sleeping less than ever, eating nothing except now and then a piece of
dry meat not so large as his hand. Early in the morning after the
seventh night, exhausted, hardly able to drag one foot after the
other, he came to the great lake, and some distance back from its
shore fell down on the grass and fell into a sound sleep. It was late
afternoon when he awoke, and, opening his eyes, he was surprised to
see a boy standing beside him. He was a beautiful child, by far the
most perfect of form and feature that Long Arrow had ever seen; so
beautiful that it did not seem possible he could be of this earth, a
child of the people of this earth.
"Said the boy to him: 'I have been waiting here a long time for you to
awake. My father invites you to his home.'
"'I shall be glad to visit him,' Long Arrow answered, and sprang up,
put on his weapons, and was ready.
"The boy led him straight to the shore of the lake, and there cried
out: 'Do not be afraid, follow me!' And having said that, changed into
a snipe, entered the water and disappeared.
"Long Arrow was afraid, terribly afraid of the deep, dark water, and
the mystery of a place where a child could suddenly become a snipe.
But he said to himself: 'If I fail in my search for a medicine it
shall be through no fault of mine,' and he entered the water. Lo! it
did not wet him; did not touch him. It parted before him and he went
on down the sloping, sandy bottom of the lake, and soon saw, close
ahead, a large, fine lodge, on which were painted in red and black the
figures of two strange animals. The boy, arrived at the doorway of
the lodge, changed suddenly from a snipe back to his natural self, and
cried out: 'Follow me! Here you will be welcome,' and went in. Long
Arrow, following him, found himself facing a fine-looking man at the
back of the lodge. He was sitting cross-legged on his couch, and wore
a beautiful black robe which entirely covered his legs and feet. 'You
are welcome here, my son, be seated,' said the man, and told his wife
to prepare food for his guest.
"Long Arrow looked about him. On all sides the lodge was hung with
beautiful shields, war clothes, weapons, handsomely painted and
fringed pouches of sacred medicines, and a porcupine-quill embroidered
belt of such brilliant colors that it shamed the rainbow.
"The woman of the lodge soon set food before Long Arrow, and, having
long fasted, he ate largely. The man then filled and lighted a pipe,
passed it to his guest, and said: 'I knew that you were coming, and I
wondered if you would have the courage to follow my son from the shore
of this lake down here to my lodge. Not long ago a man of your people
came here, but he was afraid; he would not follow my son. And there he
made a great mistake. I was going to give him the most valuable
present ever given by gods to men. As it was, I went out to him where
he sat far back from the shore, and gave him the tanned hide of an
elk-dog, and sent him home. He was not worthy of a better present. But
you are different. I shall give you something of great value. Remain
here with us a few days. My son shall show you my band of elk-dogs;
you shall hunt and kill meat for us; and when you go, then you shall
have the great present.'
"The boy went out with Long Arrow and showed him the elk-dogs. They
came running from the timber out upon the open prairie at the foot of
the lake, and were a wonderful sight. They were far larger than an
elk, of shining black color, had tails of long hair, and there was
long hair all along the top of their necks and hanging down their
foreheads from between their restless ears. They were of all sizes,
from suckling young to old males and females, and all were very fat
and playful, even the oldest of them.
"'Young man of the earth,' said the boy, 'if you are wise and
watchful, these animals and my father's black robe and his
many-colored belt may be your present: the three go together. You have
noticed that my father always keeps his feet covered with the black
robe; that when he arises and goes out of the lodge he is very careful
to keep the robe lowered around him, like a dragging woman's dress, so
that his feet cannot be seen. Well, you have but to see those feet,
and anything that you ask for will be yours.'
"'I shall do my best to see those feet,' said Long Arrow.
"Several days passed. The old people of the lodge were very kind to
Long Arrow, and he in turn did his best to please them, hunting most
all of the time and bringing in much meat. And what time he was not
hunting, he would sit close to the herd of beautiful elk-dogs and
watch them feed and play. When in the lodge he watched closely for a
sight of the old man's feet, but he ever kept them closely covered.
"At last, one evening, the old man started to go out of the lodge,
keeping his robe well down upon the ground about him, but as he
stepped over the low front of the doorway his right knee raised the
robe and Long Arrow saw his left foot; and lo! it was not a human
foot: it was the hoof, the round, hard hoof of an elk-dog! He gave a
cry of surprise at the sight, and the old man, realizing what had
happened, exclaimed: 'Hai-yo! How careless of me! Well, it cannot be
helped, it must have been fated that he should see it!'
"He went on out, and upon returning took no pains to conceal his feet:
both of them and the ankles were those of the elk-dog.
"'Well, you have seen my feet, so you can now tell me what I shall
give you,' said the old man, as he resumed his seat.
"'Now, don't hesitate; speak right out; ask for the three things,'
whispered the boy.
"And Long Arrow, taking courage, answered: 'Give me three things:
your black robe, your many-colored belt, and your elk-dogs.'
"'Ha! You ask a great deal,' the old man cried, 'but, because you are
brave and good-hearted and not lazy, you shall have the robe and the
belt and a part of my band of elk-dogs. The robe and the belt are the
elk-dog medicine. Without them you could never catch and use the
animals. There are many prayers and songs and a long ceremony that go
with them, and I have to teach it all to you. When you have thoroughly
learned them, then you shall go home with your presents.'
"Long Arrow was many evenings learning them all, but at last he could
repeat every one of them perfectly, and dance the dances as well as
the old man himself, and finally the latter told him one evening:--
"'You have done well. I am glad that my elk-dogs and my medicines are
to be in your hands. You may start for home to-morrow. And now,
listen! Take good heed of what I am about to tell you.
"'When you leave here, wearing the black robe and the belt, you are
to travel for three days and three nights and never once look back.
When you rest, you are to face the north. Be sure, now, that,
traveling or resting, you never once look back. The elk-dogs will not
at first follow you, but on the third day of your homeward journey you
will hear them coming behind you. Even then you must not look back,
but keep on walking. After a time they will come on right beside you,
and with a rope that I shall give you, you will catch one of them and
mount and ride it, and all the others will follow you. They will
always do that so long as you have the black robe. Lose that, and you
lose your animals; they will become wild, and you will never be able
to catch and train them.'
"'As you say, so shall I do,' Long Arrow answered.
"And early the next morning the old man gave him the robe, the belt,
and a rope made from the head hair of buffalo bulls, and he started
for home, keeping ever in mind and obeying carefully the old man's
instructions. At times he had his doubts of the old man. Perhaps a big
joke was being played upon him; the elk-dogs would not come on the
third day, nor any other day! But he would soon cast off such
thoughts, and go on with renewed faith that all would be well with
him.
"And on the third day he heard behind him the thunder of many hard
hoofs upon the hard plain; the occasional whinnying that he had
learned to love so well! And then, an old female leading them, the
elk-dogs came close up beside him, and he caught and mounted one of
them, and rode on. How happy he was! He realized what this would mean
for himself and for the people. These elk-dogs would rapidly increase
in number; there would soon be enough of them for all the people, and
then they would ride instead of walk, and their lodges and all their
belongings would be carried by the animals. 'And now I can do
something for those who have been so good to me,' he said to himself,
and rode on, singing the new songs that he had learned.
"It was late in the afternoon on the day that he approached the camp.
All the men had returned from the hunt; every one was outside the
lodges, resting in the warm sunshine. The first to discover him gave a
shout of surprise and alarm. All the people sprang up and stood gazing
at the strange sight. They asked one another what the strange big
black animals could be? And was it really a man sitting astride one of
them?
"'It is some fierce god bringing his fierce animals to destroy us,'
shouted Spotted Bear, the very man who had so contemptuously used Long
Arrow, who had not had the courage to follow the boy-snipe into the
water. Again he cried out: 'Surely it is an evil one coming to destroy
us.' And he fled, and all the people fled with him and took to the
brush.
"Long Arrow rode into camp and dismounted at Heavy Runner's lodge, and
all the elk-dogs came up and crowded around him and the one of them
that he had been riding. 'Heavy Runner! Heavy Runner!' he shouted. 'Be
not afraid! I am only your son, come back to you!'
"Heavy Runner heard the well-known voice and was no longer afraid. He
came hurrying from the brush, all the people following him, and they
all crowded around Long Arrow and his strange animals. Said the youth
then: 'Only father and mother that I ever knew, I have brought to you,
excepting one female and one male, all these strange and useful
animals. As you see, they can be ridden; you will no longer have to
walk. Also, they will carry for you everything that is yours. I am
glad that I can give them to you, both of you who have been so good to
me.'
"'How generous of you!' Heavy Runner cried. But his wife could say
nothing: she embraced Long Arrow and wept.
"'Where did you get the strange black ones?' a chief asked.
"'I will tell you all about it this evening; I am cautioned not to
talk about the gods in the daytime,' Long Arrow answered. And after
picketing the animal he had ridden on good grass, and driving the
others out from camp, he went into the lodge and rested.
[Illustration: GOING-TO-THE-SUN CHALET, UPPER ST. MARY'S LAKE]
"That evening all the chiefs and warriors came into the lodge, Spotted
Bear with them, and he told all about his strange adventures, of his
life with the Under-Water People, and how the old man had given him
the elk-dogs, and the black robe and the belt that he wore. And, of
course, he told about Spotted Bear's cowardice in failing to follow
the boy-snipe into the water, and he fled from the lodge, and his
chieftainship dropped from him as he fled. Ever afterward he was no
more than a woman in that great camp; never again was he allowed to
sit with the chiefs and warriors! And when Long Arrow had finished
telling them all about his wonderful adventures, the chief cried out:
'We will move camp to that lake of the Under-Water People. They have
more elk-dogs; we will ask for them, give anything to obtain
possession of such valuable animals.'
"They moved south to the lake, but, search as they would, could find
no elk-dogs, nor did the boy-snipe nor any of the Under-Water People
appear, although the medicine men made sacrifice to them and prayed
them to show themselves. They did discover, however, that above this
lake was another and a longer one, hemmed in by still higher
mountains, and so they named the two the Inside Lakes, and that is the
name they bear to this day."
_August 12._
Last night we all gathered in Stabs-by-Mistake's lodge, and, while the
pipe was filled and refilled, and passed from hand to hand on many
rounds, we had more tales, strange and weird, of the people of the
ancient days. One that our host told especially interested me, and
here it is, literally translated for your perusal. It was the story,
he said, of
"ONE HORN, SHAMER OF CROWS
"It was in the long ago time, when all three of our tribes, the
Blackfeet proper, the Bloods, and we, the Pikun´i, whom the whites
mistakenly call Blackfeet, were still living in the North country. The
camp of the Pikun´i was on Big River, close up to the foot of the
mountains. One of the great chiefs of the tribe was One Horn. Very
brave he was, and very rich, for his band of horses numbered more than
a hundred head. He had two wives, sisters, but no children. Many
orphans called him father, for he had poor old couples care for them,
and kept them all well supplied with meat and with skins for clothing.
He was a peculiar man, was One Horn. He seldom visited in other
lodges, and was a man of few words; it was always difficult to get him
to tell of his brave deeds.
"One summer night One Horn had an uneasy dream about his horses, and
with the first faint light of coming day arose, washed and dressed
himself, and took up his weapons and went out to see if his herd was
anywhere in sight. He climbed to a little rise on the edge of the
plain, saw them quietly feeding at a distance, and then saw something
else: two men asleep in a _coulée_ close under the little rise. They
were, he thought, young men of the camp, watchers of the horse herds,
and he concluded to surprise them and scold them for sleeping when
they should be watching the plains for the approach of enemies. More
from habit than anything else, he drew his bow, fitted a war arrow to
it, and then, creeping close to the sleeping ones, shouted: 'Awake!
You lazy ones, awake!'
"To his great surprise they were two enemies, who sprang up at the
sound of his voice, and he shot one of them in the breast, and he
fell, and as the other turned and ran, he fired an arrow at him and
struck him in the back, but he kept on running, the arrow dangling and
swaying from his back, and he soon disappeared in the thick brush
bordering the river. One Horn went back to camp and sent the warriors
out to look for the wounded man, but they never found him.
"Although a very brave warrior, One Horn's voice was always for peace.
He thought much about the wars of tribe against tribe and the great
loss of lives they caused, and wished that he could put an end to it
all. He counted up the different tribes with whom his people were at
war--the Sioux, the Assiniboines, Cheyennes, Pawnees, Snakes,
Bannocks, Pend d'Oreilles, Flatheads, Nez Percés, Kootenai, and Crows.
And the worst of them all were the Crows. He determined to go to the
Crows and try to make peace between them and his people.
"Another thought came to him: It was best to say nothing to his people
about his plan, for many would make serious objection to it. If he
succeeded, they should know all about it upon his return. If he
failed, he would never tell them where he had been. So, one evening,
he gave his women orders what to do, and kept his horses close in
around his lodge. Late that night, when all the camp was asleep, down
came the lodge, the pack and travois horses were quietly loaded, and
he and his women headed southward, he driving his big herd in the
lead. The next morning the people found that they had a mystery that
they could not solve: One Horn was gone with all his belongings, gone
without telling them one word of his intentions! Why had he left them
so secretly, and whither had he gone? They never ceased talking about
it and wishing that he would return; they felt safe when he was at
their backs.
"Traveling south day after day along the foot of the mountains, One
Horn and his women at last struck the River-of-Many-Chiefs-Gathering,
and, following it up, came in sight of the big prairies at the foot of
the lower one of these Inside Lakes. It was then dusk, but not so dark
but what they could see that there was a big camp of people at the
edge of the timber bordering the lake shore. Said One Horn, 'They must
be the ones I seek, the Mountain Crows. As soon as they sleep, we will
go on and put up our lodge near theirs.'
"Early the next morning an old man stepped out from his lodge, and saw
a strange lodge standing by itself just outside the circle of the big
camp. He looked at it a long time, and the growing light at last
enabled him to see that there were two huge bears painted on its new
white leather skin. He turned and hurried to the lodge of the head
chief of the camp, aroused him, and cried: 'Here is a mystery;
something to be looked into: just outside the circle of our camp a
strange lodge is standing. It belongs not to us Mountain Crows, nor to
our brothers, the River Crows. I know that, for it has painted upon it
two big bears, and neither of our tribes has that medicine.'
"The chief hurried to get up and dress, and so did others, and they
soon left their lodges and approached the strange lodge. There was a
fire within it. Voices were heard in low-toned conversation. Close
around a few horses were picketed, and farther out grazed a large band
of them, mostly grays and blacks. It was evident that the owner of the
lodge was a chief, a bear medicine man, a very rich man. The Crow
chief thrust aside the door curtain of the lodge, and entered, the
others following. A fine-appearing man at the back of it gave them the
sign for welcome, and motioned them where to sit. He lifted a big
filled pipe and lighted it, and passed it. The Crow chief smoked
first, and then one by one those with him.
"Having passed on the pipe, the Crow chief signed to the stranger:
'You are a Blackfoot?'
"'Yes, I am a Blackfoot,' One Horn answered. 'You are wondering why I,
an enemy, have come here and set up my lodge beside you. You shall
know! I have come to try to make peace between your people and my
people. I am tired of all this war, and its wasting of men's lives,
and making women and children mourn.'
"'You say well. Your talk deserves attention. Peace between us would
be good for us both. I will talk to my people about it,' said the Crow
chief.
"And just then One Horn's women set before him and the other Crows
dishes of rich berry pemmican, the best of dried meat and back fat,
and they ate with the outside chief. Then they smoked again and went
home, the Crow chief saying that he would soon give a call for a
council, and would send for the Blackfoot to join in it.
"It was not until near sunset, however, that a youth came to invite
One Horn to the Crow chief's lodge. He found assembled there all the
head men of the tribe, and the chief told him that, after long talk,
they had decided that they, too, were tired of war, and would be glad
to make peace with the Blackfeet.
"'But be not in a hurry to return home,' the Crow chief concluded.
'Make us a long visit, and during it we will decide together where and
when our two tribes shall meet to make this lasting peace treaty.'
"Answered One Horn: 'I shall be glad to camp here with you for the
rest of this moon.' And all those present signed to him: 'Yes. Remain
here with us for a time.'
"One Horn and the Crow chief became friends. They hunted together,
visited often in each other's lodge, and together were invited to
other lodges to feast and smoke, and join in the warriors' tales of
raids and battles and adventures along far trails.
"The River Crows were at this time encamped just over the ridge from
the Inside Lakes, on Little River, and some of them came frequently
to visit their Mountain brothers at the foot of the lakes. Among
others came a man who was always counting his _coups_. In a gathering
of the warriors he would wait until all had told what they had done in
war against their enemies, and then he would count one _coup_, only
one, that was far greater than any of theirs.
"On a day when One Horn was visiting in the Crow chief's lodge, this
man was one of the guests. The talk was of war, and after many there
had told what they had done, he said that, with a friend, he was
approaching the Blackfeet camp, and they were discovered and
surrounded by all the warriors of the tribe. His friend soon fell, as
full of arrows as a porcupine is full of quills, but that he, charging
this way, that way, shooting arrows fast and killing many Blackfeet,
made them give way before him and he escaped from them, although
wounded in the back. Later on, when safe from pursuit, he had drawn
out the arrow, and still had it, proof enough of the truth of his
tale.
"This man then turned to One Horn, and said, by signs, of course, 'We
have all of us here told about our fights, and now it is your turn:
tell of your brave deeds.'
"'I have nothing to say that will interest you; mine have been just
the common experiences of those who go on raids. No, I have nothing to
say,' he answered.
"'But you must tell us one great thing that you have done,' the River
Crow insisted.
"And again One Horn answered: 'What I have done would not interest
you. I have nothing to say.'
"The man then turned to the Mountain Crow chief and said: 'This is a
poor kind of a friend for you to have! He has done nothing; he is no
chief, he is a woman!'
"'I do not know for sure, but I think that he is a chief, that he has
a big war record,' the host answered him.
"And then the guests went their several ways, the River Crow laughing
shrilly, contemptuously, as he left the lodge.
"It was not long after this that the River Crow came over again from
Little River, and again was one of a party of guests in the lodge of
the chief of the Mountain Crows. Once more the talk was of war, and
when it came this man's turn to talk, he drew an arrow from his
quiver, laid it on the ground in front of him, and said: 'There! No
one here, nor in the camp of the Mountain Crows and the camp of the
River Crows, has ever equaled what that stands for. That is the arrow
that I drew from my back after my partner was killed, and I fought my
way single-handed through the hundreds of Blackfeet warriors, killing
many of them, and so frightening them that they dared not pursue me.'
"One Horn leaned over, looked at the arrow, and gave an exclamation of
disgust: 'That is my arrow,' he signed. 'I know this man now. At dawn,
one morning, I discovered him and his partner asleep near our camp. I
crept up to them and shouted, thinking that they were our horseherd
watchers, and when they sprang up, I saw that they were enemies. I
shot one of them dead. This man turned and ran, never even firing at
me, and I shot an arrow into his back, but he kept on going and
escaped from me in the brush! Yes. That is the very arrow I shot into
him!'
"'It is a lie! A big lie!' the River Crow said, and signed.
"For answer to that, One Horn went to the door of the lodge and
shouted to his women to bring over his quiver of arrows. It was soon
handed in to him, and he said: 'I have here two kinds of arrows:
hunting arrows and war arrows. Here are the war arrows.' And he laid
them beside the arrow in front of the boaster. All there saw at once
that they were exactly like it in every way, had the same private mark
just back of the point. And suddenly, with jeers and cries of 'Liar!'
'Coward!' they took handfuls of ashes and earth from the fireplace and
threw them in the River Crow's face and on his head, and he ran for
the door and was gone, leaving the arrow behind. One Horn picked it up
and put it in his quiver, and said: 'That no doubt ends his lying
bragging!'
"Some days after this exposure of his lying, the River Crow, watching
his chance, entered the lodge of the Mountain Crow chief and said to
him: 'That Blackfoot has shamed me. I was a chief, but now all people
laugh at me. I want revenge. Let me kill that friend of yours and I
will give you three of my best horses!'
"'What you ask is impossible!' the chief replied. 'He is my friend! We
have smoked together, have eaten together. I cannot allow you to kill
him. And for your lying you deserve what you got!'
"The River Crow sneaked away, but on the next evening, when none but
the chief and his women were at home, he came again. And this time he
said: 'Let me do what I want to do; you know what that is; and I will
give you five of my best horses and my beautiful young daughter.'
"And this time the chief did not give him a short answer. He thought
over the offer for a long time. He knew that it would be a terrible
thing to betray his Blackfoot friend, but the temptation was great.
His women were getting old. He wanted that beautiful girl. And at
last he gave way to the temptation: 'It shall be as you wish,' he told
the man. 'All is arranged for to-morrow; we go with the hunters on a
big buffalo hunt, and there will be no chance for you to do what you
want to do. Come the day after to-morrow and I will help you--if you
need my help--to kill the Blackfoot.'