appearance of luxuriance and verdure, in a soil which bids defiance to almost every other species of vegetation. Nature has, however, fitted the yucca for the ungenial soil it is destined to occupy. The plant consists of a large tuft of rigid spear-pointed leaves, placed immediately upon the root, and sending up in the flowering season, a stalk bearing a cluster of lilliaceous flowers as large as those of the common tulip of the gardens. ”

“ No regular sentinels are appointed to watch during the night; but many of the young men, who are moving about the greater part of the night on their errands of love, often singing and hallooing to excite the attention of their mistresses, are the only guards of the safety of the village from surprise. If, however, the nation have reason to believe that the enemy is near at hand, or that there is a probability of an attack, they are necessarily vigilant; young warriors volunteer to look out at different points, or are requested to do so by the chiefs. ”

“ The squaw has no need of propitiating the goddess 18 Manageneta,5 but during pregnancy continues her usual avocations, and even in its most advanced stage, she neither bears a lighter burden on her back, nor walks a shorter distance in a day, than she otherwise would; neither does she expose herself the less on that account to the inclemencies of the weather.
If, on a march, a pregnant woman feels the pains of parturition, she retires to the bushes, throws the burden from her back, and, without any aid, brings her infant into the world. ”

“ This ceremony occurred during the day, and in the presence of the whole assembly.
In the same nation a singular night dance is, it is said, sometimes held. During this amusement an opportunity is given to the squaws to select their favourites. A squaw, as she dances, will advance to a person with whom she is captivated, either for his personal attractions, or for his renown in arms, she taps him on the shoulder, and immediately runs out of the lodge, and betakes herself to the bushes, followed by the favourite. ”

“ A record of facts, which may be important and interesting to others, is thus left for the benefit of all who may follow. For our part we were glad to be informed, that one lawless and predatory band of savages had lately left the country we were about to traverse. We were never without some anxiety on the subject of Indian war-parties; who are known frequently to remunerate themselves for any discomfiture or loss they may have sustained, by making free booty of the property and the scalps of the first weak or unguarded party they may meet. ”

“ Hashea feared no man, and would have presented himself before his old enemy at the first call, but was prevented by some friends who were with him in his lodge; these, however, after the lapse of a short time, he contrived to elude, and swiftly sought the Brave. He threw down his blanket, and exclaimed, "You and I cannot live in the same nation; the time has arrived when one of us must die." ”

“ And you, Long Hair, that have so strong an arm, assist him, lest our warriors should be obliged to visit you, when yourself might not be distinguished from the others. I do not yet know you as chiefs, but I wish to know you as such; I want to have some proofs that you are chiefs. When I learn that you have punished those who have done wrong, as our chiefs punish, then I will recognize you. ”

“ A brave, who detected his wife in the commission of adultery, offered her no indignity, but immediately transferred her to the object of her preference, and accompanied the gift with a horse, and sundry articles of merchandize.
Even a very remote degree of consanguinity is an insuperable barrier to the marriage union. This state on the part of the man, seems to be the result of love for the woman; on that of the squaw, of convenience, or acquiescence in the will of her parents. On some occasions, however, an Indian marries through ambitious motives ”

“ In the scenery of the Platte there is the utmost uniformity; a broad plain, unvaried by any object on which the eye can rest, lies extended before us; on our right are the low and distant hills which bound the valley, and on our left the broad Platte, studded with numerous small but verdant islands. On these islands is usually a little timber, which is not met with in other situations. ”

“ A portion of the tobacco, consecrated by being long suspended to the skin mats, or coverings of the shell, is now taken and distributed to the magi, who fill their pipes with it, to smoke to the great medicine. During this ceremony, an individual occasionally inclines his head forward, and listens attentively to catch some sound which he expects to issue from the shell. At length some one imagines that he hears a sound like that of a forced expiration of air from the lungs, or like the noise made by the report of a gun at a great distance. ”

“ Every person, in any degree conversant with Indian manners and customs, is struck with their proneness to that most abominable and degrading of all vices, intoxication from the use of spirituous liquors. The Missouri Indians, collectively, form no exception to this general trait. A member of the Pawnee war party, which we so unfortunately encountered near the Konza village, was more solicitous to obtain a draft of this pernicious beverage, than to possess any other article within his view. ”

“ We had now ascended about eighty miles from the mouth of Grand river. The country we had passed is fertile, and presents such an intermixture of forests and grassy plains, as is extremely pleasing to the eye. Towards the north the hills became gradually more and more elevated. The discontinuance of the horizontal limestone, the disclosure in the deep vallies of the more ancient varieties of sandstone, and the frequent occurrence in the soil of small round masses of granite, gneiss, and other primitive rocks, indicate an approach towards the margin of the secondary basin. ”

“ The Brave's wound was mortal, but he lived long enough to see the features of Ietan, the friend of Hashea, bent in sternness upon him, and to hear him lament that the conqueror of his friend, should die without the agency of his arm. The deceased warriors belonged to the two most powerful bands of the nation. Hashea was a near kinsman of the Crenier, leader of one band, and the Brave was a brother of Shongotonga, leader of the other, and principal chief of the Otos. ”

“ An animal seen for the first time, or any object with which the eye is unacquainted, usually appears much enlarged, and inaccurate ideas are formed of the magnitude and distance of all the surrounding objects; but if some well-known animal, as a deer or a wolf, comes into the field of vision so near as to be recognized, the illusions vanish, and all things return to their proper dimensions. ”

“ After washing in water, if at hand, or in melted snow, both herself and the infant, she immediately replaces the burden upon her back, weighing, perhaps, between sixty and an hundred pounds, secures her child upon the top of it, protected from the cold by an envelop of bison robe, and then hurries on to overtake her companions.
It is only at the delivery of the first child that any difficulty is ever anticipated ”

“ Hostilities are generally conducted by small predatory parties, which are originated and formed under the influence of some approved warrior. An individual of this description, having determined to endeavour to assemble a war party, as a first step, paints himself over with white clay; he then passes through the camp or village, crying aloud to the Wahconda, and requesting the young warriors of the nation to have pity on him, and accompany him to strike at the enemy; he then ascends some hill or elevation, or repairs to the woods, and there continues for some time his ejaculations. ”

“ It is evidently an artificial work, and the product of much labour, being about two hundred feet long, one hundred and thirty feet wide, and thirty feet deep. The origin and object of this effort of savage labour is involved in mystery, and the Pawnees cannot, at this day, give any rational history of it; the only advantage which we can suppose people to have derived from such a work, is security from the attack of a powerful enemy. An entire nation may have here defied the efforts of some allied army of an extensive coalition. ”

“ On the general hunting expeditions, in which the nation separates into distinct bands, the husband takes with him his favourite wife, whilst the others accompany the bands in which are their parents. Sometimes, during a temporary encampment, the husband leaves his favourite for a few days, on pretence of business, in order to visit one of his wives in another band. On his return, he perceives the brow of his favourite to lower with evident displeasure; if his dog approaches her, she knocks him over with a club, and her child is repulsed with violence from her side ”

“ The actions of drunken Indians, are as ridiculous and puerile as those of civilized drunkards; chiefs, warriors, and common men, roll indiscriminately on the earth together, 50 or dance, caper, laugh, cry, shout, fight, or hug and kiss, and rub each other with their hands, in the most affectionate or stupid manner. If in the vicinity of white people, they appoint some of their number to remain sober, in order to prevent injury or insult being offered to them. ”

“ To this they answered, that our undertaking was attended with great difficulty and danger; that the country about the head of the Platte was filled with bands of powerful and ferocious Indians, who would lose no opportunity to attack and injure us; that in some parts of our route, we must suffer from want of water, in others there was no game. "In short," said the Grand chief, "you must have long hearts, to undertake such a journey with so weak a force; hearts that would reach from the earth to the heavens." ”

“ Dougherty; "I was once fool enough to be jealous, but the passion did not long torment me; I recollected that women are often alone, their husband being necessarily often absent a hunting, and even when the husband is at home, the squaw is under the necessity of going to a distance for the purpose of bringing water, or collecting wood, when frequent opportunities occur of being unobserved in the company of other men; and I am not so silly as to believe that a woman would reject a timely offer. ”