child deliberately killed his wife, his two remaining children, his
horses and dogs, and then blew his own brains out. In all this the
Indians behaved extremely well toward the whites, although aware they
brought the disease among them, yet nothing in the way of revenge took
place, either at the time or afterwards. Being obliged to be all the
time with them, helping as much as possible to save a few, they had
plenty of opportunities should they have wished to do damage. Every
kind of treatment appeared to be of no avail, and they continued
dying until near the ensuing spring, when the disease, having spent
itself, ceased. The result was that out of 1,000 lodges and upward of
the Assiniboin then in existence but 400 lodges or less remained, and
even these but thinly peopled. Relationship by blood or adoption was
nearly annihilated, all property lost or sacrificed, and a few very
young and very old left to mourn the loss. Most of the principal
men having died, it took years to recover from the shock. Young men
had to grow up, new leaders to be developed, remnants of bands to be
gathered together, property to be had—in fact, under all these adverse
circumstances, so slow has been the increase that during the interim of
17 years but 100 lodges have accumulated. In times like this no leader
can be effective. All counsel was rejected; their chiefs and divining
men shared the fate of the others. With the Mandan the disease was even
more destructive. Before it they numbered 600 warriors and inhabited
two large villages where the Arikara are now stationed, and when the
disease ceased about 30 men remained, from which remnant have since
sprung about 25 lodges. All this time an Assiniboin chief named The
Gauche, or by the Indians “He who holds the knife,” was the principal
man in the band which bore his name, consisting of 250 lodges.
These died in greater proportion than the others and after the disease
had disappeared the old chief found himself at the head of about 60
fighting men. The Gauche was a very old man and had had the smallpox
in the north; he was also famed in their annals as a leader and
divining man. He had been very successful in his expeditions against
the Blackfeet, and by the use of poisons administered occasionally to
his people, while predicting their death, he had inspired in all the
fear of a sorcerer. His life contains a history which our limits do not
admit of describing, although well known, singular, interesting, and
authentic. On this occasion he understood that the Mandan were rendered
totally helpless by the effects of the smallpox, and conceived the
idea of taking their village and in a measure retrieving his losses by
the horses and other property of these Indians. Gathering together the
remnant of his band, about 50 men, he proceeded thither. The writer saw
him pass with the pipe of peace to lull suspicion, in order to enter
their village in a friendly way, and then at a given signal each one
with knife in hand to rush upon and destroy the unsuspecting friends.
The whole was well planned, managed, and kept secret, and it would
have succeeded but for an occurrence of which the Assiniboin was not
then aware. The Arikara, a tolerably numerous people, having left the
Missouri, had been for years residing on the Platte River, and having
previously had the smallpox did not contract the disease to any extent.
About the same time The Gauche was on his way to the Mandan, they
returned suddenly from the Platte and took possession of their village
a short distance from the Mandan. Now the Arikara numbered about 500
men, all deadly enemies to the Assiniboin, so that when the latter
presented their pipe of peace the ceremonies were interrupted by an
attack of the Arikara. The Assiniboin were routed, and about 20 of them
killed.
The old chief, as usual, escaped, though his day of power was over.
Shortly afterwards he predicted the day and hour of his own death
at the fort—days beforehand, without any appearance of disease or
approaching dissolution, and the writer with other gentlemen at the
fort saw the same fulfilled to the letter. The conclusion was that
he took poison, which he was long supposed to have received from the
whites in the north and kept a dose for the fullness of time.
This man had more renown than any other leader spoken of, although
several have done gallant actions. His success may be attributed to
great cunning and the large force he always headed, together with the
power his fetishes gave him over his fellows, who blindly followed his
instructions and fought desperately under his prophecies, though his
life shows the anomaly of a great leader being entirely destitute of
every particle of personal intrepidity. Many other events have happened
which form data in their history; indeed it is composed of reference to
certain remarkable occurrences, such as the year of the smallpox, year
of the deep snow, year of massacre of 30 lodges of Blackfeet, year of
great rise of waters, and other natural phenomena.
PRESENT RULERS AND CONDITION.—Their present ruling chief is
Man-to-was-ko, or the Crazy Bear, made chief by Colonel Mitchell,
Commissioner of the United States, at the Laramie treaty in 1851. The
choice could not have been better. The Crazy Bear has always been a
respectable and brave man, greatly elevated above all the rest in
intelligence but not ranking with some in military exploits, having
never been a great warrior, though on some small occasions he has
shown an utter contempt of death before his enemies. He is a mild,
politic man, looking after his people’s interest, and viewing with a
jealous eye anything inconsistent with them. Even when a very young
man his opinions were always honored with a hearing in council, and he
now bears his honors with great credit to himself and service to his
people, endeavoring to carry out to the letter the stipulations of the
treaty to which he is a party.
Among the principal soldiers and war captains may be mentioned
To-ka´-ke-a-na, or the “First Who Flies.” This man is a son of the old
chief, Wah-he´ Muzza, or “Iron Arrowpoint,” mentioned before. The whole
of that old man’s numerous family have been, and those living still
are, desperate men, proud and overbearing with their people, though
good to the whites. From the eldest, named “The Sight,” who visited
Washington City by General Jackson’s orders, to the one now mentioned,
five in number have been killed by their own people in personal
quarrels.
The one now spoken of has frequently led parties to battle and showed
such a recklessness of danger that his name stands high as a warrior;
has also killed two of his own people who were concerned in the murder
of his brothers; was at the Laramie treaty and since behaves himself
with great moderation; is one of the Crazy Bear’s principal soldiers
and supports; and should the Bear die would undoubtedly take his place
as chief of the tribe.
Wa-ke´-un-to, or the Blue Thunder, is another warrior and partisan in a
band of 200 lodges, is not over 25 years of age, but has raised himself
to distinction by going to war alone on the Sioux and bringing home
scalps and horses; he has also headed several war excursions with great
success and is generally liked by his own people.
Wo´-a-see´-chah, or Bad Animal, known to traders by the name of Le
Serpent, is a war leader and chief of Les Gens des Canots Band, the
same 200 lodges of which Blue Thunder is one of the warriors and camp
soldiers. I believe he has never killed many enemies but has murdered
in quarrels two of his own people, is considered a sensible man, very
friendly to the whites, judicious in his government of his band, and
also is a person whom it is not desirable to aggravate too much. Me-nah
(The Knife), A-wah-min-ne-o-min-ne (The Whirlwind), Ish-ta-o-ghe-nah
(Gray Eyes), He-boom-an-doo (La Poudrière), and others are soldiers and
warriors whose histories are known to us and would present the usual
features of savage life and warfare.
The Assiniboin speak but one dialect, being radically the same as the
Sioux; no other is incorporated in it, though some few can in addition
speak Cree and others of the northern bands of Blackfeet, but no more
than one interpreter is required in transacting any business with each
or all of them. A person who can speak the Sioux language well could
interpret for the Assiniboin, or vice versa.
There are many elderly persons capable of stating their traditions and
willing to impart any information they are in possession of regarding
their history; but what is heard from them in this respect is so
mingled with fable and superstition as seldom to admit of its serving
as a basis for truth or knowledge or for a correct representation
of their past condition. They do not exhibit any chain of connected
facts; and though these oral tales have been preserved entire,
transmitted in their original form through successive generations,
and may possibly have been the belief of their ancestors, yet at the
present day are regarded more as a source of amusement than a medium
of instruction or means of perpetuating their history. Too much error
has been the result of depending for knowledge on these traditions by
people who only understand them in their literal sense or have been
badly interpreted. All facts among the nations with whom we profess an
intimate acquaintance and minute knowledge farther than a century back
are involved in obscurity, mingled with fable, or embodied in their
superstitions.
The time when the tribe reached its present location was from 1804 to
1825, when the most of them might be considered as established on the
waters of the Missouri, the boundaries of which have been pointed out,
though in 1839, 60 lodges of Assiniboin came over from the British
northern possessions and joined those of the Missouri, since which time
they have resided together.
INTERTRIBAL RANK AND RELATIONS.—As to the question, what rank and
relationship does the tribe bear to other tribes, we are not aware of
any political scale of superiority or inferiority existing among any
of the tribes along the Missouri; neither do their traditions point
out or assign any such particular position to each other. Being well
acquainted with the manners and customs of the Sioux, the Arikara, the
Mandan, the Gros Ventres, the Crow, the Assiniboin, the Cree, and the
Blackfeet tribes we can safely say that no such distinction exists
that would receive the sanction of all parties. There is, however,
this: Each nation has vanity enough to think itself superior to its
neighbors, but all think the same, and the more ignorant they are the
more obstinately they adhere to their own opinions. All tribes are
pretty much independent of one another in their thoughts and actions,
and, indeed with the exception of the Gros Ventres, the Mandan and the
Arikara, who are stationary and live in a manner together, neighboring
tribes usually are completely in the dark regarding one another’s
government, not even knowing the names of the principal chiefs and
warriors unless told them or recognizing them when pointed out. In all
the above-mentioned tribes there is no such thing as pretensions to
original rank. Rank is the growth of the present, as often acquired as
lost. The greatest chief any of these tribes ever produced would become
a mere toy, a butt, a ridicule, in a few days after he lost his eyes or
sense of sight.
Neither has affinity of blood in this sense anything to do with rank as
to succession. If the son for want of bravery or other qualifications
can not equal or follow the steps of his father chief, he is nothing
more than an ordinary Indian. There are consequently no discordant
pretensions to original rank, though it may be a matter of dispute
which of two or three chiefs ranks at present the highest, and in this
case it would be immediately decided in council by the principal men.
In fact the rank or standing of each Indian, be he chief or warrior,
is so well known, and his character so well judged by the vox populi
that he takes his place spontaneously. A higher step than his acts
and past conduct confer, imprudently taken, would have the effect of
injuring him in their eyes as a leader. Every chief, warrior, or brave
carves his own way to fame, and if recognized as one by the general
voice becomes popular and is supported; if not, he mixes with hundreds
of others who are in the same situation, waiting an opportunity to
rise. There is no relative rank among tribes bearing the name of uncle,
grandfather, etc. The names of the different bands among themselves
or the surrounding tribes have no such signification. There are, of
course, affinities of blood and relationship among the Indians as well
as among whites. People have their fathers, uncles, grandfathers,
brothers-in-law, etc., but this personal or family relationship has
nothing to do with the clanship, nor has it any bearing on other
tribes. As to the relations above alluded to we will have occasion to
refer to them under the head of tribal organization and government.
Among eastern or southern tribes such distinctions may exist, but we
can vouch they have no name nor interest in all the tribes mentioned in
the beginning of this answer. To prevent misunderstanding, it should
be observed that when we speak of a tribe we mean the whole group who
speak that language. Different tribes are different groups. Portions of
these groups or tribes are called gentes, and portions or societies of
these gentes are designated as subgentes, and the next or most minute
subdivision of gentes would be into families.
“Peaces” are made between wild tribes by the ceremony of smoking and
exchanging presents of horses and other property; sometimes women. The
advantages and disadvantages are well calculated on both sides before
overtures for peace are made. It is a question of loss and gain and
often takes years to accomplish. The Crows, a rich nation, five years
ago, through the writer as the medium made peace with the Assiniboin
after half a century of bloody warfare. Why? The Crows being a rich
nation and the Assiniboin poor, how could the former gain? The points
the Crows gained were these: First, liberty to hunt in the Assiniboin
country unmolested and secure from the Blackfeet; second, two enemies
less to contend with and from whom they need not guard their numerous
herds of horses; third, the privilege of passing through the Assiniboin
country to the Gros Ventres village in quest of corn. Now for the
other party. The Crows having large herds of horses and the Assiniboin
but few, the former give them a good many every year to preserve the
peace. The Crows winter with the Assiniboin, run buffalo with their
own horses, and give the latter plenty of meat and skins without the
trouble of killing it. The Crows are superior warriors and the others
have enough to contend with the Blackfeet. Again, one enemy less, and
jointly the numerical force is so augmented as to make them formidable
to all surrounding tribes, while separately they would prey upon
each other. It is in this case evident the peace must last, there
being sufficient inducements on both sides to keep it, although upon
the whole any of their “peaces” are liable to sudden and violent
interruptions and are not to be depended upon.
MAGNITUDE AND RESOURCES OF TERRITORY A CAUSE OF THE MULTIPLICATION
OF TRIBES.—There can be no doubt that magnitude and resources of
territory are the principal causes of an increase of population.
All roving tribes live by hunting, and scarcity of animals produces
distress, famine, disease, and danger by forcing them to hunt in
countries occupied by their enemies, when game is not found in their
own. Such a state of things happened in this district in 1841, when
during a total disappearance of buffalo and other game some of the
Assiniboin and Cree were under the necessity of eating their own
children, of leaving others to perish, and many men and women died
from fatigue and exhaustion. Although the above position is evident,
yet we do not see how it could multiply tribes, much less dialects. A
large territory with much game might induce portions of other tribes
not having these advantages to migrate, make peace with the residing
nation, and perhaps increase in a greater ratio than they otherwise
would have done, but the language would remain the same, neither would
it produce a separate tribe, but only a portion of the tribe who
migrated.
The Gros Ventres of the Prairie were once Arapaho and lived on the
Arkansas. They have for a century past resided with the Blackfeet, yet
have preserved their own language. True, by these means they learn
to speak each other’s language, but they do not commingle and make a
separate dialect of the two. The Assiniboin from the Sioux, the Cree
from the Chippewa, the Crows from the Gros Ventres are three other
cases of separation, and in each the language is so well preserved that
they understand without any difficulty the people whence they emanated.
The causes of these separations, whether feuds, family discords, or in
quest of better hunting grounds, does not now appear. Most probably
it was dissatisfaction of some sort. From all appearances we may
reasonably expect to see ere long a portion of the Sioux occupying
the large disputed territory south of the Missouri and along the
Yellowstone, as game is becoming scarce in their district since white
emigration through it and Indians are thronging there from St. Peters
and elsewhere.
The Sioux regard the Mississippi as once their home, and it is very
certain that nation came from thence, also the Cree and Assiniboin,
and perhaps others. It does not appear that the track of migration
pursued any direct course. From certain facts, similitude of language
and customs, it would seem some nations traveled from south to north
or northwest, such as the Gros Ventres of the Prairie who were once
Arapaho. The Arikara speak the same as the Pawnee and must have
migrated westward. The Blackfeet moved from north to southwest, and
the Crows, Cree, and Assiniboin west and north. It is reasonable to
believe they spread out over these immense plains from all points
and at different times as circumstances favored or forced them. The
habits of the prairie Indian differ essentially from the Indian of the
forest, and those of stationary and cultivating habits from both. It is
impossible for us now to state with any degree of certainty the time of
their first location on these plains, or to point out any one general
course of emigration pursued by them.
GEOGRAPHY
FIGURE OF THE GLOBE.—It can not be expected that these Indians who are
in a complete savage and unenlightened state should have any knowledge
of the configuration of the globe or of its natural divisions. They
know what a small lake or small island is and have names for the same
as they are to be met with through their country. They think the earth
to be a great plain bounded by the Rocky Mountains on one side and
the sea on the other, but have no idea of its extent nor of any other
lands except those they are acquainted with. Although told frequently,
they can not realize extent of lands in any great measure, and without
troubling themselves to think or inquire are content with believing
there are few lands better or larger than their own. It is not in
their nature to acknowledge inferiority, which would follow were they
convinced of the extent of the territory and power of the whites. Of
the sea they have a vague idea from information offered them by the
traders, and would not believe there is such a body of water had not
the same received a sort of sanction through the Cree and Chippewa,
some of whom, having seen Lake Superior, represent it as the ocean.
LOCAL FEATURES OF THE HABITAT.—The chief rivers running through the
Assiniboin country are, first, the Missouri, which is so well known as
to need no description here. The next is Milk River, on the northwest
boundary, a very long and narrow stream; heads in some of the spurs of
the Rocky Mountains east of the Missouri and lakes on the plains, runs
a southwest course, and empties into the Missouri about 100 miles above
the Yellowstone. Its bed is about 200 yards wide at the mouth, though
the waters seldom occupy more than one-third of that space, except
during the spring thaw, when, for a week or two, it fills the whole
bed; is fordable on horseback all the year except at the time above
alluded to and when swollen by continuous rains.
Rivière aux Tremble, or Quaking Aspen River, empties into the Missouri
about 50 miles below Milk River, is about half the length and breadth
of the others, and heads in the range of hills constituting the divide,
called “Les Montaignes des Bois.” It is fordable at all times except
during spring freshets and when swollen by rain. Neither of these
streams is navigable by any craft larger than a wooden canoe except at
the high stages of water above referred to, and then navigation would
be difficult and dangerous owing to floating ice and driftwood. There
are no rapids or falls in either of them.
Several creeks fall into the Missouri below the point on the east side
called Big Muddy, Little Muddy, Knife River, etc., all of which contain
but little water and are of no consequence.
White Earth River, the last, is about 100 miles in length and at the
mouth a little more than 100 yards wide, contains but little water,
always fordable, and not navigable by anything, empties into the
Missouri near the commencement of the Great Bend. None of these rivers
being navigable except the Missouri, goods are only landed at the
following points along that river, viz: Fort Pierre (Sioux), mouth of
the Teton River; Fort Clarke (Arikara) at their village; Fort Berthold
(Gros Ventres village); Fort Union (Assiniboin), mouth of Yellowstone.
Steamboats have gone up the Missouri as high as the mouth of Milk
River, but heretofore goods for Fort Benton (Blackfeet), near the mouth
of Maria River, have been transported by keel boats from Fort Union.
We know of no large navigable lakes in this district, though along the
northern boundary there are many small ones, or rather large ponds of
water, without any river running through them or visible outlet, being
fed by snows, rain, and springs, and diminished by evaporation and
saturation. Lakes of this kind are to be met with in many places on the
plains and differ in size from 100 yards to 2 or 3 miles or even more
in circumference, are not wooded, and contain tolerably good water.
Small springs are also common, most of them having a mineral taste,
though none are large enough to afford water power.
SURFACE OF THE COUNTRY.—The whole country occupied by the Assiniboin
is one great plain, hills and timber only occurring where rivers
run, in the valleys of which good land for cultivation is found, but
the general feature appears to be sterile as regards arable land,
producing, however, grasses of different kinds, some of which are
very nutritious, and particularly adapted to raising horses, cattle,
and sheep. The prairies may be said to be interminable and destitute
of the least particle of timber except along the banks of the few
streams before mentioned, and even these but thinly wooded. Water,
however, can always be found in the small lakes and rivers spoken of.
The Assiniboin do not cultivate the soil in any way, though the Gros
Ventres and Arikara raise corn and pumpkins to some extent on the
Missouri bottoms. By experiments made at or near Fort Union, we find
that oats, potatoes, corn, and all garden vegetables grow well if the
season be favorable. The soil, being light and sandy, requires frequent
rains to produce good crops, which happens about one year in three;
the others fail from drought and destruction by grasshoppers, bugs,
and other insects. The natural productions of the country are few and
such as no one but an Indian could relish. A wild turnip called by them
teep-see-na, and by the French pomme blanche, when boiled is eatable,
is found in quantity everywhere on the plains, will sustain life alone
for a great length of time either cooked or in its raw state, can be
dried and preserved for years, or pulverized and made into passable
bread.