According to a treaty now being made between the United States
Government and the Ojibwa Indians, the latter are to relinquish the
several areas of land at present occupied by them and to remove to
portions of the Red Lake and White Earth Reservations and take lands in
severalty. By this treaty about 4,000,000 acres of land will be ceded to
the Government, and the members of the various bands will become
citizens of the United States, and thus their tribal ties will be broken
and their primitive customs and rites be abandoned.
The chief Midē´ priests, being aware of the momentous consequences of
such a change in their habits, and foreseeing the impracticability of
much longer continuing the ceremonies of so-called “pagan rites,” became
willing to impart them to me, in order that a complete description might
be made and preserved for the future information of their descendants.
There is scarcely any doubt that these ceremonies will still be secretly
held at irregular intervals; but under the watchful care of the national
authorities it is doubtful whether they will be performed with any
degree of completeness, and it will be but a comparatively short time
before the Midē´wiwin will be only a tradition.
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Errata for Midē´wiwin:
A number of Ojibwa words are recorded with “w” where the correct form
has “b”. Since w:b is not an attested dialectal variation, these may be
mishearings on the part of the original transcriber. Other errors such
as G:S or h:k can be attributed to misreading of handwritten text.
Variations and inconsistencies (unchanged):
Ojibwa : Ojibway
Man´ido(s) : Man´idō(s)
[_throughout text_]
Bois Forts
[_modern name Bois Forte, but “Forts” is common in early texts_]
INDEX:
[_all spellings unchanged_]
[Note 11] History of the Ojebway Indians, London [1843(?)]
[_question mark and brackets in original_]
sacred objects which Minabō´zho had deposited
[_word is usually spelled “Mi´nabō´zho”_]
Before proceeding further with the explanation of the Mide´
[_word is usually spelled “Midē´”_]
The bear going to the Midē´wigan
[_word is usually spelled “Midē´wigân”_]
The boy then narrated ... man´-i-dō´ ’n-gi-gĭn´-o-a-mâk
[_the apostrophe in “’n-gi-gĭn´-o-a-mâk” occurs nowhere else in the
text; it may be phonetic (elision of i?) or an error_]
Corrections:
A´-mĭ-kŭn´-dem mi-ē´-ta â´-bi-dink´ [â´-wi-dink´]
the Midē´wiwin was at that time held annually [Midê´wiwin]
shall guard it during the night [shal]
Amini´kanzi´bi [Aⁿnibi´kanzi´bi]
calling upon the other Man´idōs to join him
[_text reads “to / to” at line break_]
This wig´iwam is dome-shaped measures about 10 feet in diameter
[_text unchanged: “and measures”, “measuring”?_]
shooting the mī´gis (see Fig. 15) is explained on page 215
[_text reads “page 192” (page number of Fig. 15)_]
Ni´-nīn-dē´, a´-ya´ [Ni´-nīn-dē´, ĕ´, ō´, ya´]
Nē´-wōdē´-ē´. [Hē´-wōg, ē´, ē´]
Gaga´īⁿwuⁿsh-- “Raven Tree.” [Saga´īⁿwuⁿsh]
Iskig´omeaush´-- “Sap-flows-fast.” [Ishig´omeaush´]
Yellow Birch. Wi´nnis´sik. [Wi´umis´sik]
White Birch. Wīgwas´. [Mīgwas´]
Kinē´bigwŏshk-- “Snake weed or Snake Vine.” [Kinē´wigwŏshk]
Sunflower. Pŭkite´wŭbbŏkuⁿs´. [Pŭkite´wŭkbŏkuⁿs´]
Makadē´mĭskwi´minŏk-- “Black Blood Berry.” [Makadē´wĭskwi´minŏk]
Choke Cherry. Sisaⁿ´wemi´nakŏâⁿsh´. [Sisaⁿ´wewi´nakâⁿsh´]
Okwē´mĭsh-- “Scabby Bark.” [Okwē´wĭsh]
at the time during which the investigations were made
[_text reads “investiga/gations” at line break_]
Wabō´sōminī´sŏk-- “Rabbit berries” [Wabō´saminī´sŏk]
Culver’s Root. Wi´sŏgedzhi´bik [Wi´sŏgedzhi´wik]
Hoary Willow. Sisi´gobe´mĭsh. [Sisi´gewe´mĭsh]
_Symphoricarpos vulgaris_ [Symphoricarpus]
(_Gen. et sp. ?_) Termed Kine´bĭk waⁿsh´koⁿs and “Snake weed.”
[_Smilacina racemosa: False Solomon’s seal_]
(_Gen. et sp. ?_) Ki´tshiodēiminibŏk-- “Big Heart Leaf.”
[_Potentilla spp.: Cinquefoil_]
Waterleaf. Buⁿkite´bagūⁿs´. [Huⁿkite´wagūŭs´]
Downy Yellow Violet. Ogitē´baguⁿs.
[... Violet, Ogitē´waguⁿs]
Dwarf Wild Rose. Oginī´minagaⁿ´wŏs. [Oginī´minagaⁿ´mŏs]
(_Gen. et sp. ?_) Mŏ´zânâ´tĭk.
[_Urtica dioica: Stinging Nettle_]
Nesō´bakŏk-- “Three Leafed.” [Nesō´wakŏk]
The short zigzag lines signifying magic influence [sigzag]
The lines extending downward from the eye signifies weeping
[_text unchanged_]
Ki-na-nē´, hē´, ki´-ne-na-wē´ man´-i-dō. [Hi-na-nē´]
“Ō´nishgân”--“get up” [Ō´mishga‘n]
in this place he shall be Raised again
[_text (two-line gloss) reads “in this he shall / be place”_]
(the second-degree mī´gis) [mì´gis]
the illustration in Pl. XIV, A, is a reproduction of the original
[Pl. XVII, A]
the following Midē´ song, represented pictorially, also on Pl. XIV, B
[Pl. XVII, B]
a three-lobed apex, as shown in Fig. 4 [Fig. 3]
south and east of the Midē´wigân, as shown in Fig. 35 [Fig. 30]
These mnemonic songs were exhibited [menmonic]
wâ´-wa-tē´-si-wŭg [wē´-we-tē´-si-wŭg]
Punctuation:
principles of magic and incantations.”
[_close quote missing_]
(or, as we have learned to term it, “Grand Medicine,”)
[_close parenthesis missing_]
place the body on the ground in the middle of the wig´iwam.”
[_close quote missing_]
Long-sand-bar-beneath-the-surface (No. 15)
[_printed “beneath/ the” (no hyphen at line break)_]
“Our forefathers were living
[_open quote missing (passage is quote within block quote)_]
We´-gi-kwō´ Kĕ-mī´-nĭ-nan´?
[_text ends “.?”_]
“He, the chief spirit of the Midē´ Society
[_open quote missing (passage is quote within block quote)_]
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