Memoirs of a Captivity Among the Indians of North America, by John Dunn Hunter; 3rd edition (London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Ohme, Brown, & Green, 1824)
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After much skirmishing on both sides, in which no great advantage was gained, a decisive and bloody battle was fought, late in the fall, on the Gravelly Fork, a few miles above its confluence with the Kansas river, in which the Kansas came off victorious with the loss of the brave and gallant Kis-ke-mas, and fourteen or fifteen of his warriors. The loss on the other side was much more considerable; the Mahas and Ottowas having lost thirty-five killed, and twenty-five taken prisoners.
The return of the Kansas with their prisoners and scalps was greeted by the squaws, as is usual on such occasions, by the most extravagant rejoicings; while every imaginable indignity was practised on the prisoners. The rage of the relict of Kis-ke-mas knew no bounds": she, with the rest of the squaws, particularly those who had lost any connections, and the children, whipped the prisoners with green briars, and hazel switches, and threw firebrands, clubs, and stones at them, as they ran between their ranks to the painted post, which is a goal of safety for all who arrive at it, till their fate is finally determined in a general council of the victorious warriors. A farther account of this ceremony will be subsequently noticed. The prisoners all arrived at the place of safety alive: though some of them were horribly mangled. In the course of a few days, a council was held, in which it was determined to spare the lives of all the prisoners except two, who were chiefs, and had rendered themselves conspicuous objects for revenge, from instigating the confederate war. These two chiefs were Mahas; they were never heard to com-
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plain during the protracted and cruel tortures inflicted on them by the squaws: one of them, on the contrary, did all in his power to provoke his persecutors; observing to the wife of Kis-ke-mas, "I killed your husband, I took his scalp, I drank his blood: I owe my country nothing; I have fought many battles for her, killed many of her enemies, and leave behind me warriors enough to revenge my death, to defend their hunting grounds, squaws, and little ones. I am a man: the fate of war is against me:--I die like a warrior."
Not long after this, I experienced a painful loss. The squaw who had adopted me among her children, and who had treated me with great tenderness and affection, was accidentally drowned in attempting to collect drift-wood during the prevalence of a flood. This circumstance was the cause of grief, apparently more poignant to be endured than is usually experienced in civilized life; because the customs of the Indians do not tolerate the same open expression of feelings, from the indulgence of which the acuteness of grief is relieved, and sooner subsides. The Indians regard tears, or any expression of grief, as a mark of weakness in males, and unworthy of the character of the warrior. In obedience to this custom, I bore my affliction in silence, in order to sustain my claims to their respect and esteem; but nevertheless, I sincerely and deeply felt the bereavement; and cannot, even at this late day, reflect on her maternal conduct to me, from the time I was taken prisoner by the Kansas, to her death, without the association of feelings, to which, in other re-
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spects, I am a stranger. She was indeed a mother to me; and I feel my bosom dilate with gratitude at the recollection of her goodness, and care of me during this helpless period of my life. This, to those who have been bred in refinement and ease, under the fond and watchful guardianship of parents, may appear gross and incongruous. If, however, the imagination be allowed scope, and a lad ten or twelve years of age, without kindred or name, or any knowledge by which he could arrive at an acquaintance with any of the circumstances connected with his being, be supposed in the central wilds of North America, nearly a thousand miles from any white settlement, a prisoner or sojourner among a people on whom he had not the slightest claim, and with whose language, habits, and character he was wholly unacquainted; but who, nevertheless, treated him kindly; it will appear not only natural but rational, that he should return such kindness with gratitude and affection. Such nearly was my situation, and such in fact were my feelings at that time; and however my circumstances have since changed, or however they may change in the future, I have no hope of seeing happier days than I experienced at this early period of my life, while sojourning with the Kansas nation, on the Kansas river, some hundred miles above its confluence with the Missouri. Shortly after the death of my adopted mother, the sage and venerable Indian chief, Tshut-che-nau, whom I have before noticed, died. The whole nation grieved for his loss, a large concourse followed him to the grave, and the ceremony of burial was solemn and deeply impressive. Early in the following spring, a party
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of about thirty hunters and eleven boys, including myself, started on a hunting excursion: it was the first time the Indians has taken me with them, and the hunt excited great interest, especially as the boys, armed only with bows and arrows, were very successful in the chace. [sic] We ascended the Kansas river nearly to its source, till we arrived at the hills that separate it from the waters that flow into the Arkansas. From thence we directed our course to the right, and crossed the head waters of several streams that flow into the Missouri. We ascended one of these called the Kee-nesh-tah, or the River that Sinks, known to the traders by the name of the La Platte, several hundred miles. This river takes its Indian name from flowing in some places through districts of sand, over which it spreads to a great extent, and sometimes nearly disappears. I is shoal; and not navigable, except for short distances, even for canoes. The districts of country remote from the water-courses, are generally prairie, and are abundantly supplied with buffalo, elk, deer, bears, and other smaller game.
We passed the summer in hunting and roving; and in the fall ascended the La Platte several hundred miles, with a view more particularly to take furs. Near the place where we fixed our camps, which was on the Teel-te-nah, or Dripping Fork, a few miles above its entrance into the La Platte, is an extensive cave, which we visited on several occasions, and always with great reverence and dread.
This cave is remarkable as having been the cemetery of some people who must have inhabited this
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neighbourhood at a remote period of time, as the Indians who now occasionally traverse this district bury their dead in a manner altogether different.
The entrance to this cave was rather above the ground; and though narrow, of easy access. The floor was generally rocky, and much broken; though in some places, particularly in the ante-parts, strips of soil appeared, covered with animal ordure. Parts of the roof were at very unequal distances from the floor: in some places it appeared supported by large, singularly variegated, and beautiful columns; and at others it supported formations resembling huge isicles, [sic] which I now suppose to be stalactites.
Lighted up by our birch-bark flambeaux, the cave exhibited an astonishing and wonderful appearance; while the loud and distant rumbling or roar of waters through their subterranean channels, filled our minds with apprehension and awe. We discovered two human bodies partly denuded, probably by the casual movements of the animals which frequent this abode of darkness; we inhumbed and placed large stones over them, and then made good our retreat, half inclined to believe the tradition which prevails among some of the tribes, and which represents this cavern as the aperture through which the first Indian ascended from the bowels of the earth, and settled on its surface.
Our camps were fixed on a high piece of ground near the cave, in the vicinity of the Dripping Fork, a name which this stream takes from the great number of rills that drip into it from its rocky and abrupt
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banks. Near this place is a salt lick, to which various herds of the grazing kind resort in great numbers. The buffalo, deer, and elk, have made extraordinarily deep and wide excavations in the banks surrounding it, where we used often to secrete ourselves; sometimes merely to observe the playful gambols of the collected herds, and terrible conflicts of the buffaloes, but more frequently to destroy such of them as were necessary to supply our wants. The beaver, otter, and musk-rat, which find safe retreats in the cavernous banks of this stream, were very abundant; and our hunt was attended with great success.
About this time a young man, named Davis, who I have since learned was from Kentucky, came among us. He belonged to a party of adventuring hunters, which he supposed were all cut off, except himself, by a party of wandering Sioux. His appearance among us excited great sympathy; he claimed our protection, and received a cordial welcome. This occurrence, not without cause, created great apprehension for our own safety; for the Sioux, who had attacked Davis's party, were numerous, and not very far off. We had hitherto experience no incidents calculated to mar the pleasure always connected, in a high degree, with the chace on safe grounds: we had taken much game; the cold, changeable weather had commenced; and our party, after maturely deliberating the subject, determined forthwith to commence their return to the Kansas towns. A division of opinion, however, existed as to the route which ought to be taken: some were for descending by the La Platte and Missouri, as by this route the water-
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courses would direct them, and food would be more easily obtained, as game was much more abundant. As, however, the rich and abundant furs, with which the waters of this district were supplied, had become objects of importance to the several tribes which inhabited thereabouts, and contentions had arisen between them respecting the right to these hunting-grounds; it was finally concluded to course back on the high lands that divided the waters of the Arkansas from those of the Missouri, in preference to inviting the hostility of the belligerents, by passing through the territory in dispute. We accordingly commenced this long and tedious march, and proceeded for several days, without any thing remarkable occurring. We then fell in with a party of Osages, belonging to the Grand Osage nation, who treated us very friendly, and from whom we learned the difficulties and dangers we should have to encounter, provided we continued on our route to the Kansas towns. They, pointing in a homeward direction, observed "The sky is overcast with clouds; all is hostility and war.--The tribe of Osages under White Hair, has joined the confederacy against the Kansas; and war parties from the Mahas, Ottowas, and Pawnees, now occupy their hunting grounds, and cut off your return."
The Osage party with whom we were, could afford us no protection: to remain on these grounds, or to retreat farther back, would have ensured no safety; for the whole country hereabouts was frequently traversed by hostile parties of Indians; and to give ourselves up to the Mahas or Ottowas, our inveterate
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enemies, would have been inviting our destruction. It was probable, although the Osages under White Hair were at war with our nation, that no engagements had taken place between them to inflame a deadly hatred. Besides, they were considered by all the neighbouring tribes to be magnanimous and sincere, and were accordingly much esteemed and respected. A council was therefore held, at which the principal Osages attended; and it was determined by their advice, all the circumstances having been maturely weighed, to surrender ourselves to the protection of the hostile Osages, as a measure though exceeding painful, yet offering the best prospects for our safety. We parted from these friendly Osages, with strong expressions of gratitude and regret, after having received their assurances that our reception by White Hair's tribe would be friendly, and might be depended on. They also sent a wampum and greetings, as tokens of their favour, and our peaceful intentions.
We now crossed several ranges of hills, and then coursed down a considerable stream, which, from the incrustations we found on its margin, I now suppose was the grand saline of the Kansas river. On its bank, in the neighbourhood of extensive swamps, while pursuing our route, we were surprised by a strolling party of independent Pawnees. They were more numerous, and better armed than we were; but, notwithstanding, our party came off victors. I do not know what number the Pawnees lost, as we took no scalps; it is probable, however, it must have been considerable, from the circumstances of their retreat, which was accom-
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panied with the most hideous yells, and the bearing off of their dead; a practice which they most tenaciously adhere to, even at the risk of their lives. We lost no scalps, but four of our party were killed, including two boys, who had acquired much reputation before they left the Kansas towns, for having, in conjunction with a squaw, killed two of the Ottowas in the act of stealing horses on the banks of the Kansas river. I ought before to have remarked, that these boys had been presented with rifles, in consequence of their good conduct on the above occasion, with probably was the cause of their deaths in the recent engagement. The Indians applauded Davis, who had continued of their party, and was one of the combatants, for his bravery and good conduct in this affair. This was the first engagement I had ever been in: I was armed with a bow and arrows, which I applied to the best of my ability; but probably with little or no effect. From this place, apprehensive of another attack, we made all the expedition in our power, taking our dead with us, which we buried in the course of the following night, in silent grief. After this ceremony had been performed, we descended this Saline a considerable distance; thence, crossing a hilly country, a large river, probably the Kansas, and several smaller ones, we arrived on a stream, called by the Indians, Lesh-faus-keeh, and by the traders, Vermillion river, on account of the red earth through which it flows, and from which the natives procure red paint.
We next entered upon the hunting grounds of the Osages hostile to the Kansas nation. The buffalo herds
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were here more numerous than I had ever before witnessed; but, apprehending that we should be considered as depredators, and treated as enemies, we did not discharge a single shot, or in any other way disturb them.
As we proceeded, our apprehensions increased, from the appearance of mockasin tracks in the sand, signs of recent encampments, &c., which plainly indicated that we had nearly arrived at the crisis which was to determine our relations, as to peace or war. These indications continuing to increase, we concluded, and rightly, that we were in the immediate neighbourhood of their settlements: in consequence of which we encamped on elevated grounds near the river, and dispatched two peace-runners, with friendly tokens to the Osage chief. Our messengers were at first, as is common among the Indians, regarded with suspicion, and strict scrutiny; but on giving a satisfactory account of themselves and their party, they were retained, and treated in a friendly manner. In the mean time, the chief convened a council, and sent six of his warriors to welcome our arrival. They were received by our party, divested of their arms, with great satisfaction and joy. Kee-nees-tah, the chief of our party, and my father by adoption, saluting the principal Osage according to the customs of the Indians, observed, "Our people are now at war. I left them friends at the time I started on a hunting excursion, many moons ago, without any hostile intentions to yours, or any other tribe. I cannot return to my people in safety, and come to claim of you the rights of hospitality." The Osage,
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in the same respectful manner, assured him and our party in the name of his nation, of his friendship and regard, and invited us to sit at the same fire, and smoke the same pipe with them. We accordingly accompanied them to their town, where we were welcomed by all the inhabitants, amounting probably to fifteen hundred, in the most cordial and friendly manner.
I had not been long with the Osages, before I was received into the family of Shen-thweeh, a warrior distinguished among his people for his wisdom and bravery, at the instance of Hunk-hah, his wife, who had recently lost a son in an engagement with some of the neighbouring tribes. This good woman, whose family now consisted of herself, her husband, a daughter almost grown, and myself, took every opportunity, and used every means which kindness and benevolence could suggest, to engage my affections and esteem. She used to weep over me, tell me how good her son had been, how much she loved him, and how much she mourned his loss. "You must be good," she would say, "and you shall be my son, and I will be your mother." This daughter, in many respects, imitated the mother; and the greatest care was taken to supply my wants with the choicest things they had in their power to bestow. They made and ornamented mockasins and leggings for me, and furnished me with a beaver cap and buffalo robe; habiliments not usually worn by the Indian boys. In fine, so constant and persevering were their attentions, and so kind and affectionate their care of me, that not to have loved and esteemed them, would have argued a
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degree of ingratitude and apathy of feeling to which, if I know myself, I then was, and shall for ever remain, a stranger. Several months had now transpired since the death of my Indian Kansas mother. My Indian father, it is true, had accompanied me throughout our recent excursion to the Dripping Fork: but then, as is customary among the Indian warriors, with respect to their offspring, or those whom they may adopt, he showed little or no regard or tenderness for me. Thus, the indulgence of my filial feelings, which I think were proportionally excited as the necessity of parental support increased, was in a measure interrupted. The treatment I received from Hunk-hah and her daughter chimed in harmonious concordance with the vibrations of my bosom: I gave loose to their indulgence, and sincerely loved and respected them, as much, it appears to me, as if they had really been allied to me by the strongest ties of consanguinity. The Osages generally were fond of and kind to me, particularly the children; in whose sports, which much resembled those of the Kansas, I invariably joined, and often excelled. The party of Kansas whom I accompanied to the Osage nation were distributed in different families, and shared in their hospitality, amusements, and toils of the chace. It may be proper, in respect to them, to observe in this place, that the hostility between the Osages and their nation continuing, they were not permitted to return; but suffered in no other respect any restraint whatever. I arrived among the Osages early in the winter season, and no occurrence took place, in respect to myself or this nation, worthy of
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being noticed, during the following year. I passed my time much in the same manner as while among the Kansas, only with the exception that I occasionally joined the Indians in their hunting excursions.
The next fall, however, a party of hunters, consisting of Osages and Kansas, took me with them on an excursion, several hundred miles up the main Arkansas river. This expedition, in some respects, proved very fortunate; for we not only collected a large quantity of furs, venison and buffalo meat, but had the additional satisfaction of gaining a victory over a party of wandering Pawnees, who had the temerity to attack us. In this engagement, we only had two wounded; the enemy was entirely routed, with the loss of fifteen scalps. I took part in this engagement; but being only armed with a bow, was not more successful than I had been in my first essay on the Grand Saline.
We returned to the Osage town late the next spring, where a part of our furs were bartered with the traders, who frequently visited the Osages, for rifles; with one of which, each of the boys who had been on the recent hunt was supplied. Thus armed and otherwise properly accoutred, I felt all the self-consequence of a veteran warrior; and panted more to distinguish myself in war, than in any peaceful pursuits, though probably not more than fourteen or fifteen years of age. I soon learned the use of my rifle in the chace, and used it with great success; in consequence of which, the Indians gave me the name of the Hunter. The following summer, with nearly all the winter, was spent in short hunting excursions, with a view, for the most
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part, to procure provisions; hunting of furs being considered by the old men, whose opinions operate with nearly as much force as their acknowledged laws, as highly detrimental to the morals of the Indians. It led to too great a superabundance, which created factitious wants, and afforded the means of their intemperate indulgence, particularly as respected ardent spirits; which had been introduced in considerable quantities among the Osages, after our late successful hunting excursion. Here, I first saw drunken Indians, and witnessed, with indescribable astonishment, its unsocial effects on the women as well as on some of the warriors. No state of society is, in my opinion, more exempt from strife and contention between husband and wife, than that of the Indians generally. The warrior thinks it beneath his character to meddle in any way with the province of his squaw; but, when this evil spirit is introduced among them by the traders, this character undergoes a great modification, particularly during the paroxysm of its influence. In fact, a drunken Indian and squaw act more like demons than rational human beings; and nearly a whole town in the same situation, as I have since frequently witnessed, would, according to the representations given of them by some poets, bear a strong resemblance to the Infernal Regions. Indeed, no language can describe its mischievous effects. The traders take advantage of such occasions to defraud the Indians; who, when they become sober, very often seek redress in the destruction of their property, or in that of the white people themselves. Hence, quarrels and commotions are fomented between them and their
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trading visitors, and no hope can be rationally entertained by the benefactors of the human family to improve their condition, till this bane to social life be wholly excluded from them.
Resuming my narrative, I think it was in the winter following the Indians were filled with great terror, on account of the repeated occurrences of violent tremors and oscillations of the earth: the trees and wigwams shook exceedingly; the ice which skirted the margin of the Arkansas river was broken in pieces; and the most of the Indians thought that the Great Spirit, angry with the human race, was about to destroy the world. I have no doubt part of New Madrid was sunk by one of these earthquakes; and if so, they must have happened in 1811, which period accords with the subsequent events of my life. Davis, who joined the Kansas party while at the Dripping Fork, left the Osages this winter: I heard from him some time after, but do not now recollect the particulars; and what has since become of him I know not.
After I had been some time with the Osages, an occurrence took place, which, as it had, beyond a doubt, considerable influence on my ultimately leaving them, deserves to be noticed.
While I was out with my Indian sister Wees-keh collecting fuel, she made some very particular inquiries about my people, which, of course, I was unable to answer. These inquiries frequently recurred to me, and led to a train of reflections in my youthful mind of a most extraordinary kind.
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The accounts of the white people, which the Indians had been very particular in giving me, were no ways flattering to my colour; they were represented as an inferior order of beings, wicked, treacherous, cowardly, and only fit to transact the common drudgeries of life. I was at the same time assured, that my transposition from them to the Indians was for me a most fortunate occurrence; for now I might become an expert hunter, brave warrior, wise counsellor, and possibly a distinguished chief of their nation. All this I considered as true, till the arrival of the traders among us. They were particularly kind and attentive to me, and made me several trifling presents; in consequence of which I in general formed strong attachments for them. They gave me to understand, that what the Indians had told me was incorrect; they informed me, that the white people were numerous, powerful, brave, generous, and good; that they lived in large houses, some of which floated on the great waters; that their towns were very extensive, and filled with people as numerous as the sand; and that they fought with great guns, and could kill many at a single fire. They used various methods to induce me to visit them; but although these reports were in part believed, my curiosity much excited, and my mind filled with wonder and astonishment, at the existence of such extraordinary things; yet, I could not bring my feelings to consent to such a measure.
After some reflection, the prejudices imbibed in early life returned in their full strength; and I still
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thought the white people were in their characters what they had been represented, and even worse, from the conduct which some of them had practised while among us. Besides, they were on all occasions represented by the Indians in the most hideous and objectionable colours, no doubt with a view to strengthen my first impressions, enervate my curiosity, and suppress any desire that possibly might exist to visit the white settlements.
On several occasions, when I made inquiries respecting this strange people, and expressed a wish to visit them, and see the singular things of which I had heard, and which continued a long time to occupy my thoughts, the Indians told me I was too young for so long a journey; that if I undertook it, I should be seized, forced to work in the fields even after I had grown to the size of a warrior or hunter, and never be suffered to return. They also told me, that when I had grown up, taken many scalps, and become a renowned warrior, I might visit the white people with impunity; that then they would not dare to touch me, but would behold me with consternation and dread. In this way my inquiries were answered, and my curiosity repressed; and though reflections on these subjects frequently recurred to my mind, yet it is highly probable that nothing short of the powerful incitement that finally led to the measure could have induced me to abandon my Indian brothers.
In the following spring, a party of thirty hunters and six or seven squaws started on a visit to some of their connections, who remained at the Osage
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towns on the Grand Osage river*, taking me with them. Our course was up the Arkansas for a considerable distance; thence across the highlands, till we struck the head waters of the Grand Osage river, which we descended, to the village belonging to Clermont, or the Builder of Towns, a celebrated Osage chief. We remained among the Grand Osages, till early in the next fall. During our stay, I saw a number of white people, who, from different motives, resorted to this nation: among them, was a clergyman, who preached several times to the Indians through an interpreter. He was the first Christian preacher that I had ever heard or seen. The Indians treated him with great respect, and listened to his discourses with profound attention; but could not, as I heard them observe, comprehend the doctrines he wished to inculcate. It may be appropriately mentioned here, that the Indians are accustomed, in their own debates, never to speak but one at a time; while all others, constituting the audience, invariably listen with patience and attention till their turn to speak arrives. This respect is still more particularly observed toward strangers; and the slightest deviation from it would be regarded by them as rude, indecorous, and highly inoffensive. It is this trait in the Indian character which many of the missionaries mistake for a serious impression made on
* To understand this subject fully, it should be borne in mind that a part of the Osages, not long since, with the chiefs Big Track and White Hair for their leaders, had separated from the Grand Osage nation, settled on the Arkansas river, and sustained their independence.
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their minds; and which has led to many exaggerated accounts of their conversion to Christianity.
Some of the white people whom I met, as before noticed, among the Osages, were traders, and others were reputed to be runners from their Great Father beyond the Great Waters, to invite the Indians to take up the tomahawk against the settlers. They made many long talks, and distributed many valuable presents; but without being able to shake the resolution which the Osages had formed, to preserve peace with their Great Father, the President. Their determinations were, however, to undergo a more severe trial: Te-cum-seh, the celebrated Shawanee warrior and chief, in company with Francis the prophet, now made their appearance among them.
He addressed them in long, eloquent, and pathetic strains; and an assembly more numerous than had ever been witnessed on any former occasion listened to him with an intensely agitated, though profoundly respectful interest and attention. In fact, so great was the effect produced by Te-cum-seh's eloquence, that the chiefs adjourned the council, shortly after he had closed his harangue; nor did they finally come to a decision on the great question in debate for several days afterwards.
I wish it was in my power to do justice to the eloquence of this distinguished man: but it is utterly impossible. The richest colours, shaded with a master's pencil, would fall infinitely short of the glowing finish of the original. The occasion and subject were peculiarly adapted to call into action all the powers of genuine patriotism; and such language, such gestures,
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and such feelings and fulness of soul contending for utterance, were exhibited by this untutored native of the forest in the central wilds of America, as no audience, I am persuaded, either in ancient or modern times ever before witnessed.
My readers may think some qualification due to this opinion; but none is necessary. The unlettered Te-cum-seh gave extemporaneous utterance only to what he felt; it was a simple, but vehement narration of the wrongs imposed by the white people on the Indians, and an exhortation for the latter to resist them. The whole addressed to an audience composed of individuals who had been educated to prefer almost any sacrifice to that of personal liberty, and even death to the degradation of their nation; and who, on this occasion, felt the portraiture of Te-cum-seh but too strikingly identified with their own condition, wrongs, and sufferings.
This discourse made an impression on my mind, which, I think, will last as long as I live. I cannot repeat it verbatim, though if I could, it a mere skeleton, without the rounding finish of its integuments: it would only be the shadow of the substance; because the gestures, and the interest and feelings excited by the occasion, and which constitute the essentials of its character, would be altogether wanting. Nevertheless, I shall, as far as my recollection serves, make the attempt, and trust to the indulgence of my readers for an apology for the presumptuous digression.
When the Osages and distinguished strangers
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had assembled, Te-cum-seh arose; and after a pause of some minutes, in which he surveyed his audience in a very dignified, though respectfully complaisant and sympathizing manner, he commenced as follows:
"Brothers,--We all belong to one family; we are all children of the Great Spirit; we walk in the same path; slake our thirst at the same spring; and now affairs of the greatest concern lead us to smoke the pipe around the same council fire!
"Brothers,--We are friends; we must assist each other to bear our burdens. The blood of many of our fathers and brothers has run like water on the ground, to satisfy the avarice of the white men. We, ourselves, are threatened with a great evil; nothing will pacify them but the destruction of all the red men.
"Brothers,--When the white men first set foot on our grounds, they were hungry; they had no place on which to spread their blankets, or to kindle their fires. They were feeble; they could do nothing for themselves. Our fathers commiserated their distress, and shared freely with them whatever the Great Spirit had given his red children. They gave them food when hungry, medicine when sick, spread skins for them to sleep on, and gave them grounds, that they might hunt and raise corn.--Brothers, the white people are like poisonous serpents: when chilled, they are feeble and harmless; but invigorate them with warmth, and they sting their benefactors to death.
"The white people came among us feeble; and now
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we have made them strong, they wish to kill us, or drive us back, as they would wolves and panthers.
"Brothers,--The white men are not friends to the Indians: at first, they only asked for land sufficient for a wigwam; now, nothing will satisfy them but the whole of our hunting grounds, from the rising to the setting suns.
"Brothers,--The white men want more than our hunting grounds; they wish to kill our warriors; they would even kill our old men, women, and little ones.
"Brothers,--Many winters ago, there was no land; the sun did not rise and set: all was darkness. The Great Spirit made all things. He gave the white people a home beyond the great waters. He supplied these grounds with game, and gave them to his red children; and he gave them strength and courage to defend them.
"Brothers,--My people wish for peace; the red men all wish for peace: but where the white people are, there is no peace for them, except it be on the bosom of our mother.
"Brothers,--The white men despise and cheat the Indians; they abuse and insult them; they do not think the red men sufficiently good to life.
"The red men have borne many and great injuries; they ought to suffer them no longer. My people will not; they are determined on vengeance; they have taken up the tomahawk; they will make it fat with blood; they will drink the blood of the white people.
"Brothers,--My people are brave and numerous;
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but the white people are too strong for them alone. I wish you to take up the tomahawk with them. If we all unite, we will cause the rivers to stain the great waters with their blood.
"Brothers,--If you do not unite with us, they will first destroy us, and then you will fall an easy prey to them. They have destroyed many nations of red men because they were not united, because they were not friends to each other.
"Brothers,--The white people send runners amongst us; they wish to make us enemies, that they may sweep over and desolate our hunting grounds, like devastating winds, or rushing waters.
"Brothers,--Our Great Father, over the great waters, is angry with the white people, our enemies. He will send his brave warriors against them; he will send us rifles, and whatever else we want--he is our friend, and we are his children.
"Brothers,--Who are the white people that we should fear them? They cannot run fast, and are good marks to shoot at: they are only men; our fathers have killed many of them: we are not squaws, and we will stain the earth red with their blood.
"Brothers,--The Great Spirit is angry with our enemies; he speaks in thunder, and the earth swallows up villages, and drinks up the Mississippi. The great waters will cover their lowlands; their corn cannot grow; and the Great Spirit will sweep those who escape to the hills from the earth with his terrible breath.
"Brothers,--We must be united; we must smoke
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the same pipe; we must fight each other's battles; and more than all, we must love the Great Spirit: he is for us; he will destroy our enemies, and make his red children happy."
On the following day, Francis the prophet addressed the Osages in council; and although he repeated almost precisely the language of Te-cum-seh, and enlarged considerably more on the power and disposition of the Great Spirit; yet his discourse produced comparatively little effect on his audience. He was not a favourite among the Indians; and I am of opinion, that he did more injury than benefit to the cause he undertook to espouse.
After they had concluded, I looked upon war as inevitable; and in its consequences contemplated the destruction of our enemies, and the restoration of the Indians to their primitive rights, power, and happiness. There was nothing I then so ardently desired as that of being a warrior, and I even envied those who were to achieve these important objects the fame and glory that would redound as a necessary result. In a short time afterwards, however, the Osages rejected Te-cum-seh's proposals, and all these brilliant prospects vanished.
I return again to my narrative. About the falling of the leaves, we rejoined White Hair's tribe, by the same route we came, taking in our way some furs and other game. In this account of our journey to and from the Grand Osages, I ought not to omit making some remarks on the excellent fruits with which we often regaled ourselves. These, on our
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way out, consisted of very large red and white strawberries, red and purple raspberries and gooseberries; and on our return, of various kinds of grapes, great Osage plums, and a variety of nuts; all which were in astonishing abundance. Before our return, the Osage hunters on the Arkansas had gone on an excursion up that river; in consequence of which I was only engaged in desultory hunting, for the following winter. In the spring the hunting party returned, with an abundance of furs and other game. They had, during the winter, an engagement of no great importance with a party of wandering Indians, and brought back with them a gentleman whose name I think was M'Clure: with the object of whose tour through the country I am wholly ignorant. He left us, after a short stay, with warm expressions of gratitude for the kind treatment and protection he had received; and I know not what became of him afterwards, though it would be to me peculiarly gratifying to learn, as he asked me many questions, appeared to take great interest in my situation and welfare, and discovered much surprise at my inability to give any account of myself prior to my residence among the Indians. From the circumstance of his speaking the Osage language so as to make himself readily understood, I infer that he had been much among the Osages, and perhaps other nations of Indians.
A new event worthy of remark grew out of some depredations of the wandering Pawnees on the property of the Osages. Some squaws, who had gone after the horses for the purpose of bringing in game,
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surprised a party of this description, in the very act of stealing them. The Osages had, on several former occasions, lost their horses; but from the manner in which they were taken, knew not on whom to retaliate the injury. The discovery being made, a party of about sixty of their warriors, including myself, started in pursuit. We followed their tracks up Grand river for a considerable distance, when the signs indicating that they were not far in advance, a council was held to decide whether we should continue the pursuit forthwith, or wait till they had encamped for the night. We determined to proceed on; but with the greatest caution. In the mean time two spies were sent ahead, with a view to make discoveries, while the main party marched slowly and quietly after them, in single file.
About two miles from the place where we halted, there was a sand beach, bounded by the river on one side, and on the other by high abrupt cliffs, which in time of floods could not be passed.
On arriving at this place, which was now passable, the spies discovered that a part of the Pawnees had left the direct route, and taken a circuitous one round these cliffs through the prairie grass, which at this time was very high and thick. In consequence of this, they returned immediately to the main party. Our principal chief, who was well experienced in all the cunning and artifice of Indian warfare, rightly concluding that our party had been discovered, and that an ambuscade had been planned to surprise it, took his measures accordingly. The Pawnees, in order to deceive us, had sent a detachment from their party, for a short distance on
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the direct route; but their trail in the other direction was too perceptible to pass unnoticed. We therefore proceeded in it, till we arrived within from forty to sixty yards of where they wer secreted among the shrubbery and rocks, waiting for us to pass on the other route between them and the river. We then singled out our objects, and, on a signal given by the chief, fired on them. The surprise was complete: the party, which was much more numerous than ours, was routed, and eighteen scalps taken. In this engagement, I took a scalp, which was my first and last essay of the kind. I name this, with great repugnance to my present feelings; but, as I set out to give a correct history of my life, I cannot, in justice to the subject, omit this circumstance.
After so decisive a victory, any further pursuit of the enemy would have been useless, for fear had added speed to their flight. We therefore returned home, where we were received as war-parties usually are by the Indians, after a fortunate and successful expedition. Previous to this occurrence, I had never received any marked attention from the squaws; but on this occasion, particularly, the young ones danced around me in the most extravagant and exulting manner. They ornamented my head, arms, and legs, with feathers, stained porcupine-quills, deer-sinews, &c.; and struck up the song of victory, accompanied with their musical instruments, if such as they use deserve that name. Subsequently I went on several other excursions; but no incident worthy of remark took place, till about the middle of the following fall, when we discovered a numerous party
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of the Pawnees on our hunting grounds; who, though they had committed no depredations, exhibited by this intrusion no very friendly disposition. Besides, it was one of the wandering parties with some of which we had before been engaged. We furthermore considered the step they had taken as a challenge of defiance, and accordingly prepared to repel it. A number of our men had now gone far up the Arkansas, on a hunting expedition; but our forces, including my Kansas companions and myself, were equal in number to the Pawnees, and we considered ourselves every way competent to fulfil the object of our wishes. Our party, consisting of nearly two hundred warriors, well armed and otherwise provided, started in pursuit, up the Arkansas river. We had not marched over sixty miles, before we discovered a small party of the enemy, which had just killed a buffalo, and which, simultaneously discovering us, dispersed in the greatest confusion. We attempted to cut off their retreat, with a view to prevent an alarm being given, but were unsuccessful. They joined their main body, which had sufficient time to prepare for our reception. The Pawnees secreted themselves among the rocks and shrubbery of an adjacent hill, in a very advantageous situation; while our party approached them under cover of the trees, which extended to the very foot of the hill, and commenced a desultory firing on such of them as were discoverable. The engagement continued till dark; several were killed and wounded on both sides, but no scalps were taken. During the night, the Pawnees retreated several miles up the river,
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while our party remained without fire on the battle ground. Early the next morning we commenced the pursuit, overtook and renewed the engagement with them, some time before the middle of the day. Both parties were now covered by a thick and large growth of trees on an alluvion bottom, so that the advantages of ground were more equal than in the preceding engagement; however, as we were the pursuers, they rather inclined in our favour. This fighting pursuit continued till nearly night, when we completely routed them, and took about twenty scalps. Our party suffered considerably while dodging from tree to tree. We lost seventeen killed, and had about the same number wounded; among the latter of which I had the misfortune to be included, having received a ball just below the knee-joint. The Pawnees must have suffered much more considerably, as I judge, from the traces of blood which appeared shortly after the engagement was renewed, and which continued to increase until they were routed. Their whole party was at no time engaged, some being in advance with their dead and wounded; all of which they succeeded in carrying off, till the engagement had nearly come to a close. This fact qwas fully established from the circumstance, that all the wounds of those who fell into our hands were recent; while traces of blood continued beyond the place where they were finally dispersed. Towards the close of the fight, they left some of their dead bodies behind; a circumstance which plainly indicated that their loss had been severe, and that they intended to fly to their advance party, which must
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have been some miles ahead, as soon as a favourable opportunity offered, or the darkness of the approaching night would cover their flight. These indications, while they served to depress the Pawnees, who never leave their dead unless reduced to the last extremity, operated on our party as a powerful excitement to press the fight and pursuit, and no doubt produced a much more signal result than otherwise would have happened.
The Osages, after a consultation, concluded to give over the pursuit, returned with their dead and wounded a short distance to a good watering place, and encamped for the night. Four days after this, they arrived at their towns, and were received with general demonstrations of joy. To these succeeded the wailings and mourning of those who had lost connections and friends; and then followed the burial of the dead, which was performed in the most solemn and impressive manner.
My wound was severe and painful, and confined me several weeks; but from the skill of our physicians and the kind attentions of my Indian mother and sister, I soon was enabled to rejoin the hunting parties. After the return of the hunters from their excursion up the Arkansas river, a party of thirty-seven hunters, consisting chiefly of the Kansas, and including myself, started on an exploring and hunting expedition, up the Arkansas. It is proper here to remark, that although the Osages had declared war against the Kansas, yet no hostile operations were carried on by the parties against each other. A sufficient number of the former had, however, joined parties of the Mahas and Ot-
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towas in their depredations on the latter, to keep alive their mutual feelings of hostility. In consequence of these animosities, the Osages kept a steady eye on the Kansas party that had thrown itself on their protection, and usually so contrived their hunting parties as to have a majority of their own nation in them. This, I am satisfied, was their policy, though it was executed with delicacy, and apparently without imposing any restraint. The Kansas suspected their motives; and, when by themselves, had frequent conversations on the subject: plans for their escape had been proposed; but it was utterly impossible for their whole number to co-operate simultaneously, without exciting a suspicion that would either defeat them altogether, or prove fatal to a portion of their party. They were well supplied, and otherwise treated kindly; and therefore thought the maintenance of a friendly relation, and their own safety, at least for the present, object of paramount consequence.
Under such feelings, and with a view to relieve the inquietude of their minds, growing out of the peculiarity of their situations, some of the leading and most restless of the Kansas planned the expedition before named. I have no doubt they intended to include their whole party, so that should an opportunity offer, they might return to their towns on the Kansas river, though such a design was never declared. I was merely asked to volunteer, whenever the excursion should be proposed. But however adroit the plan was, or whatever it had for its object, the whole of the Kansas could not be induced to embark in it.