1. Is the similarity of physiognomy and features between the
present race of American Indians and the Asiatic Tartars
strong enough to induce an unprejudiced observer to pronounce
them members of the same great family of mankind, or, to speak
so as to be understood, 'does an Indian look like a Tartar?'
2. Are the coincidences of sound and signification in the
languages of North America and Tartary sufficiently numerous
and unequivocal to induce one to pronounce them of a common
origin?
3. Do the customs and manners of the North American Indians
correspond in any material degree with those of their supposed
brethren, the Tartars?
4. Are there any animals, wild or domestic, tameable or
untameable, in America, which are of a species known to exist
at this day in Tartary? And is there any thing in the
vegetable kingdom of the west which bears marks of derivation
from that country?
5. Is there any reason to think these Indians descended from
the Welsh? What are we to think of the voyage of Madoc and his
supposed colonization of the Western continent? Upon this
point M. Verdier will do well to examine their pedigrees with
great care.
The committee deem it altogether impossible to particularise all the
subjects upon which questions may be put, to the fair furtherance of the
objects which the Society has in view in sending out M. Verdier. A great
deal must be left to his discretion and judgment. Many reflections will
occur to him, as he personally surveys the monuments, and becomes
acquainted with the people of that continent, which does not occur to
us, and perhaps never would to him but for such visit.
The Society hope every thing from the zeal, the perseverance, and the
talents, of their missionary. They hope to be able to record as a
benefactor to this Society, to the kingdom, to the world, not only M.
Verdier, but the gentleman who first recommended him to their notice.
Thus furnished with ample directions, and with a letter to the governor
of the French possessions in Canada, M. Verdier set out upon his travels
in May 1697. The Society liberally afforded him the means of
conciliating the Savages, furnishing him with abundance of those
articles which they were supposed to covet, such as beads, knives, &c.
The ship in which he sailed had a very short passage, at least for a
period when the arts of ship-building and navigation were so little
understood, and landed him safely at Quebec some days before the
setting-in of winter. The dignity of our traveller's mission, the high
reputation of the Society under whose auspices he acted, together with
his own merit, attested by strong letters of introduction, operated to
procure him a most cordial and gratifying reception. All ranks joined in
evincing unbounded respect both for him and his object, and in placing
all possible helps within his reach. One admitted him to his museum of
Indian curiosities, another presented him with a bundle of Indian
manuscripts, a third took measures with the Indian chiefs for his
unmolested passage through their country, a fourth instructed him in the
Indian language, and taught him the peculiarities of their hundred
dialects. Nor were the women behind the other sex in kindness to our
traveller. He was invited to take up his abode altogether with the
Ursuline nuns, with whom he rose to such high favour, that they would
confess to no other during his stay in the city. The married ladies were
quite as courteous as those who were vowed to a single life, and feasted
and caressed him beyond our ability or wish to describe.
He did not leave Quebec until the return of spring, when, in the
prosecution of his object, he bade adieu to his pleasant quarters, and
travelled into the country of the Iroquois or Five Nations. His friend,
the Governor, persuaded him much to take an interpreter with him, and
nominated good old father Luke Bisset for that purpose. But M. Verdier
declined, trusting that the "coincidences of sound and signification,"
(suggested in query 2, paper B,) would free him from all difficulties on
that score. He hired an Indian, who had come to Quebec to dispose of his
furs, to act as his guide, and a French boy to carry his change of linen
and his presents, the last named being a labour to which no Indian will
submit, unless he has become an outcast from his tribe, or otherwise
disgraced and dishonoured.
They set out for the country of the Iroquois in the month of May, 1698.
After travelling for many weeks, at a great rate, for the Savages are
inconceivably swift walkers, and can endure great fatigues, they
arrived at the principal town of the Five Nations. There, and elsewhere
within the limits of that confederacy, our traveller abode two full
years. The public must not expect to find in this brief introduction a
cursory statement, much less a minute journal of his curious
observations and discoveries during that period. The Editor would make a
very bad use of the confidence reposed in him, if he were to attempt
either. Public curiosity, however, will be gratified, for the highly
learned and philosophical reports of M. Verdier on the philology,
origin, history, manners, and customs, of the Aborigines of America,
will soon be published under the eye of a competent gentleman. But, for
the immediate satisfaction of those who have had their minds highly
excited on the subject, and prefer to have their knowledge in advance,
the Editor begs leave to observe, that these reports fully prove that
the Indians of North America and the Tartars of the Eastern continent
are of a common stock. The former, M. Verdier proves, by a long train of
reasoning, to be descended from a Calmuck, who, in the year 622, (the
year of Mahomet's flight from Mecca) married a Samoyede woman, and, with
a party of his countrymen, crossed Behring's Straits to the Western
Continent. The exceedingly subtle and plausible process by which he
arrived at the exact year in which they crossed, and determined that the
emigrants were of two different tribes--again, that the chief was tall
and lean, his wife short, pursy, and thick-breathed, proved the value of
trifling circumstances to the creation of beautiful theories, and with
what wonderful ingenuity philosophic minds apply themselves to subjects
capable of being theorised. Thus, from the circumstance that the Indian
curs, when they were possessed of a bone, would snarl and show their
teeth if one went near them, and even hide it in the ground rather than
have it taken from them, he drew the conclusion that they were the true
_canis sibericus_, which is known to possess these singular traits of
canine sagacity and ferociousness. Additional proof was found in the
fact, that an Indian dog of the same species bit M. Verdier in his heel,
setting his teeth in precisely the same spot, where, some years before,
a Tartar dog had placed his, making but a single scar. He caused an
Iroquois cur to be tied by his tail to a log of wood, and the celerity
with which he drew it, yelping and screaming over a bed of ice, fully
convinced M. Verdier that he was a legitimate descendant from those
which perform the part of dray-horses among the Tartars. So much for
canine resemblances, which one would think of little importance, yet
were the chief prop to a learned theory upon this very subject,
published some years ago by an erudite American gentleman.
His inquiries concerning the other object of his mission were as deep,
and his conclusions as profitable. It may be remembered, that the
principal aim of the Society in sending M. Verdier to America, was to
ascertain who were its primitive inhabitants, and the builders of the
stupendous mounds found there. Having, by severe study, mastered the
Indian language and its numerous dialects, he assumed the dress of a
chief, and set out for the Ohio. He took with him seven Indian chiefs
belonging to the Seneca tribe, great warriors, great talkers, and great
smokers, who could live seven days without food, and feast the next
seven without intermission. Their names, rendered into English, were The
Flying Medicine, The Hollow Bear, The Little Dish, The Wicked Cow, The
Black Mocassins, The Big Thief, and The Guard of the Red Arrows. The
party were provided with parched corn and jerked beef, the common
hunting provisions of the Indians. Though filled with pacific
intentions, and meaning to rely for safety principally on the calumet,
or pipe of peace, they nevertheless went completely armed. It would have
ill suited Indian ideas of dignity and honour had they left behind what
they believe to be the essential emblems of both.
Three years were spent by M. Verdier in surveying the country west of
the Alleghany mountains. In that time he visited and examined all the
mounds or _tumuli_, "deciphered a great many _resemblances_ of
inscriptions," and penetrated into many saltpetre caves in search of
mummies and triune idols. He succeeded in proving to his own
satisfaction, and, as we shall see, to that of his employers, that the
tumuli were erected for burying-places; that their builders were Malays
who chartered the ship Argo from Jason, and came over from the Sandwich
Islands in the ninth year of pope Boniface the third; that they had the
art of embalming in nitre, and were adepts at making triune idols. They
were idolaters, worshippers, he was convinced, of Brahma and his Hindoo
brothers. He was puzzled for a while to tell what became of them
finally; nor were his doubts cleared up until he travelled into Mexico.
A residence of a few months among the Aztecas of that region convinced
him that they were, to use the words of an eminent American philosopher,
whose cogitations upon this subject have been read from Labrador to
Tobolsk, "descendants of the extinct race." He examined the pyramids of
Cholula, which agreed in all respects with the works in Ohio, and thence
argued that the Malays who built the former were also the builders of
the latter.
Though M. Verdier had been very industrious, and had theorised and
speculated himself almost into insanity, he thought he had not done
enough to secure a gracious reception at home. With a view to make
himself master of all which could aid him in preparing his report, he
determined to call a general meeting of the Indian tribes, in order to
acquire a knowledge of their traditionary lore, and it is from this
period that he seems to have laboured to a more useful purpose than that
of making "velvet purses of sows' ears, and twisting ropes of sand." The
shafts of ridicule may with propriety be levelled at all attempts to
ascertain the origin of the American Indians, but their Traditions are
their history and learning, and therefore entitled to respectful
consideration. He dispatched messengers to all the tribes far and near,
with the information that a grand council would be held at
Machilimakinak, i.e. a great place for turtles, in the moon next after
the gathering of the corn, at which they were invited to attend and
offer sacrifices to the Great Spirit. They were especially requested to
bring with them their story-tellers as well as their _pow-wows_, or
priests, with whom M. Verdier was anxious to confer. Nothing more fully
proves the excellence of his heart than his willingness to meet and
confer, as the phrase of our day is, with "ministers of a different
denomination." But M. Verdier was a charitable man, and partook of none
of that bigotry laid often unjustly to the charge of Roman Catholics. He
believed that many went to heaven who denied the infallibility of the
pope; and feared that many took the downward road who made that dogma
the standard of their faith.
As the time fixed for the convening of the grand council approached,
Indians were observed in every direction proceeding to the rendezvous.
Never within the memory of the Indian had there been so full a council.
There were plenipotentiaries from many of the New England tribes, from
some who lived far down the Mississippi, and others who hunted in the
shade of the Rocky Mountains--to say nothing of those who came from the
regions of Polar ice. Their lodges covered a thousand acres. The spot
selected for their encampment was a _prairie_ of almost boundless
extent, having on one side a forest impervious save to an Indian hunter.
This forest abounded with game, and vast herds of buffaloes were
feeding on the skirts of the _prairie_. It may be observed in passing,
that sites for the temporary sojourn of the Savages are always chosen
with reference to facilities for the prosecution of the chace, and for
obtaining water and fuel. That, selected in this case, afforded each of
these in abundance, and to our traveller a prospect as replete with
natural beauty as it was with novelty. He beheld, stretched out before
him, a green meadow extending farther than the eye could reach, diversified
only by groupes of Indian bark huts, and parties of hunters going to
or returning from the chace--of women employed in the various duties
imposed upon them in savage life, and children playing at the simple
games of savage childhood. There, was a hunter, stately and tall, his
eye like the eagle's, and his foot like the antelope's, cautiously
approaching an angle of the grove, where his wary eye detected a deer;
here, a proud chief, his crest surmounted by an eagle's feather,
haranguing the warriors of his tribe with far more dignity and grace
than Alexander displayed in giving audience to the Scythian
ambassadors, or Hannibal in his address to his army before the battle
of Cannæ. It was a novel scene to M. Verdier, and he enjoyed it with
all the zest of a profound and philosophic observer of human
character.
When the nations were all assembled, Shongo Tongo, or the Big Horse, a
chief of the Ottoes, rose, and said:--
"Father, you see before you the warriors of many nations. All
the red men of the land are gathered together in the great
plain where no trees grow. They have come at your bidding, and
at your bidding have buried their war-clubs. They forget that
they have been enemies. They smoke in the calumet of peace,
and are friends because you wish them to be so. Is it well?
"My father, your children will dance before your tent. It is
thus we honour the brave. It is thus we honour the stranger."
To this speech, M. Verdier returned a suitable answer, adapting his
words to their simple comprehension, yet using the metaphorical style so
common among them. He was glad, he told them, that "words of peace were
in their mouths; that there was a mild sky, and that the winds were low.
He wished it was always so."
They heard him without giving any tokens of approbation, for it is very
uncommon for the Indian to bestow such upon an orator. When he had
finished his speech, their wild dances commenced by the striking up of
their instrumental and vocal music. The instruments were a gong made of
a large keg, over one of the ends of which was stretched a skin which
was struck by a small stick, and an instrument consisting of a stick of
firm wood, notched like a saw, over the teeth of which a smaller stick
was rubbed forcibly backward and forward. They had besides rattles made
of strings of deer's hoofs, and also parts of the intestines of an
animal inflated, inclosing small stones, which produced a sound like
pebbles in a small gourd. With these, rude as they were, very good time
was preserved with the vocal performers, seated around them, and by all
the natives as they sat, in the inflection of their bodies, or the
movements of their limbs. After the lapse of a little time, three
individuals leaped up and danced around for a few minutes; then, at a
concerted signal from the master of the ceremonies, the music ceased,
and they retired to their seats uttering a loud noise, which, by patting
the mouth rapidly with the hand, was broken into a succession of sounds,
somewhat like the hurried barking of a dog. In the intervals of dancing,
a warrior would step forward, and, striking the flagstaff they had
erected with a stick or a whip, would recount his martial deeds. This
ceremony was called _striking the post_, and whatever was then said
might be relied upon as truth, for the custom bound every warrior to
expose the falsehood of the _striker_, and disgrace him for
exaggeration if he indulged in it.
A tall, grey-headed chief rose, and, after lashing the post with his
whip, commenced the narration of his exploits. He was succeeded by a
young and ardent warrior, whose soul apparently was full of poetry, and
burning with love of martial glory. After walking leisurely twice or
thrice around the post, he quickened his step, and broke out into the
following wild song of boasting and triumph:--
Down I took my spear, my tough spear--
Down I took my bow, my good bow,
Fill'd my quiver with sharp arrows,
Slung my hatchet to my shoulder.
Forth I wander'd to the wild wood.
Who comes yonder?
Red his forehead with the war-paint--
Ha! I know him by his feather--
Leader of the Ottawas,
Eagle of his warlike nation,
And he comes to dip that feather
In a vanquish'd Maqua's blood.
Then I pois'd my tough ash spear,
Then I bent my pride of bows,
From my quiver drew an arrow,
Rais'd my war-cry--ha! he falls!
From his crest I took the feather,
From his crown I tore the scalp-lock.
Shout his friends their cry of vengeance--
What avails it? are they eagles?
Nought else may o'ertake the Maqua.
Came the Hurons to our border--
Hurons from the Lake of Thunder--
Hurons far renown'd for valour--
Forth I went with six to meet them:
In my cabin hang ten scalp-locks.
Should I fear a mortal warrior?
No--a Maqua never trembles.
Why should I fear?
I never told a lie,
Kind have I been to father and to mother,
I never turn'd my back upon a foe.
I slew my people's enemies--
Why should I fear to die?
Let the flame be kindled round me,
Let them tear my flesh with pincers,
Probe me with a burning arrow,
I can teach a coward Mingo
How a valiant man should die.
These were not exactly the kind of tales which M. Verdier had crossed
the ocean and threaded the forest to hear, but he patiently awaited
their conclusion. At a signal from a venerated chief, their martial
narratives were dropped, and all retired to their seats. The dance was
succeeded by a feast, of which the chiefs and warriors, together with
their guest, first partook, and afterwards the men of inferior note.
Before a mouthful was tasted, however, the best and juiciest pieces of
the deer were selected as an offering to the Great Spirit. They were not
laid upon the fire till the priest had been called to the performance of
certain rites and ceremonies by the following hymn, chanted in their
peculiarly solemn and impressive manner:--