A band of Omahas was on the summer buffalo hunt. The men were widely
deployed in front and over a wide extent on both sides far in advance
of the moving column. They were on the lookout for signs of the herd.
When a herd should be sighted, the scouts who had found them would at
once report to the officers. When the camp was made the officers would
confer and make plans for the surround and kill.
The boys were employed in looking after the herd of extra horses; some
of the women were with the train of pack animals looking after the
baggage and camp equipment, others were scattered over the prairie
along the line of march, carrying digging sticks and bags to gather
tipsin roots for food.
Groups of small children, too small to have any particular tasks
assigned to them were playing along the way, observing the ways of
beast and bird and of insects, and admiring the brilliant wild
flowers. One such group found a fledgling meadowlark, not yet able to
fly. They captured it and brought it along with them when the band
went into camp for the night. As the families sat about their tents
waiting the preparation of the evening meal, the children showed their
father the captive bird and told him how they caught it. He listened
to their account and then told them something of the life and habits
of the bird, its nesting and home life, of its love of life and
freedom, and of its place in the world under the wise plans of the
Master of Life. He brought the children to see the unhappiness and the
terror which they had unwittingly brought upon the captive and the
anxiety the mother bird would feel over its loss.
Then he said to them, "Now children, take the little bird back to the
place where you found it and set it down in the grass, and say 'O
Master of Life, here is thy little bird which we have set free again.
We are sorry that we took it away from its home and its people. We did
not think of the sorrow we should cause. We wish to restore it and
have it happy again with its people. May we be forgiven for our
thoughtlessness and we will not do such wrong again.'"
The children carried out their father's instructions and placed the
little bird again as near as they could to the place where they had
captured it and recited the prayer to the Master of Life which their
father had admonished them to say. As they returned to the camp the
quiet of the summer evening lay over all the land, the after-glow of
the sunset was in the western sky, the white tents stood in a great
circle upon the prairie, now dusky-green in the twilight which lay
upon the land, a twinkling camp-fire before each tent. The children
were thoughtful. They had had a glimpse of the unity of the universe.
They never forgot the lesson. Years passed, great changes came. The
white people were coming into the land. Old activities and industries
of the Indians were destroyed by the changes. The children of that
little group went away from their people to attend the white men's
schools, to learn the white men's ways and adapt themselves to those
ways. But this did not cause them to forget altogether the wisdom and
grace of their parental teaching. Long afterward they told this little
story to the writer, who now gives it to you, reader, and wishes that
you, also may know that there be those in all lands and among all
peoples who "do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God."
THE CHICKADEE
The chickadee is a very popular bird among all the Indian tribes where
it is known. They all have many stories and sayings about it. They say
of it that, though small, it is a very wise bird. It is like the wise
men, the doctors and teachers among the people, who are learned in
mysteries and the wonderful things of nature, who keep a calendar of
the cycle of the days, months and seasons through the year by cutting
marks upon a piece of wood which they have prepared for that purpose.
This wise little bird is said also to keep account of the months. It
is said that "in the beginning" the task of keeping account of the
months was assigned to the chickadee. But instead of making notches in
a piece of wood as the wise men do this wise bird's method is to make
notches in its tongue; thus in September its tongue is single-pointed,
in October it has two points, in November three, and so on until
February, when it is said that its tongue has six points. Then in
March its tongue is again single-pointed and the count is begun again.
So, it is said, the chickadee has been keeping the count of the months
since the long ago, in the dim past, when the task was assigned to it
in the time of beginnings, in the time when evil powers and monsters
struggled mightily to overcome the good, and to destroy mankind by
sending fierce storms and heavy snowfalls and shuddering cold winds
upon the face of the earth. It was thus the evil powers sought to
discourage and to overcome mankind.
And so it is said that at one time the evil powers supposed that by
stress of a long siege of cold and storms they had reduced mankind to
famine. At this time they chose to send the chickadee as a messenger
to find out the conditions and to bring back word to them.
Now when the chickadee came on his mission and appeared at the
dwellings of men he was invited to enter. He was courteously given a
place by the fireside to rest and warm himself. Then food was brought
to him. After he had eaten and refreshed himself he was anointed with
fat, which was a symbol of plenty; then he was painted with red paint,
which was for a symbol of the power and mystery of life. After these
ceremonies and marks of respect his hosts quietly composed themselves
to give attention to whatever their visitor should have to say as to
the purpose of his visit. When he had stated his mission his hosts
held counsel and formulated a reply for the messenger to take back to
those who had sent him. He was bidden to say to them that mankind was
still living and hopeful, and they ever would be; that they could not
be daunted by discouragement, nor defeated by storms and stress, nor
vanquished by hunger, nor overcome by any hardships; and that there
never would be a time when there should not be men upon the earth. So
this is the message which the chickadee brought to the evil powers
which had sought to overcome mankind.
THE SONG OF THE WREN
_A Pawnee Story_
The incident of this story occurred in the long ago in the country of
the Pawnee nation, in the broad expanse of the Platte River country in
what is now the State of Nebraska. The event was in the distant past
before the Pawnees had ever seen a white man, or any of his works or
strange devices. The people of the Pawnee nation lived in villages of
houses built in the manner that the houses of Pawnees had been built
for generations. Near their villages lay their fields of corn and
other crops which they cultivated to supply themselves with food.
It was a beautiful morning in early summer. The sky was clear and
bright, the dawn-light was showing in the eastern sky. All the
landscape lay as though still sleeping. There was no movement
anywhere. A thoughtful priest had risen and had walked out upon the
prairie away from the village so that he might view and meditate upon
the beauty and mystery of the firmament of the heavens and of the
plane of earth, and of the living creatures thereon, both animal
creatures and plant creatures, for in his mind both were equally
wonderful and equally interesting, as showing the power and the wisdom
of the Great Mystery. So he walked and pondered upon all the beauty
and mystery which lay about him, while the face of Mother Earth was
still moist with the dew of sleep. In a moment the first rays of the
sun shone across the land touching into sparkling brilliance the
myriads of dewdrops, while a gentle movement ran through all the
grasses and the wild flowers as they swayed to the rippling of the
gentle morning breeze which pulsed over the prairie at the first touch
of the morning gleam.
Where a moment before all had been so still and so silent now there
was movement and sound. Birds of many kinds raised their tuneful
voices, showing their joy in life and in the beauty of the morning.
The priest, whose mind and heart were open to all this beauty and
melody, stood still and listened. In a moment, among all the other
bird-songs, he heard one which was clearer and more remarkable than
any of the others. This song was a most joyous cheerful sound, like
happy laughter. As he approached he found that the joyous, laughing
song came from a very tiny brown bird, no larger than his thumb. It
was a wren, so small, so insignificant in comparison to the size and
brilliant plumage of many of the other birds, yet it appeared to be
the most whole hearted in joy and praise and delight in life, as the
sweet stream of music welled from its little throat.
The priest looked at the tiny bird, and wisely considered. He said to
himself: "The Great Mystery has shown me here a wise teaching for my
people. This bird is small and weak, but it has its proper place in
the world of life and it rejoices in it and gives thanks with
gladness. Everyone can be happy, for happiness is not from without,
but from within, in properly fitting and fulfilling each his own
place. The humblest can have a song of thanks in his own heart."
So he made a song and a story to be sung in a great religious ritual
of his people, which was to them like our Bible and prayer-book are to
us. And the song and story which that thoughtful priest put into the
ritual, was the story of the wren. And ever since that time so long
ago, the song has been sung by the Pawnees and has been handed down
from generation to generation until this time.
THE WAR EAGLE AND THE JACK-RABBIT
_A Mandan Story_
One time a party of men went into a lonely place among the hills far
away from the village, to enter their eagle pits for the purpose of
catching eagles to obtain their plumes. One of the men had made his
pit far out at some distance from any of the others. Another day, as
he was coming away from his eagle pit, returning to the village, he
stopped and sat down upon the top of a high hill from which he could
enjoy a grand view of the landscape. Thus he sat looking about over
the quiet hills and valleys, beyond the bright gleam which showed the
course of the river winding in and out among the green trees along its
borders, far away to the dim sky line. Far away on one side he saw a
number of elks feeding; on the other side he saw a band of graceful
antelopes. A doe and her fawn were browsing upon some bushes down near
the river.
Aloft he saw the white clouds sailing in the bright blue sky; below he
saw their shadows moving over the earth, now up a hillside and over
its crest and then swiftly across a little valley and up the next
hillside. While he sat enjoying the beauty of the scene he observed a
war eagle chasing a jack-rabbit. The jack-rabbit continually dodged
and circled, trying to escape as the eagle swooped toward him. The
eagle had several times swooped and just missed striking the rabbit.
Gradually the chase came near to the place where the man was seated.
The eagle was closely pursuing the rabbit and made a tremendous swoop
towards him. But the rabbit escaped by leaping into the man's robe as
he sat with it loosely draped about his shoulders and knees.
Then the eagle said "Put that rabbit away from you! He is my prey. I
intend to eat him."
But now the rabbit appealed to the man and said, "I have thrown myself
upon your kindness. Do not turn me away. I beg of you. If you save me
you shall hereafter have success in your undertakings and you shall
become a great man."
Then the eagle spoke again, saying, "His words are not true. Turn him
away. He can do nothing for you. I, myself will make you great if you
will do as I request. It is I who speak the truth. My feet are not
held to the earth and I can also fly in the air far above the earth. I
am successful in all the things I attempt."
Once more the jack-rabbit made his plea. "Believe him not, and do not
turn me away! Even though I must remain upon the ground, and cannot
fly like the eagle, still I have knowledge proper to my conditions of
life, and I know how to do many things suitably and successfully."
The man made his decision in favor of the jack-rabbit and saved him
from the eagle. And the jack-rabbit kept his promise to the man, for
he gave him of his own powers and made him successful in his
undertakings and helped him with good and wise counsel in times of
trouble and doubt and perplexity. So the man gained great renown and
honor and influence among his people.
INDEX
Page
Dedication 5
Introduction 7
LAND AND PEOPLE
Nature and Health 9
Spirit of Life 10
Attitude Towards Native Life 10
Indians' Appreciation and Love of Their Homeland 12
Song to the Trees and Streams 12
Thrilling Escape of a Besieged War Party 12
A Mandan Monument 14
The Legend of Standing Rock 15
The Holy Hill Pahuk 17
The Lodge of the Black-tail Deer which Talked with
Its Captor 23
The Wonderful Basket 24
Cause of the Breaking up of Ice in the Missouri River 26
The Waterspring of the Holy Man 27
The Sacred Symbol of the Circle 31
The Sacred Number Four 31
The Pristine Prairie 32
Aboriginal American Agriculture 35
Description of an Earth-lodge 37
Hymn to the Sun 38
Description of a Tipi 39
An Omaha Ghost Story 40
An Omaha Hero Song 41
STORIES OF THE PLANT PEOPLE
Sacred Trees 43
The Song of the Pasque Flower 46
The Prairie Rose 48
The Song of the Wild Rose 49
Use of the Ground Bean 50
Tipsin: An Important Native Food Plant 52
How the People Obtained the Precious Gift of Corn 53
A Group of Pawnee Hymns to Corn 56
The Forgotten Ear of Corn 58
How the Usefulness of Wild Rice Was Discovered 58
A Story of the Sunflower 59
Dakota Folklore of the Spiderwort 60
STORIES OF THE FOUR-FOOTED PEOPLE
The Faithful Dog 61
How Coyote Chief Was Punished 63
The Skunk and the Bear 65
The Song of the Old Wolf 65
STORIES OF THE PEOPLE OF THE AIR
Folk Sayings About the Meadowlark 67
How the Meadowlark Won the Race 68
Folklore of the Horned Lark 72
How It Came About that Geese Migrate 72
The Captive Bird 73
The Chickadee 74
The Song of the Wren 75
The War Eagle and the Jack-rabbit 76
MAPS
Map to Show Distribution of Tribes 4
Map to Show Aboriginal Agriculture 34
Map of Geographical Distribution of Pasque Flower 46
[Decoration]
_Bismarck Tribune Print_
Transcriber's Note
Omitted periods and mismatched quotation marks have been repaired. All
other punctuation usage is as in the original. Hyphenation has been
made consistent. Inconsistent capitalisation, e.g. Hintunka and
hintunka, is preserved as printed. Archaic and variable spelling is
preserved as printed.
The Dedication on page 6 includes the phrase, "... and who held it a
form of sacrilege to violate or in any way endanger the overthrow of
that delicate balance of nature; ..." The word 'endanger' does not
seem appropriate in the context, and may be an error for 'engender.'
However, as it is impossible to be sure, it is preserved as printed.
The following typographic errors have been repaired:
Page 11--considerble amended to considerable--"The careful
study of plants and animals was a considerable part ..."
Page 40--semed amended to seemed--"Then, after a time, she
seemed to see not only the moccasins ..."
Page 40--leggins amended to leggings--"... but the leggings
above them as far as the knees, ..."
Page 41--one amended to on--"... he was unable to sit quietly
in the village while the fighting was going on."
Page 45--an amended to in--"... with great profusion of
bloom, in earnest of returning life."
Page 75--mesenger amended to messenger--"... and formulated a
reply for the messenger to take back ..."
Page 79--Thrillnig amended to Thrilling--"Thrilling Escape of
a Besieged War Party ..."