LOUISA--DAY-KAU-RAY ON EDUCATION.
The payment was now over, and the Indians had dispersed and gone to
their wintering grounds. The traders, too, had departed, laden with a
good share of the silver, in exchange for which each family had provided
itself, as far as possible, with clothing, guns, traps, ammunition, and
the other necessaries for their winter use. The Indians are good at a
bargain. They are not easily overreached. On the contrary, they
understand at once when a charge is exorbitant; and a trader who tries
his shrewdness upon them is sure to receive an expressive _sobriquet_,
which ever after clings to him.
For instance, M. Rolette was called by them "Ah-kay-zaup-ee-tah," _five
more_--because, as they said, let them offer what number of skins they
might, in bartering for an article, his terms were invariably "five
more"
Upon one occasion a lady remarked to him, "Oh, M. Rolette, I would not
be engaged in the Indian trade; it seems to me a system of cheating the
poor Indians."
"Let me tell you, madame," replied he, with great _naïveté_, "it is not
so easy a thing to cheat the Indians as you imagine. I have tried it
these twenty years, and have never succeeded!"
* * * * *
We were now settled down to a quiet, domestic life. The military system
under which everything was conducted--the bugle-call, followed by the
music of a very good band, at reveille; the light, animated strains for
"sick-call," and soon after for "breakfast;" the longer ceremony of
"guard-mounting;" the "Old English Roast-Beef," to announce the
dinner-hour; the sweet, plaintive strains of "Lochaber no more,"
followed most incongruously by "The Little Cock-Sparrow," at retreat;
and, finally, the long, rolling "tattoo," late in the evening--made
pleasant divisions of our time, which, by the aid of books, music, and
drawing, in addition to household occupations, seemed to fly more
swiftly than ever before. It was on Sunday that I most missed my Eastern
home. I had planned beforehand what we should do on the first recurrence
of this sacred day, under our own roof. "We shall have at least," said I
to myself, "the Sabbath's quiet and repose, and I can, among other
things, benefit poor Louisa by giving her some additional lessons of a
serious character."
So, while she was removing the breakfast-things, I said to her,--
"Now, Louisa, get your work all finished, and everything put neatly
aside, and then come here to me again."
"Yes, ma'am."
We sat down to our books, and read and waited; we waited and read
another hour--no Louisa.
There was music and the sound of voices on the parade in front of our
windows, but that did not disturb us; it was what we were daily
accustomed to.
I must go at length, and see what could be keeping my damsel so. I
descended to the kitchen. The breakfast-things stood upon the table--the
kettles and spider upon the hearth--the fire was out--the kitchen empty.
Passing back into the hall, which extended the whole length of the house
and opened in front upon the parade, I perceived a group collected in
the area, of all shades and colors, and in the midst, one round, woolly
head which I could not mistake, bobbing up and down, now on this side,
now on that, while peals of laughter were issuing from the whole group.
"Louisa," I called, "come here. What are you doing there?"
"Looking at inspection."
"But why are not your breakfast-things washed, and your kitchen swept?
Did I not tell you I wished you to come up and learn your lessons?"
"Yes, ma'am; but I had to see inspection first. Everybody looks at
inspection on Sunday."
I found it was in vain to expect to do more for Louisa than give her an
afternoon's lesson, and with that I was obliged to content myself.
I felt that it would be very pleasant, and perhaps profitable, for all
the inmates of the garrison to assemble on this day; one of our number
might be found who would read a portion of the church-service, with a
sermon from one of our different selections.
I approached the subject cautiously, with an inquiry to this effect:
"Are there none among the officers who are religiously disposed?"
"Oh, yes," replied the one whom I addressed, "there is S----; when he is
half tipsy, he takes his Bible and 'Newton's Works,' and goes to bed and
cries over them; he thinks in this way he is excessively pious."
S---- was among the officers who had never called upon us; it was fair
to infer that if his religious principles did not correct his own evil
habits they would not aid much in improving others; therefore it seemed
useless to call in his co-operation in any scheme for a better
observance of the Lord's day.
We had to content ourselves with writing to our friends at the East to
interest themselves in getting a missionary sent to us, who should
officiate as chaplain in the garrison--a plan that seemed to find favor
with the officers. The hope of any united religious services was, for
the present, laid aside.
The post-surgeon having obtained a furlough, his place was supplied by
Dr. Newhall, of Galena, and thus, by the addition of his gentle, quiet
wife, our circle of ladies was now enlarged to three. Here we were, in a
wilderness, but yet how contented and happy!
A gloom was soon to replace this envied tranquillity in our home. A
Frenchman, named Letendre, one day suddenly presented himself. He had
come from Chicago, with the distressing intelligence of the
extreme--indeed, hopeless--illness of our dear relative, Dr. Wolcott. My
husband immediately commenced his preparations for instant departure. I
begged to be permitted to accompany him, but the rapidity with which he
proposed to journey obliged him to refuse my entreaties. In a few hours
his provisions, horses, and all other things necessary for the journey
were in readiness, and he set off with Petaille Grignon, his usual
attendant on such expeditions, leaving Letendre to follow as soon as
recruited from his fatigue.
Sad and dreary were the hours of his absence, notwithstanding the kind
efforts of our friends to cheer me. In a few days I received the news of
the fatal termination of Dr. W.'s illness, brought by another messenger.
That noble heart, so full of warm and kindly affections, had ceased to
beat, and sad and desolate indeed were those who had so loved and
honored him.
As soon as he could possibly leave his family, my husband returned; and
it was fortunate that he had delayed no longer, for the winter now began
to set in, and with severity.
Our quarters were spacious, but having been constructed of the green
trees of the forest, cut down and sawed into boards by the bands of the
soldiers, they were considerably given to shrinking and warping, thus
leaving many a yawning crevice. Stuffing the cracks with cotton batting,
and pasting strips of paper over them, formed the employment of many a
leisure hour.
Then the chimneys, spite of all the currents of air, which might have
been expected to create a draught, had a sad habit of smoking. To remedy
this, a couple of gun-barrels were, by order of the commanding officer,
sawed off and inserted in the hearth, one on each side of the
fire-place, in the hope that the air from the room below might help to
carry the smoke into its proper place, the chimney.
The next morning after this had been done, Louisa was washing the
hearth.
"Pray, ma'am," said she, "what are these things put in here for?"
I explained their use.
"Oh, I am so glad it is only that! Uncle Ephraim (Major Twiggs's
servant) said they were to be filled with powder and fired off Christmas
Day, and he was terribly afraid they would blow the house up, and we in
it."
Ephraim, who was a most faithful and valuable servant, often amused
himself with playing upon the credulity of the younger portions of the
colored fraternity.
"Is it true," asked Louisa, one day, "that Pillon and Plante were once
prairie-wolves?"
"Prairie-wolves! what an idea! Why do you ask such a foolish question?"
"Because Uncle Ephraim says they, and all the Frenchmen about here, were
once prairie-wolves, and that, living so near the white people, they
grow, after a time, to be like them, and learn to talk and dress like
them. And then, when they get to be old, they turn back into
prairie-wolves again, and that all the wolves that the officers bait
with their dogs used to be Frenchmen, once."
After a time, however, I ceased to straighten out these stories of Uncle
Ephraim, for I was gradually arriving at the conviction that my little
colored damsel was by no means so simple and unsophisticated as she
would have me believe, and that I was, after all, the one who was
imposed upon.
The snow this winter was prodigious, and the cold intense. The water
would freeze in our parlors at a very short distance from the fire, for,
although the "fatigue-parties" kept the halls filled with wood, almost
up to the ceiling, that did not counterbalance the inconvenience of
having the wide doors thrown open to the outer air for a great portion
of the day, to allow of their bringing it in. We Northerners should have
had wood-houses specially for the purpose, and not only have kept our
great hall-doors closed, but have likewise protected them with a
"hurricane-house." But the Florida frontier was not a climate in which
our Southern bachelors could have acquired the knowledge available when
the thermometer was twenty-five degrees below zero--a point at which
brandy congealed in the sideboard.
The arrival of Christmas and New-Year's brought us our Indian friends
again. They had learned something of the observance of these holidays
from their French neighbors, and I had been forewarned that I should see
the squaws kissing every white man they met. Although not crediting this
to its full extent, I could readily believe that they would each expect
a present, as a "compliment of the season," so I duly prepared myself
with a supply of beads, ribbons, combs, and other trinkets. Knowing
them to be fond of dainties, I had also a quantity of crullers and
doughnuts made ready the day before, as a treat to them.
To my great surprise and annoyance, only a moderate share of the cakes,
the frying of which had been intrusted to Louisa, were brought up to be
placed in the "Davis."
"Where are the rest of the cakes, Louisa?"
"That great fellow, Hancock, came in with the fatigue-party to fill the
water-barrels, and while I had just stepped into the store-room to get
some more flour, he carried off all I had got cooked."
And Louisa made a face and whined, as if she had not herself treated
every soldier who had set his foot in the premises.
At an early hour the next morning I had quite a levee of the
Ho-tshung-rah matrons. They seated themselves in a circle on the floor,
and I was sorry to observe that the application of a little soap and
water to their blankets had formed no part of their holiday
preparations. There being no one to interpret, I thought I would begin
the conversation in a way intelligible to themselves, so I brought out
of the sideboard a china dish, filled with the nice brown crullers, over
which I had grated, according to custom, a goodly quantity of white
sugar. I handed it to the first of the circle. She took the dish from my
hand, and, deliberately pouring all the cakes into the corner of her
blanket, returned it to me empty. "She must be a meat voracious person,"
thought I; "but I will manage better the next time." I refilled the
dish, and approached the next one, taking care to keep a fast hold of it
as I offered the contents, of which I supposed she would modestly take
one. Not so, however. She scooped out the whole with her two hands, and,
like the former, bestowed them in her blanket. My sense of politeness
revolted at handing them out one by one, as we do to children, so I sat
down to deliberate what was to be done, for evidently the supply would
not long answer such an ample demand, and there would be more visitors
anon.
While I was thus perplexed, those who had received the cakes commenced a
distribution, and the whole number was equitably divided among the
company. But I observed they did not eat them. They passed their fingers
over the grated sugar, looked in each other's faces, and muttered in low
tones--there was evidently something they did not understand. Presently
one more adventurous than the rest wet her fingers, and taking up a few
grains of the sugar put it cautiously to her mouth.
"Tah-nee-zhoo-rah!" (Sugar!) was her delighted exclamation, and they all
broke out into a hearty laugh. It is needless to say that the cakes
disappeared with all the celerity they deemed compatible with
good-breeding. Never having seen any sugar but the brown or yellow
maple, they had supposed the white substance to be salt, and for that
reason had hesitated to taste it.
Their visit was prolonged until Shaw-nee-aw-kee made his appearance, and
then, having been made happy by their various gifts, they all took their
departure.
About this time, Mr. Kinzie received a letter from Colonel Richard M.
Johnson, of Kentucky. This gentleman had interested himself greatly in a
school established in that State for the education of Indian youths and
children. The purport of his letter was to request the Agent to use
every endeavor to induce the Winnebagoes not only to send their children
to this institution for their education, but also (what was still more
important) to set apart a portion of their annuity-money to assist in
sustaining it.
There happened to be, at this holiday season, a number of the chiefs in
the neighborhood of the Portage, and a messenger was sent to convene
them all at the house of Paquette, the interpreter, that their Father
might hold a talk with them.
On the day appointed they all assembled. The subject-matter of the
letter was laid before them, and all the advantages of civilization and
education duly set forth--the benefits which would arise to their
nation, if even a small portion of the younger members could be well
taught by the whites, and then return to their tribe, to instruct them
in the learning, the arts, manufactures, and habits of civilized life.
To each paragraph, as it was uttered to them, they responded with a
unanimous "Humph!" (Good!)
When their Father's address was ended, _Day-kau-ray_, the oldest and
most venerable among the chiefs, rose and spoke as follows:
"Father,--The Great Spirit made the white man and the Indian. He did not
make them alike. He gave the white man a heart to love peace, and the
arts of a quiet life. He taught him to live in towns, to build houses,
to make books, to learn all things that would make him happy and
prosperous in the way of life appointed him. To the red man the Great
Spirit gave a different character. He gave him a love of the woods, of a
free life, of hunting and fishing, of making war with his enemies and
taking scalps. The white man does not live like the Indian--it is not
his nature. Neither does the Indian love to live like the white man--the
Great Spirit did not make him so.
"Father,--We do not wish to do anything contrary to the will of the
Great Spirit. If he had made us with white skins, and characters like
the white men, then we would send our children to this school to be
taught like the white children.
"Father,--We think that if the Great Spirit had wished us to be like
the whites, he would have made us so. As he has not seen fit to do so,
we believe he would be displeased with us, to try and make ourselves
different from what he thought good.
"Father,--I have nothing more to say. This is what we think. If we
change our minds, we will let you know."
It will be seen from these remarks of Day-kau-ray that the Indians
entertain a conviction that the Great Spirit himself teaches the white
man the arts and sciences, and since he has given the red man no
instruction in these branches, it would be unbecoming in him to attempt
to acquire them in an irregular manner.
With little incidents of this kind, and with an occasional dinner- or
tea-party to the young officers, sometimes given at the Major's
quarters, sometimes at our own, our course of life passed pleasantly on.
At times I would amuse myself by making something _very nice_, in the
form of a fruit cake or pie, to send to the quarters of the young
officers as a present, it being supposed that possibly, without a lady
to preside over their mess, it might be sometimes deficient in these
delicacies. Mrs. Twiggs was so fortunate as to have well-trained
servants to do for her that which, thanks to my little dark handmaid,
always fell to my share.
One day I had made some mince pies, which the Major and my husband
greatly approved, and I thought I would send one to each of the young
officers.
It happened that my husband, that day, in returning from superintending
his men on the other side of the river, had occasion to call on some
errand at Captain Harney's quarters.
Dinner had just been placed upon the table, and the Captain insisted on
his visitor's sitting down and partaking with him and another gentleman
who was present. The pork and beans were pronounced excellent, and being
removed there followed a mince pie.
The Captain cut it, and helped his guests, then taking a piece himself,
he commenced tasting it. Pushing back his plate with an exclamation and
a sudden jerk, he called to his servant, a little thick-set mulatto who
waited--"David, you yellow rascal, how dare you put such a pie on my
table?" And, turning to the company apologetically, he said,--
"If there is anything on earth David _does_ understand, it is how to
make a mince pie, and here he has filled this with brandy, so we cannot
eat a morsel of it!"
"Please, sir," said David, modestly, "I did not make the pie--it is one
Mrs. Kinzie sent as a present."
The poor Captain was now in a predicament. He raved at himself, at the
same time conjuring my husband most earnestly not to tell me what a
mistake he had made--an injunction that was lost sight of as soon as the
latter returned to his home. As for the unlucky Captain, he did not
venture to call on me again until he felt sure I had forgotten the
circumstance.