Description of a Journey and Visit
to the Pawnee Indians
who live on the Platte River, a tributary to the Missouri,
70 miles from its mouth by Brn. Gottlieb F. Oehler
and David Z. Smith, April 22-May 18 1851,
to which is added
A Description of the Manners and Customs
of the Pawnee Indians by Dr. D. Z. Smith.
[Illustration]
Reprinted from the Moravian Church Miscellany of 1851-1852
New York, 1914
------------------------------------------------------------------------
DESCRIPTION
OF A JOURNEY AND VISIT TO THE PAWNEE INDIANS WHO LIVE ON
THE PLATTE RIVER A TRIBUTARY OF THE MISSOURI 70
MILES FROM ITS MOUTH BY THE BRN. GOTTLIEB F. OEHLER
AND DAVID Z. SMITH. (April 22d—May 18th 1851.)
Having in the course of the winter written letters of inquiry to Mr.
Samuel Allis, teacher of a government-school for Pawnee children, and
Major Barrow, U. S. agent for the Pawnees, both residing at Bellevue,
and having received letters from both, of an encouraging nature, we left
Westfield on the morning of April 22d, on our intended trip. Br. Paul
Oehler accompanied us to Weston, in order to take the wagon back, which
was to convey us thither. Passing by the Baptist mission station,
Briggs’ Vale, where we called in a few minutes, we soon struck the
prairie, which we kept till our arrival at Fort Leavenworth, about
twenty-four miles from Westfield. This is a very pretty prairie,
undulating, and at places quite broken, with here and there a high bluff
or mound, rising above the surrounding country. “Pilot Bluff,” a few
miles from Leavenworth, stands picturesque in the prairie, and affords a
beautiful prospect. We passed a company of infantry in the prairie,
traveling from Fort Leavenworth to Fort Gibson. The quartermaster at the
fort, Mr. Ogden, with whom Br. Oehler was previously acquainted,
received us very courteously, and gave us a letter of introduction to
the quartermaster at Fort Kearney, in case we should be obliged to go
that way on our return home and need any assistance.—Fort Leavenworth is
eligibly situated on a high prairie, near the bank of the Missouri,
about 35 miles above the mouth of Kansas River. It is a place of
considerable business, in the way of furnishing military stores for the
more western forts. At the wharf a large storehouse has been built by
the Government for the purpose of depositing military stores. The
premises are kept in a very neat and cleanly condition, and a large
garden has been prepared near by, for the soldiers to raise vegetables
for their use. After crossing the Missouri on a horse-boat, which is
kept here at the expense of the Government, we proceeded towards Weston,
situated about five miles above. The first part of our road lay through
the bottom, in wet weather almost impassable on account of the mud, but
at present dry, though rather rough. The latter half of the road lay
along the river, on the side of the bluff, which here comes close up to
the river. Along the road, we noticed many sugar-maple trees. Towards
evening we arrived at Weston, a place of considerable trade, having
about 1,700 inhabitants. We had expected to wait at Weston for a
steamboat, that had been advertised at St. Louis for the upper Missouri,
but as she had at the latest dates deferred the time of her departure
from St. Louis, and the river was in a very low stage, so that it was
doubtful, whether after her arrival here, she could run up any further;
and hearing of a four-horse passenger coach, running from Weston to
Council Bluffs in four days, which was to leave early in the morning, we
concluded to take that, April 23rd. Early at four o’clock in the morning
we started from Weston in the stage. Leaving the river to our left, we
traveled upon the bluffs, which here run close up to the river, the
bottom of the Missouri being on the other side. The country through
which we passed is a broken country, heavily timbered and with a rich
soil. At 8 o’clock we arrived at Bloomington, a little village about
sixteen miles N. W. of Weston. On account of the unusual number of
passengers, twenty-one in number, the stage proprietor had to furnish an
extra four-horse coach, to accommodate all. This being the place of
breakfast, the number rather took our worthy host by surprise, and it
seemed to give him no small anxiety to entertain so large a company.
However, by 11 o’clock we had all breakfasted, and were soon again in
motion, the road still continuing for about seven miles on the bluffs,
when we again descended into the bottom, which widens here on this side
of the river, leaving the bluffs more to our right.
We now traveled over a very rich bottom prairie about seven miles to St.
Joseph, the road on both sides lined with farms. The soil here is
extremely rich, though inclined to be wet in the rainy season. St.
Joseph is a thriving town, laid out only a few years ago, and numbers
about 3,000 inhabitants; situated on a bluff on the right bank of the
Missouri. Here we were informed that Major Barrow, the Pawnee agent, had
left that very day in a boat on his way to St. Louis. The drinking of
intoxicating beverage is carried on to a great extent in these frontier
towns, and it is a common sight to meet with drunken men in the streets.
After an hour’s rest at St. Joseph, we resumed our journey for Savannah,
our stopping-place for the night, fourteen miles distant. The roads
being very dusty, traveling by stage at present is rather disagreeable.
We passed through a fertile and well-timbered country, with neat
cottages and beautiful farms scattered on both sides of the road. About
sunset we arrived at Savannah. The country around this place is the
prettiest that we have yet seen in the West. The town is situated in a
rolling prairie, with some timber on all sides in view. The whole
prairie being occupied by the town and adjacent fields, checkered off by
fences into lots of a few acres each, gives it the appearance of an
old-country settlement, though it was commenced only about fourteen
years ago. Land here sells from fifteen to twenty dollars per acre. The
village numbers about 800 inhabitants. The houses are mostly one-story
frame, neatly painted white, with brick chimneys, surrounded by neat
yards and grass-plots. Almost every house is furnished with a
lightning-rod, which struck us as something rather unusual in this
western country. The whole scenery around reminded us forcibly of the
landscape around Bethlehem, Pa. In the village three churches, all of
brick, have been erected, belonging to the O. S. and N. S.
Presbyterians, and Campbellites. The courthouse, a brick edifice, stands
in the centre of the town, in an open square. A few days ago two
destructive fires occurred in the village, consuming a whole row of
houses facing the square, and destroying property to the amount of
20,000 dollars, supposed to be the work of incendiaries. We were
detained here two days, the coach from above, in which we were to
proceed, instead of arriving on the evening of the 23rd, did not come in
till the evening of the 25th.
26th. At length, after breakfast, we were enabled to leave Savannah and
proceed on our journey. Our traveling company was very disagreeable,
being shockingly profane. In traveling in these parts one might almost
suppose that all the inhabitants were given to profanity, and the name
of God and of the Savior is used in the most revolting manner. As we
traveled on the country continued more or less broken, the timber
becoming scarcer the further North we proceeded. Oregon, through which
we passed in the afternoon, is a newly settled but thriving town, with a
tolerably populous neighborhood. Soon after leaving Oregon we left the
bluffs to our right and descended into a most beautiful bottom country,
bordering on the Missouri River. The bottom is about ten or twelve miles
wide, quite level, bounded by a line of high bluffs to the right hand,
at the base of which our road lay. About five or six miles off to our
left a strip of timber (the only to be seen) from four to five miles
wide skirted the river all the rest of the bottom, and the neighboring
high bluffs were one continued prairie. The soil is splendid, but all
the most eligible sites are already occupied by settlers, who hold their
claims at enormous prices. Timber is very scarce, and so is stone. Not a
pebble is to be seen either on the bluffs, or in the bottom. The
settlers are obliged to resort to ditching and mud-fencing. This is done
by digging two ditches in a line about six feet apart, and piling up the
sod and ground on the intervening space to form a wall. At 4 o’clock we
arrived at Jackson’s, thirty-two miles from Savannah, the end of our
day’s ride.
27th. Left Jackson’s after breakfast. Our company was very annoying to
us, on account of their shocking profanity, but we were obliged to
endure it with patience. After continuing for several miles further
through the above-mentioned rich bottom prairie, we again ascended the
bluffs to our right, traveling all day, mostly through hilly prairie,
timber being very scarce. After a ride of about thirty miles we arrived
at a little village named Linden, at 4 o’clock, P. M. Here our driver
informed us that his horses (having traveled nearly forty miles to-day)
were tired and worn out, and that he thought they could hardly travel
any further. After tea, however, he said that he would try and take us a
few miles further. We, therefore, proceeded till it was quite dark, but
there being a portion of the road before us rather dangerous to travel
in the dark we stopped for the night at a post office, where we were
well accommodated with beds. We were now in the State of Iowa, having
crossed the line between that state and Missouri a few miles back.
28th. Early at 4 o’clock we were again stirring. By sunrise we came to
the valley or bottom of the Nishnebottona, which river we crossed on a
wooden toll-bridge, newly erected. After breakfast we again struck the
bluffs and traveled all day through an extensive prairie country,
broken, very fertile, but lacking timber. The country here has been but
lately settled, but it would be more thickly inhabited if timber were
more plenty. This is all “claimed,” and the claims are held at an
enormous price. To-day we saw many houses covered with prairie-sod, on
account of the scarcity of board timber; the day previous we had already
passed many houses, the chimneys of which were made of prairie-sod,
which seems to be quite durable. The further north we proceeded the
scarcer the timber became along the water courses. Some of the streams
run through the prairie with no timber lining them. We had reached the
end of our journey, to within five miles, when we took in a
way-passenger, a Mormon, who was from Ohio, traveling to see his
brethren of the faith at Kanesville, a few miles above Trading Pt., at
the Council Bluffs. We soon got into a conversation with him, and,
thinking from our inquiries that we were inquirers after the Mormon
faith, he proceeded to give us an account of their religious opinions,
telling us about the three apostacies from the time of Noah to the time
when the great prophet, Joe Smith, arose in 1830! These three
apostacies, according to their opinion, are: 1st, the general apostacy
of all the nations of the earth to idolatry; 2dly, the apostacy of the
Jews, and 3dly the apostacy of the different sects calling themselves
christians, etc.
About sunset we arrived at Trading Point, the commencement of a
continuation of bluffs on both sides of the river, called “Council
Bluffs.” On the opposite side of the river is Bellevue, the residence of
Mr. Allis, who keeps a government-school for Pawnee children, and of the
Pawnee, Otoe and Omahaw Agent, Maj. Barrow; there are also here two
trading establishments, and blacksmith-shops for the Indians; about a
mile below, on the same side of the river, is the Mission Station of the
General Assembly’s (O. S.) Board, among the Otoes and Omahaws, under the
superintendence of Mr. E. McKinney. Immediately after our arrival at
Trading Point we had a conversation with Mr. Allis, who happened to be
on that side of the river. He told us that he and Mr. McKinney had been
expecting our arrival, and that the Pawnees, to whom he had mentioned
our intention of coming to see them, were anxiously awaiting us.
29th. During the night we experienced one of those sudden changes common
to this country; in the morning when we awoke the wind was blowing a
gale, and it was snowing very fast. About 10 o’clock we thought we would
venture to cross the Missouri to the opposite side; the attempt was
accompanied with great peril to our lives. The wind beat the water into
the skiff, the ferryman’s hands became so benumbed that he could hardly
pull the oars any more, and by the combined effect of the gale and
current we drifted about a mile below the usual landing-place. Mr. Allis
stood watching on shore, ready to help us, and as soon as the skiff
touched the bank he held to it, and having fastened it he assisted us
with our trunks up the steep bank. Having proceeded to his house, we
were glad to warm our numb limbs by the fire. The provisions, for the
accommodation of Mr. Allis’ family and Pawnee children, are wretched,
right on the bank of the Missouri. The dwelling which is occupied by
them was formerly a trading establishment and is almost in ruins. The
family, besides ten or twelve Pawnee children, and several white
children, are obliged to live in one small room, the only one hardly fit
to be occupied, about eighteen feet square, which serves for parlor,
sitting-room, and kitchen, and a sleeping apartment for the children
above. Mr. and Mrs. Allis are devoted missionaries. They were among the
first missionaries of the American Board, who nearly twenty years ago
commenced a mission among the Pawnees; since the abandonment of that
mission a few years ago, on account of the hostile incursions of the
Sioux, they have been laboring here at Bellevue, in a most exemplary
manner, for the improvement of the Pawnee children in their charge.
Government allows them the sum of 500 dollars annually for the support
of the school, which, however, is barely sufficient to defray their
expenses. Under the most discouraging circumstances, combating with much
sickness in the family, on account of the location and dilapidated
condition of the buildings, they have still held out, and toiled for the
good of the children under their charge, to whom they seem to have the
same attachment as to children of their own. They are both becoming
considerably advanced in years and begin to feel the effects of their
self-denying labors. They are loth to surrender these interesting
children to their heathen friends, on account of the want of necessary
provisions for their future advancement, and are anxious that further
efforts should be made for their benefit. At the same time they are
desirous of resigning their charge as soon as they can give them up into
other hands, who will seek their improvement. Government is unwilling to
make any further provision for better buildings for the Pawnee school
here, but would probably be willing to furnish the necessary means for
the same in the Pawnee country, whither, however, Mr. Allis is unwilling
to go on account of the check they formerly received from the Sioux.
After dinner Mr. Allis accompanied us to the house of Mr. Sharpee, who
has been extensively trading with the Indian tribes in these parts for
the last twenty years, and who expressed his satisfaction at the object
for which we had arrived. He said that some of the Pawnees had lately
expressed their uneasiness lest we might not come, but that he had given
them the assurance that we would arrive in a few days, and he was
therefore the more rejoiced, since what he had told them had now come to
pass. On our way to Mr. Sharpee’s we met several Pawnees, who, when Mr.
Allis announced to them that we were the men whom they were expecting,
came up to us in the most friendly manner, and taking us by the hand,
gave us a hearty shake, saying: “Lo-wa! Tapooska;” _i.e._, “good,” or
“how do you do, teacher.” We next proceeded to the Presbyterian mission
station, about a mile distant, where we were to make our stay, till our
preparations for visiting the Pawnees should have been consummated. The
mission-houses are pleasantly situated on a high bluff facing the
Missouri River, with a bottom prairie about a mile wide from bluff to
river. The level on which the houses stand extends about half a mile in
the rear, with a gradual ascent, till it meets another line of bluffs
rising still higher. The houses were originally enclosed by pickets,
which, however, are decaying and falling down, and it is probably the
intention of the missionaries to remove them altogether, as such
fortifications, though they may guard against depredations of the
Indians, still have a tendency of creating prejudices on their part. Our
reception at the mission was very cordial, and we had reason for
thankfulness to the Lord in providing such kind friends for us. The
superintendent of this mission is the Rev. E. McKinney, who previously
to his commencing the mission among the Otoes and Omahaws, had been
laboring among the Creeks and Choctaws. They have at present about
thirty-five children and youth in the institution, Otoes and Omahaws,
and a few Puncaws and Pawnees. On our introduction to the children, the
Pawnee children pushed themselves in advance of all the rest, in order
to be the first in shaking hands with us, thinking they had the best
right to us, who were going to visit their people. The two tribes, the
Otoes and Omahaws, among whom this mission is located, are still, like
all the western prairie tribes in their originally savage state, not
having as yet, like the eastern tribes of Indians on the North American
continent, made any advancement in civilization, until within a few
years having lived remote from the good as well as the evil influences
of the whites. The greater part of the year they roam, like the other
prairie Indians, over the extensive prairies on this side of the Rocky
Mountains, chasing the buffalo, which is the same to them as the seal is
to the Greenlander. Their proximity to the whites, however, and the
facilities afforded them for obtaining intoxicating liquors, during the
short time that they remain at their villages, has latterly had a
demoralizing and degenerating effect upon them, and the counteracting
influence of the gospel seems as yet to have made no visible impression
upon any of them. Still the missionaries, who are laboring here, are
sowing the seed in tears, trusting to the promise of our Lord: “Cast thy
bread upon the waters, for thou shalt find it after many days.” And
surely, when we look back at the labors of our first missionaries among
the heathen, and consider how the Lord eventually crowned their toils,
who will doubt His ability and willingness to do the same thing at the
present day, when even the heathen tribes are begging to have
missionaries among them—an instance of which we witnessed at a council,
which Mr. McKinney held with a delegation of the principal chiefs of the
Puncaws, a tribe of wild Indians living about 150 miles up the Missouri,
who had come to Council Bluffs expressly for the purpose of soliciting
missionaries. The following is a speech which the principal speaker made
to Mr. McKinney:
“My Father,—I wished to see you a long time already. I am now here. My
heart is glad that I can now at length behold your face. My heart is now
as clear as this pleasant and bright day. I see you do a great deal for
these children here, and I wish you would do something for my people. I
am a fool,—I have no sense,-but you have knowledge. You have the words
of the Great Spirit, and I wish you therefore to come to us, and teach
us.”
Besides these, it is reported by traders, that the Sioux (Soos), a
powerful tribe numbering about 25,000 souls, living North of the
Puncaws, and other tribes to the North are also anxious to have
missionaries among them. What a wide field for missionary labor! And
still we must hear the remark so often made by christians in the East,
so painful to our ears: “There is no use in having missionaries among
the _Indians_-no good can be effected among the _Indians_—better send
the missionaries who are laboring among the _Indians_, and appropriate
the funds spent for missions and schools among _them_, to some _other_
heathen field.” From what we have witnessed on our excursion to Council
Bluffs, and our subsequent visit to the Pawnees, we confidently express
the opinion that we can nowhere expect heathen nations, with the
contracted ideas that these people have of the nature of the gospel, to
be more anxious to have missionaries among them. And we cannot otherwise
than denounce expressions like the above, as not breathing the spirit of
our Lord and Savior, who has enjoined the command upon his followers to
“go and preach his gospel to _every creature_.” Furthermore, from what
we have seen and heard, we firmly believe that the Lord is preparing a
wide door for the preaching of his gospel among the Western and North
Western prairie tribes, and the Macedonian cry is ringing in the land:
“Come over and help us!” We solemnly put the question to such objectors
to our Indian missions: Where lies the fault that so little has been
done in latter years by the Brethren among the Indians? that our
missions among the Indians have been stagnant—yes, we may truly say,
retrograding for so many years? Shall it be attributed to the Indians,
who, as we have seen, are truly anxious to receive the gospel? Or shall
we admit, that the blessed gospel of our Savior has not that power over
the Indians that it has over other nations? that there is a deficiency
in the gospel in not being able to subdue the obdurate heart of the red
man? Shall we doubt for a moment the incapacity of the Lord in blessing
the faithful preaching of his word with the outpourings of his Spirit?
Or is there a deficiency in the plan of salvation that Indians should be
excluded from the glorious privileges of the same? Or have we forgotten
the history of our first missions among them, the piety and consistent
christian lives of our first Indian converts, their persecutions from
their heathen brethren, and their sufferings even unto death for the
sake of the gospel? If we wish to find where the fault lies we must look
for it in _our own hearts_. _There_ it is. _There_ is a lack of that
missionary spirit which actuated our forefathers! _There_ is a lack of
that Spirit of our Savior, who in his missionary capacity to a _world_
of sinners has set us a pattern to follow. We have sadly degenerated,
and the spirit of the world has taken a powerful hold upon our minds;
and it is meet for us all _seriously, earnestly, prayerfully_, to cry:
“Turn us unto thee, oh! Lord, and we shall be turned; _renew our days as
of old_!”—
In order to make our visit from Bellevue to the Pawnees, it was
necessary that we should be well supplied with provisions, as the
Pawnees were at present very much straitened for the necessaries of
life. These Mr. McKinney kindly volunteered to furnish us with, besides
sufficient extra to make a small feast of cracker and coffee for the
chiefs of each village. Mr. Allis was recommended to us by all as the
best interpreter, and on account of his acquaintance with the Pawnees,
and having their good will, it was altogether an advantage to us to
secure his kind offices, which he was willing to afford. Mr. Sharpee
promised to furnish us two mules, and Mr. Reed, the farmer at the
mission, gave us the use of his light two-horse wagon. Thus before the
close of the week our arrangements were made to commence our journey to
the Pawnees the following Monday, May 5th.
Sunday, May the 4th.—We were both called upon to take an active part in
the meetings to-day at the Presbyterian mission. As it is very unusual
for any adult Indians to attend these meetings on the Lord’s day, the
exercises are conducted altogether in the English language. In the
forenoon there is Sunday school for the children of the institution. At
about 2 o’clock, P. M., there is public preaching, which, besides all at
the mission, Mr. Allis and his Pawnee children, and some of the white
families from Bellevue, attend. In the evening there is a meeting in
which a discourse is addressed particularly to the Indian children, but
which is attended by all. In these evening meetings different scripture
truths are presented to the children in a simple narrative style, and
not only the children themselves, but also those employed in the
mission, seem to be very much interested in these instructive meetings.
In the afternoon br. Oehler, in company with Mr. Reed, the farmer of the
mission, visited the village of the Omahaws, about four miles distant.
Their village being similar to those of the Pawnees, we will refer the
reader to a subsequent page for a description.
5th.—A considerable part of the forenoon having been spent before the
mules were caught on the prairie and brought in, and Mr. Sharpee
promising, if we would wait till the following day, he would accompany
us to the Pawnees, in order to inquire of them whether any of their
young men had stolen a horse he had lost a few nights ago, Mr. Allis and
ourselves determined to wait for him, as he had an extensive knowledge
of the Indians, and of travelling on the “plains,” as the large prairies
are here called, and might on that account be of great service to us. An
under-chief of the Loup Pawnees, by the name of Gatarritatkutz (Big Axe)
was also waiting, in order to accompany us.
6th.—At length we were ready to commence our journey from here to the
Pawnees, about 9 o’clock, accompanied by the best wishes of our kind
friends at the mission, and with the encouraging Daily Word: “I will
make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David,”
(Is. 55:3) with the Doctrinal text: “There is _one_ body and _one_
spirit, even as ye are called in _one_ hope of your calling: _one_ Lord,
_one_ faith, _one_ baptism, _one_ God and Father of all, who is above
all, and through all.” (Eph. 4:4-6.) “In doctrine and in practice
one,—We’ll love and serve the Lord alone;—With one accord sound forth
His praise,—Till we shall see His face.”
The ideas of leaving the abodes of civilization, and travelling, unarmed
and unguarded by a competent force of men, in the land of numerous
savages, had a tendency to cause every dependence upon an arm of flesh
to vanish, while we could put our confidence upon the all-powerful arm
of our Savior, in whose cause we had undertaken this journey among wild
untutored barbarians, and who watches over his people _everywhere_. (Ps.
139.)
Our course to-day was N. W. and W., taking the great road travelled by
the emigrants, on leaving the Bluffs for Oregon, the Salt Lake, or
California.
The road was very dry and dusty, and the wind coming from the West blew
the dust in our faces, by which we were very much incommoded. After
leaving Bellevue, and ascending the bluff, which brought us on the level
of the high prairie, a beautiful prospect presented itself. Before us,
as far as the eye could reach, was the wide prairie extending to the
horizon; on our right were clumps of timber skirting both banks of the
Missouri, bounded by the bluffs on the other side of the river, with the
Mormon settlement of Kanesville, beautifully spread out before us,
situated in one of the valleys between the bluffs about six or eight
miles distant, beyond the river; on our left, in the middle ground, lay
the valleys of the Great and Little Papilion, with the Omahaw village,
like a cluster of potatoe hills, situated on the opposite bank, near
their confluence, with here and there a clump of timber along both
streams, while far away in the distance could plainly be distinguished
the valley of the Platte, with the timber, growing on its numerous
islands.
After proceeding some five miles in the prairie, we met a large train of
Oregon emigrants, who, by some interested person, had been induced to
turn about, in order to take a road, which would lead them to another
ferry on the Elkhorn river, (a branch of the Platte,) and although Mr.
Sharpee represented to them that the road they had been travelling was
the better, still his representations were of no avail, and they
preferred to travel a route 15 or 20 miles further than ours, and much
worse bridged across the mudholes. A large company of wild Indians
(Omahaws) was hovering on horseback around the train, watching a
favorable opportunity to steal something, or perchance, should a beef
stray some distance from the rest, (a good opportunity for which was
given by their turning back again,) to drive it behind a bluff and slay
it.
The sight of a large train of 20 or 30 wagons, travelling in long single
file, with four or more yoke of oxen or cows attached to each, is really
picturesque; and we had frequently the opportunity on our journey of
beholding such a long line of white-covered wagons, presenting, at a
distance of several miles, a beautiful appearance. During the day we
passed several trains, destined for Oregon, Salt Lake, or California. In
the Oregon trains we observed many _cows_ yoked in teams, besides
numbers of them driven along loose; milchcows commanding a high price in
Oregon.
When the sun had nearly reached the western horizon, we arrived at our
camping ground,—a small clump of trees on the Great Papilion,—a spot
generally selected by the emigrants, at the end of the first day’s
travel, west of the Bluffs. The animals in our _train_, consisting of a
horse, a pony, belonging to our Pawnee friend, and two mules, were first
driven to the water, of which they stood in great need. The horse was
then hobbled, _i.e._, a rope tied around both forelegs, so short, as
merely to enable it to get along slowly to graze, and to hinder it from
straying too far away. The pony and the two mules were secured by means
of a rope about 30 feet long, tied around the neck of each, and dragging
behind them, so as to facilitate the catching of them again on the
following morning. We then pitched our tent for the night, and having
built a fire, proceeded to prepare some coffee, which was peculiarly
acceptable after a fatiguing day’s travel. Our store of provisions
consisted of about a bushel of ship crackers, a boilt ham, and some
molasses in an India rubber flask, all of which were provided by our
kind friend, Mr. McKinney. We had hardly camped before the trains
commenced pouring in for the night, and even late in the night they
continued to arrive, so that by morning the place was covered with tents
and wagons, and swarming with people, horses, mules and cattle.
7th.—At an early hour we were again moving, in order to reach the
Elkhorn Ferry before any of the trains should take the precedence,
whereby we would have been detained. We had first to cross the Papilion
on a bridge, and as it was very narrow, and the road leading to it very
steep, we were obliged to unharness the mules from the wagon, lest they
might, by pushing one another, precipitate the wagon and themselves into
the stream and mud below. The wagon was then pulled across the bridge by
hand. Ascending the opposite hill, we were again on the high prairie.
Before us, twelve or fifteen miles distant, could be discovered the
timber of the Elkhorn, which we expected to cross before noon;—to our
right we could yet perceive the timber of the Missouri, and the Old
Council Bluffs, where formerly there was a fort for the protection of
the traders;—and to our left the timber of the Platte.—
Arrived at the Elkhorn, we saw a considerable number of Pawnees, who all
appeared glad at our coming to visit them. Here we learnt that a slight
affray had taken place the day before, between some Pawnees and a train
of emigrants. The readers of the Miscellany have perhaps read of such
cases in the newspapers, headed: “Depredation of the _Pawnees_ (or some
other Indians) upon a train of emigrants,” and the like, where the blame
is generally attached to the Indians. I think it is due to the Indians
to state here that the fault does not always lie with them, but very
often with the whites. The road of the emigrants lies through the
country belonging to the Indians;—their hunting-grounds are traversed by
the long lines of white-covered wagons, and the buffaloes, the principal
subsistence of the Indians, are thereby chased away to more distant and
more secluded pastures, perhaps to regions where it would be unsafe for
them to hunt, on account of other tribes inimical to them; and they have
thereby been reduced to poverty and want. For all these privations they
have been promised presents, as a compensation, from our Government, but
thus far they have received nothing. So when the emigrants are passing
through their country, they frequently apply to them for tobacco, or
some other small presents. It seems that in the above instance, while
the Pawnees were hovering around the train, they were refused a present,
and one of the men, with the ox-whip, struck an Indian, who came near,
which, of course, roused the feelings of the Indians. These accordingly
drove off a beef or two, which were then despatched.—
The Elkhorn at this place is a deep and rapid stream, about 20 yards
wide. Two French halfbreeds are living here, in order to keep a ferry
for the emigrants.—Having passed over the Elkhorn, our road lay across a
bottom prairie extending between the Elkhorn and Platte rivers. We now
turned off from the wagon road, taking the village for our landmark;
without any track across the prairie, and soon arrived on the north bank
of the Platte.—The grass being somewhat more advanced in the bottom than
on the high bluff on the opposite side, where the village is situated,
the Pawnees had turned their ponies to graze in the bottom, watched by
the women and children.—Many women were also engaged in digging for
roots with their hoes, provisions being at present very scarce among
them. We were soon surrounded by a crowd of young men, women and
children, who by their smiling countenances seemed to bid us welcome.—It
is difficult to describe our feelings on the present occasion. We were
now in sight of the village, where the people lived, whom we had come to
visit, in order to give them the opportunity of accepting or rejecting
the offer of having Missionaries to live among them, to lead them to the
Savior of sinners. A wide stream, over a mile across, separated us from
the object of our journey, and could not be crossed without getting
assistance from the very people, for whose benefit we had come. From the
conversation of Mr. Allis and Mr. Sharpee with the Indians there seemed
to be some difficulty in getting help, originating in a jealousy
existing between the Chief in our company and the principal Chief of the
village. Meantime it commenced raining, and a strong, chilly wind was
blowing, which forced us to wrap ourselves in our blankets. In this
perplexity nearly an hour was spent. At length a messenger was
despatched across the river to inform the principal chief of the
village, Siskatuppe, of our arrival, with the request that he would send
us some men to assist us to cross. After another hour’s patient waiting
we were cheered by seeing the chief with about twenty men coming to our
help.—The ford of the river is only about four feet at the deepest
places, but what makes this river peculiarly perilous in crossing is the
shifting quicksand at the bottom, so that, while crossing, it is
necessary to keep constantly moving;—for the moment a person stops he
begins to sink on account of the uncertain foothold.—Our baggage was
placed upon the backs of Pawnees, who immediately started off with their
load. The mules having been unharnessed, and the harness placed in the
wagon, a long rope was tied from the end of the tongue of the wagon to
each single-tree. The Pawnees then took hold of the rope, while some
pushed behind at the wagon, and thus proceeded into the river. Mr.
Sharpee kindly offered br. Smith his horse, while he and br. Oehler each
took a mule, and Mr. Allis borrowed a pony of the Pawnees, the mounted
men taking up the rear. A full half hour was consumed in crossing, and
passing over two islands on our route. At length we reached the opposite
bank, where we were greeted by numbers of Pawnees, who were awaiting our
arrival. A difficulty which now presented itself before us was to get
the wagon up the steep bluff, the sides of which had become slippery by
the falling rain. To obviate this difficulty it was necessary to go
nearly a mile down the river, through their cornfields, in the bottom,
to a place where it was not quite so steep as elsewhere.—At length,
being arrived at the village, we found, in spite of the rain, crowds
standing around the chief’s lodge, to receive and to welcome the
missionaries.—
Having secured everything loose about the wagon that might be liable to
be stolen, and entrusted our baggage, harness and animals to the care of
the chief, we entered the lodge of our host. We were not a little
surprised, when we came in, to find that it was a spacious apartment, a
description of which will be given at another time. We had hardly
reached the place when a young gentleman in the employment of the
Government arrived in company with the United States interpreter at Fort
Kearney, a _black_ man, who speaks the Pawnee fluently. They had
travelled the whole distance, without an escort, alone;—Fort Kearney
being about 150 miles further up the Platte river. This young man was
sent out to the different tribes of Prairie Indians, the Pawnees among
the rest, in order to invite them to attend a General Council of Tribes
at Fort Laramie, to be held about the beginning of September.
While Mr. Allis and ourselves, and the above-named persons from Fort
Kearney lodged with Siskatuppe, the principal chief of the village, Mr.
Sharpee put up at the lodge of the chief Gatarritatkutz, who had
travelled with us, and with whom he is accustomed to tarry whenever he
comes to the village to trade.
After we had spent an hour in drying our clothes, smoking, and
conversing with some of the chiefs and braves, a messenger arrived from
Mr. Sharpee, inviting us to be present at a feast of coffee and
crackers, which he had prepared for the chiefs, during which he intended
to make inquiries respecting his stolen horse. When we arrived Mr.
Sharpee informed us that, as the principal men were now assembled, it
would be a convenient opportunity for us to hold a council with them. We
accordingly commenced by informing them of our object. The jealousy
between the chiefs, however, became apparent, and after some
consultation among themselves Siskatuppe intimated that some of the
chiefs were not present, and as the business before us was of great
importance to the whole band they ought also to be summoned. It was,
therefore, resolved immediately to adjourn to his lodge, in order to
receive our communications. Accordingly all the chiefs and braves having
been assembled, we were informed that they were now ready to hear us.
Br. Smith then in a speech, which was interpreted by Mr. Allis, informed
them of the object of our visit. Hereupon Siskatuppe made an address,
welcoming us in the kindest manner and hoping that we might send
missionaries among them. Br. Oehler then, in an address, explained to
them more particularly the object which missionaries have in view, and
that it was especially our present aim among them to find out whether
they were desirous not only of having their outward condition bettered,
but of having the missionaries among them to teach them about a Savior,
who came into this world to save us from our sins, to preach whom was
our first and principal design. Several other chiefs and braves then
made speeches, expressive of their satisfaction at our coming to see
them, and welcoming us to live with them, promising us their protection;
so that we should in no wise be hindered by any of their people; and
that we might rest assured that our cattle and all other property which
we might bring along with us should not be destroyed or molested by any
one. Moreover, they acknowledged that they needed instruction, and that
they would all be willing to listen to us. We were very much pleased
with the apparent earnestness with which these remarks were made, and
have no doubt that they made these promises in good faith. Before us
were thus assembled the _nobility_ of the village,—the chiefs and
braves, besides numbers of the common people, at least 500 in all,
sitting in solemn council. What a spectacle for the humble missionaries
of the cross! Here were the representatives of a village, numbering at
least 2,500 souls, deliberating upon the acceptance or rejection of
missionaries,—holding a council, unconsciously, whether the time in the
providence of the Lord had at length arrived, when they should again be
instructed in the knowledge of the “_Unknown God_,” whom they, and their
fathers and forefathers have worshipped, though in great ignorance and
superstition. O, how cheering to our hearts, when we were not merely
coldly _permitted_ to make our abode with them, so that they might
derive from us some temporal good, in supplying their wants when hungry
and destitute; but when we were hailed and welcomed among them as the
“Medicine men of the Great Spirit,” to have whom among them, would
better their outward condition, and perhaps (as we ardently hope and
pray, through the blessing of our Lord,) make them a happy and christian
nation. Of what vast importance may have been this solemn hour for these
people?—the future, we humbly trust, will develop many happy results
from the decision of this council; but Eternity alone may reveal, that
the happiness or misery of many a soul, bought by the precious blood of
Jesus, was connected with the results of this occasion!
Our business with them being over, the above-named young man, in the
employ of the government, also made known to them that their Great
Father at Washington had invited them to a grand council of the
different nations, to be held at Fort Laramie for the purpose of
defining the territories of the different prairie tribes, who were also
to receive presents there from him, as a compensation for the losses
which they have in later years sustained, on account of the scarcity of
the buffaloes, occasioned by the great emigration to the far West,
etc.,—at all which they expressed their great satisfaction. After the
crowd had somewhat dispersed, a dish of soup, made of hominy and beans,
was placed before us, with two spoons, made of buffalo horns, in the
dish. Having fasted since sunrise, we could not complain of our
appetites, and the dish, though not attractive in its appearance, was
soon emptied of its contents. We then prepared some coffee, and having
supped, gave our chief and his family a feast of the remaining coffee,
with some crackers and slices of ham. We had hardly finished, (much time
was not consumed in washing our dishes,) when a messenger arrived,
inviting us to a feast, which one of the chiefs had prepared for us.
When we arrived, and had seated ourselves on mats around the fire, (for
there are no chairs in a Pawnee lodge,) a dish of soup, made of corn,
was again placed before us. As our appetites had previously been
satiated, we could merely partake of a few spoonsful, to please our kind
host. We had hardly entered into a conversation when an invitation came
from another chief;—and so we were led from lodge to lodge, till we had
partaken of about a dozen feasts. At last we returned to the lodge of
Siskatuppe, and, having wrapped ourselves in our blankets, and laid
ourselves down on mats on the ground, were soon in the land of visions.
May 8th.—Early in the morning we were awakened by the shrill voices of
the Pawnee women, who were engaged in cleaning up the lodge, and
collecting their hoes, previous to their going out to the fields to
prepare the ground for planting corn. Our breakfast being over, and
having had our animals brought from the pasture, we, together with the
gentleman from Fort Kearney and his interpreter, started for the upper
village, distant about 25 miles, accompanied by our old friend
Gatarritatkutz and another Pawnee. Our road was again for several miles
across the high prairie. We then descended into the bottom prairie of
the Platte, travelling about five miles in sight of the river, when we
made a halt near the stream in order to prepare dinner. The situation
here pleased us very much, as very suitable for a mission station,
should the Pawnees be permanently located where they at present reside.
The timber on the islands in the Platte is very easily obtained here.
The prairie bottom is from two to three miles wide, gently ascending to
the bluffs, and extends about ten miles along the Platte, before the
bluffs again approach the river. A mile or two from where we took our
lunch a beautiful spring of never failing water gushes forth from the
bluff. After dinner, having permitted our animals to graze a while, we
proceeded on our journey, travelling partly on the high prairie, after
ascending the bluff, and partly in the bottom. At a certain place, as we
were travelling along, we noticed, that our Pawnee friends rode aside to
a spot, where their attention seemed to be rivetted upon something on
the ground. Inquiring what it was, they informed us, that at that place
about nine or ten months ago, a Sioux chief had been killed by the
Pawnees. It seems, he had made a hostile incursion upon the Pawnees,
with a company of his people, and having found some squaws engaged at
work in their fields, he had killed them. The Pawnees, irritated at this
unprovoked attack, immediately made up a party, who hotly pursued their
enemies, and, the horse of the Sioux chief being wearied, and not able
to keep up with the rest, he called to his men: “Stop not for me, but
save yourselves; I shall die fighting.” His pursuers soon came up with
him and killed him, fighting bravely. The spot where he had been killed
still presented the marks of Indian barbarity; stones, arrows, and small
pieces of the skull, which had been cleft by their tomahawks, lying
around,—the bones having been carried away with the carcass by the
wolves of the prairie. We turned away in disgust from a place, which had
been the scene of such a barbarous atrocity, praying only the more
fervently to the Lord, that the passions of these poor people might be
softened down by the all-subduing influence of His blessed gospel,
through the happy effects of which _alone_, we have been made to
differ.—
As we were approaching the upper village we observed sentinels standing
on the highest bluffs, posted there, it seems, to watch the approach of
any strangers. The first that we observed was at a distance of five
miles from the village. In the bottom prairie, numbers of ponies, the
property of the village, were grazing, watched by women and children. As
we approached the village, young men and boys joined our caravan, and
when at last we arrived there a dense crowd of children surrounded us,
eager to see the visitors of their village, so that it was necessary for
a chief to come to our aid, who opened a way through the immense throng
for our wagon to proceed on to the lodge, where we were to put up. We
were here, as well as at the other village, struck with the large
proportion of children, a circumstance not generally observable among
Indians. Mr. Allis informed us that visiting them a few months previous
(the smallpox having appeared among some of the Indian tribes) he had
vaccinated about 1,500 under 14 years of age (in a population of hardly
6,000); the last time that the whole tribe had been vaccinated, having
been 14 years ago.
The village stands on a rising ground, about three miles from the river,
and consequently the same distance from the nearest timber. In a valley
near by flows a beautiful stream, from which the people of the village
are supplied with water.