DAVID ZEISBERGER'S
HISTORY OF THE NORTHERN
AMERICAN INDIANS.
EDITED BY ARCHER BUTLER HULBERT AND
WILLIAM
NATHANIEL SCHWARZE.
INTRODUCTION.
The present volume reproduces the
manuscript written in
German by the Moravian hero-missionary,
The Reverend David
Zeisberger, at his mission home beside
the Muskingum River, in
Ohio, in the years 1779 and 1780.
Though there is extant a most excellent
biography of this
noble man, The Life and Times of
David Zeisberger, by Bishop
Edmund De Schweinitz (Philadelphia,
1870), very little is popu-
larly known of him.
In the center of the old Black Forest of
America, near New
Philadelphia, Ohio, a half-forgotten
Indian graveyard lies be-
side the dusty country road. You may
count here several score
of graves by the slight mounds of earth
that were raised above
them a century or so ago. At one
extremity of this plot of
ground an iron railing incloses another
grave marked by a plain
marble slab. The grave is David
Zeisberger's, -Moravian Mis-
sionary to Indians in New York,
Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan,
and Canada for fifty active years, who
was buried at this spot
at his dying request, that he might
await the Resurrection among
his faithful Indians. His record is
perhaps unequalled in point
of length of service by the record of
any missionary in any land.
On a July night in 1726 a man and his
wife fled from their
home in Austrian Moravia toward the
mountains on the border
of Saxony, for conscience' sake. They
took with them nothing
save their five-year-old boy, who ran
stumbling between them,
holding to their hands. The family of
three remained in Saxony
ten years. Then the parents emigrated to
America, leaving the
Vol. XIX-1. 1
2
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
son of fifteen years in Saxony to
continue his education. But
within a year he, too, took passage for
America, and joined his
parents in Georgia, just previous to
their removal to Bethlehem,
Pennsylvania.
The lad soon became interested in the
study of the Dela-
ware Indian language among the natives
of that tribe living
along the Susquehanna, and at once
showed proficiency. Ap-
preciating his talent, the fathers of
the Moravian Church deter-
mined to send the young man to Europe,
that in the best univer-
sities he might secure his training. He
went as far as New
York. There, just as his ship was to
sail, he pleaded with tears
and on his knees to be allowed to return
to the woods of Penn-
sylvania and the school of the red men
there. The words of the
wise were overcome by those of the
youth, and an earnest soul,
as brave as it was earnest, was saved to
a life of unparalleled
service and devotion.
On returning to Bethlehem, Zeisberger
joined a class that
was studying the Iroquois tongue, the
language of that powerful
nation which practically controlled, by
tomahawk and threat, all
the territory between the colonies and
the Mississippi. Soon
the looked-for opportunity of visiting
the Iroquois' land came,
and the young student (who had been
enrolled in the class of
candidates as David Zeisburger,
destinirter Heidenbote) was told
off to accompany the heroic Frederick
Christian Post. This
was in the dark year 1745, only a few
months previous to the
outbreak of the old French war. The
youth was now in his
twenty-fourth year.
In February of the next year after these
two men entered
the shadow of old New York, the report
was circulated in New
York City that two spies had been captured
among the Iro-
quois, who were guilty of attempting to
win that nation over to
the French. Such a charge at this time
was the most serious
imaginable, for the contest for the
friendship of the Iroquois
between the French on the St. Lawrence
and the English on the
Atlantic had become of great importance.
Upon that friendship,
and the support it guaranteed, seemed to
hang the destiny of the
Continent. The rumor created endless
consternation, and the
Introduction. 3
spies were hurried on to Governor
Clinton. Their trial resulted
in imprisonment for six weeks, until the
two were freed by an
ordinance passed by Parliament exempting
the missionaries of
the Moravian Church from taking oath to
the British Crown.
Such was Zeisberger's first experience.
Back to the Iroquois land journeyed the
liberated prisoner,
and for ten doubtful years, until 1755,
Zeisberger was engaged
in learning the languages of the various
tribes of the Six Na-
tions, and in active missionary service.
His success was great.
Perhaps in all the history of this
famous Indian Nation there
was no other man, with the exception of
Sir William Johnson,
whom they trusted as much as they trusted
David Zeisberger.
Cheated on the one hand by the Dutch of
New York and robbed
on the other by the agents of the Dutch
and the English, the
Iroquois became suspicious of all men;
and it is vastly more
than a friendly compliment to record
that in his mission-house
at Onondaga, they placed the entire
archives of their nation,
comprising possibly the most valuable
collection of treaties and
letters from colonial governors ever
made by an Indian nation
on this continent. But war now drove the
missionary away, as
throughout his life war was ever to dash
his fondest dreams and
ever to drive him back.
Between 1745 and 1750 Zeisberger labored
in New York,
at Shamokin in Pennsylvania and in the
valley of Wyoming;
in 1750 he went to the Iroquois land with
Cammerhoff; he then
visited Europe but returned immediately
and was a resident at
Onondaga until the old French war opened
in 1755; he was at
Friedenshutten in 1765 and 1766; in the
year following
he crossed the mountains for the first
time and met the
Delawares on the Allegheny River; in
1768 and 1769 he was
stationed in western Pennsylvania at
Goschgoschunk, and at
Lawanakhannek in 1769 and 1770; in the
latter year his work
carried him to the Beaver River; a year
later he advanced to
the Muskingum River in Ohio where the
three well-known
Moravian mission stations were built,
Gnadenhutten, Lichtenau
and Schoenbrunn; from now until 1781 he
lived among the
Delawares, though visiting the savage
Shawanese in the Scioto
4 Ohio
Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
on at least one occasion; in 1781 his
mission was broken up by
the British renegades and the missionary
was driven with his
flock to Sandusky. Now, in 1781, begins
the Diary of David
Zeisberger, edited by Eugene F. Bliss (Cincinnati, 1885) which
has been the only work published in
English of Zeisberger's.
The record of Zeisberger's resolute
faithfulness to the rem-
nant of his church from this time onward
is almost incredible.
Like a Moses he led them always, and
first to a temporary home
Macomb County, Michigan. From there they
were in four years
removed by the Chippewas. The forlorn
pilgrims now set sail
in two sloops on Lake Erie; they took
refuge from a terrible
storm in the mouth of the Cuyahoga
River. For a time they
rested at a temporary home in
Independence Township, Cuya-
hoga County, Ohio. Famine drove them in
turn from here. Set-
ting out on foot, Zeisberger led them
next along the shore of
Lake Erie westward to the present site
of Milan, Erie County,
Ohio. Here they resided until the
outbreak of the savage Indian
War of 1791. To escape from
this Zeisberger secured from the
British Government a tract of land
twelve miles long and six
miles wide for the Moravian Indians
beside the Grand River in
Canada. Here the pilgrims remained six
years. But with the
close of the Indian War, it was possible
for them to return to
their beloved home in the Tuscarawas
Valley. The United
States had given to the Moravian Church
two tracts of land
here, embracing the sites of the three
towns formerly built, con-
taining in all twelve thousand acres.
Back to the old home the patriarch
Zeisberger brought his
little company in the year 1798. His
first duty amid the scene
of the terrible Gnadenhutten Massacre
was not forgotten. With
a bowed head and heavy heart the old man
and one assistant
gathered from beneath the dense mass of
bush and vine, whither
the wild beasts had carried them, the
bones of the ninety and
more sacrificed Christians, and over
their present resting-place
one of the proudest of monuments now
rises. For full ten
years more this hero labored in the
shadow of the forests where
his happiest days had been spent, and
only as the winter of 1808
Introduction. 5
came down upon the valley from the lakes
did his great heart
cease beating and his spirit pass
through the heavenly gates.
Zeisberger's eminent comrades, John
Heckewelder and Ben-
jamin Mortimer, thus speak of his
character:*
"He was endowed with a good
understanding and a sound judg-
ment; a friend and benefactor to
mankind, and justly beloved by all
who knew him, with perhaps the exception
of those who are enemies
of the Gospel which he preached. His
reticence was the result of the
peculiar circumstances of his life. He
undertook many solitary journeys,
and, in the first half of his life,
lived at places where there either was
no society, or such as was not
congenial. Hence he withdrew within
himself, and lived in a close communion
with his unseen but ever present
heavenly Friend. In all his views he was
very thorough, not impulsive,
not suffering himself to be carried away
by extraneous influences, not
giving an opinion until he had come to a
positive and settled conclusion
in his own mind. Experience invariably
proved the correctness of his
judgment. To this the missionaries who
served with him all bear witness.
Receiving, as it were, a glimpse of the
future, through the deep thoughts
and silent prayers in which he engaged,
he stood up, on most occasions,
full of confidence, and knew no fear.
Amid distressing and perilous
circumstances, not only his
fellow-missionaries, but the Indian converts,
invariably looked to him; and his
courage, his undaunted readiness to
act, his comforting words cheered them
all. He would never consent
to have his name put down on a
salary-list, or become a 'hireling', as
he termed it; saying, that although a
salary might be both agreeable
and proper for some missionaries, yet in
his case it would be the con-
trary. He had devoted himself to the
service of the Lord among the
heathen without any view of a reward,
other than such as his Lord
and Master might deign to bestow upon
him".
"Zeisberger was fully convinced
that his vocation to preach the
Gospel to the Indians and spread the
kingdom of God was of divine
origin, and therefore he sacrificed all
vanities of the world, all conveni-
ence, and whatever is highly esteemed
among men, and took up the
mission of his life in strong faith,
relying upon the blessing and aid of
that Lord whom he served, and with
joyous courage, in the midst of
scorn and reproach, persecutions and
menaces, hunger and perils, triumph-
ing at last, in spite of every foe. His
work was distinguished by perse-
verance, faithfulness, zeal, and
courage. Nothing afforded him more
satisfaction than the genuine conversion
of those to whom he preached.
This was the highest goal of his
ambition. If he could gain one soul,
and bring it to a saving knowledge of
Christ, it was for him a more
precious gift than if he had come into
possession of the whole world.
*De Schweinitz Life of Zeisberger.
6 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
To describe the joy he experienced when
an erring sheep returned to
the fold is impossible. In his ministry
he neither forgot that he had
to contend with 'the prince of the power
of the air, the spirit that
worketh in the children of
disobedience', nor that God was on his side.
And, truly, he did overcome Satan, in an
illustrious way, by the blood
of the Lamb, and by the word of his
testimony; and loved not his life
unto the death. He was not only bold in
God, fearless and full of
courage, but also lowly of heart, meek
of spirit, never thinking highly
of himself. Selfishness was unknown to
him. His heart poured out a
stream of love to his fellowmen. In
spite of his constant journeys and
exposure, he never needlessly sacrified
his health. His whole bearing
was extremely venerable. He was an
affectionate husband; a faithful
and ever-reliable friend. In a word, his
character was upright, honest,
loving, and noble, as free from faults
as can be expected of any man
this side of the grave".
The original manuscript comprising the
present volume is
preserved in the Moravian Archives at
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania;
it has been followed literally by
Professor Schwarze in making
the excellent translation. Though lacking many features of
careful composition, the original bears
everywhere the evidences
of calm, straight-forward, well-founded
narrative. Being a man
of singularly unselfish devotion and
with great ability to focus
his energies upon efforts that made up
his life-work, Zeisberger
applied himself to the study of Indian
languages to such pur-
pose that he mastered the Delaware
language and the Onondaga
dialect of the Iroquois, the two most
important languages of the
North American Indians, and was able to
do much for their
development. He learned to know
the Indians. He was not
troubled with any misleading or romantic
notions about the
character and traits of these men of the
woods. His knowledge
of the manners, customs, character, and
country of the Indians
was perfected by his travels, study,
observation, and uninter-
rupted labors.
All this argues the credibility of his
narrative. Indeed,
careful consideration will lead to the
conclusion that as the story
is given simply without aspiration to
rhetorical embellishment.
it is also clear and well-founded in its
testimony. Zeisberger
always uses calm and deliberate
language, whether treating of
the degradation and moral deformity of
the savages, or of their
redeeming traits. He really loved the Indians, spent his life
in
Introduction. 7
the effort to do them good, and he gives
dispassionately and
honestly what he had abundant
opportunity to learn of their
character, customs and country.
The name of this volume, "History
of the Indians," was
not given to the manuscript by its
author, but, by the Bishop
De Schweinitz. Zeisberger, had he named
it, would probably
have called it, "Notes on the
History, Life, Manners, and Cus-
toms of the Indians," and the most
casual reader will recognize
from the mode of presentation and the
occasional repetitions that
the manuscript is in the form of notes.
It has seemed best, how-
ever, to reproduce it verbatim as
written. The complete ana-
lytical index will fully make up for
irregularity in arrangement
and the lack of proper ordering of the
material.
This manuscript, of upwards of eighty
thousand words, was
evidently written for the Rev. Henry
Loskiel to aid him in the
preparation of his most valuable History
of the Mission of the
United Brethren among the Indians of
North America. Deriv-
ing his material from various sources,
and writing inclusively of
all the American Indians, Loskiel made
less use of Zeisberger's
manuscript than one would suppose,
possibly incorporating, in one
form or another, one-third of this
manuscript and giving very
slight recognition of the source of
information. Moreover, writing
as one who had little first-hand
knowledge of his subject, many
facts told by the venerable missionary
of a certain Indian tribe
lost, under Loskiel's treatment, much of
their value, especially,
when represented as though true of the
typical American Indian.
The result is that these pages from
Zeisberger's pen, in the opinion
of the editors, give the most reliable
and accurate description in
existence of the Indians of New York,
Pennsylvania, and Ohio,
written by one intimately acquainted
with them. Lacking the
polish and general literary excellence
of his comrade John Hecke-
welder's History, the student
perusing the two will surely agree
that for solid information given in
simple straight-forward style,
the Zeisberger notes take first rank as
a work of value. For
instance; Zeisberger was practically
uninfluenced by the appall-
ing superstitions of the savages; the
shams and frauds of their
impotent sorcerers made but little
impression on the rugged
sense of the faithful missionary;
so much so that one cannot
8 Ohio
Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
read the few sentences
which imply a deviation from this steady
attitude without
grewsome sensations.
The antiquarian and
archaeologist will find in this volume
interesting additional
proof of the relationship of the so-called
"Moundbuilders"
and the earlier Indians, the implication being
exceedingly strong
that they were one and the same race; the
reference to mounds,
arrow-heads, stone hatchets, etc., etc., being
illuminating.
Mention should be made
of Zeisberger's attitude toward the
Indian legends,
especially that of Iroquois' conquest of the Dela-
wares. It was only
proper that this historian should include in
his narrative the
legends which were told to him; that he did
not examine them
critically and pass upon their accuracy dogmat-
ically is not, in the
opinion of the editors, a discredit to him. Ban-
ished as he
voluntarily was from every access to reliable his-
torical information,
and overwhelmed with the great tasks he
patiently set himself
to perform, it is impossible to conceive of
his even attempting to
examine the myths that were told him by
the lips of his red
skinned brethren. It would be only fair, then,
to the writer of this
admirable work, for the reader mentally to
insert, as these
legends are recounted, the words "It is said,"
"they say,"
or "they believe," etc., for the spirit of the author
never warrants our
believing that he received them without ques-
tion. Zeisberger did
not express himself in such a manner as to
warrant the
unqualified statement, as we elsewhere note, made by
the careful Parkman,
that he (Zeisberger) put faith in the story
of a deceptive
conquest of the Delawares by the Iroquois.
For a considerable
mass of new facts concerning the life
and character of the
Indians in Pennsylvania, New York and
Ohio, of their
treatment of each other, of the married relation-
ship, of the treatment
of children, of home life and of political
affairs, the student
will look in vain outside of this Zeisberger
manuscript. Its author wrote from an experience covering
almost uninterruptedly
the period from 1745 to 1778. The
story of his life
during those years should be read in De
Schweinitz's excellent
volume; no clear understanding of Ohio's
history, especially in
the Revolutionary period, is possible without
knowing this volume.
It is proper to note here a significant fact:
Introduction. 9
Zeisberger's mature acquaintance with
the redmen came in those
years just preceding and succeeding
Pontiac's Rebellion; these
were the years of dissolution, the years
when the influences of
civilization and the coming of the
European completed the over-
throw of the Indian, his family life,
his state, his ancient code
of laws and social customs. In effect
Pontiac said, "After me
the deluge;" when the Revolutionary
War came on, the redman
of the Middle West was as different,
compared with his grand-
father as we of the Twentieth Century
differ from what our
great-grandfathers were. One of the most
valuable features of
Zeisberger's History lies just
here. Having intimately known
the Indian in transformation -the Indian
that, though taking
the musket and the axe and the blanket,
was looking back won-
deringly at the bow and stone ax and the
feather-and-hemp cover-
ing- he is continually giving us
precious glimpses, as accurate
as they are rare, of the primeval
redman. This series of facts
concerning these first Americans makes
Zeisberger's manuscript
of more than ordinary value for his
attitude is very largely that
of a man looking backward; no other
writer of his time main-
tains such an attitude or has left us a
record of equal minute-
ness relating to the region covered.
On reading his manuscript one is
inclined to believe thor-
oughly in Zeisberger's proposition that
no one could get at the
real facts concerning the inner life of
the redmen unless engaged
in the work of converting them.
Lastly, yet of great importance, is the
scientific information
contained in the manuscript. Through the
able assistance of Dr.
Arthur Magnum Banta, of the Carnegie
Station for Experi-
mental Evolution, the full scientific
value of Zeisberger's com-
ment and description may be appreciated
by the reader. From
the standpoint of the biologist, for
instance, the manuscript seems
to be reliable and is extremely
interesting. It shows intrinsic
evidence of being a reliable and careful
account of the various
animals and plants which the author
observed with interest and
about which he learned various facts as
well as fancies from the
Indians. Zeisberger has stated nothing
which he did not sup-
pose to be true, and the few fanciful
statements are easily recog-
nized since they are such as would today
be found in any lay-
10
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
man's account of natural things about
him. Written by a man
not a biologist the manuscript could not
be other than an hon-
est and in the main conservative account
or it would show
inconsistencies which could not have
been appreciated by its
author.
No such inconsistencies appear. The chief scientific
interest in the manuscript arises from
the fact that it depicts
conditions before the white settlers
came into the Middle West,
and before the ax, the rifle and the
steel trap had seriously inter-
fered with primitive natural conditions
such as had existed from
time immemorial. The changes in the
animal and plant life since
the author wrote are, of course, most
sweeping. The account
has its great interest and value because
it is the only reliable
record of the fauna and flora of the
region before such marked
charges occurred.
For the opinions expressed and views
taken in the footnotes
of this volume, as well as errors
therein, the writer is personally
responsible.
Zeisberger's published works include the
Diary above men-
tioned; Essay of a Delaware Indian
and English Spelling Book
for the use of the Schools of the
Christian Indians on Mus-
kingum River (Philadelphia, 1776); A Collection of
Hymns for
the use of the Christian Indians, of
the Missions of the United
Brethren in North America (Philadelphia, 1803); Sermons to
Children (Philadelphia, 1803); Avg. Gottl Spangenberg. Some-
thing of Bodily Care for Children (Philadelphia, 1803); The
History of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ, by the Rev. Sam-
uel Lieberkuhn, M. A. (Tr. by
Zeisberger). The above are in
the Delaware language. Zeisberger's Verbal Biegungen der
Chippewayer [Delawaren] was published in Vater's Analekten
der Sprachkunde (Leipzig, 1821).
Zeisberger's manuscripts are numerous
and include Deutsch
und Onondagaisches Worterbuch, Essay
toward an Onondaga
Grammar, Onondagaische Grammatica (translated into English
by Peter S. Duponcear, LL. D., still in
Mss.), A Grammar of the
Lenni-Lenape, or Delaware Indians (also translated by Dr.
Duponcear, in Mss.). A Dictionary in
German and Delaware,
Delaware Glossary, Delaware
Vocabulary, Phrases and Vocab-
ularies in Delaware, Delaware
Grammar, Harmony of the Gos-
Introduction. 11
pels in Delaware, Hymns for the
Christian Indians in Delaware,
Litany and Liturgies in Delaware,
Zeisberger's own Mss. Hymn
Book in Delaware, Sermons by
Zeisberger in Delaware, Seven-
teen Sermons to Children, Church
Litany in Delaware, Short
Biblical Narratives in Delaware,
Vocabulary in Maqua and
Delaware. The last fourteen Mss. were collected by Edward
Everett and are preserved in the Harvard
University Library;
the remaining Zeisberger material is in
the Moravian archives at
Bethlehem. Here, too, are preserved
Zeisberger's diaries and
letters covering his long career on the
frontier and possessing
very great historical value. These
include the narration of his
arrest in New York, of his journeys with
Cammerhoff, Mack
and Spangenberg, of his stay at
Onondaga, 1755, his journals
of 1762-67, including his journal of the
trip to the Cayuga town
in 1766 and to Goschgoschung in 1767,
the journal of his trip
to the Allegheny, 1767-8, and the
diaries and letters covering
his whole Ohio, Michigan and Canadian
experiences, 1771-1808.
It is expected to issue a collection of
Zeisberger's unpublished
diaries, journals and letters as Volume
Two of The Moravian
Records.
ARCHER BUTLER HULBERT.
Marietta College, Marietta, Ohio.
December 10, 1909.
12 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
A HISTORY OF THE
INDIANS.
The North American Indians are of middle
size, well built,
straight, light-footed, well adapted for
travel through the forest,
much of which is due to the fact that
they do no heavy work,
but support themselves by the chase.1
Their color is brown, but
of different shades. Some are light
brown, hardly to be distin-
guished from a brown European, did not
their eyes and hair be-
tray them. Again, others are so dark
that they differ little from mu-
lattoes.2 Their hair is
jet-black and coarse, almost like the hair
of a horse's mane.3 Their
heads become gray or even white in
old age, otherwise they are without
exception, black. The men
rarely let the hair grow long, and it is
common practice among
them, though the custom is obsolescent,
that they root out the hair
from the forehead backward so that the
head is bald up to the
crown and only a hand-breadth of it in
circular form is suffered
to remain, whence in the case of savages
generally depend long
braids, one on either side, closely
plaited and bound by bracelets
of coral, some, also, hanging silver
upon them. It is a very
common that they wear a plume of
feathers on the middle of
the head, rising straight up or hanging
downward. They fre-
quently cut the helix of the ear,
leaving the upper and lower
ends intact and then hang bits of lead
to it so that it is stretched.
Then this curved border of the auricle
is bound with brass wire,
distending it considerably, and
decorated with silver ornaments.
Among Indians who have come in contact
with whites this is
less often done. They, also, pierce the
nose and adorn it with
silver. The beard is rooted out as soon
as it begins to grow.
The men tattoo their bodies in arm, leg
or face with all manner
of figures, serpents, birds or other
animals, which are marked
out by pricking the skin with a needle,
powder or soot being
afterward rubbed into the punctures.
Occasionally, the women
mark their bodies thus. The women let
the hair grow long,
so that it sometimes reaches to the
knees; they do not braid it
but tie a cloth around it. The Mingoes,4
Shawano5 and Wion-
datoo6 women have a long
braid reaching the hips, bound in cloth
A History of the Indians. 13
and red ribbon, in the case of the rich,
being further adorned
with silver clasps of considerable
weight from top to bottom.
The Delawares, also, do this, though not
so generally. The
women wear earrings of wampum, coral or
silver.
The men hunt, secure meat for the
household, clothing for
their wives and children, getting it in
exchange for hides, build
houses or huts, and also help their
wives clear the land for cultiva-
tion and build fences around it. The
duties of the women are
cooking, finding fire-wood, planting and
reaping. They plant
corn, principally, making of this their
bread, which is baked in
the ashes, and preparing with it various
dishes. Besides, they
raise pumpkins of various kinds,
potatoes, beans and other vege-
tables, which they have learned to know
through the whites,
such as cabbage, turnips, etc.7
The best time for the chase is in the
fall, when the game
is fat and the hides are good. Hence,
they commonly in Sep-
tember and October go hunting with their
families, remaining
afield until the New Year or longer,
though after that the skins
cannot be used. Elk and buffalo they
shoot little and rarely, as
the hides are too heavy and of little
value, and if they shoot
one of these animals now and again, most
of the meat is left lying
in the woods, where it is consumed by
wolves, or other wild ani-
mals or birds. The deer, which are most
sought and are larger
than the European roe, have the best
skins and are most valued
by the Europeans. After the New Year
they devote themselves
to the catching of the beaver, the
raccoon, the fox and other fur-
yielding animals; they also hunt the
bear, at that time very fat,
as a rule, and hibernating in dens,
hollow trees or rocks or thick-
ets and eating nothing for two or three
months except that they
suck their paws and are nourished by the
fat they have acquired
in the fall from consuming acorns,
chestnuts, various other nuts,
etc. Hunting of this nature lasts until
spring, when in May
their time for planting begins. In
February sugar-boiling be-
gins, farther north in March.8 This
is the work of the women,
the men continuing the chase. When
planting time is past, the
summer chase begins at the end of June
or the beginning of
July, when the deer take on a reddish
hue and the pelts are again
good and fit for trade. The deer change
their color twice in the
14
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
year. After spring-time they become red
and the hair is thin. In
September they turn gray or fallow, when
their color is like that
of the trees in the woods. The fur
becomes very thick, being the
winter coat. Farther north the game is
larger; farther south it
is smaller. In the region of Onondago9
and at the lakes the
deer are considerably larger than here
along the Muskingum,
and in the country of the Shawanose,
about two hundred miles
from here,91/2 markedly
smaller, which makes a difference in trade.
The Indians who really devote themselves
to the chase, and this is
the principal occupation and business of
the savages, are at home
but a small part of the year, spending
most of the time in the
forest. Those, on the other hand, who
come to Christ and join
the church, turn to agriculture and
raising stock, keeping cattle,
hogs and fowls. They, also, go on the
chase for three or four
weeks in the fall, though never far from
home, in order that
they may be able to use the meat; they
secure their clothing in
exchange for the skins.
Because the savages are accustomed to go
about in the
forest, which is their greatest delight,
they do not care to keep
cattle, for in that case they must
remain at home to look after
it and are prevented from going into the
forest. Some have
secured cattle, for they are very fond
of milk10 and butter.
Food which they prepare must be well
cooked and well done;
they do not like anything rare or raw.
Meat and even fish must
be so thoroughly cooked that they fall
apart.
Concerning the chase in general, as
engaged in by the
Indians, it should yet be noticed that,
because there is consider-
able trade in skins, deer are killed
mainly for their hides and
only so much of the flesh is used as the
Indians can consume
while on the chase, wherefore, most of
the meat is left in the
woods for the wild animals, which the
wolves, especially, seem
to know, for these animals take
advantage of the hunting season
and move in the direction of much
shooting; they follow the
report of the guns and, when the
huntsman has skinned the
deer, consume the carcass. The Indians
rarely shoot a wolf, the
skin of this animal being of little
value. As an Indian shoots
from fifty to a hundred and fifty deer
each fall, it can easily be
appreciated that game must decrease.
A History of the Indians. 15
Their dress is light; they do not hang
much clothing upon
themselves. If an Indian has a
Match-coat, that is a blanket
of the smaller sort, a shirt and brich
clout11 and a pair of leg-
gins, he thinks himself well dressed. In
place of a blanket, those
who are in comfortable circumstances and
wish to be well
dressed, wear a strowd, i. e., two yards
of blue, red or black
cloth which they throw lightly over
themselves and arrange much
as they would a Match-coat. Trousers
they do not wear; but
their hose, reaching considerably above
the knee and held to-
gether by a piece of strowd and
extending only to the feet, to
some extent supply the place of
trousers. If they desire to go
in state, they wear such hose with a
silken stripe extending
from top to bottom and bordered with
white coral. Their shoes
are made of deer skin, which they
prepare themselves, the women
being particularly skilled in doing this
and in working all man-
ner of designs; Mingoe women excel all
others in this particular.
Some wear hats or caps secured in
trading with the whites;
others do not cover themselves but go
bare-headed.
Women are distinguished in dress only in
this respect, that
instead of a coat they wear a strowd over the hips bound about
the body next the skin, removed neither
day nor night and ex-
tending but little beyond the knees.
They anoint the hair liber-
ally with bear's fat, so that it shines.
Their adornment consists
in hanging much wampum, coral and silver
about their necks
and it is not unusual for them to have
great belts of wampum
depending from the neck. Their shirts
and strowds they adorn
with many silver buckles. It is also
customary for them to sew
red, yellow or black ribbon on their
coats from top to bottom,
being very fond of bright things.
Men as well as women wear silver
bracelets, and the latter
also arrange silver clasps in their hair
or wear a band about the
head with as many silver ornaments on it
as it will hold. All
these things they secure from the
whites, principally from traders
who in times of peace bring their wares
to the Indian towns to
exchange for skins and pelts. In course
of such occupation
many traders have, in the event of Indian
wars, lost all their
goods and even their lives.
16
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
In the matter of House-keeping and
Domestic Arrange-
ments, it seems to be established that
what a man secures in the
chase belongs to his wife; as soon as he
brings skins and flesh
home he no longer regards them as his
own, but as property of
his wives. On the other hand what the
woman has gained in
planting and harvesting is for the
husband and she must provide
for him everything that he needs in the
chase. Yet I have
observed that this is not invariably the
case, for some men keep
the skins, and buy for the women and
children such clothes
with them as they need and do not permit
them to suffer want.
Cattle belong to women, horses to men,
though a man may give
his wife a pony for her own.12 Children, especially boys, are
not held to work; the latter are to
become hunters. They are
allowed their own way, their elders
saying: "We did not work
ourselves in the days of our
youth." They follow their own in-
clinations, do what they like and no one
prevents them, except
it be that they do harm to others; but
even in that case they are
not punished, being only reproved with
gentle words. Parents
had rather make good the damage than
punish the children,
for the reason that they think the
children might remember it
against them and avenge themselves when
they have attained to
maturity. Girls are rather more
accustomed to work by their
mothers, for as the women must pound all
the corn in a stamp-
ing trough or mortar, they train their
daughters in this and also
in such other work as will be expected
of them, as cooking,
bread-making, planting, making of
carrying-girdles and bags,
the former used to carry provisions and
utensils on their backs
while journeying and the latter to hold
the provisions. Both
are made of wild hemp13 which
they gather in the fall and use
for various purposes, for mending of
shoes and making the
thread with which they sew amongst the
rest. Wild hemp is
much tougher than that cultivated by the
whites. In the matter
of cleanliness, too much must not be
expected among the Indians.
The brass kettles in which they cook,
the dishes which they make
of the growths and knots of trees, and
also their spoons, which
are usually very large, are rarely
washed, so that it is not very
tempting for a European, unaccustomed to
this, to eat with
them. Yet in this respect, also, one
finds differences, for some
A History of the Indians. 17
are as cleanly as one could expect it.
The Monsys14 and the
Mingoes, however, far excel the
Delawares in uncleanliness, and,
since the dogs are constantly in the
houses or lying about the
fires, there are generally many fleas
and other insects.
Their britchen,l5 made of
boards and arranged about the
fire, serve as table, bench and
bedstead. The underbedding upon
which they lie, is either an untanned
deer or bear skin or a mat
of rushes, which grow in ponds or
stagnant water; these the
women are clever enough to decorate in
red, black or other
colors, finding the materials for the
latter in the forest. These
mats they also fasten about the walls of
their lodges, keeping
out the cold of winter as well as for
ornamentation. Blankets
worn during the day as part of the
clothing serve at night as
covering.
Boys and girls sleep apart. As soon as
girls walk a little
frock is fastened about them in order
that they may accustom
themselves to wear their clothing in a
modest manner, the gar-
ments of the women being short, for the
reason that long gowns
would seriously inconvenience them in
their movements through
the forests. In this particular the boys
are neglected, wearing
little or nothing until at the age of
five or six years, when a
flap of cloth is fastened to a leathern
band or girdle that has
been worn from early in infancy in order
that they might become
accustomed to it.
Houses of the Indians were formerly only
huts and for the
most part remain such humble structures,
particularly in regions
far removed from the habitation of
whites. These huts are
built either of bast (tree-bark peeled
off in the summer) or the
walls are made of boards covered with
bast. They are low
structures. Fire is made in the middle
of the hut under an open-
ing whence the smoke escapes. Among the
Mingoes and the
Six Nations16 one rarely sees
houses other than such huts built
entirely of bast, which, however, are
frequently very long, hav-
ing at least from two to four
fire-places; as many families in-
habiting such a house as there are
fire-places, the families being
related. Among the Delawares each family
prefers to have its
own house, hence they are small. The
Mingoes make a rounded,
Vol. XIX- 2.
18 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
arched roof, the Delawares on the
contrary, a high pitched,
peaked roof. The latter, coming much in
contact with the whites,
as they do not live more than a hundred
miles from Pittsburg,
have learned to build block houses or
have hired whites to build
them. Christian Indians generally build
proper and comfort-
able houses and the savages who seek to
follow their example
in work and household arrangement learn
much from them,.
The North American Indians, whom I wish
now to describe
as well as I have learned to know them,
are by nature (I speak
of savages) lazy as far as work is
concerned. If they are at
home and not engaged in the chase they
lie all day on their
britchen and sleep; when night comes
they go to the dance or
wander about in disorderly fashion. The
old men work a little,
chopping wood or doing other things
about the house, but the
younger do nothing unless driven by dire
necessity to build a hut
or house or the like. Whatever time is
not devoted to sleep is
given to amusements, such as ball
playing, which they have
learned from the whites, as also cards.
A game with dice they
have themselves invented. The dice are
made of the pits of wild
plums, not cubical but oval shaped and
smooth, black on one
side and yellow on the other. These they
each in turn raise in
a wooden vessel and throw forcibly to
the ground, occupying
whole days in this way and accompanying
their plays with much
noisy ejaculation. Dances take place
every night, all young
people, men and women, attending. The
dancing takes place
either in a large house or in the open
about the fire.17 The men
lead in the dance, the women closing the
circle. Such is the
exultant shouting on these occasions
that it can be heard two
or three miles away. The dance usually
lasts until midnight,
though there are intervals of rest. The
drum which keeps the
time is a thin deer-skin stretched
across a barrel, or, in lieu of
this, a kettle.
They are proud and haughty, even a
miserable Indian, cap-
able in no respect, imagines himself to
be a great lord.18 They
hold themselves in high regard as if
they were capable of great
and wonderful things, in which respect
they are much encour-
aged by dreams, held among them to be
very significant and,
A History of the Indians. 19
indeed, it would appear that through
dreams Satan holds the
heathen bound and fettered and in close
connection with him-
self, subjecting them in this fashion to
delusion. All this the
missionaries discover in those who come
to the church and who
need be thoroughly humbled before they
give up the vain imagin-
ations concerning themselves.
They are masters in the art of deceit
and at the same time
are very credulous; they are given over
to cheating and stealing,
and are not put to shame when caught.
Stealing is very com-
mon among them. They will steal and sell
each other's horses;
and, though a thief be caught, little is
done to him beyond taking
his rifle. This he hardly refuses to
give up, since another can
be secured for some other horse that he
may steal.
They are capable of hiding their anger
readily, but await
an opportunity to avenge themselves on
the person by whom
they think themselves to have been
injured, and this generally
occurs secretly and quietly. If,
however, one of them expresses
himself in harsh threats towards anyone
who has injured him,
go-betweens are chosen who seek to
establish peace between the
two, the same being usually effected by
means of a belt of sev-
eral fathoms19 of wampum, furnished by
the one who has been
threatened.
They are courageous where no danger is
to be found, but
in the face of danger or resistance they
are fearful and the
worst cowards.20 Hence, in
wartime they prefer to attack de
fenceless whites on plantations, women
and children, when they
least expect it. Against them they show
their heroic courage.
They can be very friendly to a white
man, give him to eat and
act as if they had nothing evil in mind
against him and then
drive the hatchet into his head, of
which I will give you a few
examples. In the last Indian war, about
the year 1763,21 when
it seemed as if the war were at an end
and peace ruled once
more in the Indian country but broke out
anew so suddenly that
the whites knew nothing of it, a large
party of traders, with much
merchandise, went to the Wiandots. These
met them and, seeing
that the traders were too strong for
them, sought by deception
to get them into their power, telling
them, therefore, that a
strong detachment of Tawas22 was
on the move to destroy them.
20 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
They, the Wiandots, would give them good
counsel to the end
that they might save their lives. They should submit as
prisoners, suffer themselves to be
bound, in order that when the
Tawas should arrive they might see them
already prisoners, in
which case they would do them no injury.
They themselves
would harm them in no manner and surely
accompany them to
their towns with their merchandise.
Their advice must be acted
upon at once for the enemies were not
far distant. The traders
believed them, allowed themselves to be
bound, even aiding their
captors by binding each other. No sooner
were they fettered
than the Wiandots forthwith murdered
them and secured rich
booty.
Some years ago, before the present war23
began, the Shaw-
anose causing disturbance, some whites
who had been living
among them were obliged to save their
lives by flight. One of
the latter, hungry and weak, had
separated himself from his
companions and, in view of a Delaware
town, fell into the hands
of several Mingoes, who perceived at
once that he was very
weary and weak. They bade him sit down,
gave him some-
thing to eat and after they had fed and
refreshed him, killed him,
all of which was witnessed by a Delaware
woman, who after-
ward related the circumstance.
In studying the Indians, their mode of
life and deportment
toward each other, particularly the
relations between the sexes,
it is safe to say that one does not
learn to know them well until
they become concerned about the
well-being of their souls and
confess the evils that weigh on their
consciences. One may be
among them for several years and, not
knowing them intimately,
as stated, regard them as a virtuous
people. Far from it. Im-
purity and immorality, even gross
sensuality and unnatural
vice flourish among them, according to
the testimony of the
Indians themselves, more than was the
case formerly.24 As they
marry early in life, the men in the
eighteenth or nineteenth year,
the women in the fifteenth or sixteenth
or even earlier, one
would imagine that the Indians should
increase rapidly and have
many children. Yet an Indian may become
old and have but
few or no children, for family ties are
only too frequently and
easily broken on slight provocation,
even when there are chil-
A History of the Indians. 21
dren. Only as the parties advance in age
and cannot so readily
form other connections, are matrimonial
relations apt to be per-
manent. Owing to instability of family
relationship, children
are often neglected. This does not argue
that the Indians do not
love their children. As every creature
loves its young, so the
Indians do love their children, are
indeed, very fond of them,
especially as they mature and return the
affection. But sin and
lust bring about unnatural conditions.
It seems as if a curse
rested upon them and that they were
destined to become extinct.
There is another clan of Indians who
live with their wives be-
cause they love their children, and at
the same time have concu-
bines, who do not live in the house,
because the rightful wife
will not suffer this. The latter will
generally be content to remain
with her husband. I have known cases
where an Indian would
have two wives in his house, but this is
rare.
Yet there are Indians, even among the
savages,241/2 who main-
tain peaceable and orderly family life.
Among them larger fam-
ilies are the rule, there being often
from eight to twelve chil-
dren. the difference between these
Indians and their fellows
may be easily appreciated.
The Indians have both capacity and skill
for work, if they
only had the inclination. Such is their
mental constitution that
they readily grasp and understand. Some
who have been much
with whites have begun to work in iron,
have fashioned hatchets,
axes, etc., right well, have given up
the chase because they have
found regular work much more profitable
and less hard on
clothing and shoes than wandering
through the forest in pur-
suit of game. It is, however, true that
in the forest they are a
wonderful people. They can go on a
journey of many days in
the forest where there is neither path
nor trail, without getting
lost. It is as if Nature had fixed the
compass in their heads. No
European is equal to them in this
respect. If they would go
anywhere and have determined on the
journey, nothing prevents
the carrying out of their purpose.
Though creeks and rivers
are often swollen and progress is
difficult, they know what to do
when white men would be at their wit's
end. In company of
Indians one may be sure not to be lost
nor to suffer starvation.
22 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
On their journeys they are never in
haste, for they are
everywhere at home and whithersoever
they wander they find
sustenance in the forest. Therefore, if
a white man travels with
them it is wisest that he be content not
to hasten but accommo-
date himself to their movements. In the
morning they do not
break camp early, not until they have
eaten heartily, by which
time the sun has usually been above the
horizon two or three
hours. Thereafter, they proceed very
steadily until near sun-
down, when they go into camp. In rainy
weather they peel
bast from the trees and speedily build a
hut, that is, a roof sup-
ported by four posts, under which they
remain comfortably dry.
This they do not only in summer but also
in winter, at which
time they know what trees to peel. In
more northerly regions,
as near Goschgosching25 and
the Mingoe country, where the snow
is apt to be deep in winter, they go on
snowshoes over the deep-
est snow. Here along the Muskingum,
however, where the snow
is never deep, this is not necessary;
hence, in this means of loco-
motion the Delawares are not as skilled
as the Mingoes. These
snowshoes are like a heavy barrel-hoop,
curved and very nar-
row in front, pointed behind and broad
in the middle. This
hoop is mostly interlaced with deerskin,
something like a coarse
sieve, so that the snow may not gather
on it, but fall through.
A little to the front of the middle
there is a wooden cross-
piece and a small opening upon which the
foot is placed
and bound with leathern thongs in such a
fashion that the snow-
shoes seem to be dragged along behind on
the snow. As to
provisions for the journey, they take
corn crushed to a meal or
roasted in hot ashes, then crushed, with
which they mix a little
sugar; of this, in the heat of summer, a
refreshing and at the
same time, nourishing drink may be
prepared, if a little is stirred
in water. This mixture may also be
boiled in water or eaten
dry. These two kinds of meal are the
usual provisions. Corn-
bread does not keep long, in the
summertime, particularly, be-
coming unwholesome in three or four
days. Meat they can pro-
cure anywhere in the forest, as game is
always to be found. In
the securing of it they lose little
time, for when they contem-
plate pitching a camp, the Indians
plunge into the woods and
shoot a deer, a turkey-cock or something
else.
A History of the Indians. 23
If they wish to proceed by water, or
having been hunting,
are anxious to return home heavily laden
with meat and skins,
they speedily make a canow [canoe] of
bast, load it with their
things and go whither they will. These
canows are fashioned
of one piece of bast, the outer side of
which is turned inward,
both ends sharply pointed and securely
sewn with bast, the inside
being stretched out by a ribbing of bent wooden rods, which
keeps the canow in its proper form.
These canows are so light
upon the water that they easily glide
away from under the feet
of one unaccustomed to them when
attempting to stand. Cap-
size they cannot, because they are very
broad and carry heavy
burdens. To make one they choose a tree
according to the size
of canow desired and peel the bark off
carefully so that there
may be no rent. If a canow gets out of
repair or is punctured
by wood that floats in the water, or
stones, the latter frequently
the case because they are thin, the
Indians know how to repair
it by securing a patch of bast over any
opening. Besides, there
is a kind of elm-wood bast which they
crush or pound fine and
which is of a sticky consistency,
serving them in place of tar,
to keep their canows water-tight so that
they do not leak. Even
so, a canow barely lasts more than a
year.26 At one time they
were more used than is the case now,
when they use them only
occasionally, as necessity may dictate;
for since they have
hatchet, axe and other tools they make
canows hewn out of
trees, using fire also to burn out the
trunks.
Indians are not less, rather more,
subject to disease than
Europeans, their rough manner of life
and the hardships of
travel and the chase being contributing
causes. On journeys they
mind neither water nor snow nor ice,
even though creeks and
rivers be ever so full of running ice
they go through and nothing
holds them up. On the chase they not
only steal through the
woods to get, unnoticed, near the game,
but also pursue it should
it run before them, until they get
within range, thus often tiring
the deer they may have chased from morn
till eve and then at
the end of the day shooting one after
another, sometimes eight
or ten miles away from their hunting
lodge, no food having been
tasted the entire day. So long as they
are young and strong,
24
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
they suffer no ill effects, but with
advancing years, the inevitable
results are felt. Rheumatism is common
among them,27 often
leading to lameness, deafness or
blindness. The women who
carry everything by means of a carrying
girth fixed to the fore-
head, whence the whole burden -and a
hundred weight is not
considered heavy-is suspended down the
back, suffer in back
and neck as they grow older. The men
carry everything hung to
a carrying girth fixed across the chest.
A deer weighing from
a hundred to a hundred and thirty pounds
they will carry the
entire way home before allowing
themselves to rest.28
These carrying girths are made by the
women of wild hemp
which is first spun. That part of these
girths which passes
across the breast and over the shoulders
is three fingers [inches]
broad and decorated with various
figures; from it depend long,
plaited, durable bands, to which the
burden is bound.
They are subject to festering sores.
Cured in one place,
they break out in another.29 Chills
and fever, dysentery, hemorr-
hage, and bloody flux in women are very
common among them.
Venereal diseases have during the last
years spread more and
more, due, doubtless, to their
disorderly life.
Care and attention for the sick amount
to but little, the
Indians being poor nurses. So long as
they can go out they
lie on the hard bed of boards; no longer
able to do this they
are laid on the ground near the fire,
possibly upon grass or hay,
a small hole in the ground under the
patient serving as a bed-
pan. In time of sickness their diet
consists of thin soup of
pounded corn, without either butter, fat
or salt. Not until a
patient is convalescent is he allowed
any meat.
There are Indians who have considerable
knowledge of the
virtue of roots and herbs,30 learned
from the fathers, and who
bring about relief. They are well paid
for their services. Who-
ever is in possession of knowledge of
this nature keeps it to
himself, communicating it to no one.
Only in old age or when
death is near is the knowledge imparted
to a child or friend,
though even this does not always happen.
If they give a dose,
which, as, indeed, all roots and herbs
used for medicinal pur-
poses, they call Beson, i.
e., medicine, and which consists com-
monly of quite a kettle full - for with
them quantity signifies
A History of the Indians. 25
much and the decoction usually being
weak is rarely an over-
dose-none can see nor know of what roots
and herbs it has been
prepared, for they are pounded very
fine. If one should know
enough to help himself, being able to
prepare Beson, and
became ill, he will rarely treat
himself, having the superstitious
belief that what is prepared by himself
will be of no benefit.
Using what has been prepared by another,
he believes, will bring
relief.
Wounds and external injuries the Indians
treat very suc-
cessfully, knowing what applications to
make. In the curing of
those suffering from snake-bite, they
are particularly capable.
For the bite of every variety of snake
they have a special Beson.31
For the treatment of internal
affections, however, they lack both
knowledge and skill.
The doctors among the Indians are
nothing other than char-
latans.32 Fancied skill and
imagined ability to heal the sick are
traced to dreams which these individuals
may have had in their
youth. To the dreams they appeal, for in
them they have much
faith. Thus one may in a dream see a
fierce animal. Upon
this he will ponder much, believing that
it was not by chance
but rather that it signifies a gift of
special power, marking him
out a favored man; or an Indian will
seem to converse with
him in a vision, saying: "I am lord
over all and can do what-
soever I will; if you will offer
sacrifice to me I will give you
power to do great things and none shall
be able to do you any
injury." Older Indians, no longer fit for the chase, are par-
ticularly anxious to become medicine
men, being able as such
not only to maintain themselves but even
to acquire wealth.
Should one wish to be treated, payment
must be ready, in value
from £20 to £30, as soon as
the doctor enters the home. If the
payment is insufficient it may be
expected that there will be but
little circumstance and ceremony, in
which case treatment will
hardly avail. The doctor has the patient
laid before him on the
ground in the house or in the open,
breathes upon him; or, tak-
ing a potion prepared from herbs and
roots, blows it into
the face and over the body of the sick- for
they fancy them-
selves capable of curing the sick by
breathing upon them and
persuade the Indians that they have this
power; or he makes
26 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
horrible grimaces, tries to appear
hideous and terrible and make
such a noise with his howling that he
can be heard in the whole
town.
Treatment of this kind takes many forms. Some-
times the doctor crawls into a
sweating-oven, expressly built
for the purpose, taking a sweat-bath
while the patient lies with-
out at the opening. Temperature within
is kept up by contin-
ually adding hot stones. Continuing his
awful howling, the doc-
tor occasionally looks out at the
patient, with horrid grimaces;
he may also feel his pulse. All this
done, he will declare either
that the patient will soon be better or
that he has been bewitched
or that he must bring sacrifice to
appease spirits who have been
offended or make some other requirement.
What the doctor
says, must be done. If the sick recover,
it is believed to be due
to the treatment. In case there is no
improvement another doc-
tor is summoned. Not infrequently this
is kept up until all the
possessions of a family have been
devoted to useless doctoring.
The poor are treated by these doctors
only when their friends
contribute to make certain the payment
for services. In all man-
ner of cases, whether it be external
injury or paralysis or internal
disease, child-birth33 or
child complaint, these doctors are sum-
moned. They rarely give any medicine but
always go through
their deceptive performances. There are Indians who think
little of such treatment and do not
willingly summon a doctor,
but they have the superstitious fear
that a doctor might bring
about their death if he were not
consulted. An Indian, now a
Christian, told me that once, while
still a heathen, he had come to
an Indian who was ill and who required
of him that he should give
him a doctor's treatment, promising a
horse in payment. This
Indian had never done such a thing, for
he was no doctor, yet
as the invalid insisted, he consented to
do it and got the horse.
This seems to indicate that any one may
become a doctor who
can conduct himself in a sufficiently
mad fashion.
It is a custom of the Indians, even when
they are tired or
have caught cold, to go into a sweating
oven several times a
week. For this purpose every town has on
its outskirts a sweat-
ing oven. It is built of timber and
boards, covered completely
with earth. They crawl in through a
small opening, the latter
being closed as soon as they have gone
in. A fire is usually
A History of the Indians. 27
built in front of the opening before
they go in and hot stones
placed in the middle of the inclosed
area. Not long after they
have entered, they are covered with
perspiration, then they
crawl out and cool off, returning to
repeat the same thing three
or four times. Women have their own
sweating ovens though
they do not use them as commonly as do
the men.34
Blood-letting and cupping are also in
vogue among them.
For blood-letting they use flint or
glass. Of either they break
off little fragments until a piece is
secured that suits the pur-
pose. This is fixed to a short stick,
placed upon the artery and
struck. In case of cupping, they open
the skin with a knife, put
a little calabash over the opening,
burning birch-bast instead of
a lamp.
The Delaware Nation, consisting of three
tribes, the
Unamis,35 Wunalachticos36
and Monsys,37 formerly lived in the
region about Philadelphia, also in
Jersey about Trenton, Bruns-
wick and Amboy. The Unamis are the chief
people of the
nation; their language, differing but
little from that of the
Wunalachtico, is the most melodious. The
Monsy tongue is
quite different, even though the three
grew out of one parent
language. The last named tribe lived in
Minnissing38 along the
Delaware, behind the Blue Mountains.
Among Indians belonging to the Moravian
Congregation
on the Muskingum River there are some
old people, who were
in Philadelphia when the first houses
were built there. They
are able to relate how peaceably and
agreeably the whites and
Indians dwelt together, as if they had
been one people, being
ever ready each to serve the other. Even
among the savages
there are old people, who tell the
following, as I have heard it
from various individuals.
Before the whites had come into the
land, there had been
Indians who foretold that someone would
come to them across
the great sea. This they had repeated on
various occasions in
the hearing of other Indians, at the
last even indicating the day
when this should come to pass, the event
making good their
words. How these Indians could have
foretold it, no one pro-
fesses to know, the only explanation
offered being that there
28 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
must have been vision or revelation.
They had repeatedly looked
out over the sea, until at last a vessel
was sighted, when they
had immediately summoned the Indians and
said: "See, here
comes some one to us, concerning whose
coming we have long
ago told you; the gods are coming to
visit us." They wor-
shipped them, regarding them as deities.
When the whites
landed, they gave the Indians knives,
hatchets, muskets and
various other things they knew not how
to use and, consequently,
carefully put away. On occasion of
feasts or sacrifices they sus-
pended the knives and hatchets from
their necks as ornaments
and worshipped the various articles,
bringing sacrifices to them.
The muskets they did not use except on
special days, when to
satisfy curiosity a few shots were fired
and then sacrifices offered
them. When the whites, after lapse of
considerable time came
again and saw that the things they had
given were worn about the
neck, they gave the Indians instructions
in the use of the knife,
hatchet and musket.
In those early days the manner of living
of the Indians was
very different from that of the present
time, yet, though they
were wretchedly equipped and could
barely supply their wants,
they succeeded in supporting life.39 They planted corn, beans,
pumpkins, which they had at that time.
Their hoe was a bone
from the shoulder blade of the deer,
which is broad at one end
and very narrow at the other. With this
bound to a stick they
worked the soil. A turtle-shell
sharpened by means of a stone
and similarly attached to a stick,
served much the same purpose.
A kind of tobacco known as Brazilian
tobacco, they also had;
to the present day this tobacco, which
has but small leaves, is
called Indian tobacco.
Their knives were made of flint, not in
the form of our
knives but shaped like arrow-heads, i.
e., triangular, quite thin
and with the two larger sides sharp.
With such knives they
stripped off the skin of deer and other
game.
Their hatchets, also made of stone and
about the length of
a hand, smoothed and sharpened, were
secured to a wooden
handle. These were not used for
splitting wood but only to kill
trees, as no more is necessary than to
chop through the bark,
if this is done at the right time, or to
peel off bast for covering
A History of the Indians. 29
their huts. Trees were killed wherever
they wished to have
space for planting.
For the chase they used bow and arrow,
both made of wood,
the point of the arrow alone being of
flint in the shape of a
lengthened triangle, sharp and pointed,
securely tied to the shaft.
Kettles and pots for cooking they made
of clay mixed with
sea shells, pounded very fine. After the
pot had been shaped
it was burned hard in fire. All these
things, knives, hatchets,
arrows and large pieces of the pottery
they used at one time,
are frequently found in places where
Indians have lived. Pots-
herds have become black through and
through so that the shell
pieces may be seen.
They could shoot game as well in those
days as at the pres-
ent time with their rifled guns. They
declare that game was
not as shy then as now by reason of the
report of the guns. In
those days they killed only as much of
game as was needed
for sustenance, skins being used for
clothing both men and
women; hence, game was more abundant at
that time. The
women made blankets of turkey-feathers
which were bound
together with twine made of wild hemp.
Of such many are to
be found even at the present day among
the Indians, and these
in winter are a better protection
against the cold than the best
European blanket. The women also made
themselves petti-
coats of wild hemp.
Bow and arrow have fallen into disuse
among those Indians
that trade with whites; are, indeed, only
used for small game,
such as the pigeon, fox and raccoon, in
order to save powder.
There are, however, whole tribes to the
west and northwest that
use nothing but bow and arrow in the
chase and that have no
European weapons, that are not even
anxious to obtain them;
for, say they, if we discard bow and
arrow, who will then make
for us enough of powder and shot. They
prefer, therefore, to
hold to their old custom and usage.
The fire materials of those days consisted
of a dry piece
of wood or board and a round dry stick.
The latter was placed
upon the board and turned or twirled
with great swiftness, both
hands being used, until there was smoke
and fire. This, how-
ever, was done only in case their fire
had gone out, which they
30 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
were generally careful to keep
burning. On journeys they
were accustomed to carry fire with them
from one lodging-place
to another, for which purpose they used
a certain kind of
fungus,40 that grows upon
trees. With such a glowing piece of
fungus they could travel from morning to
evening. This cus-
tom has to the present day not ceased
among the Indians, nor has
the method of making fire described
above, some still employing it
on special occasions and in connection
with their sacrifices, in
order to remind themselves of former
customs and usages. Fire-
wood they did not split in former days
nor could they have done
so with their hatchets of stone. They
burned it into pieces of
such length that could be carried home.
They built a fire against
the trunks of standing trees and kept it
burning until they
fell, which method still obtains among
them, especially the older
ones, for whom it is difficult to fell
trees and split wood and who,
perhaps, do not even own a hatchet.
These may not burn a
piece of split wood during a whole
winter, but provide fuel for
themselves in the manner described,
which is quite easy and con-
venient for them.
Canows made of wood as well as bast,
they also had
in earlier days, fashioning the former
out of a whole tree
trunk, which they burned out and only
used their hatchets to
chop off glowing coals, lest they should
burn in deeper in one place
than another or even burn a hole
through.
Their dwellings were huts of bark, which
they lined with
rushes in order to keep out the cold,
roofed they were with
bark, even as is the case now, though
sometimes rushes or long,
dry reed-grass served the purpose.
Underground dwellings there were, also,
of which here and
there traces may be found, particularly
along the Muskingum,
in which region one may yet see many
places, where embank-
ments, still to be seen, were thrown up
around a whole town.41
Here and there, furthermore, near the
sites of such towns there
are mounds, not natural, but made by the
hand of man, for in
those days the natives carried on great
wars with one another,
Indians being formerly, according to
their own testimony, far
more numerous than at the present time.
At the top of these
mounds there was a hollow place, to
which the Indians brought
A History of the Indians. 31
their wives and children when the
enemies approached and at-
tacked them, the men ranging themselves
round the mound for
defensive action. Their weapons were the
bow and arrow and
a wooden club, this last a piece of wood
of not quite arm's length,
having at the end a round knob about the
size of a small child's
head and made of very hard wood. Shields
they bore made of
hardened buffalo leather and presenting
a convex surface with
out, while being hollow within. The
curved outer surface they
held toward the enemy and before their
own breasts and faces
in order that arrows discharged at them,
striking the curved
surface, would glance off and go to the
side. With the left hand
they held both shield and bow and with
the right they drew the
bow and held the arrow. On the above
named hills they always
had great blocks lying all about, in
order that should the ene-
mies attempt to storm the heights these
might be rolled upon
and among them so as to keep them off.
In such attacks both
sides usually lost many men, which were
often buried in one
pit and a great mound of earth raised
above them, such as may
even now be seen bearing in these days
great and mighty trees.42
Dogs they likewise possessed in former
days, of a kind still
to be found in considerable numbers
among them. These may
be readily distinguished from European
dogs, which are now
most commonly found among the Indians,
especially the Dela-
wares. The ears of Indian dogs rise
rigidly from the head and
the animals have something of a wolfish
nature, for they show
their teeth immediately when roused.
They will never attack a
wolf in the forest, though set on to do
so, in this respect, also
differing from European dogs. Of their
origin their masters
can give as little information as of
that of the Indians themselves,
The wampum strings of the Indians were
formerly made of
bits of wood, some white, some black,
which were used in con-
nection with embassies and speeches.
Belts of wampum were
also made. Some few were made of
mussel-shells, which were
held in the same value among them as
gold among the Euro-
peans, for much time was consumed in
making even one such
string of wampum. When whites came into
the country these
contrived to make wampum strings which
they bartered to the
Indians, who used them in place of their
wooden wampum, as
32
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
is even now the case, though they are
not accounted as valuable
as at one time. Formerly they sometimes
used in the place of
the belts the wing of some large bird,
which is still done among
the nations living in remoter regions,
where wampum is rare or
not to be had at all, where there is no
trade with Europeans and
some have not even seen wampum.
Occasionally, though not
often, embassies from such distant
people come to the Dela-
wares.43
A belt is given in confirmation of a
message or speech, as
they know nothing of writing; an answer
given is similarly rati-
fied by a belt of the same size. An
alliance or league is hardly
arranged by two peoples with less than
twenty belts of wampum.
Often thirty or more are required.
As I have digressed from the main
matter, viz., the charac-
ter and nature of the land, I must yet
in passing notice how it
came about that the Delawares, who had
lived near the sea and
along the Delaware River, came to
Alleghene,44 where they were
strangers and had no claim to the land.
Some eighty years ago,
more or less, the whites being already
in the country and many
of the Delawares having moved far up the
Delaware River, a
party of these Indians, with the cousin
of a chief as captain, went
on a hunt. They were attacked by
Cherokees, at that time dwell-
ing along the Allegheny and its
branches, and some of them
were killed, the captain, a cousin of
the chief, among the rest.
The survivors fled to their homes,
related to the chief what had
happened and suggested that he give them
more men in order
that they might avenge themselves on
their enemies. The chief,
however, put them off and did not let
them go, even though he
sorrowed over the loss they had
suffered. After the lapse of a
year the chief sent out several hundred
men to avenge them-
selves on the Cherokees (the Delawares
at that time already
having European arms). When they arrived
at the enemies'
first towns along the Allegheny, they
found no one, for all had
fled at the news of the Delawares'
approach. The latter pur-
sued, the Cherokees constantly
retreating until they were over-
taken at the great island45 at
the fork where Pittsburg is now
situated. Perceiving that the Delawares
were strong in num-
A History of the Indians. 33
bers, they had no heart to fight, though
they stood ready with
bow and arrow in hand; instead, their
chiefs called to the Dela-
wares to rest their arms and not fight.
Afterwards they had an
interview with the Delawares and
surrendered themselves as
prisoners. About half of them, however,
dissatisfied with the
capitulation, refused to surrender and
escaped during the night,
going down the river to the mouth of
another river, now named
the Cherokee River,46 where
they landed and afterward settled
along this stream, in the region in
which they still live. After
the Delawares had finished with the
Cherokees, the Six Nations
arrived, having heard of the expedition
of the Delawares. When
they realized that the Delawares were
masters of the situation,
they professed satisfaction and said
that they had come to assist
them, but recognized that their aid was
not now needed. There-
upon the Delawares gave them some of
their prisoners as a pres-
ent for their trouble and suffered them
to go to their homes.
Then the Delawares remained a long time
at the Beaver Creek,
to which they gave its name, in view of
the animals that there
abounded. After that the Delawares
turned their faces home-
ward but soon returned, and since that
time this region has been
inhabited by Delawares and year by year
more have come. Later
the Wiondats, in connection with a
solemn council, recognized
the claim they made to the territory,
inasmuch as they had con-
quered it. All this land and region,
stretching as far as the
creeks and waters that flow into the
Alleghene the Delawares
call Alligewinenk, which means, "a
land into which they came
from distant parts." The river
itself, however, is called Alligewi
Sipo. The whites have made Alleghene out
of this, the Six
Nations calling the river the Ohio.
The Cherokees were very powerful but had
no friends
among the nations; on the contrary, the
Six Nations and the
Wiondats waged war against them, though
the Delawares made
no further expeditions against them.
Once it occurred that the
Cherokees, pursuing the Six Nations who
had done them some
injury, came up to some Delaware towns
and killed several of
that people. This provoked a war between
the Delawares and
Cherokees that lasted until 1766 or
1767, when the Cherokees
Vol. XIX. -3.
34 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
sought the friendship of the Delawares,
who had done them much
harm, even to the extent of going into
their towns and killing
a number of people. Hence, they made
peace and the Cherokees
recognized the Delawares as their
grandfathers. Through inter-
vention of the Delawares the Cherokees
secured peace also with
the Six Nations and others, which was
established in 1768,461/2
when the mission of the Brethren was
begun at Goschgosching.
With the Delawares the Six Nations
carried on long wars
before the coming of the white man, and
even after the advent
of the pale-face, but the former were
always too powerful for
the Six Nations. The latter were
convinced that if they con-
tinued the wars, their total extirpation
would be inevitable. The
Six Nations indeed boast that they had
overcome the Delawares
but these will not grant it, stating
that as the Six Nations recog-
nized the superior strength of the
Delawares they thought of a
means of saving their honor and making
peace so that it might
not seem that they had been conquered by
the Delawares.
Soon after Pennsylvania had been settled
by the whites,
the Six Nations sent an embassy to the
Delawares, opened nego-
tiations and said :47 It is not
profitable that all the nations should
be at war with each other, for this
would at length ruin the
whole Indian race. They had, therefore,
contrived a remedy by
which this evil might be prevented while
there was yet oppor-
tunity to do so. One nation should be
the woman. She should
be placed in the midst, while the other
nations, who make war,
should be the man and live around the
woman. No one should
touch or hurt the woman, and if any one
did so, they would
immediately say to him, "Why do you
beat the woman ?" Then
all the men should fall upon him who has
beaten her. The
woman should not go to war but endeavor
to keep the peace with
all. Therefore, if the men that surround
her should beat each
other and the war be carried on with
violence, the woman should
have the right of addressing them,
"Ye men, what are ye about;
why do ye beat each other? We are almost
afraid. Consider
that your wives and children must perish
unless you desist. Do
you mean to destroy yourselves from the
face of the earth?"
The men should then hear and obey the
woman. Ever since then
the Six Nations have called the
Delawares their cousins, i. e.,
A History of the Indians. 35
sister's children, and declared them to
be the woman, dressed
them in a woman's long habit, reaching
down to the feet, though
Indian women wear only short garments
that reach but little
below the knee, and fastened this about
their bodies with a great,
large belt of wampum. They adorned them
with ear-rings, such
as their women were accustomed to wear.
Further, they hung a
calabash filled with oil and beson
[medicine] on their arms,
therewith to anoint themselves and other
nations. They also
gave them a corn-pestle and a hoe. Each
of these points was
confirmed by delivering a belt of wampum
and the whole cere-
mony observed with the greatest
solemnity. One must not,
however, think they actually dressed
them in women's garments
and placed corn-pestle and hoe in their
hands. It is to be under-
stood in the same way as when the chiefs
among the Indians
lay out a trail several hundred miles
through the woods, they
cut away thorn and thicket, clear trees,
rocks and stones out of
the way, cut through the hills, level up
the track and strew it
with white sand, so that they may easily
go from one nation
to another; but when one goes the way
that has thus been cleared
it is found to be full of wood and rocks
and stones and all over-
grown with thorns and thicket. The
woman's garment signi-
fied that they should not engage in war,
for the Delawares were
great and brave warriors, feared by the
other nations; the corn-
pestle and hoe that they should engage
in agriculture. The
calabash48 with oil was to be
used to cleanse the ears of the
other nations, that they might attend to
good and not to evil
counsel. With the medicine or beson they
were to heal those
who were walking in foolish ways that
they might come to their
senses and incline their hearts to
peace.
The Delaware nation is thus looked to
for the preserva-
tion of peace and entrusted with the
charge of the great belt of
peace and the chain of friendship which
they must take care to
preserve inviolate and which they bear
on their shoulders at
its middle, the other nations and the
Europeans holding the ends.
Thus it was brought about that the
Delawares should be
the cousins of the Six Nations and were
made by them to be the
women. Such a state of things was
preserved until 1755, when
a war broke out between the Indians and
the white people into
36 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
which the Delawares were enticed by the
Six Nations. The
woman's dress of the Delaware nation was
shortened so as
to reach only to the knees and a hatchet
was given into their
hands for defense. More than this, on
the occasion of a council
held during the same war, near
Pittsburg, the Six Nations pro-
posed to take the woman's dress away
altogether and clothe
them with the breech-clout, saying they
could well see that the
dress was a hindrance, inasmuch as the
Delawares did not enter
heartily into the war, being well aware
that the Six Nations
only sought their ruin. This, therefore,
was not approved of by
the Delawares, one of their chiefs
rising to say to the Six Na-
tions, "Why do you wish to rob the
woman of her dress? I
tell you that if you do, you will find
creatures in it that are
ready to bite you."
The Six Nations who had betrayed the
Delawares into a
war with the white people, at the last
fell upon them them-
selves at the instigation of Sir William
Johnson, taking many
captives, especially of the Monsy
[Monsey] tribe, whom they
delivered over to Johnson, destroying
and ravaging their towns
on the Susquehanna and killing their
cattle.481/2 The Delawares will
not easily forget this piece of
treachery and there is and remains
a national hostility between these
nations. In this present war
the Delawares have done much to avenge
themselves.
With the Mohicanders and Woapanose49
the Six Nations
also carried on wars for a long time;
through the instrumental-
ity of white people peace was eventually
declared between them
at Albanien.50
Concerning the country in which the
Delawares formerly
lived, viz., in Pennsylvania and Jersey,
it is unnecessary to add
anything, as these regions are well
known. Along the Susque-
hanna, where our Indians lived, that is,
at Friedenshutten,51 the
country is beautiful and the soil good
along the river, but away
from the river in the heart of the
country it is very mountainous
and of no use to the Indians except for
the chase. Where the
Indians would prepare land and plant,
the soil must be of the
best. In many cases where the Europeans
would think it pos-
sible to have fine farms, the Indians
would not look at the soil.
A History of the Indians. 37
In this region they found deer, elk and
bear hunting good, as
also beaver, fox and raccoon in plenty.
The Susquehanna is
well stocked with fish. The chief fish
are the Rock fish,52 re-
garded as one of the best fish, having
large scales and often
weighing from ten to forty pounds; the
Shad53 or May-fish
which in the spring of the year come up
the rivers in great
numbers, at which time they are caught
by the hundreds and
thousands with nets made of wild vines;
the Yellow Perch,54 as
its name suggests of yellowish color,
having sharp prickles along
the back, a narrow head and sharp teeth
like the pike,55 which
also abounds; the Horn-fish56 with
a long bill like that of a
duck, only narrower, having very sharp
teeth. This fish is not
eaten by the Indians. Further, there are
trout57 in the creeks
in great numbers in winter and spring,
as also in the Susque-
hanna. There are large eels58 and
various smaller fish, such
as Catfish, Sunfish and others.
In the spring of the year 1765 two seals59
were shot by the
Indians at Wajomick. As the like had
never been seen there
before, these caused much astonishment
among the Indians of
that region. Many were summoned to
witness the marvel.
After they had sufficiently expressed
their astonishment, a coun-
cil was called to consider whether it
would be proper to eat
them or not. An old Indian arose and
observed as God had
sent them they could not but be good to
eat, even though they
had not seen such animals before. They,
accordingly, prepared
for a feast and all who were assembled
partook of the seals and
found them a palatable dish. These seals
had unquestionably
come from the sea and had come up the
river several hundred
miles.
The region under consideration has this
peculiarity above
the country to the south that it has
great swamps. A swamp
is the name given to such a place where
the sun never shines
because of the dense thicket and which
even in the middle of
summer is always wet and cool. In such
places the beech,
white pine and spruce grow well. The Six
Nations, to the
north, are surrounded with such swamps.
Hence, one must go
a journey of many days through the
wilderness before their
38 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
habitations can be reached and is
obliged to climb over many
fallen trees. Near the home of the Six
Nations there are also
many cedar swamps-not the red cedar but
the white60-and
swamps of this sort are the wildest and
darkest regions, home
of the black bears, which the Mingoes -
Indians belonging to
the Six Nations--catch in wooden traps.
Otherwise, there is
in that region little or no game, save
the beaver and fur-skinned
animals. A few moose are found, though those that are shot have
generally come from Canada.61 Hence,
the Mingoes, besides cul-
tivating the soil, mainly for growing
corn - this being the work
of the women- subsist largely on fish,
for fish may be caught
the year round.62 Salmon are
deemed the best and most valuable
fish in these parts. They have red spots
like the trout. In
the autumn they go up the little creeks
where they are easily
caught. I have found carrying two of
them a good load. Sal-
mon fishing is carried on by the Indians
through the whole
summer.
Besides this they catch eels63 in
the fall, which are a dif-
ferent variety from those found in this
region, the head being
small and sharply pointed. In the fall,
when they go out of the
rivers into the lakes, they are caught
in baskets by the thousand
in a single night. Dried, they may be
kept a long time. They
are so fat that when fried it is as
though bacon were being
fried. In the matter of salt, Indians of
that country do not suf-
fer want, for there are in various
places salt-springs which supply
them more abundantly than I have seen
elsewhere.
All rivers and waters of that region
empty into either Lake
Ontario, of which the St. Lawrence is
the outlet, or into Lake
Erie, which pours into Lake Ontario
after the waters have
leaped over the falls of Niagara. Upon
both bodies of water
the English have large vessels bearing
cannon which are deemed
a necessity for the defense of trade
with the Indians.
As I have not seen the cataract,64 though
I have more than
once heard it described by Indians who
have seen it, yet could
give no very accurate account of it not
being able to measure
its height, I will enter upon no
description of the phenomenon,
particularly, as correct description may
be found in various
books.
As Indians who have been there relate, the waters
A History of the Indians. 39
shoot out over a precipice so
perpendicular that Indians find it
possible to go hither and thither on the
rocks under the water.
Fish that plunge over the falls are
killed. Wild geese, ducks and
other birds that come too near the
cataract in their flight are,
through air currents started by the
stream, drawn into the waters
to their destruction. Hence, the Indians
may always find good food
there. Some Mingoes fishing above the
falls on one occasion
were dragged into the current. All their
exertions to reach the
shore were in vain. As they drew
helplessly near the cataract
they threw everything away, seated
themselves, drew their
blankets over their heads and plunged
into the abyss. Others
on shore watched them, but were unable
to render any aid. Two
others narrowly escaped the same fate.
Seized by the swift
current, they succeeded in working their
way toward the island,65
which is a mass of rocks bearing bushes
and a few trees on the
verge line of the falls, a considerable
distance from either shore;
nearing the island they both sprang out
of the canoe into the
water, one of them managing to catch
hold of a little tree that
hung down into the water, the other
seizing the legs of the first.
Having safely drawn themselves up on the
rock, they spent four
days and nights there, unable to make
those whom they could
see on shore hear their cries because of
the roar of the waters.
At last they were seen. The French, at
that time in possession
of Canada and, therefore, also of
Niagara, did their utmost to
save them, letting themselves float down
in a canoe to the island
for this purpose. Working back from the
island they kept the
canoe pointed toward it, in order that
should they be unable to
make headway against the stream it might
have been possible
to reach the island again. The shore was
reached in safety.
Their canoes are made of birch bark,
many small pieces
being sewed together with exceeding
neatness. Being very
light they are often carried many miles
across the country. In
them they cross the Lakes, and as they
are so light, less water
is dashed into them by the waves than
would be the case with
a European boat.
There are various smaller lakes in this
country. Oneider66
Lake is thirty-two miles long and eight
miles broad. Cayuger67
Lake is about the same size. In the
Sennecker country I saw
40 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
several that are larger than either of
the two named.68 Inas-
much as the Mingoes do not change their
place of residence as
the Delawares are accustomed to do, who
never remain many
years in one place, one sees orchards of
large, old apple trees
near all their towns.69 The
Six Nations lived in these parts long
before the advent of the whites. About
the year 1600 the French
waged many wars with them, at the last
making peace. They
live in about a straight line from east
to west. The easternmost
are the Mohoks,70 few in
number, who live for the most part
among white people. Next to these live
the Oneider and Tus-
carores. The Onondager occupy the
middle, where the great
council is held, to which
representatives come from all places.
Further to the west is the dwelling
place of the Cayugers and be-
yond them are the Senneckers, the
westernmost. Wiondats or
Hurons, who live partly in Sandusky, at
the western end of Lake
Erie, and partly in Detroit, are not
counted in with the Six
Nations, though they are allied with
them. Their language
bears greatest resemblance to that of
the Mingoes.
Last year, 1779, the Six Nations were
driven out of their
land by the Americans and all their
towns and settlements were
destroyed, a fate they had never before
experienced.71 Winter
in that region is usually very severe
and the snow very deep, as
a rule. The soil is rich and fertile.
Indians there plant a dif-
ferent variety of corn from that used
here. It ripens earlier.
The kind planted here along the
Muskingum would not mature
in those parts.72
The Six Nations have ever been a
war-like people, unable
to preserve peace. There are few nations
with whom they have
not at some time had war. It is not too
much for them to travel
in parties five or six hundred miles
into an enemy's country, to
hide then in the woods for many days,
even weeks, that they
may catch hostile braves, though they
must, in so doing, suffer
hunger, not being able to shoot any game
lest they be betrayed.
When a deed planned has been
accomplished they hurry away.
If they can bring back a captive or a
scalp they regard them-
selves as amply rewarded for all
weariness and need they have
suffered and danger to which they have
been exposed. Had
they not, with the captives taken,
replaced those of their own
A History of the Indians. 41
numbers who had perished in the endless
wars, they had, long ere
this, died out. As it is they have
degenerated and are a very
different people from what at they once
were. As all the Indian
nations treat their captives in much the
same manner, I will refer
to this matter elsewhere.
Concerning the region in question, I
merely wish to add
that it is well watered by rivers and
lakes so that it is possible
to get almost anywhere by water. In the matter
of trade, this
is of great importance, hough trade
among the Six Nations
amounts to little, as they do not secure
much by the chase. The
nations dwelling beyond them engage much
more in trade. Each
of the Six Nations has it language, the
Cayuger and Sennecker
and particularly the Tuscarores, who
came from Maryland73
when they lived by the sea, speaking
tongues very different
from the rest. In the ma n, however, all
these dialects form one
speech and the Indians of the Six
Nations are all able to under-
stand one another. The language of the
Delawares, on the
other hand, differs so much from that of
the Six Nations, that
they cannot understand each other. It is
much easier to acquire
the language of the Mingoes than that of
the Delawares.
The country of the Six Nations is not
mountainous but
very level, so-called hills being of but
little account. Indeed,
the hills and elevations pa take of the
swampy nature of the low-
land, even on the height one is in the
same kind of dense
thicket as in the valleys, in which the
sun rarely reaches the
ground.
Concerning the St. Lawrence River, it is
yet to be noted
that its navigation is considerable,
even though there are many
rapids, which render the unloading of
boats necessary. From
Quebeck light boats are used as far as
Fontenac74 at the eastern
end of Lake Ontario, a Distance of three
hundred and eighty
miles. Thence, cargo is taken in sloops
across the lake to
Niagara at the western end, a distance
of two hundred and
twenty miles. From this point it is
taken nine miles across
country to navigable water and thus it
is carried through Lake
Erie to Detroit, a further distance of
two hundred miles.
42 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
From this digression I return again to
the Alleghene or
Ohio Region. This is separated from Pennsylvania and the
other colonies by the Alleghene
mountains. The most consid-
erable mountains to be passed on the
road (from the land of
the Delawares) to Pittsburg are the
Sidling Hill, the Alleghene
Mountain and Laurel Hill.75 In
other directions there are more,
since the mountain chains at times
divide and receive different
names in the different regions in which
they lie, though they
belong to the same system. In
Pennsylvania they are called the
Blue Ridge, viz., the Little and the
Great Blue Ridge, the latter
being also called the Wolf's Mountain,
on account of the num-
ber of wolves which infest it; and in
the country about Tulpe-
hocken and Thurnstein76 as is
to be seen on the chart, and an-
other name is Jacob's Height.77 The
Thurnstein belongs, there-
fore, to the Alleghene Mountains, as
appears not only from its
position but also from similarity in
mass, breadth and height to
the other parts of that range.
This mountain chain forms a boundary
between this region
and that to the east even in the matter
of weather conditions.
In Pennsylvania the east wind generally brings
rain. This is
not the case in Ohio, where the east
wind rarely blows and
then hardly above twelve hours at a
time. The south and west
winds bring rain, and it even rains
sometimes with a north-
west wind. In Pennsylvania northwest
wind brings clear and
fine weather. All thunder storms rise
either with the south,
west or northwest winds and a land rain
from the west some-
times continues for a week.
The Alleghene River rises in a swamp
lying between it and
the Susquehanna, about a hundred and
fifty miles to the north
of Pittsburg. About one hundred miles to
the north of that
place the Venango (in the Indian tongue Onenge)
empties into
it. This river is the passage to
Presquisle,78 Lake Erie and
Niagara.79 On the journey to these places there is a portage of
fifteen miles. Formerly the French carried on considerable
trade along this route and all their
provisions were in this way
brought to Fort du Quesne, now called
Pittsburg, when this
place was in their possession.
A History of the Indians. 43
At Pittsburg the Monongehella, which
takes its rise in
Virginia, enters into the river. In the
Indian tongue the name
of this river was Mechmenawungihilla,
which signifies a high
bank, which is ever washed out and
therefore collapses. Ten
miles up this river on Turtoise80 Creek
General Braddock was
defeated by the French and Indians in
1755 and at Fort Sigo-
nier,81 fifty-four miles to
the east of Pittsburg, at various times
during those wars many people were
killed by the Indians.
The Alleghene is a navigable river and
as one says in Eng-
lish, "of gentle current."
Large vessels may pass from Pitts-
burg down the Ohio to Illinoise and into
the Mississippi, which
is fifteen hundred miles, and to a
French island, New Orleans,
in the last named river. The Ohio
empties into the Mississippi
fourteen hundred miles below Pittsburg.
Previous to this war,
the east side of this river was already
thickly settled, but
since the Indians have massacred so
many, most settlers have
retreated. Further down, about six
hundred miles from Pitts-
burg, also on the east bank of the river
there is a large settle-
ment of the whites on the Kentuke82
River. These also suffered
much from the Indians in the late war.
Up to six or seven years ago the
Delawares lived along the
Alleghene, but after the Six Nations had
sold a considerable
portion on the eastern side of the river
to the whites, they re-
treated to the Muskingum, where they now
live. This stream
rises near Cajahages83 in a
small lake, and the Cajahage River
empties into Lake Erie only a short
distance from its source.
When one thinks of the number of rivers
and creeks that
flow into the lakes, one ceases to
wonder at the existence of
the Great Lakes. Lake Huron,
Michillimakinac, Michigan and
Superior, which lie to the north of
Detroit, all find an outlet
in Lake Erie and this in turn in Lake
Ontario, whence the St.
Lawrence River rises. In all these lakes
no current is observ-
able, but their waters are clear and
transparent, abounding in
fish.
Traders have journeyed northward
from Detroit through
Lake Superior and beyond to the
neighborhood of Hudson Bay
in the interest of trade with the
Indians. Such a journey usually
takes a year.
44
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
The Muskingum (meaning Elk's Eye, so called because of
the numbers of elk that formerly fed on
its banks, these animals
being found there even at the present
time) empties into the
Ohio two hundred miles below Pittsburg.
It is navigable for
canoes or light boats, which the Indians
use upon it, from its
source to its mouth.
The country is diversified with hillocks
and gentle risings,
but no great mountains are to be seen to
the west of the Alle-
ghene Mountains. The Indians are,
therefore, yet in the pos-
session of the best land. Along the
creeks and rivers the soil
is very rich and commonly called
"The Bottoms." This sort of
land is chosen by the Indians for
agricultural purposes not only
because it is easily worked, but also
because it yields aboundant
crops for many years. When, however,
their fields begin to
grow grass they leave them and break new
land, for they re-
gard it as too troublesome to root out
the grass. For winter crops
such soil would be too rich and would
yield little or nothing.
But corn and all else raised by the
Indians thrives in rich soil.
The higher lying land, generally of
medium richness, though
some of this also is extraordinarily
fertile, is the best for winter
grains, and as but little of it is stony
soil it would be difficult to
find a spot that could not be cultivated
to advantage.
Concerning the climate, I can only speak
from a twelve
years' acquaintance with the country. In
the summer it is quite
warm, especially in July and August,
which are the two hottest
months; woolen garments can hardly be
worn at this season
of the year. The winter is generally
very mild. The snow is
never deep, nor does it remain long on
the ground. Last win-
ter, 1779-80, which was very
severe in Pensilvania, snow fell once
to a depth of two feet. In eight
days this was gone, though
the ground was covered with snow most of
the time between
New Year and February. As I have neither
chart nor instru-
ment, I am unable to say in what degree
of latitude it lies,
though I reckon it to be about the same
as that of Philadelphia. A
distance of a hundred English miles
north or south makes a very
perceptible difference in temperature;
for in Sandusky on Lake
Erie, it is much colder and the snow is
much deeper than here in
the Muskingum Valley and along the
Scioto,84 which empties into
A History of the Indians. 45
the Ohio three hundred miles below
Pittsburg, one hundred miles
from here, snow hardly ever remains on
the ground, and the
ground is bare for most of the winter.
In autumn and even up
to Christmas and New Year or beyond that
time, there is little
frost, and even if in a clear night the
ground should freeze, it
thaws soon after sunrise. There are very
few clear, beautiful
days in the winter-time; much of the
time it rains, occasionally
it snows. After a few clear days a
change may be looked for.
If there has been quite a snow, rain may
follow. Yet the Mus-
kingum, not having a strong current, is
frozen over when there
are several cold nights in succession.
Usually this happens once
during the winter, rarely oftener.
The Indians make little provision to
feed their cattle in
winter, for as there is no deep snow and
the weather is generally
mild, cattle and particularly horses can
forage for themselves,
finding feed in the woods. In the
bottoms grass never quite
dies away but remains green toward the
end of March and be-
ginning of April grows again.
Of wild fruits the strawberries,85 much
like those in Europe,
are the first to ripen in spring.
Blackberries,86 raspberries,87 bil-
berries,88 are also found,
though not native to these parts, for
these varieties grow best on hills and
in not too rich soil. Further,
there are wild gooseberries89 and
currants,90 the latter black in
color and with a somewhat different
taste from that of the red
which are cultivated in gardens, though
having the same sort of
leaves. There are two varieties of
cranberries;91 one grows in
swamps on low bushes not as high as the
bilberry bushes, the
other on small trees. For both the
Indians have one name
(Rakilun). Of the wild cherry, there are
three kinds, not found
in Europe at all, and having a very good
taste. The one sort92
grows on high thick trees, which are
found in large numbers and
yield a very fine red wood that is well
suited for cabinet work.
The other kinds93 grow on
bushes. On the islands in the Sus-
quehanna, cherries94 are
found, very like the cultivated fruit,
having about the same form and taste.
The only difference is
that they grow neither on trees nor
bushes, but on vines, which
lie on the ground and when lifted up
appear laden with fruit.
46
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
These grow on very stony ground near the
water, where the
sunshine is particularly hot. In these
parts I have not come
across this variety.
Besides, there are mulberries,95
plums,96 and wild grapes
of three sorts, those growing on high
ground97 or hills being
the best; those98 found in
the bottoms are very sour. Crabap-
ples99 grow in great plenty
and the Indians, being very fond of
sharp and sour fruit, eat them in
abundance.
Of nuts there are found: (I) The well
known hazel nut ,100
(2) the
hickory nut,101 found in great plenty in some years
and which the Indians gather in large
quantities and use not
only as they find them--they have a very
sweet taste--but
also extract from them a milky juice
used in different foods and
very nourishing. Sometimes they extract
an oil by first roasting
the nut in the shell under hot ashes and
pounding them to a
fine mash, which they boil in water. The
oil swimming on the
surface is skimmed off and preserved for
cooking and other
purposes. (3) The walnut of two
varieties, the white walnut102
deriving its name from the color of the
wood which, strictly
speaking, is gray, and the black walnut,103
of which the wood
is dark-brown, sometimes even shading
into violet. The latter
is very much used by cabinet makers for
tables, chests and other
things. The nuts, the one variety having
a very hard shell, are
eaten, but are very oily.
The papa104 tree, which I
have seen nowhere else than along
the Ohio, hears a very beautiful fruit,
in form and size resemb-
ling a middle sized cucumber, of an
agreeable smell and taste.
Wild laurel105 is found in
the bottoms in great abundance;
the berries are smaller than those found
elsewhere, but have
about the same taste. Of these, even the
whites make use.
They grow on bushes, the wood of which
has a strong spicy
odor and taste, used by the Indians for
medicine and called by
the English, spicewood.106
Chestnuts107 are very
plentiful in some years. The Indians
gather them and prepare various dishes
with them. A larger
variety of chestnuts108 is
native to these parts, but these are
not fit to eat.
A History of the Indians. 47
Of roots, wild potatoes109 and
wild parsnips are found.
Bread is baked of both, which one may be
driven to eat by
pangs of hunger. The Indians look for
both roots when famine
threatens and the supply of corn runs
low, sometimes sustaining
life with them for a considerable
period.
A kind of bean, called by the Indians
earth-bean, because it
grows close to the ground, is also found
and tastes when boiled,
like the chestnut.
Wild citrons110 or May
apples, grow on a stalk not over a
foot high. The Indians enjoy eating the
fruit, which has a sour
but pleasant taste. The roots are a
powerful poison which, who
eats, dies in a few hours' time unless
promptly given an emetic.
Watermelons and muskmelons, which grow
by culture only,
are very refreshing in summer. Of some
watermelons the meat
is yellow and the seeds black; of others
the meat and seeds red.
The forests contain mainly oak trees;
other kinds of trees
are, however, also found. They are not
dense, but generally
sufficiently open to allow comfortable
passage on foot or horse-
back. There are five varieties of oak,
white-oak,110a black-oak,110b
red-oak,110c Spanish-oak,110d and
swamp-oak.100e The red-oak has
very narrow, small leaves and bears
little colored acorns, such as
I have seen nowhere else. Besides these,
hickory trees of three
sorts,111 ash,112 white and
red beech,113 sassafras,114 in some places
very thick, poplar115 and chestnut116
are the kinds generally
found on high lying land. In the bottoms
there are walnut,
linden,117 maple,118 water-beech,119
that grow near to the water
and often attain great height and girth,
hawthorne120 and crab-
apple.121
The Hoop-ash,122 a little known tree and
found only in this
region, has this name because
barral-hoops are made of the
wood. It grows in the bottoms and is of
little use otherwise, as
the wood easily rots.
The Honey-locust123 is likewise found in
the bottoms. This
tree but little resembles the locust of
Pensilvanien, except that
there is some similarity in foliage,
though the leaves are smaller
and finer. The trunks of the thickest
trees are two feet in
diameter on the average. The trunk is
covered with thorns
that stand straight out, are about six
inches long and very sharp.
48
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
The wood is red, very hard and heavy and
does not rot very
quickly in the ground. It bears pods
that fall off in the autumn.
Besides the seeds, the pods contain a
kind of molasses or honey,
thus accounting for the name Europeans
have given the tree.
The Indians call it the thorn-tree on
account of its many thorns.
Sugar trees are usually found in low,
rich soil, sometimes,
also, on higher land and in more
northerly regions even on
hills, where, however, the soil is very
moist. The Delawares
call this tree the Achsunnamunschi, that
is, the stone-tree, on
account of the hardness of the wood. The
Mingoes give it a
name signifying the sugar tree, as do
the Europeans. From
the sap of the tree sugar is boiled.
This is done by the Indians
in the early part of the year, beginning
in February and con-
tinuing to the end of March or beginning
of April, according
as spring is early or late. In this
region it is possible to boil
sugar even in fall after there has been
frost and in winter, if
the season is mild. For as soon as the
trees thaw a little the
sap begins to run and then the trees are
tapped. As, however,
at that time of the year the weather is
very uncertain and it is
possible that there should be a cold
wave at any time, it is
hardly worth the effort to make the
necessary arrangements
and is hardly ever done, unless some one
be driven of necessity
to provide sugar for the household.
This, we ourselves have
been obliged to do and the sisters of
our congregation have
already boiled a quantity of sugar for
congregational love-
feasts, shortly before Christmas.
Spring is the proper season for boiling
sugar. The fol-
lowing preparations are made. A number
of small troughs
are made for receiving the sap. Usually,
the Indians make them
of wood, cutting them out roughly with a
hatchet. Some In-
dians are able to make twenty or thirty
of them in a day. Some
do not go to so much trouble, but make
dishes of the bark or
bast of a tree, which serve quite as
well, but are good for no
more than one season. According as they
have large or numer-
ous kettles and troughs they can make
much sugar, for there
is no lack of trees. Besides the smaller troughs and dishes,
A History of the Indians. 49
there must be several of larger size in
which the sap is col-
lected. If one is well supplied with
utensils, there is this ad-
vantage, that on days when the sap flows
freely much may be
collected, which will enable one to keep
on boiling when the
sap does not flow plentifully. The sap
flows most plentifully
when it freezes at night and the sun
shines during the day. At
night it commonly ceases to run. The
same is true in case of
warm or rainy weather. As soon as there
has been frost the
sap runs again. There is a time in the
boiling season when sap
once or twice begins to flow in
considerable quantities, both
day and night. When this occurs the
height of the sugar season
is on. The sap which flows after this is
not so good and yields
less sugar. The last sugar secured in
the spring is always of
inferior quality. Hence, toward the end
of the season no sugar,
but only molasses is in most cases
boiled.
The length of the season is determined
by the weather con-
ditions. If spring is late and night
frosts continue for a con-
siderable time, the flowing season is
the longer. With the early
advent of warm weather the season
terminates very quickly.
The shortest season lasts about a month,
the longest nearly two
months.
The thickest of the trees are two feet,
sometimes more, in
diameter. Those of middle size, which
are still young, have
many branches and are growing, yield the
most sap. Expe-
rience has shown that such a tree will
yield about sixty gallons
of sap while sugar is being boiled, and
thereafter another sixty
for molasses. Seven to eight gallons of
sap are regarded as
necessary for a pound of sugar. Such a
tree may, therefore,
yield more than seven pounds of sugar
and seven quarts of
molasses. It has also been found that a
tree which one year
has yielded very freely, gives but
little the next, and on the other
hand, a tree that has yielded but little
one season, gives largely
the next. The sap, which is of a brownish color and becomes
darker the longer it boils, is boiled
until it gets to be of the con-
sistency of molasses, is then poured off
and kept. Wher a suf-
ficient quantity of this consistency has
been secured, it is boiled
over a slow fire until it becomes sugar.
It is important to boil
Vol. XIX. - 4.
50 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
this over a slow fire, for the sap
readily boils over and is easily
burned. If the boiled sap is stirred
until cold, the sugar becomes
granulated and is as fine as the West
Indian sugar. As the
Indians lack the dishes and do not care
to take the time to
prepare it in this way, they usually
form it into cakes, put it in
a kettle or dish, or in default of
these, on a stone and let it
cool, when it becomes hard and may be
easily preserved in
baskets. If the troughs and kettles used
for collecting the sap
are made of wood that does not give
color, the sugar becomes
the finer, but if it gives color, as
does the white walnut, the
sugar becomes black the first year;
thereafter, this is not the
case.
When everything is prepared, an oblique
incision is made
in the tree and at the lower end of the
same a thin wedge, three
or four inches broad, is forced in,
whence the sap runs down
into the vessel placed below. According
as the sap runs freely
or contrarywise, the dishes must be
emptied at given intervals,
day and night. According to the manner
of making the incision
one may determine whether a tree shall
be good for many or few
years. If large openings are made the
tree is soon spoiled and noth-
ing is gained, for the sap runs no
faster. In this matter, how-
ever, the Indians are very careless, for
trees are numerous and
after they have used one place for three
or four years, they seek
out another. There is, strange to say,
no tree among all the rest
so hardy as the sugar-tree, for even if
the stem is cut all around,
so that it can no longer be used, it
does not die. Hence, the
Indians very reluctantly make their
fields where there are sugar-
trees, as these are not to be
exterminated, except they be cut
down. This, however, is true that when
trees have been used
for eight or nine years they give less
sap than formerly, as they
are full of incisions and scars. An
incision having been made
in a tree in the spring of the year and
the sap having flowed
for some time, the incision needs to be
enlarged, though only a
little. This may be done two or three
times in a season.
As the Indians have trees in abundance,
their labors are
richly rewarded. For if a man owns a
kettle of ten or twelve
gallons and has a few smaller ones with
which to keep
the large one filled, it will be
possible for him to make several
A History of the Indians. 51
hundred pounds of sugar in a season and
a quantity of molasses,
besides.
Sugar boiling is chiefly the employment
of women. Even
widows are able to earn enough by it to
secure clothing and
whatever else they may need. While the
women are thus en-
gaged, the men hunt and supply meat. As
the deer skins are of
little value at that season of the year,
they generally hunt bear,
which they seek in the rocks, hollow
trees or thickets in their
winter quarters. Bears are at this time
generally fat.
Dog-wood124 is also found in
these parts. The rind of the
root is used in the apothecary shops in
place of Jesuit-Bark.125
This tree grows to be neither large nor
high.
Red Cedars126 are found along
the Muskingum finer and
larger than I have seen elsewhere in
North America. They do
not grow on the mountains as in
Pensilvanien, where they are
stunted and scrubby, but in the bottoms.
The spruce tree127 is neither
a fir nor a pine, according to
my view, but something between the two.
In this region the
tree is found only occasionally along
the creeks and rivers. In
more northerly districts, however, there
are great spruce forests
and swamps.
Pitch-pine128 is rarely found
here and white pine129 not at
all; a hundred miles to the south one
may see many specimens
of either variety. Fir-trees130 I
have seen near the source of the
Ohio and pines131 not far from
Bethlehem, across the Blue
Mountains in the great swamp.
Vines are very numerous, especially in
the bottoms. They
climb up the trees and look like anchor
strands, often being
thicker than these. The grapes they bear
have a sour taste.
Those which grow on the highlands and
only have short, tender
shoots, being frequently disturbed in
their growth by brush-
fires, have the best grapes. These have
a good taste. Expe-
rience has taught that good wine may be
made of both kinds.
The elm tree,132 already noticed above,
is of no particular
use, for the wood rots quickly, except
that the Mingoes make
bast canoes and kettles for sugar
boiling of the bark, which is
very tough
52
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
The bark of stone birch133 trees,
as of many others, the In-
dians pound fine, mix with water and use
as a medicine. This
is the only variety of birch trees here.
In Pensilvanien there
are birch trees like those of Europe,
though they do not grow
to any size.
Aspen trees134 are also
found, though not in great numbers
nor everywhere. One kind of tree is
found here that I have seen
nowhere else. The wood is soft and
yellowish. The leaves
are smooth and oval-shaped. The Indians
call it Wiseweminscki,
the yellow tree.135
Of oil wells I have seen three kinds,
(I) wells that have
an outlet; (2) wells that have no
outlet, but are stagnant pools;
(3) wells in creeks and even in the Ohio
at two different points,
one hundred and fifty miles from one
another.
In the wells which have an outlet, oil
and water together
exude from the earth and where these
flow grass and soil be-
come oily. When there is no means of discharge one sees
nothing more than oil welling up, which,
if none has been taken
off for some time, floats an inch or
more in depth on the water.
In the creeks it is possible to see some
of the places where
the oil flows, others not, for often the
current carries the oil
with it at such rate that you see the
oil over all the surface of
the water. In the Ohio there are, also,
such places in the region
of the oil wells. Here the current is
very gentle and the Indians
skim off the oil, though it is not easy
to do this as the current,
even though not swift, keeps carrying it
along. Such places
are usually revealed by the strong odor.
Even though the water
of a river keeps carrying away the oil,
one may smell it at a
distance of a quarter of a mile from the
well. The soil near
an oil well is poor, either a cold,
clayey ground, or if it is near
a creek, a poor quality of sand at the
top. Neither good grass
or wood will grow nearby, hardly
anything more than a few
stunted oak trees.
If the Indians wish to collect oil,
which they prefer to do
where the well has no discharge, as it
is there most easily secured,
they first throw away the old oil
floating on top, as it has a
stronger odor than that which wells up
fresh from the earth.136
A History of the Indians. 53
The odor is somewhat like that of tar,
though not very much so.
They stir the water violently then let
it settle and become clear.
The more the pool is stirred the more
abundantly does the oil
flow. When it is clear they scoop it
into kettles, and, as it is
impossible to avoid getting some water,
boil it and preserve it
for use. They use it as a medicine in
all sorts of cases for ex-
ternal application, thus for tooth-ache,
head-ache, swelling, rheu-
matism, strained joints. Some also take
it internally and it ap-
pears to have hurt no one in this way.
Some, indeed, declare
that the oil flows from the coal
deposits, but this is not likely,
for in the first place, there is no sign
of pit coal to be seen in
this region-one sees nothing more than
poor sandstone and,
in the second place, in other parts
where there is much pit coal,
as for example, along the Muskingum, no
sign of oil is to be
seen. Were the oil to be found there,
the Indians would know
of it, for they value it highly and have
looked for it, but found
none. Most probably it comes out of the
earth. It is brownish
in color and may be used in lamps, for
it burns well.
Salt springs are to be found both along
the Muskingum and
along the Ohio. Of this salt the Indians
make little use; they
prefer to buy it from the whites, even
though they have to pay
a high price for it owing to the fact
that it has to be brought
a considerable distance from the
seaports. Moreover, they use
very little salt and seem not to require
it. They often eat their
food unsalted, even though they may have
the salt, until they feel
a longing for it.
These salt springs are usually to be
found on the bank of
a creek or even in the middle of the
creek on a sand-bank, the
fresh water flowing on both sides. The
Indians have on occa-
sion boiled a considerable quantity of
salt in a short time at
such a well, so that it would appear
worth the labor to get it,
especially as it is so expensive.
There are, also, many salt licks to
which cattle, horses
and game go in large numbers. These are
generally springs
that have salt or saltpetre137 in
them.
The common sort of stones in this region
along the Ohio
are the sandstones. Some are very hard,
others soft. They
54 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
are, for the most part, of a gray, fine
sand and make as good
whetstones as one might wish. Rocks you
meet occasionally
along the Ohio, but away from the river
and here along the
Muskingum very few, even most of, the
mountains and hills are
not rocky.
Pit-coal is found in abundance, but as
there is no lack of
wood it is little used and hardly
thought of by the Indians. In
Pittsburg the coal is used in
fire-places and by blacksmiths.
A kind of stone, black in color, is
found here, that is easily
worked and cut. It has no sand in its
composition and the
Indians make tobacco pipes of it, some
doing very neat work.
There is also a kind of stone, blue in
color, which is very
hard.
It somewhat resembles the limestone of Pensilvanien,
but examination has shown it to be
different. Limestone has not
yet been found in this region.
A mineralogist would find many more
varieties to describe,
to which I am unable to give even the
names, especially along
the shores of the river, where all kinds
may be seen, green, yel-
low, blue, red and black. About ore I
know little or nothing
concerning this region. The Indians
believed themselves to have
found gold and silver, but what they
produced as precious ore,
because it resembled this somewhat, on
the test and examination
of whites was found to be sulphurous
substance.138 Whatever
glitters, the Indians are apt to look
upon at once as being gold
or silver.
The Cherokees, who through the years have
had much inter-
course with the Delawares, brought with
them many tobacco
pipes for trade. These they made of
quite white stone, probably
white marble.139 When
completed they blackened the pipes and
in such a way that they retained their
color. These pipes are
made so neatly that they are no heavier
than the European
pipes.
From the Mississippi the Indians bring
red marble, when-
ever they come from that direction. Of
this pipes are also made.
Such pipes, however, are as a rule to be
seen only in the posses-
sion of chiefs or captains, for not many
of them are to be had.
A pipe of this sort is generally used in
council or on solemn
occasions. This is carried about by the
chief counsellor, each
A History of the Indians. 55
one present draws a few whiffs of smoke
and this is called smok-
ing the peace-pipe.
There are four kinds of clay. There is
the white, which is
almost like chalk and with which, when
dry, one can write as
with chalk.l40 Another variety is quite black. This,
however,
becomes quite white when burned. Besides
these, gray and
yellow clays are found. A sort of yellow
earth, rather of an
orange tinge is found, of which the
Indians, especially the war-
riors, make a fine color by burning.141 With
this they paint
themselves and they are particularly
careful that the head shall
be always red. It is not too much for
the Wiondats to come
here to Tuscarawi, a distance of at
least a hundred miles, to
supply themselves with this red coloring
matter.
Concerning plants and roots of medicinal
virtue, it would
be possible, if one were to devote
himself to inquiry, to secure
a great deal of information from the
Indians, for what one of
these does not know another does, each
man and woman having
some knowledge in this direction, some
more, some less. Hence,
the custom that a patient who has
consulted an Indian and se-
cured a medicine from him without,
however, being benefited,
will go immediately to another; if no
relief is obtained through
his advice, the patient goes to a third,
a fourth until he finds
one whose medicine helps. For many
ailments they have very
good remedies, e. g., for rheumatism. In
respect to this affliction
I have witnessed instances where they
have effected a thorough
cure and not only once or twice. At
times they can secure
desired results with only two or three
kinds of roots, at other
times more are required. If a simple
remedy does not afford
relief, they may use twenty or more
kinds of roots. Even in
such cases I know of cures having been
effected. In treating
rheumatism, bathing and sweating play a
great part.
They have remedies even for fevers. When
a patient has
been given a dose, they are generally
able to tell from its work-
ings whether he will recover or die. If
he does not retain the
medicine, this is regarded as a sign
that he will hardly recover.
I have paid some attention to this and
like cases of treatment
and found that the Indians have
generally been correct in their
56 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
predictions. In one important respect,
according to my opinion,
they make mistakes, namely, in not
properly measuring doses
and often needlessly torturing patients.
Hence, it is that in con-
nection with the external hurts, where
over-treatment is less
likely to occur, they have the better
results, as is the case with
rheumatism, for which they use only
external applications. One
Indian knows of good remedies for one
disease or kind of in-
jury, another another. Owing to the fact
that they rarely re-
veal their knowledge to each other, much
of the practical knowl-
edge is lost.
In the matter of diseases peculiar to
women, the women
know a number of remedies, which usually
act quickly and
well, as in the case of hard labor,
which sometimes occurs, though
not frequently, and in other troubles.
If mothers cannot suckle
children for want of milk, they are
able, by use of a drink, to
increase the supply.142
In the use of poisonous roots the
Indians are well versed,
and there are many melancholy examples
where they have by
their use destroyed themselves or
others. If a case of poi-
soning is taken in time, the effect of
the poisonous root may
be prevented by inducing vomiting. In
case assistance is ren-
dered too late, death follows, as a
rule, in a few hours. There
are poisonous roots that operate by slow
degrees, in some cases
illness may last a year or longer.
The so-called Poison Vine143 grows
plentifully in the bot-
toms. It climbs up the trees, much as a
grape vine will, the
main stem becoming as thick as an arm.
Some are affected
with swelling in the face and body if
they touch it, others, even
when the wind blows over it upon them.
This is very painful
until cured. Others do not suffer from
the vine at all. This
holds good of Indians as of others.
There are some poisonous trees.144 These do not attain
great height. They have a milky juice
under the bark which
is very poisonous.
The bark of many different kinds of
trees is used by the
Indians for preparing medicine.
Occasionally, you will meet
an Indian who has knowledge in this kind
of remedies, but
knows nothing of roots or herbs. With
the white walnut bark,145
A History of the Indians. 57
used externally and internally, they
effect many cures. Laid
upon flesh wounds this relieves pain at
once, prevents swelling
and accelerates healing. Applied
externally in case of tooth-
ache, head-ache or pain in the limbs,
this brings speedy relief.
Beyond question there are many roots and
herbs not found
in Europe; perhaps it would be safe to
say that this is true of
most here found, but as I am no
authority in this subject and
know no names, except perhaps the Indian
designations, I will
add nothing further about roots and
herbs. Doubtless, there are
books from which one might get more
information than it is
in my power to give.
The following quadrupeds are to be found
along the Ohio:
In the first place, there are the
deer,146 whose skins are much
used in barter and trade by the Indians.
Their horns are not
straight, but bent toward each other and
have prongs. From
May until September they are red, after
that they lose the red
hair and their hide is covered with
long, gray hair, which is their
winter coat. At about the beginning of
the year they shed
their horns; new ones grow in spring.
These are at first and
until they attain their full size,
covered with a thin skin, which
peels off when the horns harden. The
tail is about a foot long
and stands up straight when they run. As
the under side of the
tail is white it is possible to see them
running at a great dis-
tance. The young are born in June or
about that time, are red,
spotted with white, until in the fall
when they become gray.
Deer have young each spring, sometimes
two. As, however,
they are hunted so persistently at the
call of trade, their num-
bers diminish with each year, even
though the forests are of
vast extent, for the hunters are many. A
large buckskin is
valued at a Spanish dollar; two doeskins
are regarded as equal
in value to one buckskin.l47
The bear is quite black, has short ears,
a thick head and
quite a sharp snout.148 It
has but a very short tail and great
strong claws on his feet. It can easily
climb the trees and bring
down chestnuts and acorns. This is done,
however, only when
these are not ripe and do not,
therefore, fall down. They gen-
erally break off the branches, throw
them down and then climb
58
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
down to consume the nuts. Where there is
food and mast they
are found. It is as if they knew that in
this or that region it
would be good for them to live. In the
fall, when the Indians
hunt the deer, they take no notice of
the bears; otherwise they
would spoil their fall hunting. They do,
however, notice their
tracks and whither they lead. At the end
of December the bears,
having fattened, seek their winter
quarters, which they prepare
in the trunks of hollow trees or in
caves or the thickest part
of the forest, where many old trees lie
piled up. They leave
their winter quarters in early spring,
if they have young, of
which there are generally two, not until
May. During this
period they are said to eat nothing, but
to live on their own
fat. When the deer hunt of the fall, at
which season skins are
best, is over, the Indians immediately
prepare for the bear hunt.
They are remarkably expert in finding
out the haunts of these
animals. If the bears are in hollow
trees, it is frequently neces-
sary to cut down the tree, as the bear
will not leave his retreat
otherwise. In case the bear comes out
when they hammer on the
tree and make a noise, they stand
prepared with their guns to
kill him as soon as most of his bulk is
emerged. Their skins
are no great object for trade, hence the
Indians prefer to use
them for their sleeping places, for
which the long hair makes
them peculiarly useful. There is
likewise a kind of bear, much
larger than the common bear, with much
hair on the legs, but
little on the bodies, which appear quite
smooth.l49 The Indians
call it the king of bears, for they have
found by experience that
many bears will willingly follow it.
While all the bears are carniv-
orous, and, therefore, flesh of game
kept by the Indians hanging on
trees forms for them a welcome repast,
or they are fond of feed-
ing on swine they catch in the forest,
this kind of bear is par-
ticularly voracious. Many instances are
known where they have
seized upon even defenseless Indian
women and children. In
more northerly regions, as, e. g., in
the country of the Mingoes,
these are more frequently found and they
have killed many
Indians.
Elk are in my estimation most like the
European stag.150 and
I have often thought that they must be
the same species and
that what is here called the stag is the
European fallow deer,
A History of the Indians. 59
but as I have seen neither stag nor
fallow deer in Europe I can-
not speak authoritatively. I recognize
that the English distin-
guish between the elk and the stag in
Europe. They, also, shed
their coat in spring and are reddish in
color during the sum-
mer like the deer. In fall they are
light gray and in winter
dark gray. The bucks have long, heavy
antlers with many
prongs. These they shed each year as do
the deer. The tail
is quite short. As the skins are very
thick and heavy and of no
particular value, elk do not tempt the
Indians to the chase. Oc-
casionally, one is shot that happens
near an Indian, but most
of the flesh is left in the forest for
beasts of prey, even though
the animals are always fat, in summer as
in winter and do not
become lean, like the deer.
The buffaloes151 are dark
brown in color, covered with long
hair, or rather soft down mixed with
hair. Their legs are short,
the body is very heavy. They have a
hunch upon their backs,
just above the shoulders. This diminishes toward the rear,
hence, they appear much shorter from the
back than from the
front. They have a thick head and a long
beard depends from
the chin. Altogether, they present a
terrible appearance. Their
horns are short, but thick and quite
black. The buffaloes are a
good deal heavier and larger than
cattle. One that I have seen
was a yearling, raised by the Indians
and quite tame; even this
was the size of a small cow, that has
already had calf. At one
time these animals appeared in great
numbers along the Mus-
kingum, but as soon as the country
begins to be inhabited by the
Indians, they retire and are now only to
be found near the mouth
of the above named river. Along the
banks of the Scioto and
further south, both Indians and whites
say that they may be
seen in herds numbering hundreds. That
is two or three hun-
dred miles from here. If a buffalo cow
is shot, its calf, if such
it has, will stand quietly by until the
huntsman has skinned its
dam and then follow him into his hut,
stay at his fire and not
leave him. That this is true, I have
living witnesses enough
about me to testify.
The panther152 has a head and
face like a cat, its legs are
short and the paws are armed with sharp
claws. It is a beast
of prey of uncommon strength. Its tail
is long, compared with
60
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
that of the cat. Deer it is able to
catch at will. If it spies one
and is desirous of capturing it, the
panther crawls along the
ground behind fallen trees or through
the thicket until it is sure
of capturing the deer in one leap. Then
it springs upon its
prey, seizes it with its claws and does
not release its hold until
the victim is dead. If it misses its aim
at the first spring, it
never attempts a second. When the deer
has been killed, the
panther devours but a small part,
leaving the rest. When again
pressed by hunger it seeks new game. At
a distance of ten
yards from a tree, the panther can leap
ten yards up the tree
and leap the same distance from the
tree. It is not known that
a panther has ever done the Indians
injury without provocation.
Should an Indian get near the place
where the young are kept,
then he is in great danger and if he
does not know what to do
under such circumstances, is almost sure
to lose his life. He
must never turn his back upon the
panther, thinking that he
can escape. He must not take his eves
off the animal, and if he
has not the courage to shoot, gently
walk backward, until he
is a good distance away. If he shoots
and misses, then he is in
imminent danger and must keep his eyes
fixed on the panther. It
has happened that in this way Indians
have saved their lives.
It has occurred that a bear has fought
so long with a panther,
near to where the latter had its young,
that both fell dead. The
skin of the panther is gray in color,
mixed with reddish hair.
Wild cats, gray in color, are
distinguished from the do-
mestic cats in that they have hardly any
tail.153 They are beasts
of prey, even invade the hunting lodges
of the Indians, when
the latter are out and if they find meat
devour it.
There are three varieties of fox,
red,154 gray155 and black.156
The raccoon157 is somewhat
larger than a common cat and
has a pointed snout. Its forefeet bear
some resemblance to hands
and are used as such, for it digs up
small mussels out of the
sand, which form its food when there are
no acorns or chest-
nuts to be had. Its hind legs resemble
those of the bear. It is
fattest in autumn and winter, when it
lives in hollow logs like a
bear, without seeking food. They do not
hibernate as long as
do the bears. In a severe winter it
retires for two whole months,
A History of the Indians. 61
otherwise, only four weeks. The flesh is
wholesome and tastes
like bears' meat and its skin is useful
to hatters.
The otter158 can live on land
or in water. It often travels
a considerable distance across the
country from one creek or
river to another.
The beaver159 was formerly
found in great numbers in this
region, but since the Indians have
learned from the whites to
catch them in steel-traps,160 they
are more rarely found. A neces-
sary thing in connection with the
beaver-catch is a certain oil
or spirit which the Indians prepare of
various kinds of bark of
trees and other aromatic things, which
they place in the traps
to decoy the beavers into them. The
skins are always of con-
siderable value. They are very
industrious animals and for their
size, of uncommon strength. Beaver dams
of such dimensions
are found in creeks, that it might be
imagined that they had been
built by human hands. Such dams they
build when there are
many together, for they work
harmoniously, at night, in order to
dam up the water and often put a
considerable piece of land
under water in course of their
operations. In the middle of the
dam they build their dwelling places
that are raised above the
water, wood and earth being the
materials used. As their dens
are in the middle of the lakes they
cannot be easily reached.
In the front part of the mouth they have
four quite broad and
very sharp teeth, two above and two
below. With these they
are able to gnaw through trees that are
nearly a foot in diam-
eter. When the tree is down they divide
it into pieces of such
size that they are able to manage them.
These pieces carried
into the water, they join together in
such fashion that the water
cannot tear them apart. I have myself
seen in quite a large
creek a beaver dam, in which the beavers
were still undis-
turbed at home, so that I could observe
their habits and work.
The dam, extending straight across the
creek, reached three
feet above the water, so that it was
possible to cross the creek
dry shod, and put several acres of land
under water. In another
place, where the water had threatened to
take another course,
they had been obliged to build another
dam, made of earth and
branches of trees. Had this dam not been
so far from human
habitation, one might have thought that
it had been constructed
62 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
by men. The animals are of a dark brown
color, have short legs
and broad feet, adapted to swimming and
armed with short
claws. The tail is broad and flat. At
the end it is broadest,
smooth, without any hair, and looks as
though covered with
fish scales. The tail furnshes the best
flesh and is much liked
by the Indians. It has an appearance
different from the rest
of the animal's flesh, being more like
fish meat. As the skins
always bring a good price, the Indians
hunt these animals con-
stantly.
The opossum is about as large as a small
dog, of grayish
white color and carnivorous.161 If
it finds a dead deer, it strikes
into the carcass, lives there and
devours it gradually. It climbs
the trees and sleeps hanging to a branch
by its tail,162 which
is bare of hair and quite round. Should
one approach it un-
awares, it never attempts to escape but
lies down as dead and
makes no motion, though handled and
turned. If one leaves
it, the animal watches and creeps off
slyly as soon as the enemy
has retired some distance. It is not
able to run swiftly. The
female has a bag under her belly, in
which she carries her
young until they are too large for this
receptacle, when they
follow the mother. If she meets with a
fallen tree in her passage,
she either walks around or lifts her
young, one by one, over the
trunk and then proceeds on her journey.
The flesh of the crea-
ture tastes like pork and is eaten by
the English, rarely by the
Indians.
The pole-cat163 has white and
black markings, a gentle and
mild countenance. It goes out of the way
for no one, and who-
ever approaches too near is ill rewarded
for his curiosity. It
has a special gland containing a fluid
intolerably foetid. If
one approaches too closely, the fluid is
discharged and thrown
in all directions with the tail. The
offensive odor no one can
bear and one is ready enough to get
away. If one's person or
clothes has been infected by the
moisture, it is necessary to bathe
and change before returning into
company. Even dogs, when
they kill the animal, find the stench
unbearable. Yet the flesh
of the creature is eaten by the Indians.
It is said to be very
good and not to have any offensive odor.
A History of the Indians. 63
The porcupine164 is not found
along the Muskingum, seldom
seen along the Ohio to the north, but
frequently in the country
of the Mingoes. The Indians eat its
flesh, which tastes like
pork, with great relish. It climbs the
trees nimbly and has its
home in hollow trees. The body is
heavier than that of the fox.
On the back the animal has whitish-brown
quills, the length of
a finger. These the squaws, particularly
among the Mingoes,
color red and use as needles to ornament
their moccasins, pouches,
in which tobacco and pipes are carried,
and other things. As
it cannot run swiftly, when anyone
approaches, the animal turns
its back, which is full of quills,
toward the enemy, unless it is
possible to get up a tree. Hence, they
are easily killed. Dogs
that attack the creature, suffer
terribly and usually die, unless
all the quills they have gotten into
their bodies are removed,
which is not easily accomplished, as
many of them break off.
There is a small animal in the Mingoe
country, called the
marten,165 concerning which I
have been told that it probably be-
longs to the sable tribe. Though but
small animals, their skins
are of great value. The Indians catch
them in wooden traps,
using meat as a bait. The skins are sold
to the whites.
I have already referred to the moose166
that are to be
found further north, of which I have
seen nothing but the horns.
The latter differ from those of the elk
in that the prongs are
broad and round. The Indians declare
that these are equal in
size to a horse. They have cloven hoofs and nostrils large
enough to put a hand in. As I have no
certain knowledge of
these animals and have never even in
Europe seen any nor have
ever had a satisfactory description, I
will not definitely declare
that these are the animals they speak
of, though I should be at
a loss to know what other animals they
refer to.
The muskrat,167 able to live
in or out of the water, is in
many respects most like the beaver. Its
tail is not broad as
that of the beaver, but oval-shaped.
Their dwellings are in the
water, but so arranged that they can,
according to inclination,
be in the water or in a dry place. A
great quantity of odorous
matter is found in the body of this
animal. The odor is un-
pleasant when too strong, but a little
of it is agreeable. In the
64 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
settlements of the white people the
muskrat does much damage
to mill-dams by its burrowing.
There are three kinds of squirrels, the
black,168 the grey,169
and the red. The black are most commonly
found, the grey
are the largest and the red the smallest
in size. Their flesh is
tender, and eaten by the Indians in case
of sickness or when
they are very hungry for meat.
The ground squirrel170 lives
under the ground and is some-
what smaller than a common rat. They do
great damage in
the fields of the Indians, not only
digging out the corn when
it has been planted, but also pumpkin
and melon seed. When
the Indian corn is ripe, they lay in
good stores of it for the
winter. They stuff their cheeks full of
it and then carry it to
their storehouses.
The groundhog171 also has its dwelling
under ground. It
is about the size of a large domestic
cat, though heavier. It
lives on grass and is, also, very fond
of melons and pumpkins.
It chews the cud.172 Its feet are armed with claws. When
pursued and unable to reach its hole,
the animal will climb a
tree. The flesh is toothsome and eaten
by the Indians.
There is, also, a very large variety of
wild cat,173 other
than the kind already mentioned. This is
as large as a dog. It
is very savage, even attacking a deer
and killing it.
The hare174 in these parts is
small and not found in large
numbers, being pursued by birds and beasts
of prey. Towards
the north I have seen them of the same
size as those in Europe.
In that region some are found with a
snow white fur.175 They
dwell in hollow trees.
White deer are seldom seen in these
parts.176 These have
generally in summer some red and in
winter some gray spots.
The Indians call a white deer the king
of the deer and believe
that the rest flock about and follow
him.177
Wolves are very numerous, most are gray,
some are almost
black. As their skins serve no useful
purpose and are not much
valued, the Indians do not pursue them,
unless they catch them
tearing skins or devouring meat they
have carefully laid away.
Sometimes the wolves break into their
hunting huts and do much
damage. They rarely attack men, never
when there are deer
A History of the Indians. 65
to pursue. The latter they attack in
summer or winter, never
stopping pursuit until a victim has been
captured. Occasionally
the deer save themselves in creeks and
rivers, swimming a great
distance down stream, so that it is
impossible for the wolves to
trace them. When a wolf has caught a
deer and killed it, it
will not at once consume the flesh, but
go to the highest hill
nearby and call its comrades, by
howling. When these have
assembled they devour the deer together.
Wild geese178 appear here in
spring and autumn. Some
remain during the winter, others during
the summer, the latter
hatching their young in this region.
Most of them remain long
in this country, passing toward winter
into a warmer latitude,
toward summer to the north, where they
build in the neighbor-
hood of the Great Lakes and return in
autumn with their young.
Wild ducks are birds of passage like the
geese, but there
are some varieties that stay during the
summer season. One
kind, called the tree duck, builds its
nest in hollow trees, either
hanging over the water or near to it.179
When the young are
hatched, they are thrown into the water
and taken elsewhere.
The male bird is the most beautiful of
the water-fowls and very
good to eat.
Another variety, that also has its nest
here, is the shel-
drake.180 This has a narrow
bill, armed with teeth. They live
on fish, their flesh having the taste of
fish. Indians rarely use
them for food, though the flesh of some
is very palatable.181
The crane is the largest of the birds of
these parts.182 Stand-
ing on its long legs and stretching its
neck upwards, it is as
tall as a man. Its body is
proportionately heavy. When hit by
a shot and only wounded, it attacks its
pursuer and has great
power in striking with its wings. It is
gray in color, has a
sharply pointed bill and its feet are
formed like those of the
turkey. This bird is commonly found upon
large plains or near
to rivers. Their flesh is dark, rather
tough and seldom eaten
by the Indians. Their trumpeting may be
heard a considerable
distance.
Wild swans183 are
quite like the domestic birds, I have seen
in Holland, quite white and of the same
size. The Indians
Vol. XIX. -5.
66 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
declare that their flesh tastes like
that of the bear, of which
they are particularly fond, and is often
so fat that pieces may
be cut from the flesh.
Wild turkeys184 may be seen
in the fall in flocks numbering
hundreds. In the summer they disperse in
the woods, this being
the time for hatching the young. In
winter their plumage is of
a shining black, with white spots on the
wings; in summer it
changes to a light brown. When the time comes for laying
the eggs, the Indians seek them, as they
are very fond of them.
Pheasants are not valued by the Indians,
though their flesh
is palatable.185 They fall victims, however, to birds of
prey.
Were it not for the birds of prey the
woods would swarm with
them, for the hen lays above twenty eggs
at one time.
Heath-grouse, found here also, are a
little larger than the
pheasants.l86 They are not valued by the Indians any
more than
the pheasants. In the winter the latter
shelter themselves from
the birds by plunging, when pursued,
into the snow, often run-
ning a considerable distance from one
place to another under
the snow, thus escaping their foes.
The wild pigeonl87 is of an
ash-gray color, the male being
distinguished by a red breast. In some
years in fall, or even in
spring, they flock together in such
numbers that. the air is
darkened by their flight. Three years
ago they appeared in such
great numbers that the ground under their
roosting-place was
covered with their dung above a foot
high, during one night.
The Indians went out, killed them with
sticks and came home
loaded. At such a time the noise the
pigeons make is such that
it is difficult for people near them to
hear or understand each
other. They do not always gather in such
numbers in one
place, often scattering over the great
forests.
The turtle-doves are smaller than the
pigeons and are
always found in pairs.188
Partridges are small, neatly formed
birds.l89 In the fall
and winter they fly in broods. In the
settlements they like to
remain near the plantations, as they
find the food they like in
the fields. The flesh is tender and of a
fine flavor. They are
favorites with all people, being
innocent and harmless birds.
A History of the Indians. 67
The eagle has a white head and tail.190 The wings are
black and the body partly black and
partly ash-colored. It
builds its nest usually in the fork of
some lofty and thick tree.
It lays the foundation with a great
quantity of branches and
repairs the nest built there every
spring. Usually, they hatch
but one, at most two, in a year. It is
unquestionably the strong-
est among the birds of prey. I have seen
it fight with another
bird of prey,l91 much larger
than itself and that wished to occupy
its nest. Lifting the other bird into
the air, the eagle hurled it
down, after having severely injured it.
Every morning the eagle
goes out in search of prey and brings to
its young, birds, squir-
rels, snakes and fish. Fish now
and then prove destructive to
them, for in attacking large fish, the
bird sometimes cannot dis-
engage its talons soon enough, but is
drawn down into the water
and drowned.
There is another species of eagle that I
have seen nowhere
but in this region. The Indians call it
Chauwalanne, forked
eagle,192 from the fact that
its tail is forked. It often soars to
such a height that the eye cannot reach
it. If it approaches the
dwellings of the Indians, they always
look upon it as a sign of
change of weather or rain. Often the
change follows such
approach. It feeds upon snakes and other
creatures, as does
the white-headed eagle, but it is as a
rule, continually on the
wing during its repast. It builds its
nest in high trees, but in
as concealed a place as can be found.
Of other birds of prey, there are to be
found here the
hawk,193 the stone-falcon,l94 that
remains near the rocks, the
pigeon-hawk,l95 that pursues
not only the pigeon but all other
birds it can conquer, though it is a
small bird and not as large as
the pigeon.
The wood-pecker has a light red head
with a red plume
and is otherwise black with white
spots.196 It finds its food in
old trees, this consisting of worms that
are to be found in the
wood.
One variety is called the Red-headed
Wood-pecker,197 be-
cause of the red head, is a nuisance in
orchards, because it at-
tacks the apples.
68 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
Another variety of wood-pecker is very
small, is spotted
and is much pursued by birds of prey,
especially the hawk.
Occasionally, the wood-pecker is able to
defend himself against
his enemies, it having happened that
this bird when attacked,
has thrust its bill into the head of the
pursuer so that the latter
fell dead.
The yellow wood-pecker,198 so
called because of its yellow
wings, also climbs up and down the trees
in search of food,
with its head turned upward or downward.
A few green parrots190 are
seen in the woods here in sum-
mer. Further south they may be found in
great numbers.
The loon200 is a water bird about the
size of a goose and is
heavily feathered. It is spotted black
and white, lives on fish
and has a pointed bill. It cannot walk
on land, as its feet are
too far back, but is a strong swimmer.
It can swim a consid-
erable distance under the water, before
rising to the surface,
especially if it is being fired
upon. Often the Indians are
obliged to shoot a number of times
before they hit the bird, for
it is noted for its swiftness in diving,
as well as for its swim-
ming. It is not eatable, but the Indians
make pouches of its
skin, which is taken off whole, large
enough to hold pipe, to-
bacco, flint, steel and knife.
There are two other birds of prey among
those that fish,
the one larger than the eagle201
the other a small bird202 that
makes its nest on the ground along steep
banks of creeks or
rivers, where it makes a hole just large
enough to slip into.
The heron203 has
long legs, great wings and a lean body.
There are two kinds of owls. The
larger204 is heard very
much in the woods at night.
Crows205 do much damage on
the plantations, especially in
the cornfields, both when the corn is
planted and when it is ripe.
The Turkey Posser206 has a
head like a turkey, without
feathers. It lives on carrion. The raven207
is also a scavenger
and at the same time a bird of prey,
often attacking chickens.
The raven makes good use of the meat
that Indians leave in the
woods.
The hoopoe208 is fawn colored on the
back and has a brown-
A History of the Indians. 69
ish breast. It has a plume of feathers
on its head and is to be
found along creeks and rivers where it
finds its food.
The black-bird209 has a
reddish breast and its wings and
back are ash-colored. Its song may be
heard in wild regions
and deserts.
The blue-bird210 has a
reddish breast also, otherwise its
color is a beautiful azure. It makes its
appearance in spring
before any other bird.
The mocking-bird211 mimics what it
hears and imitates other
birds.
A certain yellow212 bird with
black wings is to be found
everywhere in great numbers. Its song is
very agreeable.
There is another kind,213
orange in color with black spots.
This bird hangs its nest, made of wild
hemp or flax, on the
branches of trees. At one side of the
nest there is a little open-
ing at which the bird goes in and out.
Another kind of birds,214
light-red in color, is particularly
beautiful, as is another red bird215
with black wings. Both kinds
I have seen in Georgia and South
Carolina.
Starlings210 are quite black
and found here in great num-
bers. They do much damage on the
plantations.
The cat-bird217 is so called
because its note is like the mew-
ing of a cat.
Finches,218 tom-tits,219
wrens,220 are found in great num-
bers.
The smallest of the birds of this region
is the honey-bird,221
Without perching on the flowers, it
sucks the honey out of them.
In its swift flight it makes the air
buzz and hum with its wings.
Serpents are so numerous that it is
remarkable that Indians
who spend much of their time in the
forests are not bitten oftener.
In stony places or mountains they are
found most frequently.
The winter they spend underground or in
crevices of the rocks.
In places where they are numerous, they
gather in the fall and lie
upon one another and twisted together
until spring. Should
they be discovered in winter they have
to all appearances but
little life, being able to move, but not
having strength enough
to crawl away.
70 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
(I) Among the most dangerous reptiles are the
rattle-
snakes.222 They are yellow in color, marked
with black spots.
The largest are about
four feet long, sometimes more, and about
as thick as an arm. The
rattles are at the end of their tails,
and often betray the
snakes when they are not seen. These rat-
tles appear to be a
thin, transparent horny substance, arranged
in links. From the
number of links it is possible to tell the
age of the serpent, one
being added every year. It is a rare
thing to find one with
twenty rattles. When the rattling sound
is heard, it is a sign
that the serpent is angry, the trembling
of the tail causing the
rattling. Even when they glide along
the rattles make a
slight sound which can, however, be detected
only by those well
acquainted with the ways of the snake. They
do not rattle unless
something approaches them. Head and
mouth are rather broad
in proportion to the size. On either
side of the mouth they
have two very sharp teeth, which lie
concealed in a skin
sack until they want to bite, when they are
able to move these
forward with great swiftness. Hence, it is
that when anyone has
been bitten four little openings close
together may be seen in
the skin. If a rattlesnake has been
killed, which often
happens, as they do not seek to escape nor
go out of the way for
any one, and one draws forward the
teeth with a little
stick, a clear liquid spurts out of the bag lying
at the root of the
teeth. This is the poisonous juice. Un-
doubtedly, the teeth in
themselves are also poisonous. Indians
who have been bitten,
even if they happen to be quite alone in
the forest, know what
to do. They seek certain herbs and roots
that may be found
anywhere and cure themselves of the bite,
so that one rarely
hears of death occasioned by the bite of this
serpent. Horses or
cattle bitten in the woods, where it is not
possible to render
immediate assistance, die in a short time.
With proper management
these animals may recover in twenty-
four hours. With human beings a cure is not effected so
quickly, and a curious
thing is that the part where a human
being has been bitten,
becomes spotted like the rattlesnake. The
fat of the rattlesnake
is used by apothecaries. Here along the
Muskingum rattlesnakes
are not as numerous as in some regions
that are stony or
mountainous. Along the Susquehanna there
A History of the Indians. 71
are very many, especially along the West
Branch up in the
mountains. In that country in the spring
of the year when the
snakes come out of their holes they have
been seen in such num-
bers in certain places that it would
have been possible to load
up several wagons with them, the air
being infected with an
intolerable stench. This was seen to be
the case by Indians who
were coming down the West Branch. At the
time many of the
reptiles had already crawled up the
mountains, which were very
steep. As there were many fallen leaves
about, they set fire
to them and the trees with the result
that many of the snakes
rolled down the mountains and were
burned. When I passed
through that region the first time,
which was in June, I did,
indeed, see unusually many rattlesnakes,
but I could hardly
have believed that there would be as
many as the above incident
would indicate. The second time,
however, when my travels
took me through that country, which
happened in July, my com-
panion and I had quite a different
experience. Not only did
we see them singly and in smaller
numbers along the wayside,
but in stony places so many around that
when we began to kill
them there was rattling all about to
such a degree that we held
it advisable to get out of that region
as soon as possible. After
this I could believe what I had heard,
for in the fall, when they
gather at different places, there must
be immense number of them.
2) Copperheads,223
named from the color of the reptiles.
Their bite is as venomous as that of
rattlesnakes.
3) Vipers224 have a flat
head, are short and thick, black
on the back and gray on the belly. When
approached, they dis-
tend the head and hiss so that it is
possible to hear them, at quite
a distance. Their bite also is venomous.
4)
One variety225 of snake found here I have met with in
no other region. The belly is quite
red. These serpents may
be found in the water and on land. They
get to be from five
to six feet in length and their bite is
poisonous. To cure the
bite of this reptile the Indians use a
plant that grows in the
water. These snakes have teeth all
around the mouth, above
and below, but no fangs.
5)
Hornsnakes226 are in color and size like the copperheads,
except that they have a sharply pointed
horn on the tail. They
72 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
are as venomous as the copperheads and
like them, only of
middle size.
6)
There is another kind227 of blacksnake which gets to be
about six feet long, but it is slender
and able to move more
swiftly. These climb trees and despoil
nests of the young birds.
The bite of the reptile causes a slight
swelling, but has no other
evil effects.
7)
Water snakes228 spend much of their time in the water,
live on fish and are not poisonous.
8)
A kind of striped, brightly
marked snakes,229 which
are small and harmless.
9) There are green snakes,280 white-bellied,
not more than
a foot in length and harmless.
I have myself seen a hawk descend on a
blacksnake, of the
kind described under number 6, and
attack it, but the snake
quickly coiled itself round the bird and
killed it.
Concerning none of the reptiles
described above, beyond
the rattlesnake, is it known that they
gather in great numbers
at any time. None are so numerously
represented as the rattle-
snakes.
All of them swallow their prey
whole. Frogs,
turtles, birds, groundhogs, squirrels,
they swallow thus, but
by slow
degrees. They usually begin with
the hind leg of
an
animal and gradually draw it in.
All serpents cast
their coat in spring. Often the whole
skin of a snake, com-
plete from the head downward, may be
seen lying on the ground.
This is very thin. The new skin of a
black serpent is a shining
jet. It is said that a rattlesnake, if
irritated, and unable to
avenge itself, will sink its fangs into
its own body, with the
result that it swells considerably and
dies in a few hours. This
snake is said to possess another
peculiar property, as witnessed
both by Indians and whites, viz., that
of gazing with fixed eyes
upon bird or squirrel and by a kind of
fascination, stupefying
them in such a manner that the poor
creatures drop from the
boughs and fall easy prey to their
enemy.
Lizards are but rarely found here. One
variety, not above
five or six inches in length, is said to
be poisonous. Indians
make much ado when they see them and try
to frighten them
away. They dwell in hollow trees, where
they also keep their
A History of the Indians. 73
young. Other varieties, some very small,
come into the huts
that are reared in the forests and are
very harmless.
Of fishes, there are doubtless many more
varieties than
those I have seen in the Ohio. I will,
however, confine notice
to those I have seen and know.
1)
Pike231 are of uncommon
size and generally known.
2) The
black-fish,232 as the Indians call it, has large, brown
scales, a small head and a small, round,
soft mouth, not armed
with teeth. Its shape is not broad, but
round. It is reckoned
one of the best flavored.
3) The buffalo-fish233 is
thus called by Indians and Euro-
peans because of its being heard
sometimes to bellow in the
water. Its length is about a foot and a
half or even two feet,
and its breadth five or six inches. It
has a curved back, prickly
fins, a narrow mouth, and a small head,
in which two white
stones234 are found, flat on
one side and a little convex on the
other. These are not ordinary stones,
but have a stony appear-
ance. The fish has no teeth, but at the
entrance of its throat
there are two strong flat bones, with
grooves exactly fitting each
other. With these it can crack the
hardest mussels, which are
its chief food, and serve to bait the
hook in angling for it. The
Indians, however, rarely using a hook
and line, commonly pierce
this fish with an iron prong of their
own making. If any one
should venture to put his finger into
its mouth, even when to
appearance it is half dead, he is in
danger of losing one or more of
his fingers, for the mussel shells which
the fish constantly cracks,
are very hard.
4) The catfish235 is
without scales and a good fish to eat.
In the Muskingum there are no very large
specimens of this
fish. In the Ohio, on the other hand,
they grow to an unusual
size. In Pittsburg, a man who had gone
fishing at night, hav-
ing bound the line to his arm and gone
to sleep in his canoe,
was dragged into the water by the
catfish and lost his life. Man
and fish were found close together
several days later.
5) The sturgeon236 is the
largest of the fish in the Mus-
kingum. The largest caught here were
from three to three and
a half feet in length.
6) There is a kind of fish237 with
a narrowly formed mouth,
74 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
armed with sharp teeth, almost like the
bill of a duck. It
has scales. The Indians do not use it
for food.
7)
Another kind238 resembles the catfish very much. It has
no scales. This also has a broad, plain
beak like the bill of a
goose, almost the length of a hand. This
it uses to dig in sand
or slime in search of food. The mouth
opens below.
8)
The white perch239 is short and broad. It has scales
and is good to eat.
9)
The yellow perch240 is not broad, but longer than the
last named, has prickly fins and sharp
teeth like those of a pike.
It has a yellowish appearance and is one
of the most palatable
of fishes.
10) Eels are rarely found.241
11)
There is an other variety of fish,242 or whatever one
may call it, resembling a small catfish,
but having four short
legs. It has a wide mouth and is about a
foot and a half in
length. The fins are short.
The river tortoise243 of
these parts is a species different
from that found in Pensilvanien, which
has a hard shell. The
shell of this is quite soft and its head
small and pointed like
that of a sea tortoise. The Indians
shoot them, for they are
not easily caught in any other way, as
they seldom venture out
of the water upon the banks of the
river. The Indians are very
fond of the flesh and of the eggs, which
the animals lay in the
sand on islands.
There is another variety of land
tortoise244 in these parts
which has a hard shell, is small and
very prettily marked. Flesh
is also eaten.
Two varieties of shellfish245 are
found as well. One re-
sembles the clams found along the
seacoast, the inside of the
shell being violet, shading to red; the
other has a larger shell,
which is white inside. Some speciments
of smaller varieties246
are also found.
Snails are likewise found. From one
variety spring, it is
believed, the many large gad-flies,
which in the summer, in the
months of July and August, worry the
cattle to such an extent
that during the day they cannot graze in
the forest. During
these two months both cattle and horses
make for shelter every
A History of the Indians. 75
morning as soon as the sun begins to
shine and return to the
forest only at sundown. This species of
snail deposits a color-
less liquid of the consistency of saliva
on the stems of various
plants in the forest (presumably
containing the eggs of the
animal, which are hatched out by the
sun). From this, it is
supposed that the pestiferous gad-flies
are hatched out.247 Where
there are large herds of cattle that
destroy the weeds and root
them up, not many of these insects are
found.248
The common frogs are found in swamps
near puddles and
ponds. They are of a brownish color, do
not croak, but have
a note like a short whistle.249 In
springtime they may be heard
all night. The Mingoes catch them at
night by the light of a
torch and eat them either fresh or
dried. Green frogs are but
rarely met with and only in rivers and
brooks.250 The largest
American frog is the bull frog.251 It inhabits rivers and large
brooks. Their croaking resembles the
bellowing of a bull, but is
far more penetrating.
Of rats, nothing is known in these
parts, but mice252 are
very common.
Mosquitoes and sandflies are found in
woods in summer-
time in great numbers. Both sting and a
night in the forest
would be intolerable without the smoke
of a fire. They are par-
ticularly annoying in changeable
weather. Even horses will
make for the fire and stand in smoke to
be free of the pests.
Great and small gadflies come in July
and August and trouble
cattle so much that only at night the
latter will graze, the gad-
flies disappearing until dawn of day.
Ticks are to be found in the woods.
These will attack one,
pierce the skin and suck the blood until
they have so swelled that
they drop off. Bed-bugs are to be found
in the Indian huts at
any time and fleas in the summer, not a
few.
The first deer a boy shoots proves the
occasion of a great
solemnity. If it happens to be a buck it
is given to some old
man; if a doe, to some old woman. These
bring in the whole
animal, skinned, if it is possible to do
so. If the animal is too
heavy, they bring the skin and as much
of the flesh as they can
carry, fetching the rest later. When
they reach the village, they
76
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
turn to the east, having the whole or
part of the animal on the
back, always with the skin, before
entering the house and give
vent to a prolonged call, which is the
old man's or old woman's
prayer to the Deity in behalf of the
boy, that he may always be
a fortunate hunter. During the repast
they repeat their peti-
tions and give counsel to the boy (who,
with his companions, is a
mere spectator) regarding the chase and
all the circumstances
of his future life, exhorting him above
all things to revere old
age and gray hairs and to be obedient to
their words, because
experience has given them wisdom. Such
counsel was heeded
in time past, and though the ceremonies
are still kept up, the
young no longer revere the aged as was
the case at one time.
Formerly, the young revered the old,
especially if they had
gray or white heads.253 They believed that these must be very
wise and prudent, because they were of
such an age and seemed
to be favored of the gods. Therefore, they treated the aged
well, brought them, it may be, a deer,
in the hope that they
might be instructed of them how to
attain to equal age. They
presented the old, also, with wampum or
belts, with the same
hope. While nothing was said, the aged
understood and gave
the desired instruction on
anotheroccasion.
No young Indian in those days would have
dared to take
the tobacco pouch, (made usually of the
skin of the otter, beaver,
raccoon, fox, pole-cat, or some other
animal, stripped off whole,
with a little slit at the neck), of an
old person and take a pipe-
ful of tobacco, thinking such an act a
great sin and believing
that it would be the cause of shortening
his life. When, there-
fore, in those days, a young brave asked
an aged man permis-
sion to fill his pipe from the latter's
pouch, the old man under-
stood that this was not the young man's
intention at all, but he
wished to place something in the pouch.
Usually, wampum was
put in and no tobacco taken out. This,
also, was done with the
hope that the aged man might instruct
the young brave how to
be wise and to attain to great age.
Indeed, good counsel is
given, to bring offerings regularly on
behalf of themselves and
their friends, to be chaste, to abstain
from drinking and stealing,
which were common even in those days.
These customs, how-
ever, have ceased. The old have lost
respect and the young
A History of the Indians. 77
regard them but little. They do not seem
to be ashamed of their
vices. For this reason, Indians
themselves declare that their
condition grows worse from year to year.
As there is neither
law nor legal penalty among them, they
have nothing to fear,
except that an injured one may avenge
himself in the manner
in which he has been injured. If one has
seduced the wife of
another, the offended party will seek to
seduce the wife of the
offender. He will keep his purpose a
secret and not rest until
he has obtained satisfaction, when he
makes known to others
what he has done, so that the original
offender may hear of it.
When, in a young female, the first
menstrual discharge oc-
curs, generally between the twelfth and
sixteenth year, the Dela-
wares generally separate such daughters
from all companionship,
the Monsies [Monseys] being more strict
and having more cere-
monies in the observance of the custom
than the Miamis. They
build for such a girl, separate hut,
apart from the rest, where
her mother or some old female
acquaintance cares for her and
guards her so that none may see her.
Wherefore, she is also
kept within the hut the whole of the
menstrual period, with the
blanket over her head. She is given
little to eat, but regularly
dosed with emetics. She is not allowed
to do any work during
the whole time, which generally lasts
twelve days. At the end
of the time, they bring her into her
home, looking black, grimy
and dishevelled, because she has been
lying about in dust and
ashes the whole time. Washed and dressed
in new garments,
she is allowed to be in the home, but
required to wear a cap with
a long shield, so that she can neither
see any one readily, nor be
seen. Such a covering she must wear for
two months, at the
end of which time she is informed that
she may marry.
The Shavanose [Shawanese] and Mingoes,
however, who
observe much the same custom, follow a
different course in this
matter. The young woman in question is
allowed to remain in
the house. She prepares food for those
in the house, of the
corn and fruits she has raised. Of such
food she does not, how-
ever, herself partake, but goes to her
hut, apart from the others,
and there prepares and eats her food.
Every month, during her menstrual
period, a Delaware
woman lives by herself in a separate
hut, which is usually very
78
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
poorly built, and remains there two or
three days, food being
taken to her. When the time is over they
bathe and wash their
clothes and are allowed to return to
their husbands. During the
menstrual period, they are not permitted
to do any cooking or
domestic work. None will eat what a
woman in this condition
prepares, for food prepared under such
circumstances is said to
be unwholesome and to cause pain in the
abdomen. The women
do not go into company, but keep to
their huts until their time
is over. Hence, it occasionally happens
that a woman engaged
in baking will leave everything and go
to her hut. This custom
does not obtain among the Mingoes; their
women continue their
usual work and remain in the house.
In the wooing of a bride, custom demands
that if an Indian
would proceed honorably and at the same
time have assurance
that his wife when married will remain
with him, he first sends
a present of blankets, strouds, linen
and whatever else the
Indians commonly use for clothing and
perhaps a few belts or
fathoms of wampum. If he has no cloth,
wampum alone will
do. These things he gives to an Indian
to whom he has declared
his purpose and who hands them to a
friend of the person fixed
upon, speaks for him and presses his suit. Thereupon, the
friends assemble, examine the present,
propose the matter to the
girl, who generally decides agreeably to
the wish of her parents
and relations. The suitor is then
informed that his proposal
has been accepted. If it is decided to
decline the proposal, the
present is simply returned and
understood to be a friendly nega-
tive. In case the match is agreeable,
the girl is led to the dwell-
ing of the groom, without further
ceremony. After the bride
has joined her husband, the things
constituting the present are
divided among the friends and the belts
of wampum cut and a
piece given to each. The friends return
the civility by a present
of Indian corn, beans, kettles, dishes,
spoons, sieves, baskets,
hatchets, brought in solemn procession
into the hut of the newly
married couple. Commonly, the latter
lodge in a friend's house
until they can erect a dwelling of their
own.
This custom still obtains among the
Indians. Within the
last years, however, disorderly living
and evil have become so
common that faith is not kept and many
of the usages, that were
A History of the Indians. 79
good and preserved a certain decency,
have fallen into disuse.
At the present time, even if the Indian
would take a wife in
honorable fashion and proceed in
accordance with the above de-
scribed custom, the parties concerned
will not deny his suit in
view of the presents, even though the
friends and the girl are
not willing to accept him. The friends
will urge the girl to live
with the man a short time, and tell her
that if she is not pleased,
to leave him again. Thus it happens that
women will go from
one to another for the sake of the
gifts. Yet there are many
cases where husband and wife are
faithful to one another
throughout life.
Occasionally, parents who have a son
will agree with parents
who have a daughter that in due time
their children shall marry.
As, however, they can neither persuade
nor compel their children
against their wishes, it in the end
depends upon the children
whether the match shall be consummated.254
Among the Mingoes it is not unusual to
fix upon children
of four or five years of age, with a
view to future marriage. In
this case the mother of the girl is
obliged to bring a basket of
bread every week into the house of the
boy and to furnish him
with firewood. The parents of the boy
must supply the girl
with meat and clothes, till they are
both of a proper age. Their
marriage, however, solely depends upon
their own free will,
for there is never any compulsion. If
either man or woman is
unwilling to follow up the engagement
entered into by parents,
no marriage results.
Although there are many Indians who live
peaceably with
their wives, especially if they have
children for whom they care
(for if a man has several children he
will try to get along with
his wife) the younger Indians at the
present time generally live
together only a very short time after a
marriage. Hence, forni-
cation is very common among them,
Satan's influence in this
respect being very strong.
If it is asked why the Indians at the present
time are more
given to vice and disorderly living than
formerly, when they
were as ignorant heathen as they are
now, two reasons may be
given. First, much evil unquestionably
has been taught them
by white people, especially the traders,
who were content to live
80 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
among the Indians as long as there were
no Indian wars.
Through the examples of the traders,
also the Indians acquired
the habit of drinking to excess.
Secondly, the Indians had for-
merly great respect for the aged and the
chiefs, from whom they
learned that unfaithfulness in the
marriage relationship was a
great crime and that whoever was guilty
of such evil would live
neither long nor happily. At the present
time they show little
reverence to the aged and each one
thinks himself to be wise in
his own conceits.
The Indian women are in general of a
very strong bodily
constitution. There are generally clever
and experienced women
enough who are able to give assistance
and advice in time of
labor; generally, women will remain in
the house at this time.
Some go into the woods by themselves and
bring their children
to the house when they have seen the
light of day. Most
mothers nurse their children until they
are two or more years
old. During this time many husbands have
concubines, though
not in the house.
If it is left to the mother to give the
child a name, she uses
little ceremony and calls it after some
peculiar mark or character
in it, for instance the Beautiful, the
Good Child, the Great-
Eye, sometimes giving it a name of
unsavory meaning. If the
father gives the child a name he
pretends that it has been sug-
gested to him in a dream. The name is
given at a sacrifice, on
which occasion the Indian brings to some
aged person, who
performs the offering, a string of
wampum, and tells him that
he wishes his child's name to be named
thus and so. During
the sacrifice some other person sings a
song in Indian fashion
at a public gathering and makes known
the child's name. This
is called praying over the child. The
same ceremony is per-
formed when an adult person receives a
name, even although he
may already have been named. It is not
common to call an adult by
his name, for they are ashamed of their
own names. If the
attention of any one is to be attracted
it is done in some other
fashion than by the use of the name. In
case of children, the
names are used. In assemblies and in
discourses they do not
use the name of any one who is present,
though absent persons
are referred to by their names.
A History of the Indians. 81
The children have entirely their own
will and never do
anything by compulsion. Told to do
something they do not care
about, the children let it go by default
and are not reprimanded
for it. Yet many wellbred children are
found among them who
pay great attention and respect to
parents and do things to please
them. They are courteous, even to
strangers. They respond to
mild treatment. The contrary generally
produces bitterness,
hatred and contempt. The women are
frequently guilty of thus
raising their children to anger, for the
women are often ill-tem-
pered. By way of punishment, they will
pour water on the
children or thrust them into the water.
The parents are care-
ful not to beat their children, lest the
children might remember
it and revenge themselves on some future
occasion. Instances
are not wanting where children when
grown have reproached
their parents for corporal punishment
received in youth and have
threatened to return the indignity.
Rarely does an Indian have two or more
wives, being fear-
ful of strife in the house. Blood
relations do not marry; in this
particular they are even more strict
than the whites. They
claim that division of the race into tribes
came about in order
to make it more readily certain that a
man in taking a wife was
not marrying a near relative. Concerning
the tribes, however,
more will be said in another connection.
An instance of an
Indian having married a mother and her
daughter at the same
time was a most extraordinary thing.
Families have from four to six children.
More than this
number is unusual. Birth of twins is
rarely heard of. In many
cases children who have become
motherless after birth have been
reared by careful old women. Sometimes
children are given to
such women. Then they spare no pains in
rearing them. Soup
made of Indian corn, pounded very fine,
is given by them to
infants of tender age, that may have
come into their possession.
Ordinarily, orphans, even if they have
lost but the mother, meet
with hard experience and often suffer
want. Children who have
been given or bequeathed, on the
contrary, are almost without
exception well cared for.
In the management of household affairs
the husband leaves
Vol. XIX. - 6.
82 Ohlio
Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
everything to his wife and never
interferes in things committed
to her. She cooks victuals regularly
twice a day. If she neg-
lects to do it in proper time, or even
altogether, the husband
never says a word but goes to a friend,
being assured that he
will find something to eat, for when a
stranger comes into the
house the first attention shown is to
put food before him, if there
is anything in the house. The husband
never offers to put wood
on the fire, except it be that he has
guests or some other extraor-
dinary call to do it, for the woman cuts
the wood and brings
it to the house and is, therefore, the
proper person to take care
of the fire.
If his wife longs for meat, and gives
him a hint of it, the
husband goes out early in the morning
without victuals and sel-
dom returns without some game, should he
even be obliged to
stay out till late in the evening. When
he returns with a deer,
he throws it down before the door of the
hut and walks in,
saying nothing. But his wife, who has
heard him lay down his
burden, gives him something to eat,
dries his clothes and then
goes out to bring in the game. She may
then do what she
pleases with it. He says nothing, if she
even gives the greatest
part of it to her friends, which is a
very common custom. A
woman generally remembers her friends
when meat has been
secured, or when her husband has brought
flour from the whites.
If the husband intends to take a journey
or go hunting, he
gives his wife notice, and then she
knows that it is her business
to furnish him with proper provisions.
If any dissatisfaction
arises between them, the husband
commonly takes his gun and
walks off into the woods, without telling
his wife whither he is
going. Sometimes he does not return for
some days, when both
parties have generally forgotten their
quarrels and live again
in peace.
Young people who marry rarely remain
faithful to each
other, but join themselves to others and
again separate, continu-
ing such disorderly living until they
are older and more sensible.
Then it not infrequently happens that
they find one another
again, or the husband may join himself
permanently to some
other woman and settle down to
housekeeping. Marriages are
contracted early in life, when men are
from eighteen to twenty
A History of the Indians. 83
years of age and women fourteen or
fifteen. There is in gen-
eral no very strong tie between married
people, not even between
the older. A mere trifle furnishes
ground for separation. Not
every Indian, however, is indifferent to
the light behavior of his
wife. Many a one takes her
unfaithfulness so to heart that in
the height of his despair he swallows a
poisonous root, which
generally causes death in two hours,
unless an antidote be ad-
ministered in good time; this is often
done, the Indians knowing
that the properties of certain herbs
counteract each other and
being able to judge from the effects,
what poison has been taken.
Women, also, have been known to destroy
themselves on account
of a husband's unfaithfulness. To
prevent such a calamity, they
make use of a Beson, a love-charm,
prepared by the old people
and sold at a good price. This is
constantly carried about by
one or the other of the parties and is
believed to keep man or
woman faithful. Such a charm is even
declared to have had the
effect of making a woman run always and
everywhere after her
husband, until weary of life she has
destroyed herself, or of
similarly affecting a man. For this
Beson, also, the Indians
have their antidote. All this converted
Indians have related to
me.
Older men and women, particularly, have
another Beson,
supposed to have the magic power of
bringing many presents
to them. This charm they guard jealously
among their most pre-
cious belongings, and is said to have
the effect of bringing them
food, clothing and whatever else they
may need. It is prepared
of roots pounded very fine, incantations
being murmured mean-
while. A little of this preparation,
about the size of a pea, is
sold with a white and black wampum shell
for a considerable
price, often for a belt of wampum with
several pounds in money.
The love charm and others are similarly
prepared. Usually,
this is done by old women, who thus
support themselves and
promote superstition among the young.
The men have a Beson for the chase. This
beson is a prep-
aration made by old men, who are no more
able to hunt, consist-
ing of roots and herbs or made of the
seeds of a certain plant.
This is sold by them at a high price.
They may earn much in
this way, for every huntsman carries
such a charm about in his
84
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
pocket. Thus the old men support
themselves when they can no
longer engage in the chase. As there are
several sorts of charm
of this character, every one is desirous
to get the best, even if
he has already at the price of half the
catch of a season bought
one charm and if it should cost him the
greater part of his prop-
erty to get the new one of which he has
heard. Some Indians
chew a certain root when on the
deer-hunt, so the deer may not
notice their approach when the wind
blowing over the Indian
to the game would otherwise give the
alarm.
Another kind of Beson, considered to be
a more powerful
charm, is taken inwardly and occasions
violent vomiting, but this
is not in common use. According to the
opinion of the Indians
this beson will prove mischievous and
have a contrary effect
unless every ceremony connected with its
use is attended to with
the most scrupulous exactness. If a
huntsman shoots nothing
for several days, he swallows a small
dose, observing all the
rules prescribed by magic art. Not
having taken any food he then
starts on the chase and does not return
before evening unless he
has secured some game. It is claimed
that the use of this charm
enables them to shoot deer in
considerable numbers. I have ob-
served, however, that Indians have
repeatedly taken such doses
during a period of three weeks and not
been successful. In
such cases ill-luck is ascribed to some
other cause, frequently to
the presence of a missionary. In cases
where Indians, unable to
secure anything in spite of the use of
this beson while I was
present have been successful in my
absence, it has appeared that
my presence has in some way interfered
with their incantations.
In connection with the chase they lay
much stress on dreams. If
the dreamer fancies he sees an Indian
and hears him say, "If
thou will sacrifice to me, thou shalt
shoot deer at pleasure," he
will immediately prepare a sacrifice and
burn the whole or part
of a deer in honor of the apparition.
Occasionally, when an Indian would go
hunting for a sea-
son, he will by way of preparation shoot
a deer or two, bring
home the flesh and prepare a feast,
which is at the same time a
sacrifice, to which the aged are invited.
The latter pray for him
that he may be fortunate and then he
departs to stay away some
time.
A History of the Indians.
The Delaware Indians use no other than
rifle-barrelled guns
having satisfied themselves that these
are the best for shootin
at long range, in which they are very
skillful and shooting ac
curately. They have acquired
considerable skill in making minor
repairs when their weapons get out of
order. Some have eve
learned to furnish them with stocks,
neatly and well made. An
Indian really intent on making something
will not spare pain
or time in accomplishing his purpose
even when he has not seen
the thing made and takes great pride in
the work of his hand.
Among nations living farther inland the
rifle-barrelled guns are
rare and muskets are more commonly
found, often in very poor
condition, except among the Shawanose
[Shawanese] who know
and value the rifle-barrelled gun.
It occurs to me to add that when a man
and his wife have
no children, they generally separate
before long, each believing
the other to be the guilty cause, and
attributing it to the other.
There are also women who never have
children. Such a one
goes from one man to another until some
man who has children
already takes her. There are men also
who never have children.
In both sexes, however, these cases are
rare.
Cursing and swearing are never heard
among the Indians;
they have no words of this character in
their language. If wo-
men or men would berate one another
-rarely the case among
men, except in case of the younger, more
frequent among
women -they direct words and speeches at
one another which
would not be considered terrible by
other people but are very
seriously taken by the Indians. If they
would revile one another
in extremest fashion, they use some
obscene expressions.
Mothers carry the children on their
backs under the blanket.
They do this even when the children are
five years old and over,
for they love their children. In former
days it was the custom
to bind the child upon a board which was
carried by means of a
band fastened round the head in such a
way that the child was
suspended on the back in an upright
position. This practice gets
more and more out of fashion, for the
reason that it has been the
cause of miserable death of the
children. It was customary that
children thus fastened were placed
against a bench or elsewhere,
86 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
the mother going to fetch water or on
some other errand. The
children by pushing and kicking not
infrequently tumbled them-
selves into the fire or other danger and
thus miserably perished,
or were severely burned. For this reason
the custom is in dis-
favor.
Their houses are fairly clean, some
being superior in this
respect and affording a comfortable night's lodging for a
European. In case a guest is expected,
especially if it be a white
person, they prepare as comfortable a
bed as possible. They
sweep the bunk, that serves as seat and
table in the daytime and
as bed at night, and spread a mat with
one or more deer or bear
skins upon it. Though usually a
comfortable couch in summer
time it may be made very uncomfortable
by the fleas brought in
by dogs. Their kettles, dishes and
spoons are not kept in good
order; sometimes they are only licked by
the dogs in lieu of
washing. Dishes and spoons they make
themselves of wood,
sometimes of tree knots or growths,
often very neatly. The
spoons are generally large and round
shaped. Occasionally, a
spoon will be used by several people,
turn about, at a meal.
Brass kettles, to be found in most
houses because very necessary
for sugar boiling, are bought from the
whites.
The Indians are lovers of finery and
dress, the women more
than the men; the latter take care that
the women adorn them-
selves in proper manner. The men clothe
themselves rather
meanly, regarding it as a disgrace to be
better appareled than
their wives. The dress which
particularly distinguishes the wo-
men is a petticoat or strowd, blue, red
or black, made of a piece
of cloth about two yards long, adorned
with red, blue or yellow
bands laid double and bound about the
body. Many women wear
a white shirt over the strowd, decorated
with silver buckles, the
more the better. Red or blue leggings
are worn, made of fine
cloth joined by a broad hand of silk
bordered with coral. These
leggings reach only to the feet. Shoes
are made very neatly.
Over the first strowd they may wear
another, not decorated with
ribbons, which if it inconveniences them
in their movements may
be easily laid aside. Thus clad a woman
is well dressed. In
place of the white shirts, blue linen or
cotton may be worn. When
they wear a white shirt, which is
preferably of fine linen, it is
A History of the Indians. 87
often dyed red with cinnabar about the
neck. Such a shirt may
be worn unwashed until it is torn. More
careful women, how-
ever wash their clothing. Men and women
paint their faces
almost daily, especially if they go out
to a dance in the evening.
Men, particularly, think it is proper to
paint and often their
whole head is colored vermillion.255
Here and there black spots
may be introduced, or they paint
one-half of their head and face
black, the other red. Figures are added
according to taste.256
Indian women never paint their faces
with a variety of figures,
but rather make a round red spot upon
each cheek and redden the
eyelids, the tops of their heads and, in
some cases, the rims of
the ears and the temples.257 Older women adorn themselves
but rarely, usually appearing in old
cast-off garments. Even
if the husband of such a woman provides
new clothing, she will
rarely put it on, especially if she has
a daughter to whom she
gives the new clothing in exchange for
old garments.
Their towns are generally laid out near
a lake, river or
brook, yet sufficiently elevated to
escape the danger of inunda-
tions, which are very common in spring.
In building towns no
regular plan is observed but every one
builds according to his
fancy. The houses are not built close
together. Some years ago,
when the Delawares planned Gochachgunk,
they wished to imi-
tate the Christian Indians and build
their town in orderly fash-
ion but they did not succeed, even
though they had laid it out.
When they have lived long in one place,
it at last becomes trou-
blesome to secure wood for fuel because
all the wood in the
neighborhood has been used. This causes
them to leave the
place and plan a new village for the
sake of the wood and other
conveniences. Although they have horses
that roam about and
are rarely used except when they wish to
ride, it is too trouble-
some for them to break these to work
and, furthermore, since
fetching wood is the work of the women,
the men do not con-
cern themselves about it.
Of inheritances,they know nothing. Every
Indian knows
that whatever he leaves at his death is
divided among his friends.
If a woman becomes a widow, no matter
how long she may have
lived with her husband, friends come,
take everything that be-
88 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
longed to the man, and bring it to one
place. The friends do
not keep a single article, for they wish
to forget the dead and
are afraid lest the smallest part of the
property of the deceased
should remind them of him. They give
what the deceased has
left to their friends and no one of his
friends receives anything;
even though he should wish to take
something he will not do it
through fear of the others. If a dying
Indian leaves his gun or
any other trifle to a particular friend
the legatee is immediately
put in possession and no one disputes
his right. The widow gets
nothing, yet whatever the husband has
given to his wife during
his life-time remains her property.
Therefore we need not won-
der that a married Indian pair should
not have their goods in
common, for otherwise the wife would be
left wholly destitute
after her husband's death. In like
manner the husband inherits
nothing when his wife dies.
According to ancient custom a widow
should not marry
again within a year after the death of
her husband, for the In-
dians say that he does not forsake her
before that time. At the
end of this period, however, they
believe that his soul goes to
its place. A widow must endeavor to live
by her own industry.
She is not permitted to purchase any
meat, for the Indians are
superstitiously persuaded that their
guns fail if a widow should
eat of the game they have killed. Now
and then a kind friend
will venture to transgress the rule and
give her some meat se-
cretly. As soon as the first year of her
widowhood is passed,
the friends of the deceased husband
clothe and provide for her
and her children. They also propose
another husband if they
know of a desirable party, or, at least,
tell her that she is now
at liberty to choose for herself. If,
however, she has not at-
tended to the prescribed rule but
married within the year, they
never trouble themselves about her again
except, perhaps, to
speak evil of her.
If a man's wife die, her relatives
pretend to have some claim
upon him until a year has passed. If he
has remained a widower
during that time they generally secure
him a wife, preferring
a sister of the departed, if one be
living.
The burying places are at some distance
from the towns.
Before they had hatchets and other tools
they used to line the
A History of the Indians. 89
inside of a grave with the bark of trees
and when the corpse was
let down they placed some pieces of wood
across, which were
again covered with bark and then the
earth thrown in. When
they were able to split boards they
placed them, not, however,
joined in any way, in the grave in such
a manner that the corpse
might be between them. A fourth board
was laid over it as a
cover. Now they have learned to make
proper coffins. The
graves are generally dug by old women as
the young people
abhor this kind of work. The coffin is
made by men and placed
in the grave. Then the corpse is
brought, dressed in new cloth-
ing and a white shirt, with the face and
shirt painted red, laid
upon a new mat and let down into the
grave. They cover the
body with the strowd and nail up the
coffin. Formerly it was
the custom to place the pouch, tobacco,
pipe, knife, fire material,
kettle and hatchet in the grave but this
is no longer done. They
also fill up the grave with earth, which
was not done in former
times. The graves are all arranged in
such a manner that the
head was turned to the east and the feet
to the west. At the
head of the corpse a tall post is
erected, pointing out who is
buried. If the deceased was a chief this
post is neatly carved
but not otherwise decorated. If it was a
Captain the post is
painted red and his head and glorious
deeds are portrayed upon
it. The burial post of a physician is
hung with a small tortoise
shell which he used in his juggling
practice. In honor of a great
warrior his warlike deeds are exhibited
in red color on the burial
post.
In the evening soon after sunset and in
the morning before
daybreak the female relations and
friends assemble in the house
of the deceased and mourn over the body.
This is done until
he is buried. All the effects of the
deceased are piled up near the
body. These are taken to the place of
burial and the greater
part is distributed among those who
assisted in burying the
dead. The rest is given to the friends
present, each receiving a
share. During the letting down of the
corpse into the grave the
women set up a deafening howl. Men deem
it a shame to weep,
yet in silence and unobserved they often
cannot refrain from
tears. After the ceremony is over the
mother, grandmother or
other near female relative of the
deceased goes evening and
90
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
morning to the grave and weeps over it.
This is repeated daily
for some time but gradually less and
less till the mourning
period is over. Sometimes they place
victuals on the grave that
the deceased may not suffer hunger. The
food thus left is gen-
erally consumed by dogs.
The Nantikoks [Nantikokes] of whom more
in another
place, have this singular custom that
about three or four months
after the funeral they open the grave,
take out the bones, clean
them of the flesh and dry them, wrap
them up in new linen and
inter them again. A feast is usually
provided for the occasion,
consisting of the best they can afford.
Only the bones of the
arms and legs of the corpse are thus
treated. All the rest is
buried or burned.
The Indians are a free people, knowing
neither law nor re-
straint. They may not be prevailed on in
any matter that does
not please them, much less forced. If
they cannot be persuaded
with gentle words, further effort is in
vain.
Each of them may settle where he
pleases. Not satisfied
with one place, an Indian may move to a
town with which he
is better pleased and no one offers any
objection; or he may
retire to a solitary place. Rarely will
a family move far away
from all society, though they frequently
live apart from the
towns to avoid being annoyed by
drunkards; or they live thus
alone in order to carry on the
profitable traffic in rum more to
their advantage. Many engage in rum
traffic, especially women,
who fetch it from the white people and
sell at a considerable
profit to the Indians, often taking from
the latter everything they
have, sometimes even their rifles on
which they depend for sub-
sistence. Chiefs and counsellors have
often considered what
might be done to stop this ruinous
trade, and have often deter-
mined that no one should ever bring
spirituous liquors into their
towns again; for a time such a
resolution would be kept, and
then be broken, perhaps by the very ones
who had counselled
the prohibition. Since the Indians have
taken so much to drink-
ing rum, murders are more frequent.
Murder committed in
drunkenness is not severely punished.
Hence, it is that one
harboring hatred for another will, on
the occasion of a drinking
A History of the Indians. 91
orgy, put him out of the way, pretending to be very drunk and
not capable of judging of the nature of
his deed. Under such
circumstances, according to ancient
usage, the murderer must
pay a hundred fathoms of wampum for the
murder of a man
and two hundred for that of a woman. If
he is too poor to
raise the amount, which is commonly the
case, his friends help
to raise it and turn it over to the
relatives of the slain, at the
same time delivering a speech. If any
one has murdered his
own relative, he usually escapes without
difficulty, for the family
can easily find reason for the deed, not
wishing to lose two of
their friends at once. Should a murderer
not feel himself safe,
he goes to another region or town where
he is a stranger.
In case of theft, which is held as a
disgrace among them,
nothing further is required than that
the thief must restore what
he has stolen, pay for it or give
something in exchange. If jus-
tice cannot be satisfied in one of these
ways, because the thief has
nothing, loss falls on the party robbed,
or the friends of the
thief, if such he has, must make good
the loss.
When a whole party goes out to hunt,
they govern them-
selves according to the wishers of the
oldest or the most expert,
particularly if he be a member of the
council. It is not consid-
ered good form for one to leave the
party before the end of the
hunt. If one has wounded a deer and
another followed and
killed it, the skin belongs to the first
and either the half or the
whole of the meat to the latter. If
several take aim at once and
they cannot determine which of them made
the best shot, the skin
is given to the oldest of the party, or,
if he happened to be one
of those taking aim, he is said to have
killed the animal. Old
men, therefore, no longer able to shoot
well, generally get their
share of the skins, if they only aim now
and then with the others
though they do not hit the mark.
Such old men, accompanying a hunting
party, get both
meat and skins, for the good hunters will not let them
return
empty-handed. They have, in general, and
the Unami in par-
ticular, the custom that when a huntsman
has shot a deer, and
another Indian joins him or only looks
on at a distance, he im-
mediately gives him the whole animal and
goes in pursuit of
another,
92 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
If a debtor is unable to pay, the
creditor duns his friends,
who must pay and rarely refuse to do so.
Occasionally, the
debts of friends must be paid years
after they were contracted,
even after the death of the debtor, if
only the debt can be proven.
A purchaser, dissatisfied with what he
has bought or the
price paid, is allowed to return what he
has purchased and re-
cover what was paid. One who has done an
injury, killed a
hog or chicken or occasioned loss in
some other way, and obsti-
nately refuses to make good the injury,
cannot be touched. His
friends may make good the loss. Should
the offender, in the
long run, not heed the admonitions of
his friends, they will drive
him away.
Hence, it is that in wars with whites
practically all the
tribes have been involved more or less.
If the nation, as such,
has taken no part in the war, these
unmanageable offenders
have gone with the fighting peoples,
despite the warnings and
threats of the chiefs. The same is true
of the present con-
flict.258 The Delaware chiefs
had determined at its beginning
to remain neutral, daily admonishing
their people not to allow
themselves to be persuaded to go into
the war. The nation as
such remained true to the determination
of the chiefs, being con-
stantly and earnestly watched, but
obstinate offenders took part
against all order and command.
Though the Indians are a free people and
not subject to
the rule of any one, each nation,
considering itself a unit, has a
kind of government of its own choosing,
imperfect as it may be.
This holds good of all the North
American nations. A nation
is constituted of three principal
Tribes, the first or leading tribe
is called Packoango, i. e., the
tribe of the great Tortoise, the
second, Blew, the Turkey Tribe,
the third, Ptucksit, the Wolf
Tribe. Each of the tribes has its chief
and each chief his coun-
sellors. The chief of the Tortoise Tribe
is the first in rank and,
together with the other two chiefs,
deals with all matters of
national interest, particularly, such as
have reference to nations
with whom, according to treaty, friendly
relations are to be
cultivated. A chief may not presume to
rule over the people,
as in that case he would immediately be
forsaken by the whole
tribe, and his counsellors would refuse
to assist him. He must
A History of the Indians. 93
ingratiate himself with the people and
stand by his counsellors.
Hence, it is that the chiefs are
generally friendly, gracious, hos-
pitable, communicative, affable and
their house is open to every
Indian. Even strangers who come on
business put up in the
chief's house and are accommodated with
the best it affords.
The ambassadors of other nations
generally lodge with the chief
and they are well cared for. If their
number is too great, and it
has happened in connection with weighty
affairs concerning
several nations that ten or twenty men
of other nations have
arrived at the principal chief's house,
they are put into a sep-
arate house and provided with every
thing at the public expense,
the counsellors taking care that they
are entertained most hos-
pitably in order that the nation may be
in good repute amongst
other nations.
In externals a chief has no advantages
above others. He
must provide for his own maintenance,
for no one is under any
obligation to supply his wants. His
wife, whose duty it is to
provide sufficient corn for the year, is
usually assisted by other
women in her plantations, for much corn
is required in such a
house. If the chief is young and able to
hunt he will, his offi-
cial duties permitting, occasionally
join the chase. He will even
secure his own firewood as far as
possible. In case he is old
his friends, of whom there are usually
many, and other Indians
will furnish him with game, especially
if he be popular.
The council house is either the house of
the chief, which is
commonly large and roomy, or a building
erected for that pur-
pose. Here public councils are held,
that is, such where mes-
sages which have arrived from whites or
other Indians are pub-
lished. Every one may listen and the
messages are also dis-
cussed. In case there is something of
particular importance to
consider, only the chief and the
counsellors assemble and deter-
mine upon the matter. The old chief
Netawatwes259 used to
lay all affairs of state before his
council for consideration. When
they gave him their opinion, he either
approved of it or indi-
cated what was missing or not correct in
the speech, upon which
they would make the necessary
amendments. Thus he kept
them active and was held in great
esteem.
The chief has the council bag in his
possession, as also the
94 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
treaties that have been made with the
governors of the provinces
and other documents, although they are
not able to read. These
constitute the archives, where all
messages and reports are kept.
With each message or speech there are
one or more strings or
belts of wampum. These, with the message
or speech after the
latter have been properly considered and
answered, are deposited
in the archives.260 In connection with such a message
there
may be a string or belt to each point,
for as soon as the deliverer
of a message has finished with a point
he gives over a string or
belt to the chief, gets out another and
continues to speak until
his message has been fully delivered
when he announces that
he has done. If the strings and belts
are handed about from
one to another in the council this is an
indication that the mes-
sage is being favorably received. It may
happen, however, that
the chief does not take the belt into
his hands but pushes it
to one side with a stick, in which case
no one will touch it. The
messenger who has brought it must in
this case take it back.
This signifies that his message does not
find approbation and it
is accounted a disgrace. Such a rejected
belt may be a war belt
summoning the people to war, or it may
be a belt admonishing
them to maintain peace, or something
else that is not agree-
able may be required.
The wampum which Europeans make and
barter to the
Indians is made of sea-mussel
shells. One variety is quite
white, the other dark violet, a quarter
of an inch in length, an
eighth of an inch in thickness and
round. A hole is bored
lengthwise through each shell, large
enough to admit a heavy
cord. They are strung like beads. Wampum
constitutes the
money of the Indians. Two hundred shells
cost a buck hide,
or a Spanish dollar.261 Before
the white people came they had
no such wampum for want of proper
instruments to make it.262
The white are a little less in value
than the dark.
Strings are made of the beads that have
been strung as
described. Two, four or six placed side
by side and properly
fastened form a string. A string is
usually half a yard long,
sometimes longer. Upon delivery of a
string a long speech may
be made and much said upon the subject
under consideration.
A History of the Indians. 95
But when a belt is given few words are
spoken, and they must
be words of great importance, frequently
requiring an explan-
ation. Belts are of pure wampum worked
in all manner of
clever forms by the Indian women, they
being informed in each
case what the figures must be, inasmuch
as the figures must
correspond with the message. A belt is
three or four inches
broad and about a yard long.263 Neither color nor the other
quantities of wampum are matters of
indifference, but have an
immediate reference to those things
which they are meant to
confirm. A white string of belt
signifies a good message and
such a belt may have figures in dark
wampum. If a treaty is
to be made or renewed with another
nation the message is com-
monly accompanied by a Road Belt. This
is a white belt with
two rows of black wampum running the
entire length with a
white row between the two black rows
also running the entire
length of the belt. This signifies that
the way from one na-
tion to another has been cleared of all
brush, trees and stones.
At the ends of the belt the two nations
are likewise represented
by two small dark spots. If a string or
belt of wampum is in-
tended to confirm a warning against evil
or an earnest reproof
the belt delivered is in black. When a
nation is called upon
to go to war or war declared against it
the belt is black or
marked with red, having in the middle
the figure of an hatchet
in white wampum. A peace belt is quite
white, a fathom long
and a hand broad and of not
inconsiderable value.
A chief has more use for the white
wampum than the black.
In particular cases and upon
extraordinary occasions a voluntary
contribution of wampum is made by the
whole tribe or nation.
The rich are considered as principal
supporters of the chiefs
and furnish them with wampum in an
emergency, which rarely
occurs more than once in three years.
The usual expenses are
defrayed from the treasury chest of the
council, which is never
empty, because when wampum is paid out
usually an equal
amount comes in. In general the chief
does not speak in coun-
cil, but has his speaker to whom he
communicates his senti-
ments briefly and leaves him to
expatiate on them. The latter
must be able to put the whole matter in
a speech well arranged,
which requires a clear and open
understanding, a faithful mem-
96 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
ory, experience in the affairs of the
state and a knowledge of
the formal language employed in council,
which differs as much
from the common language as does the
language used by the
whites in legal procedure, from the
language of ordinary inter-
course.
When a message is to be sent, this is
entrusted to two or
more messengers. One of these is to be
the speaker, the others
being ready to remind him of anything he
might forget. A mes-
sage is formally entrusted to
ambassadors at a meeting of the
Council. It is repeated a number of
times and the one appointed
speaker of the messengers must in turn
repeat it several times,
until he is able to deliver the message
with facility and in proper
form. The messengers are then fitted out
with necessaries for
the journey and dispatched. As the whole
of a message is to
be delivered verbally, a speaker must be
a sensible and reliable
man. Young men, destined for such
service, are admitted as
hearers to the council, where they may
learn much. Any one
employed as messenger is held in high
regard. They must be
young men, of great endurance on the
march, who will not be
stopped by bad weather or high waters.
On occasions of ex-
treme importance, as in time of war,
messengers may have to be
on the march night and day, finding
their way in the darkest
night on paths that a white man could
scarce follow in daytime.
The council meetings are as quiet and
orderly as if they
were acts of devotion. Noises, talking
and laughing are not
heard, even though the young may be
present. All pay strict
attention to the speaker. The
counsellors are called together
by a servant and when they appear, they
welcome one another,
shake hands and express their joy at
meeting. Each brings
pouch, pipe and they smoke a
considerable amount of tobacco
that has been mixed with dried and
crushed sumac leaves.
Women are never admitted to the council;
in matters of public
interest they may stand about the house
and listen, and they
account it an honor when they are
admitted, to hand victuals
and keep up the fire. Provisions must
always be in plenty in
the council-house, for eating and
deliberating alternate.
The principal chief, either himself or
through a speaker,
sets forth the subjects that shall
engage the attention of the
A History of the Indians. 97
council in a solemn speech. If the
subjects are of great impor-
tance all who take part in the
discussion stand as they speak.
Each counsellor has the liberty to utter
his sentiments and hav-
ing made his speech, sits down. No one
interrupts the speaker
but all sit silent and attentive as if
engaged in an act of devo-
tion. The speeches are delivered in a
pleasing manner and the
words of the speakers flow as readily as
if they were read from
a manuscript. Whoever visits such an
assembly, whether white
man or savage Indian, cannot but be
profoundly impressed.
A subject is often very thoroughly and
extendedly discussed.
The chiefs and counsellors in turn give
their opinions and sug-
gestions. When all have spoken, one of
them is called upon to
sum up the principal parts of all the
speeches in a concise man-
ner. This is done extempore and the
necessary amendments
proposed, every subject being brought
into as short and compre-
hensive statement as possible. Before
deliberations begin, the
strings and belts of wampum must be
placed in due order, for
whatever is said without being confirmed
by them is considered
vain and without effect. They are so
accustomed to this that
when they communicate the contents of a
message, merely in
private conversation, they cannot do so
without something in
their hands, a strap, a ribbon or a
blade of grass. Holding
some such thing in his hand the speaker
will recount the points
in proper order as with the strings or
belts of wampum thereto
belonging.
When chiefs are compelled to give answer
to a proposition
of which they do not approve, but which
they have consented
to consider because they did not wish
openly to offer an affront,
they are able to frame their reply in so
figurative and equivocal
a style as to allow of almost any
desired interpretation or ap-
plication. Those who receive such an
answer, know as little
after the reply has been given as
before, but are ashamed to
ask further, lest they should be
regarded as stupid and because
chiefs are supposed to understand
everything.
When treaty of peace is made with
another nation it is de-
termined that it shall last as long as
sun and moon shine or rise
and set, as long as the stars are in the
heavens and the rivers
Vol. XIX. -7.
98 Ohio Arch. and
Hist. Society Publications.
and waters flow. In this connection,
nations who make the
treaty, or are allies, exchange a pipe
between them which is
called the pipe of peace. Such a pipe is
carefully preserved and
generally lighted in council by a
captain or chief, whenever any-
thing occurs relating to the ally and
each member smokes a little
out of it. The one who carries about the
pipe reminds the mem-
bers of the council of the covenant and
the time of its establish-
ment. The head of the pipe is commonly
of stone, the stem of
wood wound with a fine ribbon neatly
decorated with white
corals, the latter the work of the
women.
It is the duty of the chief to maintain
peace, to advise peace
as long as possible. It is not in his
power to begin war as long
as the captains are averse to this.
Without their consent he may
not accept a war belt. If it is received
this is on condition that
he will turn it over to the captains for
consideration. The chief
must endeavor to preserve peace to the
utmost of his power.
If the captains are unanimous in
declaring war he is obliged,
as it were, to deliver the care of his
people for the time being
into their hands, for they are the
warriors.
In the matter of choice of a chief
various things are to be
observed. The principal captain may
choose a chief and inaugu-
rate him, and it is also in his power to
take him out of office if
the chief proves a poor regent, acts
contrary to the customs, does
according to his own wishes and refuses
to accept counsel. The
captains, who always have the people on
their side may thus
forsake a chief, not only refusing to
support him but even pub-
licly announcing that they do not agree
with him, and thus his
power is at an end. The chief must
always be a member of that
tribe in which he presides. The sons of
a chief cannot inherit
their father's dignity, for the reason
that they are not and can-
not be, according to established usages,
members of the tribe,
inasmuch as children do not inherit
tribal rights from the father
but from the mother.265 No
Indian will marry a person in his
own tribe, as he is too closely related
to all in it. Herein, the
Indians allege, is to be found the
reason for the existence of
the tribes. Were it not for these, they
could not be quite sure
whether persons to be married are near
relatives or not. Hence,
it is, also, that children are
considered the property of the wife.
A History of the Indians. 99
If a divorce takes place they follow the mother. Those that
are grown up may stay with the father if
they please. Herein
again is to be found reason for the
conduct of parents towards
their children. They never oppose their
inclinations in order
not to lose their affection. Parents
never know how soon they
may be separated, and both parties, in
that event, fearing de-
sertion by their children, are very
desirous of gaining and re-
taining their love and affection. The
Indians, therefore, regard
their wives as strangers. It is a common
saying among them,
"My wife is not my friend,"
that is, she is not related to me
and I am not concerned about her, she is
only my wife. This
satanic notion it is very difficult to
uproot.
To return again to the matter of
selection of a chief; as
his sons cannot, for the reasons named,
succeed him, a great
grandchild or nephew may become chief,
that is, either his
daughter's daughter's son or his
sister's son, so that the privilege
of becoming Chief cannot be confined to
too intimate relationship.
The principal duty of the first chief is
to maintain the peace
and covenants made between his people
and the other Indian
nations and the Europeans as also to
carry on a kind of cor-
respondence with them, all of which is
generally done with the
advice and consent of the chiefs of the
Turkey and Wolf tribes,
unless they are absent. It is further
the particular duty of the
principal chief to see to it that
nothing is neglected and when
necessary to send embassies. Finding
that it is necessary to
take action in some matter he summons
the council, submits
the subject and lets them deliberate
which often demands of
them much thought and attention. Another
of his duties is
that of keeping the people together and
preventing any un-
necessary dispersion. Much depends,
therefore, on whether a
chief is beloved of his people. Where
this is lacking the Indians
are like a swarm of bees without a queen
bee. A chief must
prevent all disorders in his town, have
an eye to justice, and
seek to do away with strife with the aid
of his counsellors. But
he may not seek to do this by force or
severity but only by calm
reasoning and friendly exhortation.
Usually, the Indians are
amenable to good words. In a general way
the Indians pay due
honor and respect to their chiefs,
though there are some who
100 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
are moved neither by fear of men nor of
God; fortunately there
are few such.
Strong drink occasions much disorder in
the Indian
towns.266 If a chief is
himself an abstainer, he may accomplish
much against this evil, but he must be
ever watchful and not
tire in his efforts.
At the death of a chief neither his
children, wife, nor
relatives inherit his possessions. Everything
is distributed
among the people except the wampum and
belts, which belong
to the chief in his official capacity,
and the Council Bag. These
are preserved and turned over to his
successor in office. In
general, some person who lived in
intimacy with the deceased
chief, and is well acquainted with the
affairs of state is chosen
to be his successor. It is generally
agreed that such and such
an one is the right person to assume the
dignity of chief. If
he is discreet and wins the favor of the
captains and the peo-
ple, the former in particular, will
support him in every possible
way. A captain, such as White Eye 267 was, is the
Chief's right
hand. He must undertake everything
ordered of him by the
chief, even at the hazard of his life.
To show fear would not
be in harmony with his dignity and a
disgrace. If he is
wounded or killed by the enemy, the
whole nation joins in
avenging his death, taking injury done
him as seriously as if
it concerned the person of the
chief. This the captains are
aware of and it gives them courage.
A captain has no more right to conclude
peace than a chief
to begin war.268 If peace is offered to a captain, when he is
in the enemy's country, he can give no
other answer than that
he will bring the proposal to the notice
of the chief, for as a
warrior he cannot make peace, and that
in due time reply will
be given. If the chief inclines to
peace, he, as it were, assumes
his office again, exerts his power,
takes the matter out of the
hands of the captain and desires him to
sit down, which signifies
declaring a truce. The hatchet is taken
out of the captain's
hand and he is obliged to cease from
hostilities and keep his
men quiet. The chief knowing that
inactivity is not agreeable
to the captain, asks his assistance in
the negotiations and
generally chooses him to be the
messenger of peace to the
A History of the Indians. 101
nations. By such a commission an
accession of honor and re-
spect is acquired by the captain. So
soon as he gives up the
tomahawk, his men must cease from
hostile acts and demon-
strations.
The rank of captain is neither elective
nor hereditary. First
intimation of this honor comes usually
in a dream, early in
life, one or another having seen a
buffalo, a bear or other
ferocious animal, or he has seen in a
vision an Indian who
spoke with him and gave him the
necessary gifts. Such a dream
is pondered over and related to friends
and usually interpreted
as destiny for the office of Captain.
The dreamer's imagina-
tion leads him to believe that nothing
may injure him and that
no bullet can harm him. He, therefore,
endeavors to attain
to the necessary qualifications for this
dignity and prove his
powers for he must be tested, as will
appear presently. Occa-
sionally, boys are prepared and
instructed for this position. These
are given little to eat, are made to
fast often and long, so that
their bodies become emaciated, their
minds deranged and their
dreams wild and extravagant. Frequent
questions are put to
them when in this condition as to the
dreams they have had.
So long as they have not dreamt or not
dreamt the right thing,
the process is continued until they have
been reduced to skin
and bones, when they usually have or
pretend to have a
fantastic dream, declared to be ominous.
The subject being
minutely considered and interpreted by
their teachers, they are
solemnly informed what will be their
future destination. By
virtue of these extraordinary
revelations they become physicians,
great hunters, rich men, Mantewits, that
is, sorcerers, or cap-
tains. The impression thus made on their
minds is lasting, and
as they grow older they earnestly strive
to fulfill their destina-
tion, believing themselves to be men of
peculiar gifts, far in
advance of the others. It is not enough
to profess to be destined
for the dignity of a captain. The claim
must be made good.
The candidate must be resolute, brave,
fearless, even in greatest
danger. If a leader, who has not the
rank of captain, has the
good fortune not to lose a man of his
troop in six or seven
engagements and to bring scalps and
prisoners to the camp, he
is recognized and honored as a captain
forthwith. If he loses
102 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
a man lie must secure a prisoner in his
place. Should he lose
more than one, responsibility weighs the
more heavily upon
him, and in default of showing an equal
number of prisoners,
his authority is at an end and he dare
not think of continuing
in the office. If an Indian loses his
son, or one of his near
relatives in war, whom he has highly
valued, he gives a belt
of wampum to a captain and desires him
to go and take a
prisoner to supply the place of the
deceased. He takes his
company into the enemy's country, and if
he is fortunate in his
exploit, immediately hangs the belt
around the prisoner's neck
to denote that he shall be received into
a family and that his
life is safe. Upon delivering the
prisoner to his employer, the
captain receives the belt as a reward,
and the prisoner is adopted
by the family as a son or near
relative. But if he is un-
successful or has been so unfortunate as
to lose a man, the
captain's standing is destroyed and he
is disgraced. It depends,
therefore, in large degree upon good
fortune whether a man
becomes or remains captain. There are
never very many cap-
tains in one tribe, but always some.
Although a chief is not supposed to have
much to do with
war, his influence tends greatly either
to prevent or encourage
the commencement of a war, for the
Indians believe that a war
cannot be successful without the consent
of the chief, and the
captains endeavor on that account to
live in harmony with him.
It is not a light matter for the Indians
to begin a war, as it
might be among the Europeans, for a war
having been begun
it is not easy to bring it to an end nor
to be reconciled to the
enemies. The chief reason for this is
that a certain number are
killed on both sides and these,
according to ancient custom, must
be replaced by prisoners. War with the
whites is a different
matter, for the Indians usually secure
more than enough of
scalps and prisoners to make up their
losses, and they may sue
for peace at any time even while
continuing hostilities. But
with the nations of their own color they
cannot do this, for they
know that they will be punished by
enemies who will avenge
themselves in the cruelest manner.
The warriors consist of the young men,
among whom, how-
ever, are those of fifty years and over.
The warriors are under
A History of the Indians. 103
the command of the captains, especially
in times of war, and do
nothing without their consent. They
neither leave the troop
nor go hunting, as they know that their
life and honor in a
great measure depends upon the prudent
conduct of their cap-
tains, and they obey them with pleasure.
The night previous
to the march of the army is spent in
feasting, at which the
chiefs are present, a hog, if
procurable, being killed for the
occasion. After the feast the captain
and his people begin the
war dance and continue till daybreak
when they are quite hoarse
and weary. Sometimes they dance in turn,
each taking the head
of the hog in his hand; again all dance
together. Spectators
are admitted, and may even join in the
dance. Sometimes in-
stead of a hog a couple of dogs are
killed, not because dog's
flesh is a delicacy, for the Indian dogs
are very lean, but because
it is said to inspire them with the true
spirit of war and murder.
I have even seen women partake of this
feast, eating the dog's
flesh with great greediness. I have
steadily and courteously re-
fused to partake when invited. The war
dance having been
completed they march out on the
following day. The captain
leads and his men follow in single file.
When they reach the
end of the street, they fire their
pieces one after another and
the captain begins the war song. As both
their friends and the
women generally accompany them to the
first night's encamp-
ment, they halt about two or three miles
from the town, dance
the war dance once more, and the day
following begin the
march proper.
As they commonly have a long and tedious
journey into the
enemies' land their provisions are soon
exhausted. They are
then obliged to spend some days in
hunting. No one enjoys any
precedence during the march, not even
the captain. They divide
their provisions in equal shares, even
if each man should get
only a mouthful of bread or spoonful of
meat. When they
reach Indian towns with which they are
at peace provisions are
given them. They never go out in large
parties but usually in
small companies of ten or twenty, in
order that they may not
suffer so much for want of provisions.
The captain is very at-
tentive to the condition of his troop
being answerable for all
his men. If but a few are weary he
orders all to halt till they
104
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
have recovered. As soon as they enter
the enemies' country
they can hunt no longer for fear of
being betrayed. They pro-
vide themselves, therefore, with
provisions for several days and
watch their opportunity. Occasionally
they must lie in hiding
many days until their purpose is
attained. As soon as the deed
has been accomplished, they hurry away,
exercising the greatest
caution inasmuch as they know that they
will be pursued and
may themselves suffer injury. Those whom
they kill are scalped
and the scalps taken home. Prisoners
secured are bound and
led away and kept bound until they are
no more in fear of
pursuers. Thereafter the prisoners'
fetters are loosed during
the day. During the night they are
fastened by their feet to
a stake so split as to admit one leg,
this stake being fastened
to another that is driven into the
ground. If one of them is
wounded the warriors apply remedies
which they carry with them
on their expeditions and generally
succeed in restoring them.
Often the wounded must be carried, and
if it is at all possible
to get them away they are not left to
perish. They even carry
off their dead, or at least their
scalps, or bury the dead lest
they should fall into the hands of their
enemies. In a skirmish
with the whites they generally remove
their dead, which makes
it hard to determine how many have been
killed in action.269
They generally return from a war in a
half-starved state, which
is not to be wondered at because of the
hard experiences they
have gone through, especially on the
return. On the return
march they are constantly in fear, not
knowing which night
their enemies may fall upon them, hence
they proceed by forced
marches until they know themselves to be
out of danger. Oc-
casionally, they are attacked at night
or at break of day, when
they sometimes succeed in saving life by
flight, leaving their
weapons and everything else behind. Thus
deprived, they may
be able to travel several hundred miles
until they arrive in
the territory of peaceful nations where
they again find sus-
tenance. They generally suffer excessive
hunger and fatigue
by the way, living upon the bark of
trees, wild herbs and roots.
Much of this they do not have to fear
when engaged in war
with whites, for these will not pursue
them for any great dis-
tance. Cases have been known where the
Indians have attacked
A History of the Indians. 105
and stormed a small fort and taken forty
or fifty men, women
and children prisoners and not lost a
man. The prisoners they
led into the woods a short distance,
divided into two parties
preserving the more ablebodied and
tomahawking the rest be-
fore their eyes. The little children
that cried and wailed were
dashed against the trees, so that the
brains stuck to the bark.
They are thus barbarous when victorious,
and similar examples
have been multiplied in times of war.
Prisoners are not ill-treated as long as
they are in the
hands of the warriors but fare with them
alike. They have so
much the more to suffer in the towns of
the victorious people.
The warriors, upon their approach to the
town, repeat the death
whoop according to the number of scalps,
trophies or prisoners
in their possession. Upon this signal,
men, women and children
run out to meet them, placing themselves
in two rows. The
warriors with their prisoners, whom they
lead bound by their
arms, march between the two rows and
halt. The scalps they
carry on poles held aloft and painted
red, and the prisoners
are forced to dance for the amusement of
the spectators. The
dance over they are ordered to go to a
house which they see
before them in the village. As soon as
they set out the people
begin to strike at them with switches,
clubs, hatchets or their
fists. If they gain the house, though
ever so bruised and
bloody, they are perfectly safe. Indians
acquainted with this
barbarous custom, if they are not old
men, escape a great part
of these cruelties by running towards
the mark with all their
might. Female prisoners are frequently
rescued by the women
who take them between their ranks and
carry them to the
town. I have witnessed both practices.
As soon as the prisoners
have reached the house the warriors take
good care of them;
wash and dress their wounds and when
their meals are ready
serve the prisoners first. I cannot
think that this is done from
compassion but rather that the prisoners
may look well and do
honor to the triumph they celebrate in
passing through all the
towns of their nation till they arrive
at their own homes. After
they have refreshed themselves and
rested, the prisoners are led
out for the amusement of the
inhabitants. They fasten strings
of bells or deer-claws to the feet of
one of them, to make a
106 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
rattle for the dance, and present him
with a parcel of small
sticks. What is meant by the latter, the
prisoner knows. He
takes as many as he pleases and returns
the rest. These de-
termine the number of short dances he
has to perform, which
he does with great alacrity to the
rattling of a calabash,270
filled with small stones and marking the
time. After each round
he relates one of his heroic deeds or
experiences in war, and
delivers a stick to the captain who sits
in the circle. Though
the spectators may not understand his
language, they guess his
meaning by his looks and gestures. This
ceremony is repeated
in every town through which they must
pass. With white
prisoners the procedure is in some
respects different. Commonly
these particularly must suffer much
beating, because they are
not conversant with Indian manners and
customs.
When the parties at length arrive at
their own homes with
their prisoners a council is held to
determine what disposition
shall be made of them. Many of the
prisoners are received into
families to supply the places of the
slain, the lately deceased or
those who may have perished as a result
of a drinking orgy, and
are immediately considered as members of
the family. Such
prisoners are well treated, according to
Indian custom, and their
lot is bearable if they content
themselves with their new sur-
roundings. They are not put to much
labor, which in general
is little regarded by the Indians. If they run away and are
retaken their lives are in danger. If
the prisoners are white
men their heads are shorn in Indian
fashion, only a little hair
remaining on the crown, and the face is
painted red. This is
done as soon as they are taken, so that
when the villages are
reached it is hardly possible to
distinguish whites from Indians.
In general they are well treated by the
Indians and allowed
considerable liberty, provided they
conduct themselves properly
and do not act in unseemly fashion
toward the Indians.
Those unhappy prisoners who are
condemned to die must
suffer the most excruciating torture,
execution of the sentence
often being delayed until the prisoners
feel themselves safe.
The Indians flock to these executions as
to some great solemnity,
with a view to reeking on the
unfortunate captive their cruel
and revengeful disposition. A fire is
made in the open, irons
A History of the Indians. 107
are heated, and the unfortunate captive
is bound to a stake
placed at some distance from the fire.
He is burned with the
irons. Long strips of flesh are cut from
his body with knives
and salt is rubbed into the raw wounds.
He may be half roasted
at the fire, then released for a time,
with a view to prolonging
his tortures, which sometimes last three
or four days. At length
rendered insensible by pain, death may
bring release, or his
tormentors put an end to his sufferings
and throw the mangled
body into the flames. Captives often
endure the torture with
the greatest fortitude, sing of their
heroic deeds accomplished
in war, and do not let their captors
notice fear or terror of death.
Now and then a condemned prisoner is
released by ransom;
sometimes release is refused no matter
how much is offered. In
the year 1779 among the Wiandots a white
captive was tortured
to death. Several English traders who
were there offered goods
to the amount of several hundred
buckskins, that is so many
Spanish dollars but without success.
Among the Mingoes and
Shawanose this inhuman method of
treating captives is par-
ticularly in use. In course of the
present war271 they have given
several horrid proofs of their cruel
disposition.
Some years ago when a party of Shawanose
went to war
against the Cherokees, a young Shawanose
was taken captive
by the Cherokees and condemned to die.
On the following day
the fire was started, he was tied to the
stake, and every prepara-
tion made for his execution, when a
Cherokee woman arrived
with a parcel of goods, and throwing
them down at the feet of
the warrior to whom the prisoner
belonged begged for his re-
lease, alleging that she was a widow and
wished to adopt him
as her son. Her request was granted, the
captive released and
delivered over to her, and on the same
day he walked up and
down the village well dressed. He was so
grateful to his pro-
tectress that he remained faithful to
her, even returning in due
time from a visit he paid to his own
people.
The statement that the Indians are
cannibals is unfounded
in fact. It has happened in some cases
that prisoners were de-
voured, and it may happen now on rare
occasions to satisfy
vengeful hate. Formerly Indians have
been known in the height
of their fury to tear an enemy's heart
out of his body and devour
108
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
it raw. When an Indian nation wishes to
excite another to
war, it sometimes happens that they send
one or more prisoners
to such a nation with the words,
"We send you this prisoner
to make some broth," and frequently
gain their aim in this
fashion. The prisoner, however, is not
devoured but executed
without mercy. There is no rescuing him
from horrible death.
Captains, when about to go to war, send
to the captains of
nations or towns who are in league with
them a piece of to-
bacco to smoke, thus notifying them that
they themselves will
soon follow. By this they intend that
the captains shall smoke
their pipes and consider seriously
whether they will take part
in the war or not. One chief about to
visit another will, sim-
ilarly, send him a piece of tobacco with
the message that he
shall smoke, look in a certain direction
and in due time he will
see the sender coming. This is done to
make sure that the
visitor will find the chief whom he
wishes to visit at home.
The last war of the nations was between
the Six Nations,
the Delawares and Shawanose and the
Cherokees, the latter
pitted against the rest. This war
continued many years until
peace was concluded in 1768,272 as, a
few years before, peace
had been made between the Six Nations
and the Catabe-Nation273
through the mediation of Sir William
Johnson at Albany. Con-
cerning earlier Indian wars nothing is
known and since that
time war with the whites has engaged the
attention of all the
Indian nations.
With the Delawares the following nations
are in league:
The Mahikander,274 the
Shawanose, the Cherokees, the Twich-
twes,275 the Wawiachtanos,276 the
Kikapus,277 the Wiondats, the
Tuckachschas,278 the
Chipuways, Ottawas, the Putewoataimen279
and the Kaskaski.280 The
two last named dwell along the
Wabash.281
The Shawanose, who formerly lived in
Florida and have
ever been a warlike people, had a war
with the Moshkos.282 The
latter were the stronger and the
Shawanose were reduced to a
few remnants. The survivors left their
country, came as fu-
gitives up the Ohio to the Susquehanna.
[Susquehannah]. They
moved from place to place until they
fell in with a strong party
of Delawares. With these they entered
into negotiations, stat-
A History of the Indians. 109
ing that they were fugitives and wished
to settle in the country
of the Delawares and under their
protection. The Delawares
adopted them as grandchildren, even as
had been done with the
Mahikanders. The Shawanose now call the
Delawares grand-
father.283 They lived for
some time in the Forks of the Dela-
ware and then moved to Wajomick284 on
the Susquehanna.
Having increased considerably in numbers
they moved to the
western branch of that river and, later,
as they deemed them-
selves secure in the alliance with the
Delawares and sufficiently
strong to venture it, to the Ohio above
Great Island.285 Here
they commenced hostilities against the
Cherokees. The latter
pursued often following the Shawanose
into the country of the
Delawares. Unwittingly they killed some
of the latter. This
brought on a new war between the
Delawares and the Cherokees,
beginning, as indicated, by the
Shawanose and not ended until
the year 1768. The Shawanose
lived for several years on the
Ohio near Kittannunk,286 whence they
moved to Logstown,287
twenty miles below Pittsburg, and from
there to the Sioto,
whence the Americans drove them and
entirely destroyed their
settlements, for the reason that they
were guilty of constant
attack on the settlements of the whites
and of many murderous
acts.288 After this the
Shawanose turned westward.
The Delawares have not engaged in war
with any of the
nations named except the Cherokees.
Because these nations
were in league with the Delawares, and
called each other
brothers (the Shawanose excepted), the
Cherokees made peace
with the Delawares, calling them
grandfather, all these nations
followed them and entered into alliance
with them, and the
Shawanose, having been adopted by the
Delawares are so se-
cure that no nation will venture to
attack them, even though they
are a cruel, warlike people.
It appears from what has been stated
that the Delawares
have powerful connections, being in
league with most nations.
Had the Delawares allowed themselves to
be enticed in the
present war, America's experiences would
have been different.
As these remained neutral, the nations
in league with them did
the same, except the Shawanose, who have
nearly cut off their
relations with "the
grandfather." The Delawares are grand-
110
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
father to all these nations and they are
the grandchildren. The
Cherokees live on the east side of the
Ohio, in the mountains
opposite North Carolina. The
Chipuways289 are a numerous
people on the north coast of Lake Erie.
The Ottawas and the
Putewoataimen live to the west of Lake
Erie, but a great way
beyond it. The Twichttwees and the
Wawiachtanos dwell be-
tween the Sioto and the Wabash and the
Kikapus, the Moshkos
and Tuckachschas on both sides of the
Wobash, yet a consider-
able distance from one another.
The country through which the Wobash
[Wabash] flows is
very level. Here are great plains
producing nothing but grass
as in the flats of Wajomik.290 In
a journey of some days you
meet with neither hill, tree nor
thicket. Upon these plains herds
of buffalo are seen grazing, comprising
sometimes of hundreds
of head. The banks of the Ohio are
subject to frequent inunda-
tion, especially in the spring when the
snow melts in the north.
For several miles on either side of the
river the country will
at such a time be under water. Should
Indians be hunting at
this time, they find it necessary to be
careful of their canoes, lest
they should suffer want or death, for
once the water overflows
the banks, it runs out many miles and
there is no escape with-
out a canoe. Buffalo and other game
perish in large numbers
in such floods. Where there is a slight
elevation animals gather
by the hundreds, until the waters
recede. In that region there
is a great salt-lick, much visited by
buffalo and other game.29l
There bones and teeth of elephants of
considerable size have been
found, both by whites and Indians. In
earlier times there must
have been elephants in this region.
Whether they were exter-
minated by the Indians or perished in
some other way, it is not
easy to determine.
The (Wiondats), or Hurons, have been
given the latter
name because formerly they lived near
Lake Huron, (the Dela-
wares call them Delamattenos),29 11/2
they call the Delaware nation
their cousin, and the latter in turn
call them uncle. With these
the Delawares have never had a war but
have always been good
friends. Between the Delawares and the
Six Nations there has
never been real friendship, because the
latter secured peace in
no straight-forward manner. Recognizing
that the Delawares
A History of the Indians. 111
were too powerful for them, they
pretended that it would not
be good for the nations to wage war
continually and that one
nation ought to be the woman and that
nation must be the
Delawares, as they were the greatest
warriors. Afterward they
alleged that they had conquered the
Delawares. In the war
which began in 1755 and lasted until the
sixties the Delawares
challenged the Six Nations on the
occasion of a Treaty in Pitts-
burg, but the latter returned no answer.292
Of late years the Delawares have
amazingly increased in
reputation through the wise management
of the Chief Neta-
watwes. This man spared no pains to gain
the friendship of
all the nations. He sent frequent
embassies to the grandchildren,
and showed himself a true grandfather.
When the Delawares
sent a message to the allied nations,
the speech began with each
string or belt of wampum,
"Grand-children;" the nations ad-
dress the Delawares,
"Grandfather." The Wyondats and Six
Nations are addressed "Uncle,"
and the Europeans, "Brother."
The speech is generally addressed
directly to the chief, though
meant for the whole nation.
The nations generally addressed the
French as "Father,"
when the latter were in possession of
Canada and had inter-
course with them. The same appellation
was transferred to the
English when they conquered Canada. In
the other colonies
Europeans and Indians called one another
"Brothers." This
practice was followed by Sir William
Johnson.
Indians explain the origin of Nations
and their names by
saying, and this not unlikely, that the
inhabitants of towns or
districts named themselves according to
the places where they
dwelt. Thus even at the present time
Delawares who live in
Goschachgunk are commonly called
Goschachgiwak, that is
Goschachguhlser-"people of
Goschachgunk."
A message sent or a speech in council
goes or is delivered
in the name of the three tribes, signifying
the three chiefs. The
Turtle tribe is named first, next the
Wolf Tribe and the Turkey
Tribe last.
When a message is returned, not having
been accepted, the
belt or string of wampum that has been
rejected is thrown on
the floor of the council house, after it
has been announced why
112
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the message was not welcome. The refusal
is considered a great
affront and no one of the chiefs or
counsellors will touch the
rejected wampum belt or string. This
lies on the floor, the
men of the Council leaving the place,
until some old woman
removes it.
Concerning usages and ceremonies
connected with the elec-
tion of a chief the following should
have been added. If a
chief of the Turtle Tribe is to be
elected his own tribe does not
choose him but the chiefs of the other
two tribes do this.
Similarly, if a chief of the Wolf or
Turkey Tribe were to be
elected, the tribe concerned would have
no part in the election.
The election is conducted in the
following manner. As each
tribe lives in a town of its own, the
two chiefs, upon whom the
election devolves, meet with their
counsellors and people at an
appointed place, and after all necessary
preparations have been
made-some thirty belts of wampum are
required and a num-
ber of speeches arranged for - they move
in a procession toward
the town where the election is to take
place. The two chiefs
head the procession and one of them
sings along the whole way
the speeches that are to be made to the
chief about to be
elected, singing in a tone used on this
and no other occasion.
Thus they, still singing, enter the town
where the chief is to be
elected. They find everything prepared
for the occasion, enter
the council house at the east end, pass
on one side the two or
three fires that have been made and sit
down on the other side.
Next the inhabitants of the town enter,
welcome the guests by
shaking their hands and sit down on the
other side of the fire.
One of the two chiefs, in a singing
tone, opens the proceedings
by explaining the object of the meeting,
condoling with the chief
elect, wipes the tears from his eyes,
clears his ears and throat,
removes all sorrow on account of the
departed chief from his
heart and comforts him. Next he declares
him to be chief and
formally fills the office made vacant by
the death of the former
chief. He then exhorts the young people
to be obedient to their
new chief, whenever he shall require
their assistance, and ex-
plains to them how they are to conduct
themselves toward the
chief. The speech is confirmed by means
of two belts of
A History of the Indians. 113
wampum and the speaker receives an
answer, a solemn promise,
from the young people that they will
fulfill their obligation. He
likewise addresses the wife of the new
chief, who is present
attended by several women, and
admonishes her to be obedient
to the chief. This is confirmed by means
of a belt and the
woman, in the name of all the women,
promises obedience.
Finally, he lays before the chief the
duties of his office, regard-
ing the preservation or re-establishment
of peace, admonishing
him not to meddle in the affairs of war
and to keep his people
from it, to continually attend to the
welfare of his nation and
to hear willingly the remonstrances of
the people in case he
should commit a fault. All this is
intoned and the belts given
in confirmation are laid before the
chief. He promises to act
in strict conformity to these
injunctions.
The new chief thus enters upon his
office by consent of the
tribe and whole nation. He is placed,
therefore, in a position
of influence. He is loved and honored of
his people and aided
by them in his undertakings. Whoever
obtains the office of
chief in any other way is not respected.
This is the case with
the successor of Netawatwes, who was
chosen by Europeans
prominent in Pittsburg.293 Such a
one amounts to nothing and
is held in no greater esteem than any
other Indian. He can
accomplish nothing, for neither the
other chiefs nor the coun-
sellors nor the people are with him.
Thus the Delawares at
present have no real ruler, to whom they
are devoted and from
whom they are willing to take counsel.
This state of affairs
will continue until they elect a chief
in accordance with their
own usages.
If a chief has made mistakes, he may be
admonished by the
whole people and is obliged to give
attention to them. For
any grave fault, which may prove
injurious to the common-
wealth - for instance if he suffers the
young people to commit
outrages or murders, which may be laid
to the charge of the
whole nation and involve it in
war, or if he should not do any-
thing to prevent such misdemeanors in
the first instance-he is
reprimanded by the two other chiefs,
with the same ceremonious
solemnity used at his installation, must
be willing to take the
Vol. XIX. -8.
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Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
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reprimand, and must promise to fulfill
his duty better in the
future.
The name Delawares undoubtedly has its
origin with the
Europeans, for neither they themselves
nor other nations use
this name. They call themselves the
Lenni-Lenape Indians
or Woapanachke, that is people
living towards the rising of
the sun, having formerly inhabited the
eastern coast of North
America. It is possible that the word
Delawares should have
been applied to the nation; because the
Unami Tribe, which
lived nearest the sea, uses the word
Indellowen very much. This
word, meaning "I say," being a
verb, appears frequently and
in many forms in the conversation of the
people. The first
Europeans, not understanding the
language and hearing this
word very often may have made Delaware
out of it and called
the people thus. The Indians themselves
believe this to be the
explanation, though it is possible that
the Europeans have
another, of which I am not aware.294
If a party of Indians have spent a night
in the woods, it
may be easily known, not only by the
structure of their sleep-
ing huts but also by their marks on the
trees, to what tribe
they belong. For they always leave a
mark behind made either
with red pigment or charcoal. Such marks
are understood by
the Indians who know how to read their
meaning. Some mark-
ings point out the places where a
company of Indians have been
hunting, showing the number of nights
they spent there, the
number of deer, bears and other game
killed during the hunt.
The warriors sometimes paint their own
deeds and adventures,
the number of prisoners or scalps taken,
the number of troops
they commanded and how many fell in
battle.
If two nations are engaged in war and
the warriors of one
commit some murderous act, it is not
uncommon that they leave
the hatchet in the head of the victim
who has been scalped or
lay a war-club, painted red, upon the
body of the victim. This
is a formal challenge, in consequence of
which, a captain of
the insulted party takes up the weapon
of the murderers and
hastens into their country to be
avenged. He will do much
the same thing, leaving his weapon upon
the murdered, and
A History of the Indians. 115
endeavor to bring back a scalp or
several scalps to show that
he has avenged the rights of his nation.
Across the Mississippi there lives a
nation called the Su.295
They live along the river Su far beyond
the Illinois, where there
are vast plains without trees and on
which wild goats, buffalo
and other game graze. As there is no
wood, the Indians burn
dried buffalo manure. For the winter
they provide themselves
with peat, which they dry with grass.
Their utensils they make
of clay and burn them, wherever they may
be, for they travel
from place to place following game.
Their weapons are the
bow and arrow. Water being scarce on the
plains, they catch
the dew for cooking and drinking
purposes. For this purpose
they use large sponges that grow on the
rocks in the rivers.
This I have been told by an Englishman
who lived sometime
in that country. These Indians trade
with the Spaniards. I have
heard from various sources that the
further west one goes the
more extensive are the plains.
Indians usually treat one another with
kindness and civility
and in their bearing toward one another
are modest. They are
communicative but thoughtful. Of empty compliments they
know nothing. In meeting it is customary
to shake hands, greet
one another with the friendly title of
Father, Older or Younger
Brother, Uncle, Cousin, Grand Son,
Grandfather and say "I
am glad to see you." Sometimes all this is repeated when the
guests have been sometime in the house.
Expression of greet-
ing through others is hardly customary,
occasionally a gift is
sent by way of greeting. Greetings are
expressed in all sin-
cerity. If sentiments do not correspond
to words and forms,
the latter are dispensed with. If
warriors, going to war or
coming from war, when the murderous
spirit is on them greet
one (I will not say an Indian, for that
were nothing unusual,
but a white person) one may certainly
believe to possess their
favor and good grace and need fear no
harm, for if they have
the least feeling against anyone, they
will use no form of greet-
ing. This I know from frequent
experience. An Indian carries
pouch and pipe with him wherever he
goes, for they are indis-
pensable. For state occasions they may have an otter skin
116 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
pouch or a beaver-pouch or one decorated
with coral, made by
the women. Sometimes they have a buffalo
horn, from which
a pouch, made possibly of tanned
deer-skin, depends. In the
pouches they carry tobacco, fire
materials, knife and pipe. Sumac
is generally mixed with tobacco or sumac
smoked without to-
bacco, for but few can stand smoking
pure tobacco. Their com-
mon conversation turns upon hunting or
the news of the day.
Matter that has no foundation in fact
may be drawn into con-
versation, and even though all may be
aware of this, the narra-
tion continues uninterrupted. They may
laugh now and again
but they will listen attentively. No one interrupts another.
When one has finished another begins.
They never put any one
publicly to blush; they are polite to
each other and enjoy being
politely treated. They like to be
regarded as worthy people
even though they may be the opposite.
They are pleased to
know that they are liked. When a guest
comes into a house,
food is placed before him; that comes
before anything else.
If the guests are from a distance and
very good friends, the
whole kettle of food is set before them,
they are given dishes and
spoons and allowed to help themselves
first to as much as they
wish. The guests having partaken of the
food, pass the kettle
back to the people of the house. They
live very simply. Meat,
corn, gruel, corn-bread, are the
principal articles of diet.296 In
lieu of meat, various dishes are
prepared with corn, or Sopan,
milk and butter are used. They like to
discuss affairs of state
and communicate their opinions. In fact
they are more ready
to discuss such matters in course of
visits than in the Council
House, for there they prefer to let the
older people speak. Oc-
casionally visits are made with the
purpose of discovering the
opinions of others; in a chief's hone
all manner of reports,
true and false, furnish material for
discussion. The women
speak of their work, their plantations,
the pouches, bags, baskets,
carrying bands they have made, many of
them though not all
smoking tobacco. Stories are carried by
women from house to
house; they are so often manufactured
that if men, having
listened attentively to some tale, hear
that it originated with a
woman they will give it no credit until
confirmed by some more
reliable authority.
A History of the Indians. 117
Trade with Europeans is carried on
usually on the basis
of fixed price, both as concerns goods
and pelts. The Indians
trade their deer, beaver, otter,
raccoon, fox-skins, wild-cat-skins
and others for goods which the traders
often take a consider-
able distance into the Indian country.
If they can deceive the
whites, they do so with pleasure, for it
is not easily done. They
are delighted, also, if they succeed in
purloining something.
They are fond of buying on credit,
promising to pay when they
return from the chase. The traders may
be willing to take the
risk, hoping to control all that they
catch. But if the Indians,
on their return, find other traders in
the country, they barter
with them and trouble themselves no
longer over their creditors.
If the latter remind them of their
debts, they are offended, for
to pay old debts seems to them to be
giving goods away for
nothing. Usually traders learn from
their losses to give nothing
or but little on credit. This is the
safest course and there is
no danger in arousing the enmity of the
Indians. When war
breaks out the traders are the first in
danger, not only of losing
their property but also for their lives.
When the Indians sus-
pect a war approaching, they keep it
secret and take as many
goods upon credit as they can get; as
soon as the war breaks
out all debts are cancelled.
The Indians trade much among themselves,
especially the
women, who deal in rum, which they sell
at exorbitant prices,
which occasions much disorder. Indian
traders usually demand
high prices, knowing well that unless
the buyer were in great
distress, or fully intent upon closing
the bargain, he would
rather not deal with them. Indians when
really anxious to ob-
tain anything will pay almost any price.
If they are in need
of corn they will give goods or pelts in
exchange for it. Fre-
quently, the chiefs have prohibited the
sale of strong drink in
their towns, but it is always brought in
in some manner, against
which the chiefs are powerless to
protest. For instance, they
may appoint a sacrifice of rum, in which
nothing but rum is
used. This the chiefs cannot hinder
owing to established custom.
When once the Indians, who gather in
large numbers for such
a sacrifice, have tasted the strong
drink but have not satisfied
themselves, they will go to the old
women who deal in liquor.
118 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
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The latter will often obtain everything
that an Indian owns
except his Breech-clout. For their skins
the Indians get from
the traders powder, lead,
rifle-barrelled guns--for other weapons
they do not value-blankets, strouds,
linen, shirts, cotton,
callemanco,297 knives,
needles, thread, woolen and silken ribbon,
wire and kettles of brass, silver
buckles, - these are considered
as valuable as gold and with them they
can purchase almost
anything-bracelets, thimbles, rings,
combs, mirrors, axes,
hatchets and other tools.
If the young are at home and not on the
chase hardly a
night passes without a dance. The women,
who always follow
the men, dancing in a circle, act with
decency and becoming
modesty, as if they were engaged in the
most serious business.
Neither laughing nor levity are to be
noticed and they never
speak a word to a man, for this would
injure their character.
They neither jump nor skip, but move one
foot after the other
slightly forwards then backwards, yet so
as to advance gradually.
The men shout and leap and stamp with
such violence that the
ground trembles under their feet.
Whatever man acts in the
oddest and most ridiculous manner is the
most regarded. They
dance in a circle around the fire. Often
in the midst of the
dance they will all hold their heads
forward over the fire, stand
bowed or leap and stamp, singing all the
time; suddenly they
stand erect again and move forward. They
make all manner
of unusual movements to show their
agility and skill. They
have no other music than the drum. When
one dance has been
finished the one who beats the drum
sings and beats until another
begins. There is always a leader whom
all watch carefully and
follow. They have various kinds of
dances, some acquired from
the other nations.
The young men often wrestle to test
their strength. The
one thrown is not angered but admits the
other to be his master.
Another mode of testing strength is in
trying to lift some large
stone, or throwing a stone of
considerable size the greatest
distance possible.
Nine-pins, ball-playing and cards they
have learned from
the whites. The Indian game of dice is
the most popular of
A History of the Indians. 119
amusements. They may devote days in
succession to it, always
gambling on the throwing. Among the
Mingoes I have ob-
served that two towns brought together
goods, blankets, strowds,
shirts, linen and played for them. In
this case the game lasted
eight days. The dice are placed in a
dish, lifted up and thrown
forcibly on the ground. The people of
the two towns met daily
during the period named and every
inhabitant of each town
threw the dice once. This done they
parted for the day and
each party separately offered a
sacrifice in the evening. In con-
nection with the sacrifice they had
their special ceremonies, con-
sisting in a man going several times
'round a fire, throwing
tobacco into it and singing a song.
Afterwards the whole com-
pany danced. This continued for eight
days. When the win-
ners bore away the spoil in triumph.
The boys exercise by shooting at a mark
with bow and
arrow. They may throw something into the
air and shoot at
it, the one hitting the object being
regarded as a good marks-
man. As soon as they are able to run
about they learn to use
the bow and arrow. When they grow older
they shoot pigeons,
squirrels, birds and even raccoon with
their bows and arrows.
Two comrades who have been reared
together or have be-
come attached to one another will be
very close and constant
companions. If one goes on a journey or
to hunt the other will,
if possible, accompany him. It seems
almost impossible for
either of them to live without the
other, and for one to give up
his companion, as may be necessary when
one becomes a Chris-
tian, is very hard. Often such friends
will make a covenant with
one another to remain together and share
alike possessions and
knowledge.298 If they go to
war together and one perishes the
other will fight desperately to avenge
him, accounting his own
life as nothing.
In traveling in companies they are very
companionable and
follow some recognized leader. The
younger element, on such
journeys, engages in the hunt and if
deer or bear is shot, the
carcass is brought to camp and laid at
the fire of the one who
is held to be leader. He divides the
meat among all, share and
share alike. No complaint is ever heard
that one has received
more than another. If the chiefs have a
journey to make, they
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usually take some of the younger men
along, who supply the
larder during the journey by engaging in
the chase. A journey
is rarely hurried for usually it makes
little difference whether
they arrive at their destination a day
late or not, and they are
everywhere at home in the woods. They
rarely leave camp
early in the morning, wishing always to
have a good meal be-
fore starting and sometimes they delay
to mend their shoes.
This inconveniences Europeans, who may
be obliged to use the
Indians as guides very much, especially
when they are anxious
to reach a certain place at a certain
time. It is best policy, how-
ever, to accommodate oneself to the
Indians, for admonition or
remonstrance easily offends them and
makes them act in a very
contrary manner.
Indians dislike having their evil
conduct or acts uncovered
and held up to them. They are able,
however, in subtle fashion
so to touch upon such subjects that the
parties concerned will
understand. This method they prefer, not
wishing to offer an
open affront. It has happened that one
openly accused of an
evil deed, murder or the like, has, in
desperation, ended his life.
They sometimes reveal secret things by
means of dreams they
pretend to have had when they do not
wish to show from what
source they have their information.
Their desires and inclina-
tions, likewise, they will reveal
through pretended dreams, when
they are ashamed to make these known
directly; often they
achieve their purposes in this manner.
Chiefs occasionally re-
ceive a secret message which must be
made known. They will
say that at night, while sitting by the
fire, some one rose out
of the earth, handed over a string or
belt of wampum and,
whispering the message in their ears,
disappeared again in the
earth. In this fashion a message may go
a hundred miles or
more under the earth, coming to the
surface where it was in-
tended that it should, often at the fire
of a chief of another na-
tion. This happens when war is to be
made but kept secret
for the time being, the message,
therefore, being very difficult
to understand for any but the chief.
They are desirous of retaining the favor
and friendship of
other nations. When they receive
visitors, therefore, the latter
are shown all honor and entertained in
the best possible way, in
A History of the Indians. 121
order that at home they may have nothing
but good to report.
As hospitality is generally practiced,
strangers are everywhere
well received and suffer no want, even
though they may remain
for days, or weeks or months. It is
recognized as a duty to
care for the wants of a guest as long as
he may choose to remain
and even to give him provisions for the
journey when he does
make up his mind to go.
On the occasion of making or renewing a
treaty with an-
other nation a dance very different from
the ordinary dance is
engaged in. The dancers join hands and
leap in a circle for
some time. Suddenly the leader lets the
hand of one of his
partners go, springs forward and turns
around several times, by
which he draws the whole company round
so as to be enclosed
by them, when they stand close together.
They disengage them-
selves as suddenly, yet keeping hold of
hands during all the
different evolutions and changes in the
dance; this, as they ex-
plain it, represents the chain of
friendship; a song, used only at
such a solemnity, is sung by all.
The War Dance is very wild and dreadful
to behold. One
dancer carries his hatchet, another a
long knife, another a large
club, a fourth a cudgel. These they
brandish in the air, to sig-
nify how they intend to treat or have
treated their enemies,
affecting all the while an air of anger
and fury. The Mingoes
use the war dance even in times of peace
with a view to cele-
brate their heroic deeds.
They regard the Europeans as a peaceable
people, created
of God to live according to their own
manners and customs,
even as the Indians have been created to
live in their fashion,
especially to sustain themselves by
means of the chase. They
think it contrary to the will of the
deity to adopt, themselves,
the manner of living peculiar to
Europeans, pointing to fish,
animals and birds as each having their
characteristic habits.
Each creature, bear, deer or other
animal, continues to live in
its own way, and it has never yet been
observed that an animal
had adopted the habits of another. The
same principle, they
hold, applies to Indians and Europeans.
They recognize that
the Europeans are industrious and
clever, that without oppor-
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tunity to trade with them their position
would be without many
of the advantages they now enjoy. They
admit that the whites
are very ingenious, because of their
ability to manufacture a
great variety of things, but regard
their manner of living as
wearisome and slavish as compared with
their own. Their own
skill as hunters and woodsmen, they
hold, excels that of the
whites. Towards these they harbor a
secret enmity which they
disguise in their presence, for they
suspect that they will deprive
them of their land and drive them within
narrower confines.
This suspicion is not without
foundation. Among the Dela-
wares this dislike has been moderated
through long intercourse
with the whites, yet they show that they
have no particular love
towards them, in that they will sell
their lands to them and after
these have become inhabited will seek to
drive them off by
starting war.
The French seem to possess a greater
share of the good-
will of the Indians than the English,
being regarded by the In-
dians as being more akin to themselves,
probably because they
enter more easily into the Indian manner
of living and appear
always good-humored. Indians have more
faith in the French
than in other Europeans. Since the late
war with England all
the Americans except the English in
Canada, otherwise called
by the Indians Virginians, are known as
Big Knives by the na-
tions because, from the beginning, the
Indians saw them and
the Governor of Virginia on all
occasions of negotiations with
the Indians wearing long swords. Hence, they called them
Choanschican and the Six Nations named
them Assarigoa that
is Big Knives, which name has been
applied to all Virginians
and has been extended from it to all
Americans because the Vir-
ginians in this war negotiated most of
the treaties with the
Indians.299
Judged by the mere appearance of the
Indians one is sur-
prised how modest and careful they are
in relation to each other
and imagines that the whites, if they
were as free a people and
had neither government nor punishment to
fear, would not be
as united and peaceable as the Indians
appear to be. The towns
and villages of the latter are not
indeed governed by force or
law. Each individual is at liberty to
live where he pleases,
A History of the Indians. 123
moving from one place to another
according to inclination, yet
they generally dwell together for the
sake of the help they can
render each other in building and in
fencing up the great field
where all may plant and be sure that
their pieces of ground will
not be molested by cattle. If they have
a good chief he may
be very useful to the people, for under
him they believe them-
selves to dwell in safety as it is his
business to keep the peace
with other nations and order among his
own people in so far as
this may be secured among the Indians
who are a free people
recognizing neither compulsion nor
authority to punish. By
means of discretion and diplomacy a
chief may accomplish much.
At times he may not tell his
counsellors, much less the people,
what his ultimate purposes are, for fear
of not attaining them.
Moving forward step by step he may gain
his end. Of violence,
murder (except in drunkenness), robbery,
theft, one rarely hears
among the Indians. They may leave all
they have caught in
the chase and their utensils in the
forest, secured indeed against
wild animals such as wolves and bear,
but not hidden from the
Indians. They often hang their things to
trees in the woods
where everyone passing by may see them
and leave them there
for days and weeks, yet they are never
molested. Stolen goods
may not be easily concealed among them,
and whoever has been
guilty of theft must restore or repay
lest a horse or two or even
his gun, which is an Indian's means of
sustenance, be taken from
him or his friends summoned to make good
the injury, even
years after the theft has been
committed. The latter will rather
pay than be much and often called upon
to do so.
Few houses are locked when the people go
out. A stick is
placed against the door on the outside
and the passerby sees
that no one is at home and does not
enter. Each one is free
to do as he pleases without let or
hindrance, yet he will rarely
do another injury.
Their old people, even though they are
only able to crawl
about and are a source of trouble and
have nothing to bequeath
to anyone, are faithfully cared for by
their friends who seem
to wish that their lives should be
prolonged. That they are
unmerciful and insensible towards the
poor and needy may not
be said of them. Even strangers who have
no friends are
124 Ohio
Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
given assistance. A poor widow, even
though she have children,
finds it possible to make a living if
she is willing to work. They
pay her above the worth of her services
in food and clothing;
if it is summer she may work on the
plantations; in winter she
may prepare wood for fire. They are
willing to help the poor
but always expect them to render some
service in return. It
has been known that good has been done
to prisoners con-
demned to death, even to whites, though
this had to be done
secretly.
A few negroes are found among the
Indians having been
either bought from the whites or secured
as prisoners. These
are looked upon as of their own kind and
allowed full liberty.
Indians and negroes intermarry and their
mulatto children are
as much loved as children of pure Indian
blood.
They are fond of giving when they can
expect something
in return and of doing good which they
have reason to hope
may be returned. They easily forget the
good that has been
done, but if they have been cheated they
never forget it. If a
white has done them ever so many favors,
helped them in need,
or given them presents, and omits an
opportunity to do the
like only once, then all he may have
done is forgotten. If an
Indian takes a wife and dresses her
generously from head to foot
in new garments she will indeed be glad
and proud; but she
will more readily leave him than if he
had given her little or
nothing, for in that case she would
still be in expectation of
receiving something.
One may even make enemies of Indians
through presents if
these make them proud and one does not
continue giving. Oc-
casionally when a respectable present
has been given the donor
is slandered in order that he may not
expect something in
return from the recipient.
They are able to control their desires
and passions, but
once given free rein these are the more
violent. Overcome with
wrath, they at once think upon murder,
and may, in the heat
of passion, do something for which they
will later feel remorse.
The women are much given to lying and
gossiping. They
carry evil report from house to house.
As long as they are
observed they appear modest and without
guile. All the wrongs
A History of the Indians. 125
of which they are guilty are done in
secret. That adultery,
theft, lying, cheating are terrible
vices they know, having learned
it from their ancestors as well as from
whites. Fear of dis-
grace keeps them from open wrong-doing
for they do not wish
to have a bad name. Secretly, however,
they are given to all
manner of vice. Some are no longer
sensitive to shame. There
are traces of unnatural sins among them,
hardly known to any
except to those such as missionaries who
have learned to under-
stand the people well. Virtue one must
not seek among the
savages, but the grace of God is able to
accomplish wonders
among them. Not all are equally bad.
Some among them are
sensible people and considerate, who act
reasonably and have an
eye to right and justice.
I had no faith concerning sorcery
attributed to them, though
I have lived many years among them,
thinking it all to be
boasting and lying on their part. I
believed the Indians were
too stupid for such satanic practices,
but I have been persuaded
otherwise. I know for a certainty that
witchcraft is common
among them. Those who make great
pretention to skill in the
dark arts know the least about them. The
adepts do not boast
of their knowledge for fear of their
lives. They are very careful,
even under the influence of strong
drink, not to draw suspicion
upon themselves. There seem to be
Indians who have the
ability to bring about the death of any
one by other thai or-
dinary means, even in the short space of
twenty-four hours.
This they do without the use of poison,
which, if used, might be
discovered and for which an antidote
might be administered.
Usually two or three or more agree that
a certain person shall
die. While he is asleep or in the
presence of others they some-
how exert their evil influence upon him.
The effects are various.
Sometimes the victim falls to the ground
immediately in con-
vulsions, lies for a time as dead, then
recovers consciousness but
soon dies. Sometimes the effects are not
noticeable for several
days. Occasionally the unfortunate
individuals are afflicted with
diseases, from which there is no
recovery for years. Hence, it is
that when illness cannot be accounted
for on natural grounds,
the Indians are apt to believe
themselves to have been bewitched.
126 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
Accounts of illness attributed to this
cause are, however, not
all to be credited.
By the Nantikoks300 the
Indians have been instructed in
the use of a peculiar kind of poison
called Mattapassigan, mean-
ing poison. The Nantikoks dwelt formerly
in Maryland, along
the sea, some of them still living
there, and later moved to
Wajomick along the Susquehannah, finally
proceeding further
northward. In the late war they were driven out with the
Six Nations. They brought knowledge of
this poison, which
carries many evils with it, to the
nations and also to the Dela-
wares. What it is and whereof it is made
I am unable to say,
as I have never seen it, and the
descriptions vary. Possibly it
is prepared in different ways. It is
said not to be baneful in
itself and to receive its power for
working injury through witch-
craft. It is declared to be capable of
infecting whole townships
and tribes with disorders as pernicious
as the plague. With its
use the sorcerers are said to be able to
remove a person though
he may be several hundred miles away.
The Delawares have en-
deavored to extirpate the shocking evil.
Their efforts extending
over two years were in vain, for those
possessed of the knowl-
edge of its uses kept the knowledge
secret. The Nantikoks who
were the wretched inventors of this
poison and its arts, have
nearly destroyed their own nation by it.
Its use is rendered
efficacious by a company of murderous
sorcerers uniting in the
same design. Its effects are the more
terrible, because it is used
not only in connection with individuals
but whole communities.
In their practices the sorcerers, except
in case of the poison
described, seem to use no Beson but a
little piece of an old
blanket or something else. This they rub
in their hands until
formed into a little ball. Naming the
one who is marked for
death, they throw this ball at him,
saying that he shall die.
They call this shooting the witchball.301 Any person wishing to
get another whom he hates out of the way
will hire a sorcerer
or several of them to do it, paying them
in wampum. The
Indians say that their poison and
witchcraft have no effect upon
the white people because they use so
much salt in their victuals.
But this is merely a pretense as there
are instances of Europeans
having fallen victims to their skill in
poisoning.
A History of the Indians. 127
Warriors, and especially Captains,
procure a beson thought
to be capable of preserving them from
arrow and ball. In the
year 1774 when a war had broken out
between the Shawanose
and the whites, the latter had their
war-beson carried about
among the ranks upon a pole, in a
battle they fought with the
whites on the Canhawa.3011/3
But the Beson bearer himself was
shot, the whole Indian army routed and
the Beson fell a pray to
the conqueror.
Another sort of deceivers are called by
them Kimochne,
"night walkers." These people
get into the houses at night and
steal whatever they can get. The Indians
say that they bewitch
the family into a profound sleep so as
not to be discovered.
They are said to be able to go a hundred
miles or more and
back during a single night, proceeding
through the air over
hill and dale and river. This seemed to
me incredible, but I
have been told by various individuals
that it is true. We have
several converted sorcerers in the
congregation.3012/3
Most extraordinary experiences have been
met with by boys
from twelve to fourteen years of age,
when they have been
alone in the forest in apprehension and
in need. An old man in
a gray beard may have appeared and said
in soothing tone, "Do
not fear, I am a rock and thou shalt
call me by this name. I
am the Lord of the whole earth and of
every living creature
therein, of the air and of wind and
weather. No one dare
oppose me and I will give thee the same
power. No one shall
do thee harm and thou needest not to
fear any man." Such
and similar prophecies he makes. Such a
boy ruminates upon
what he has heard and is confirmed in
the opinion as he grows
up that a peculiar power has been
imparted to him to perform
extraordinary exploits, and he imagines
that no one can do
him injury. As he can receive no further
instruction from any
one, he must learn from experience how
far he can go, his
imagination inspiring him to make every
effort. Such boys
give themselves to the practice of the
dark arts, having abun-
dance of time for investigation and
practice, because in their
youth they are not required to work
unless they choose to do so.
Such a boy is feared above others, but
of these there are very
few. Others have been led by dreams to
study theory and
128
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
practice of the black art. Most are
deceivers who pretend to
be able to leap over a river or from one
mountain to another.
Old women are sometimes accused of being
witches. If a child
dies suddenly some one will pretend to
have seen an old woman
with the child at night, who is then
believed to have bewitched
the little one. Some old woman or
another Indian may thus,
though quite innocent, be thought guilty
of witchcraft and be
thus considered to the end of life.
Again there are witches sup-
posed to go through the towns at night
in the form of an owl
or a fox. It is nothing strange that an
owl or a fox should
get into the town, as many of the towns
are surrounded by the
forest. Such witches are supposed to
kill Indians, bring dis-
ease and plague into the town. The worst
is said to be that
when such animals are shot at they do
not die, being able
to close up the wound caused by the
bullet.
It is remarkable that Indians of such
character have been
led to lead a new life and turn from all
deceitful practices.
From them it has been learned that most
of their dark practices
grow out of imagination and
superstition. Of those, however,
who seem versed in the use of Mattapassigan
none have to the
present time been converted, though some
with whom I came
into contact were inclined to better
themselves but were unable
to refrain from their evil practices,
being afraid, apparently,
that their lives would be endangered.
That the Indians have some sort of
religion and mode of
worship whereby they endeavor to please
the Deity, cannot be
denied. Their worship, however, is
unreasoning devotion. It
is remarkable that savages who have been
cut off from associa-
tion with other nations for no one knows
how many centuries
should have so much knowledge of Deity
that is handed down
from generation to generation.
They believe and have from time
immemorial believed that
there is an Almighty Being who has
created heaven and earth
and man and all things else. This they
have learned from their
ancestors, but where the dwelling place
of the Deity is they
know
not. They have always heard that
whoever lives a
virtuous life, refrains from stealing,
murder and immorality,
A History of the Indians. 129
would at death go to some good place
where conditions would
be better than here, where there would
be a superfluity of every-
thing and a happy life of joy and
dancing. On the contrary,
whoever lived an evil life would arrive
at no good place but
have to wander about sad and unhappy.
Hence nothing is so
terrible and awful to them as death,
because they do not know
how it will be after this life nor
whither they shall go. When-
ever they think of death they are filled
with anxiety, but rather
than consider how they ought to live
they seek to rid them-
selves of thoughts of death. They fear
the thunderbolt, because
it occasionally strikes and shatters the
trees, but they seek to
disguise their fear. Yet they believe
that the Deity is graciously
and mercifully disposed towards men,
because he imparts power
to the plants to grow, causes the rain
to fall and the sun to
shine and gives game to man for his
support. Indeed, as to
fish and deer they imagine them given
particularly to the Indians
and not so much to the whites for the
Indians were created to
sustain themselves by the chase and the
whites by the work of
their hands. There are indeed some among
them who pretend
to be able to bring rain when there has
been drought, and such
a person knowing that the women, whose
business it is to care
for the plantations, are anxious for
rain shows his cleverness
in deceiving the people. Noticing from
cloudy appearances early
in the morning that it is likely to rain
during the day, he will
tell some one, that if tobacco or
something else that he wishes
is given him he will bring rain. The
party so informed will tell
the women, who in their joy contribute
each a little and bring
the fellow what he desires. The latter
goes to some lonely place,
draws a circle on the ground, makes a
cross within it and puts
tobacco, a pumpkin and some red coloring
into it as well, seats
himself, sings and shouts so that he may
be heard, continuing
if possible until it begins to rain.
Even sensible Indians believe
that he has brought the rain because
under the circumstances it
generally rains. In case the rain fails
to come he makes promises
for another day.
They believe God to be almighty and able
to do as he pleases.
Hence in times past they brought
sacrifices and still do this
Vol. XIX. -9.
130 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
making their offerings not directly to
the Deity but to things
of his creation, as will later appear.
No one has ever heard
that they have sacrificed to the devil,
whom together with all
evil spirits they abhor, believing that
all evil comes from them,
even as all good comes from God.
They seem to have had no idea of the
devil until in modern
times preachers arose among them who
proclaimed that there
was such a being, having secured their knowledge
from the
whites. They have no very definite
conception of him but con-
sider him to be a very powerful spirit,
able to work much harm
and unable to do any good. Many say also
that Indians would
never be claimed by the devil, however
wicked they might be
in the world, because he existed only
for the whites who wrought
evil. They declare that he is not to be
found among the In-
dians but only among the white people,
for if he were among
the Indians they would long since have
discovered him, and
their ancestors would have told them
about him. They did
know, however, about good and evil
spirits which appears from
this: when crimes had been committed,
the guilty ones laid the
blame on an evil spirit who had seduced
them. They have also
been accustomed to admonish one another
in time of war not
to give ear to the evil spirit but to
the good spirit who counseled
peace. They also knew nothing of Hell,
believing only that
wicked men would go to no good place
after this life. They
have no proper term for such a place
other than Machtandon-
winek which means, with the devil, Machtando meaning
the Evil
One. They have never had regularly
appointed priests, the
oldest men having usually performed the
sacrifices, admonished
the people to good life and conduct,
warned them against im-
morality, murder and violence, if they
would be happy, attain
to great age and after death get to the
good place. How much
this meant among blind savages who were
dead in sins and had
not the ability to withstand evil and
vice may be readily im-
agined. It is possible that the
admonitions of the aged availed
to the extent of restraining wickedness,
so that it did not break
forth as it does at the present time. It
is undoubtedly true that
there were formerly fewer vices than
now. Of some forms of
indulgence they know nothing, for
example of strong drink,
A History of the Indians. 131
through which unquestionably many evils
have crept in. They
lived in earlier days more simply,
perhaps one ought to say
more stupidly, and now that they have
gained in knowledge and
understanding they have become practiced
in wickedness.
They consider the soul to be an
invisible being and a spirit.
Formerly, they used the word Wtellenapewoagan
to describe
it, meaning the "Substance of a
Human Being." Savages use
this word to the present day. Now they
have accepted the word
Wtschitschank, that is, "Spirit." They believe also in the im-
mortality of the soul. Some likened
themselves to corn which
when thrown out and buried in the soil
comes up and grows.
Some believe their souls to be in the
sun and only their bodies
here. Others say that when they die
their souls will go to God
and suppose that when they have been
some time with God
they will be at liberty to return to the
world and be born again.
Hence, many believe that their souls
have come from God and
that they have been in the world before.
They believe also in the transmigration
of the soul. Wander-
ing spirits and ghosts, they claim,
sometimes throw something
into a public path and whoever goes over
it is bewitched and
becomes lame or ill. They even pretend
to know where such
a thing happened, learning it from the
doctors who are thought
to be able to effect a cure.
Concerning the deluge there are some
fairly clear traditions
among the Indians. According to these,
the world was at one
time entirely flooded and all men
perished. The turtle, however,
able to live both on land and sea, had
survived and again peo-
pled the world. Hence, the Turtle Tribe
is the most important
among, the Indians. Another tradition is
that when the earth
was flooded some men and women had
seated themselves on
the back of a turtle of such great age
that moss had already
grown on its back. These people commissioned a diver that
flew nearby to search for land. After
searching in many re-
gions this bird had at last returned
with a bit of earth in its
mouth. They, then, proceed on the back
of the turtle to
where this earth had been procured and
found a little spot of
dry land, where they settled. Gradually
more land appeared,
and this was, eventually, peopled by the
descendants of those
132 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
who had on the back of the turtle
escaped the general de-
struction.
Concerning their origin no trace of
tradition is to be found
among the Indians. From some old Mingoes
I heard that they
believed themselves to have come from
under the earth, where
they had lived before. A badger had
worked his way to the
surface, seen the beautiful land and
returned at once to an-
nounce to them what he had seen. They
had been so pleased
with his account that they left their
subterranean abode forth-
with and settled in this beautiful land.
From their habit of
speaking in figure or parable, it may be
concluded that by this
account they mean to convey the idea
that they originally came
from the other side of the earth. Others
say that they came
from under the water, which may mean
much the same thing.
The tradition of the Nantikoks is that
seven Indians had sud-
denly seen themselves seated at the
sea-side. Whether they had
come over the sea or been there created
they did not know. De-
scendants of these Indians peopled the
land. Others, again,
claim that the first human being fell
from heaven. This was a
woman, cast out from the upper regions
by her husband. Shortly
after her fall from heaven she was
delivered of twins, from
whom the inhabitants of this land are
descended. They believe
that in the realm above them is a world
of men much like this,
whence the Indians originally came.
They believe in numerous spirits or
subordinate deities.
Almost all animals and the elements are
looked upon as spirits,
one exceeding the other in dignity and
power. There is scarcely
an Indian who does not believe that one
or more of these spirits
has not been particularly given him to
assist him and make him
prosper. This, they claim, has been made
known to them in
a dream, even as their religious belief
and witchcraft is alleged
to have been made known to them in a
dream. One has, in a
dream, received a serpent or a buffalo,
another the sun or the
moon, another an owl or some other bird,
another a fish, some
even ridiculously insignificant
creatures such as ants. These
are considered their spirits or Manittos.
If an Indian has no
Manitto to be his friend he considers himself forsaken, has
nothing upon which he may lean, has no
hope of any assistance
A History of the Indians. 133
and is small in his own eyes. On the
other hand those who
have been thus favored possess a high
and proud spirit.
About thirty years ago302 preachers
appeared among the
Indians. They pretended to have received
revelations from
above, to have traveled into heaven and
conversed with God.
They gave different accounts of their
journey, but all agreed in
this: that no one could enter heaven
without great danger, for
the road, say they, runs close by the
gates of hell. Here the
devil lies in ambush and snatches at
every one who is going to
God. They came first to the Son of God
and through him to
God himself, with whom they pretend to
have conversed con-
cerning the Indians and by whom they
were commanded to in-
struct their people. Thus the Indians
were for the first time in-
formed that there was a heaven where was
the dwelling of God
and a hell that of the devil. Presumably
they got this knowledge
from the whites. Some of the preachers
confessed that they
had not reached the dwelling of God but
had approached near
enough to hear the cocks crow and see
the smoke of the chim-
neys in heaven. Others that they had
approached the Son of
God and then returned.
These teachers marked off on a piece of
parchment made
of deerskin two roads, both leading to
heaven, one designated
by God for the Indians, the other for
the white people. They
claim that the latter had to go a great
way round about and
the road for the Indians was at that
time the shortest, but now,
since the white people had blocked up
the road for the Indians,
they were obliged to make a long circuit
to come to God. Fur-
ther, there were paintings of heaven and
hell upon the parch-
ment as also the figure of a balance to
represent the deceitful
traffic carried on by the white people
with the Indians. This
rude parchment is, as it were, their
Bible, and lies spread before
them when they preach for the Indians.
They then explain
every mark and figure to their hearers
and it is very evident
that their chief aim is to influence the
minds of the Indians
against the white people. It is certain
that their preaching has
had this effect, for about this time war
broke out between In-
dians and whites there having been no
such war before.
They declared to the Indians that God
had commanded their
134 Ohio Arch.
and Hist. Society Publications.
cleansing from sin and to this end they
gave them twelve dif-
ferent kinds of Beson to drink, supposed
by causing vomiting
to free them of sinful taint. Some
Indians, following these in-
junctions, vomited so often that their
lives were endangered by
it.303 They were, further,
strictly ordered to fast, and to take
nothing but Beson. Few persevered in this absurd practice
the required length of time.
Other teachers pretended that stripes were
the most ef-
fectual means to purge away sin. They
advised their hearers
to suffer themselves to be beaten with
twelve different sticks
from the soles of their feet to their
necks, that their sins might
pass from them through their throats.
They preached a system
of morals, very severe for the savages,
insisting that the Indians
abstain from fornication, adultery,
murder, theft and practice
virtuous living as the condition to
their attaining after death
the place of the good spirits, which
they call Tschipeghacki, the
"land of spirits," where the
life is happy and deer, bear and all
manner of game are abundant and the
water is like crystal.
There nought was to be heard save
singing, dancing and merry
making. Formerly the Indians only knew of a good place
promised to the virtuous, but they did
not know where the place
was. The preachers pretend to have found
the place, which
lies to the south. The passage thither
is the milky way which
may be seen in the heavens on a clear
night. They venture also
to describe the appearance of the place
for there are Indians
who have been dead for several days and
returned to life who
have been there and have told of the
things seen. Whoever
reaches that place will find a city of
beautiful houses and
clean streets. Entering a house he will
see no one but have
good things to eat placed before him, a
fire made and a bed
prepared-all of which is done by spirits
invisible to him.
Others assert that such an one will see
the women coming with
baskets on their backs full of
strawberries and bilberries, large
as apples, and will observe that the
inhabitants daily appear in
fine raiment and live a life of
rejoicing.
In this they all agree that the bad
Indians, who have not
lived as these preachers exhorted them,
will not reach the place,
Tschipeghacki, but must remain some distance away, able to see
A History of the Indians. 135
those within dwelling happily but not
able to enter. They would
receive nothing but poisonous wood and
poisonous roots to eat,
holding them ever near the brink of a
bitter death but not
suffering them to die.
While these preachers admonished the
Indians to lead a
good and virtuous life their own walk
and conduct altogether
disagreed with their exhortation. They
introduced polygamy,
and during their sermons had several of
their wives sitting
'round about them. They even pretended
that it was a charitable
and meritorious act in them, as men
living upon terms of inti-
macy with God, to take these poor
ignorant women and lead
them in the way to God and to the
enjoyment of eternal felicity.
This part of their doctrine was greatly
relished by the In-
dians, and it is a lamentable truth that
since that period adultery,
fornication and other such abominations
have been more fre-
quent among the Indians. The young began
to despise the
counsel of the aged and endeavored to
get into favor with these
preachers whose followers multiplied
very fast. Some of the
preachers went even so far as to make
themselves equal with
God. They affirmed that the weal and woe
of the Indians de-
pended upon their will and pleasure.
Their deluded followers,
possessing the highest veneration for
them, brought them many
presents. Even some of the most sensible
and respected Indians
assented to their doctrines, punctually
following their prescrip-
tions even at the hazard of health and
life. Some of the latter
we now have in the congregation, who
have learned that noth-
ing avails to deliver from the servitude
of sin save the blood
of Jesus Christ.
One of these preachers often proclaimed
openly to the
Indians that he was quite at home at the
side of God, went
in and out of his presence where neither
sin nor Satan could
do him harm; he stated, however, that he
had never heard of
the God on the cross preached by the
Moravians, and did not
believe him to be the real God for his
God had no wounds and
gave him whenever he appeared a little
piece of bread, white
as snow. On another occasion, having
prepared a drink of
bilberries he announced that this was
the blood of the Son of
136 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
God. Thus it appeared that through him
Satan endeavored to
rob the gospel of its power over the
Indians.
As long as the preachers did not
proclaim things evidently
untrue they were held in great regard
and had a considerable
following withersoever they went, for
they never remained long
in one place, else their deception would
have been revealed the
sooner. They still preached in
Gekelemukpechunk 304 when the
Moravians came to the Muskingum. Soon
thereafter they be-
gan to be too coarse, seeking to
establish their teaching in oppo-
sition to the gospel. This brought about
the end of their in-
fluence. One has since heard little of
them and the most have
died. For at the last they preached that
whoever would be-
lieve in them and follow their direction
would be happy in the
chase and in all other undertakings,
would be able to cross sea
and land, would reap plenteous harvests
even though little had
been planted. The Indians who trusted in
them soon saw that
they had been deceived and that they had
been brought to
starvation by the treacherous preachers.
Then the power of the
latter was at an end.
Worship and sacrifices have obtained
among them from the
earliest times, being usages handed down
from their ancestors.
Though in the detail of ceremony there
has been change, as the
Indians are more divided now than at
that time, worship and
sacrifice have continued as practiced in
the early days, for the
Indians believe that they would draw all
manner of disease and
misfortune upon themselves if they
omitted to observe the an-
cestral rites.
In the matter of sacrifice,
relationship, even though distant,
is of significance, legitimate or
illegitimate relationship being
regarded without distinction. A
sacrifice is offered by a family,
with its entire relationship, once in
two years. Others, even the
inhabitants of other towns, are invited.
Such sacrifices are com-
monly held in autumn, rarely in winter.
As their connections
are large, each Indian will have opportunity to attend more
than one family sacrifice a year. The
head of the family knows
the time and he must provide for
everything. When the head
of such a family is converted, he gets
into difficulty because his
A History of the Indians. 137
friends will not give him peace until he
has designated some one
to take his place in the arrangement for
sacrificial feasts.
Preparations for such a sacrificial
feast extend through
several days. The requisite number of
deer and bears is calcu-
lated and the young people are sent into
the woods to procure
them together with the leader whose care
it is to see that every-
thing needful is provided. These hunters
do not return until
they have secured the amount of booty
counted upon. On their
return they fire a volley when near the
town, march in in solemn
procession and deposit the flesh in the
house of sacrifice. Mean-
time the house has been cleared and
prepared. The women have
prepared fire-wood and brought in long
dry reed grass, which has
been strewn the entire length of the
house, on both sides, for the
guests to sit upon. Such a feast may
continue for three or four
nights, the separate sessions beginning
in the afternoon and last-
ing until the next morning. Great
kettles full of meat are boiled
and bread is baked. These are served to
the guests by four
servants especially appointed for this
service. The rule is that
whatever is thus brought as a sacrifice
must be eaten altogether
and nothing left.305 A small
quantity of melted fat only is
poured into the fire. The bones are
burnt, so that the dogs may
not get any of them. After the meal the
men and women dance,
every rule of decency being observed. It
is not a dance for
pleasure or exercise, as is the ordinary
dance engaged in by the
Indians. One singer only performs during
the dance, walking
up and down, rattling a small tortoise
shell filled with pebbles.
He sings of the dreams the Indians have
had, naming all the
animals, elements and plants they hold
to be spirits. None of
the spirits of things that are useful to
the Indians may be
omitted. By worshipping all the spirits
named they consider
themselves to be worshipping God, who
has revealed his will
to them in dreams. When the first singer
has finished he is
followed by another. Between dances the
guests may stop to
eat again. There are four or five kinds
of feasts, the ceremonies
of which differ much from one another.
In another kind of feast the men dance
clad only in their
Breech-clout, their bodies being daubed
all over with white clay.
138 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
At a third kind of feast ten or more
tanned deer-skins are
given to as many old men or women, who
wrap themselves in
them and stand before the house with
their faces turned toward
the east, praying God with a loud voice
to reward their bene-
factors. They turn toward the east
because they believe that
God dwells beyond the rising of the sun.
At the same time
much wampum is given away. This is
thrown on the ground
and the young people scramble for it.
Afterward it is ascer-
tained who secured the most. This feast
is called 'ngammuin,
the meaning of which they themselves are
unable to give.
A fourth kind of feast is held in honor
of a certain voracious
spirit, who, according to their opinions,
is never satisfied. The
guests are, therefore, obliged to eat
all the bear's flesh and
drink the melted fat. Though indigestion and vomiting may
result they must continue and not leave
anything.
A fifth kind of festival is held in
honor of fire which the
Indians regard as being their
grandfather and call Machtuzin,
meaning "to perspire." A sweating-oven is built in the midst
of the house of sacrifice, consisting of
twelve poles each of a
different species of wood. These twelve
poles represent twelve
Manittos, some of these being creatures, others plants. These
they run into the ground, tie together
at the top, bending them
toward each other; these are covered
entirely with blankets,
ioined closely together, each person
being very ready to lend
his blanket, so that the whole appears
like a baker's oven, high
enough nearly to admit a man standing
upright. After the
meal or sacrifice, fire is made at the
entrance of the oven and
twelve large stones, about the size of
human heads, are heated
and placed in the oven. Then twelve
Indians creep into it and
remain there as long as they can bear
the heat. While they
are inside twelve pipes full of tobacco
are thrown, one after an-
other, upon the hot stones which
occasions a smoke almost
powerful enough to suffocate those
confined inside. Some one
may also walk around the stones singing
and offering tobacco,
for tobacco is offered to fire. Usually,
when the twelve men
emerge from the oven, they fall down in
a swoon. During this
feast a whole buck-skin with the head
and antlers is raised upon
a pole, head and antlers resting on the
pole, before which the
A History of the Indians. 139
Indians sing and pray. They deny that
they pay any adoration
to the buck, declaring that God alone is
worshipped through
this medium and is so worshipped at his
will.
At these feasts there are never less
than four servants, to
each of whom a fathom of wampum is given
that they may care
for all necessary things. During the
three or four days they
have enough to do by day and by night.
They have leave, also,
to secure the best of provisions, such
as sugar, bilberries, mo-
lasses, eggs, butter and to sell these
things at a profit to guests
and spectators. Festivals are usually closed with a general
drinking bout. There are always
rum-sellers present on such
occasions who make large profits. As a
result of the drinking
there are generally several fatalities,
for, among the Indians that
gather from various places, such as wish
to work off an old
score are ready to make use of the
opportunity afforded by these
occasions.
Besides these solemn feasts of sacrifice
there are many of
less importance, for individuals arrange
them on their own ac-
count. They invite guests and prepare a
feast of deer or bear's
flesh. The guests consume the whole
meal, the host and his
family being mere spectators. At the
great feasts all who are
present partake of the food. Each
individual may offer sac-
rifice for himself when engaged in the
chase, in order that he
may be successful. Having cut up a deer
and divided it into
many small pieces he scatters them about
for the birds and
crows that sit about on the trees
waiting. Retiring to some dis-
tance the Indian will then amuse himself
by observing in what
manner they devour the prey. Another may
offer to his Manitto
for some other reason. Corn is said to
be the wife of the In-
dian and to it they sacrifice bear's
flesh. To the deer and bear
they offer corn. To the fishes they
bring an offering of small
pieces of bread shaped in the form of fishes.
If an Indian
hunter hears an owl screech in the night
he immediately throws
some tobacco into the fire, muttering a
few words at the same
time. Then they promise themselves
success for the next day
for the owl is said to be a powerful
spirit. In dreams, they
claim, it has been made known to them
what creatures to regard
as their manittos and what
offerings to bring to them. Such
140
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
offerings are then regarded by God as
rendered to him. It is
clear enough that the Indians,
professing to worship God and
bringing sacrifices to him, serve Satan,
who influences their
dreams, and keeps them in slavery in
this wise, for the Indians
consider dreams to be of great
importance and nothing less than
revelations from God. It is indeed true
as the Apostle says, I
Cor. 10:20, "the things
which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sac-
rifice to the devils and not to
God." Those among the Indians
who have been converted recognize this
and henceforth hold
the Indian sacrifices and offerings to
be vain and do not care
to say much about them.
To the spirits of the dead they offer
both meat and drink-
offerings. If it is to be a meat
offering, which the doctors must
decide in case of illness or accident,
either a hog or a bear is
killed for a feast and guests are
invited. The latter assemble
in the house where the sacrifice is to
be offered. An old man
gives part of the meal to the enraged
spirits, speaks with them,
and begs them to be pacified. All this
is done in the dark; there
must be neither fire nor light. After
the old man has communed
with the spirits he tells the guests
that they have been appeased.
If it is to be a drink offering rum is
required. Guests are
invited also. They drink together and
some one speaks with
the spirits and pacifies them. The
guests walk to the grave and
pour some rum upon it. Such sacrifices
are very common among
them, and are arranged even upon very
trivial occasions. In
case of a tooth-ache or head-ache, they
imagine that the spirits
are displeased and must be pacified by
an offering.
Every woman whose child dies in a
foreign land travels,
if possible, once a year to the place of
its burial, taking another
woman with her, and offers a
drink-offering upon its grave.
The hare is regarded as a great God and
they bring offer-
ings to it. The name of one of the twins
born to the woman
that was thrown from heaven was Tschimammus,
that is, hare.
He made the land upon which the Indians
dwell and was their
ancestor. Now he is said to dwell in
heaven, for many Indians
who have been there have seen him and
spoken to him and to
them he has declared that he would come
again.
A History of the Indians. 141
The only idol which the Indians have,
and which may prop-
erly be called an idol, is their Wsinkhoalican,
that is image. It
is an image cut in wood, representing a
human head, in minia-
ture, which they always carry about them
either on a string
around their neck or in a bag. They
often bring offerings to
it. In their houses of sacrifice they
have a head of this idol as
large as life put upon a pole in the
middle of the room.
Their ornaments are partly round shields
and half moons
of silver, partly the same forms made in
wampum. These are
usually worn upon the breast for
adornment. They also have
great belts of wampum made of the
violet, not the white, wam-
pum. Men as well as women wear silver
crosses upon the breast
and in the ears which custom comes from
the French. The
Wsinkhoalican they like also to hang about their children to
preserve them from illness and insure
them success.
They are very fond of white children.
Hence Indian wo-
men run after white men and, when they
have white children,
make much of them, although they do not
like the white people.
Twins are regarded as particularly
fortunate, being looked upon
as favored people who have a great
spirit.
Their language resembles various other
languages, some
more, some less. When one remembers how
near or how far
they have lived from one another it will
appear that the differ-
ences in the languages have come about
through the separation of
the peoples and the little contact they
have had with one another.
The Unami and the Wunalachtico both
lived along the sea
in Pennsylvania and in Jersey, a short
distance from one an-
other. Their languages differ very
little. That of the Monsys306
who lived on the other side of the Blue
Mountains in Minnissink
is very different from these, so that
had they not dwelt nearer
together and been in constant contact in
recent times they would
hardly understand each other. Yet the
speech of each of these
peoples is but a dialect of one and the
same language. The lan-
guage of the Mahikanders307 bears
much resemblance to that of
the Monsys, the former having lived in
New York and the Wo-
apeno not far from them in New England.
The language of the
Nantikoks, formerly residing on the
seacoast in Maryland, very
much resembles the Delaware, differing
only in pronunciation
142
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
and accent. The language of the
Shawanose is also related to
the Monsy and Delaware but, more
particularly, to the Ma-
hikander, only the former generally
place the accent upon the
last syllable of a word. The reason for
this is that they orig-
inally lived in Florida and whether
their language changed
very much since they were driven out and
lived first in the Forks
of the Delaware, then along the
Susquehannah, then along the
Ohio and finally here among the
Delawares, I am not able to
determine, except it be, that in Florida
the language of some
other nations bore a resemblance to
this. The language of the
Twichtwees and Wawiachtanos resembles
the Shawanose and
consequently, also, the Delaware. The
dialects of the Kikapus,
Tuckachschas, Moshkos, Kaskaski the
further away they lived
resembles the Delawares less and less.
Yet the Delawares have
much intercourse with them, for many of
them live along the
Wabash where the Kikapus have given them
hunting grounds.
Every year Delaware hunters go thither
for the chase and return.
The language of the Ottawas is related
somewhat to that of the
Shawanose, Chipuways and the Delawares.
The language of
the Cherokees is a mixture of other
languages. It has a little
of the Shawanose, the Mingoes and a
great deal of the Wion-
dats. The speech of the last named
people and that of the Six
Nations are again dialects of one and
the same language, differ-
ing from one another yet easily
understood by either of the
nations named. It appears, therefore,
safe to affirm that there
are two principal languages spoken by
the Indians of North
America, namely the Mingoes and the
Delaware.308 Concerning
the nations who live along the Mississippi
I have no certain
knowledge. They are not usually counted
among the northern
nations. Their language has an agreeable
sound both in com-
mon conversation and in public delivery.
The Monsy is much
rougher. In their public delivery they
speak with a very pom-
pous and boastful tone, in which the
Iroquois excel all the other
Indians. There are, indeed, no rules of
oratory laid down in the
Indian language, yet the speakers must
be well versed in mat-
ters relating to their own nation as
well as those of others, and
they must know what title to apply to
each of the other nations,
whether brother or nephew or uncle. The
same holds good of the
A History of the Indians. 143
various branches of their own nation.
The Monsys and Unamis
call one another Nitgochk, "my
companion [feminine] in play,"
for the reason that the whole nation has
become the women.
The several tribes, also, have special
names and titles, which
the speaker must know. These titles are
not generally used but
only in their councils when something of
importance is to be
communicated, which is done with great
solemnity. They are
able to express themselves with great
clearness and precision,
and so concisely that much
circumlocution is required to convey
the full meaning of their expressions in
an European language.
In spiritual things, of which they are
totally ignorant, there was
utter lack of expressions. But since the
gospel has been preached
among them, their language has gained
much in this respect.
If they intend to speak in an obscure
manner, they can speak
so cleverly and with so much
circumstance that even Indians
must puzzle out the true sense of their
allusions. They are
able to convey an account of a bad
action so skillfully that it
appears not to be a bad but a virtuous
deed. The chiefs are
not particularly well versed in this art
of dissembling, and, there-
fore, very strict attention must be paid
to every word of their
discourse, especially, if an answer is
required, and great caution
is necessary in order that one may not
be caught.
A speaker in council must be able to
deliver his speech
without hesitation. Often he has no time
to prepare his sub-
ject, the different heads are only
briefly named or left for him
to collect from the conversation of the
chiefs. He must, then,
be able to comprise the whole in a
speech, well arranged and
uninterrupted, which requires a clear
and open understanding,
a faithful memory and experience in
matters of state. Young
men are being constantly trained for
such duty. They are ad-
mitted as hearers to the council, to
familiar intercourse with the
chiefs, who instruct them faithfully,
and are employed as am-
bassadors to give them an opportunity to
exercise themselves in
public speaking.
The pronunciation of their language is
easy, only the Ch
is a very deep gutteral. The greatest
difficulty is presented by the
compounding of words with verbs,
substantives and adjectives,
which is very difficult for a European
to learn. They have few
144
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
monosyllables. In things relating to
common life the language
of the Indians is remarkably rich. They,
in many cases, have
several names for one and the same thing
under different cir-
cumstances. They have ten different
names for a bear, accord-
ing to its age or sex. Similarly, they
have a number of names
for a deer. They have one word for
fishing with a rod, another
for fishing with a net, another for
fishing with a spear or har-
poon. Such words do not in the least
resemble one another.
The speech of the Unami has the most
agreeable sound and is
much easier for a European to acquire
than that of the Monsys.
The Monsy dialect, however, is a key to
many of the expres-
sions in the Unami. The latter have a
way of dropping some
syllables, so that without a knowledge
of the former, it would be
impossible either to spell their words
or guess their meaning. The
Unami have adopted many words of the
Monsy dialect and the
Monsys of the Unami dialect. They have
no "f" nor "r" in
their language, hence they pronounce
foreign words containing
these letters differently, for example,
Pilip for Philip, Petelus
for Petrus, adding a syllable, and
Priscilla they pronounce Pli-
cilla. In polysyllables the accent is
generally placed on the mid-
dle syllable or on the last but one.
This must be very minutely
attended to because the sense of many
words depends upon the
accent. They can count up to thousands
and hundreds of thou-
sands, though they are unable to grasp
the significance of large
numbers. The women generally count upon
their fingers, for
this is their custom and their memory is
poor.
In arithmetic they have made but little
progress. They
count up to ten, make a mark, proceed to
the next ten and so on
to the end of the account. By adding the
tens they come to
hundreds, and so on. In counting money
the penny is the small-
est coin they reckon. The Monsys call
the stiver, of which they
learned from the Dutch in Minissink,309
stipel. Sixpence they
call Gull, corruption of the Dutch
Gulden. They usually count
money according to Gulls, twenty Gulls
being equal to ten shil-
lings. If they want to calculate
carefully, they take Indian
corn, calling every grain a penny or a
gull, adding as many as
are necessary to make shillings and
pounds.
A History of the Indians. 145
Of writing they know nothing, except the
painting of
hieroglyphics, already referred to,
which they know very well
how to interpret. These drawings in red
by the warriors may
be legible for fifty years. After a hero
has died, his deeds may,
therefore, be kept in mind for many
years by these markings.
A letter, especially, if it is sealed,
is considered a very important
thing. If any treaties, contracts or
deeds are required to be de-
livered to the Europeans, signed by
their chiefs, captains or coun-
sellors, they make their mark and get
others to subscribe their
names. The mark may be a hook, or the
foot of a turkey or a
turtle or represent something else. They
are very generally
ashamed of their Indian names and prefer
the names given them
by the whites. Some have learned to
write the initial letters of
their new names.
In reckoning time they do not count the
days but the nights.
An Indian says, "I have travelled
so many nights." Only if the
entire journey has been accomplished in
one day, will he speak
of a day's journey. Most of them
determine a number of years
by so many winters, springs, summers or
autumns. They say,
"In spring when we boil
sugar," that is March, or "when we
plant," that is May, so and so will
be of such an age. Few know
their age when they get to be over
thirty. Some reckon from
the time of a hard frost or a deep fall
of snow in such a year,
from an Indian war, or from the founding
of Pittsburg or Phila-
delphia, when they were so or so old.
They divide the year
into winter, spring, summer, autumn, and
these periods are
divided according to the moons, though,
it must be said, that
their reckoning is not very accurate.
They cannot agree just
when to begin the new year. Most of them
begin the year with
the spring, that is with March, which
they call Chwoame
Gischuch, that is the Shad month,
because at this season this
fish goes up the rivers and creeks in
great numbers. True, these
fish are not found here, but the name
was brought from the
Susquehanna region. April they call
Hackihewi Gischuch, that
is Planting month, though they rarely
begin to plant before May
or the end of April. May has a name
signifying the month in
which the hoe is used for Indian corn,
though this is usually not
Vol. XIX. -10.
146 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
done until June. The name given to June
signifies the month
in which the deer become red. That of
July, the time of raising
the earth about the corn, and of August,
Winu Gischuch, the
time when the corn is in the milk and
ready to eat and roast.
September is called the first autumn
month, October the harvest
month, November the hunting month, most
of the Indians going
out to shoot bucks. The name December
shows the time when
the bucks cast their antlers. January is
the month in which the
ground squirrels come out of their
holes, and February they call
Squalle Gischuch, the month of frogs,
the month when the frogs
begin to croak, though this again does
not usually occur until
later. At the present time the most of
them begin the year with
the Europeans, if they have come into
frequent contact with
them.
They are well versed in their
genealogies and are able to
describe every branch of the family with
the greatest precision.
They also add concerning the character
of their forefathers, such
an one was a wise and intelligent man, a
great chief or captain
or an Achewilens, that is a rich man and
seems to signify as
much as the word, gentleman, for the
rich among them are highly
respected. These make themselves
prominent by giving the
chiefs great quantities of wampum, when
the chiefs are in need,
and they are regarded as the main
supports of the chiefs.
Concerning remoter ancestors they know
nothing more than
that they were great warriors and
accomplished many heroic
deeds, that in the war with the Six
Nations, when they still lived
along the sea-coast, the former were
unable to do them much
harm and after attacks on Delaware towns
had fled in such haste
that the Delawares had not been able to
catch them, though they
had got to the mountains as swiftly as
turkeys, that, however,
in spite of the ability of the Six
Nations to get away the Dela-
wares had caught and killed many of
their enemies. They also,
relate concerning their ancestors that
the Six Nations regarded
them as mighty magicians, feared them
and at last concluded a
peace with them in the manner already
described. Further, they
relate how in times past the Delawares
made attacks on towns
of the Cherokees and killed many of the
inhabitants; how, on
occasion, they visited them at night
during the dance, mingled
A History of the Indians. 147
with the dancers, and when the
amusement was at its height
killed many of them with short weapons
they had concealed under
their blankets, escaping, after the deed
was done, before their
treachery had been discovered.
The land was never formally divided
among the nations,
whatever region was settled by a nation
was recognized as prop-
erty of that nation, and no one disputed
its title, until, in course
of war, one nation overpowered another
and drove it out of its
territory. In such cases, however, the
conquering nation did not
always settle on the
conquered territory; for example, the Mosh-
kos drove the Shawanose from their land
in Florida but did not
themselves settle there, still living on
the west side of the Ohio
in the region of the Wabash. The
Delawares conquered the ter-
ritory in which they live, having been
driven out of the region
they once inhabited by the white people.
The Wiondats adjudged
this region as belonging to them; and
the Kikapus have given
them a district along the Wabash and
bordering on the country
they inhabit for the chase. A part of
the Delaware nation has
lived in the Wabash region these many
years, and of those living
here many go thither every year. The
boundaries of Indian
countries are fixed along rivers and
creeks or in a straight line
from one river to another or along the
mountain ranges, where
there are mountains.
Of the spherical form of the earth they
have no conception.
Some declare that the earth floats upon
the sea and that an
enormous tortoise bears it on its back.
The sky, they say, rests
upon the water probably because it
appears so to do when they
look out upon the sea. Others declare
that there is a place where
the sky strikes the earth, rises again
and continues moving up
and down, smiting a rock, which causes
such a report that it may
be heard many days' journey. Two great
captains once visited
that place, and one of them risked going
through the opening
when the sky rose. He succeeded in
getting into heaven and
coming back. Yet where this place is
they know as little as they
do the location of Tschipey Hacki, the
land of the spirits. The
sun, they think, sinks into the water
when it sets. Thunder is a
mighty spirit dwelling in the mountains
and sometimes issuing
from their fastnesses suffers himself to
be heard. Others imag-
148
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
ine the thunder to proceed from the
crowing of a monstrous
turkey-cock in the heavens. For certain
stars they have names.
The north star is called Lowanen, that
is, north, or it is called
the star that does not move. The wagon
which revolves around
the North Star they call the Bear, whom,
they say, the Indians
pursued with a little dog, that is the
star Wilis; the three stars
in the form of a triangle, represent the
head of a bear, which
they cut from the trunk and threw down.
Certain stars forming
an ellipse they call the beaver-hide,
because they describe the
form of a beaver hide stretched out. The
milky way is the road to
Tschipey Hacki. The seven stars3091/2
they have named Anschisk-
tauwewak, that is fire-brands gathered
or laid together. The
Monsys (Monseys) call these stars
Menhangik, the travelling
companions. Other nations have yet other
names for them. In
case of an eclipse of sun or moon, they
say that these bodies have
fallen into a swoon.
In time of illness, they try all manner
of remedies, for they
have a great fear of death. They not
only consult the doctors,
but take, also, the medicine that others
may prescribe. The
doctors must be called in, for if they
were slighted, the patient
might die. The doctors blow upon the
patients, sprinkle a drink
of roots and herbs they have taken into
the mouth upon them,
and murmur incantations over them. They
diagnose the disease,
tell whence it came and inform them
whether recovery is pos-
sible or not. They give directions,
also, as to what must be done
and what kind of sacrifice must be
brought. They prescribe some
sort of Beson prepared from herbs and
roots, of which they know
the properties very well. It has
happened that many doctors
have been consulted in a single case,
have perhaps given up all
hope of recovery, and yet the patient
became well.
For headache they lay a piece of white
walnut bark on the
temples, toothache is treated by placing
the same kind of bark
on the cheek over the tooth that gives
the trouble. The bark
is very heating and burns the skin in a
short time, often afford-
ing relief. The same bark is applied to
any of the limbs that
may be afflicted, having the effect at
times of driving the pain
from one part of the body to another,
until there is an eruption
somewhere. This bark pounded fine and
boiled to the con-
A History of the Indians. 149
sistency of a strong lye stops the flow
of blood when applied
to a fresh wound, even though an artery
may have been ruptured,
prevents swelling and heals the wound
rapidly. After this
solution has been used for one or two
days other roots must be
applied, such as the great sassaparilla
and others that have heal-
ing powers.
Epilepsy is not very common among the
Indians. It does
not often happen that an Indian becomes
mad, and madness
among these people is not as violent as
among the whites,
probably, for the reason that they are
not possessed of equal
power with the whites, and even their
bodies are weaker be-
cause they have not the abundance and
variety of nourishing
food. Blood letting is supposed to help
the epileptics.
Of small-pox they knew nothing until
some of them caught
the contagion from the Europeans. Most
of them died before
the small-pox properly appeared. They
are much inclined to
boils and sores. Upon these they lay a
warm poultice made
of the flour of Indian corn; when the
boils are ripe they are
lanced. Broken arms and legs they are
able to set very well,
though limbs are not broken often,
dislocated joints they are
also able to correct. If an Indian has
dislocated his foot or
knee, when hunting alone, he creeps to
the next tree and tying
one end of his strap to it, fastens the
other to the dislocated limb
and, lying on his back, continues to
pull until it is reduced.
For tooth-ache the Indians use roots
also, placing a little piece
in the hollow tooth, which sometimes
affords relief though not
always. Sometimes teeth are extracted if
a pair of pincers can
be secured. It is not for lack of skill
but for lack of proper
instruments that they do not treat
external injuries more suc-
cessfully. Such instruments as they have
are not used in the
most careful manner. If one who is being
operated on cries
out, those present laugh. Misfortunes of
almost any kind trouble
them little; if house and goods have
been burned, the un-
fortunate owners may even relate the
experience in a humorous
manner.
Many of them suffer from diarrhoea,
particularly, in the
fall of the year. The evil is aggravated
because they know noth-
ing of dieting and continue to eat
whatever they wish. Fo
150 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
this and for other troubles they have
roots and herbs, which
generally prove efficient remedies.
Knowledge of these remedies
may be confined to a very few, who
demand payment for any
prescription they make and keep their
secrets to themselves.
One common mistake made by all Indian
practitioners is over-
dosing the patients. Fortunately, the
Indians have strong con-
stitutions, and usually do not suffer
permanent injury from the
unwise treatment of their doctors.
Concerning mourning for the dead it
might be added that
a widow is expected to observe in
externals the following rules
during the period of mourning which
lasts a year. She must
lay aside all ornaments, wash but
little, for as soon as she makes
pretensions at cleanliness, combs and
dresses her hair, it is re-
ported that she is anxious to marry. Men
who are in mourn-
ing have no such regulations to observe.
Should a chief have lost a child or near
relative, no com-
plaint may be brought before him, nor
may his advice be asked
on any affairs of state. Even important
embassies from other
nations cannot be attended to by him
until comfort has been
formally offered. This is commonly done
by delivering a string
or fathom of wampum and addressing to
him a speech, in which
figuratively the remains of the deceased
are buried, the grave
covered with bark that neither dew of
heaven nor rain may fall
upon it, the tears are wiped from the
chief's eyes, the sorrow of
burial taken from his heart and his
heart made cheerful. This
done, it is possible to confer with him
on the matters of state
that need consideration.
When Europeans, who are in more
comfortable circum-
stances than the Indians, wish to
comfort a chief, they not only
give a string of wampum but wrap the
corpse of the deceased
in a large piece of fine linen, laying
another piece on the grave
and wipe the tears from his eyes with
silk handkerchiefs. Both
the linen and the silks are given him as
a present.
When a chief dies sympathy is expressed
with the whole
nation. I will give a brief description
of the ceremonies ob-
served when the Cherokees sent a formal
and numerous embassy
to the Delawares in Goschachgunk to
renew their alliance with
A History of the Indians. 151
them after their Chief Netawatwes had
died. The ambassadors
halted several miles below the town and
sent word that they
had arrived. The day after some Delaware
Captains went down
to welcome them and delivered a speech,
in which they expressed
joy on their arrival, extracted the
thorns they had gotten on the
journey from their feet, took the sand
and gravel from between
their toes, and anointed the wounds and
bruises made by the
briars and brushwod with oil, wiped the
perspiration from their
faces and the dust from their eyes,
cleansed their ears, throats
and hearts of all evil they had seen,
heard or which had entered
their hearts. A string of wampum was
delivered in confirma-
tion of this speech and then the
Captains, accompanied by a
large number of Indians, conducted the
embassadors to the
town. On entering the Cherokees saluted
the inhabitants by
firing their pieces, which was answered
in the same manner by
the Delawares. Next, the Captain of the
Cherokees began a
song, during which they proceeded to the
Council-house, where
everything had been prepared for the
reception of the visitors.
All having been seated, the Cherokee
Captain comforted the
grandfather, the Delaware nation, over
the loss of the Chief.
Continuing he wrapped the remains in a
cloth, buried them,
covered the grave with bark, wiped the
tears from the eyes of
the weeping nation, cleansed their ears
and throats and took
away all the sorrow from their hearts.
He confirmed his speech
by delivering a string of wampum. Then
the peace-pipe was
stuffed, lighted and in turn smoked by
several Captains of the
Delawares and Cherokees.
The peace-pipe is held in high regard
among the Indians.
It is brought out at certain solemn
occasions, as when peace is
concluded or renewed. The head is six or
eight inches long and
three inches high. It is made of stone
or marble. A pipe made
of red marble, as was the one used on
the occasion described
above, is particularly valued. The
pipe-stem is made of wood
and blackened, it is strong and durable
and may be four feet
long. It is wound around with fine
ribbon and decorated with
ornaments made of porcupine quills of
various colors. It may
be further ornamented with green, yellow
and white feathers.
If the pipe is made of red marble it is
whitened with white clay
152
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
or chalk, for red is the color of war,
even though the red marble
pipe is most highly valued. For the same
reason nothing red
may appear on a string of wampum. A
war-belt is smeared
with red paint or cinnabar. If for want
of a white wampum
belt, one made of the violet colored
shells has to be used, this
is whitened with clay and then has the
same signficance as a
white belt. The dark wampum belts are
used, whenever they
wish to give some one a severe lesson or
a reproof. After the
ceremonies described above had been
completed, and all had
partaken of a feast, the exercises for
that day were at an end.
On the next day they approached the
chief matters of interest
and exchanged belts of friendship, this
part of the negotiations
lasting several days, as each belt was
presented in connection
with a formal speech.
A few words should be added concerning
animals.
1) Swallows310 are found, generally near some body of
water. Snipe311 are gray in
color and have a bill almost as long
as the body of the bird. The gull312
is frequently seen near rivers
and lakes. Two kinds of plover313 may
be seen in these parts,
both found near water. The one variety
is about the size of a
blackbird,314 which is
sometimes found away from water, the
other much smaller.
The whippoorwill315 is a
night bird, of gray color, somewhat
smaller than a turtledove.316 It
has a thick head, a short bill and
a wide mouth. It has received its name
from its note, which
may be heard all night long.
The Mosquito-hawk317 gets its
name from catching mosqui-
toes and flies while on the wing. It is
about the size of turtle-
dove, has a round white spot on each of
its wings, which seem,
when the animal flies, like holes in the
wings. It will dart up and
down very swiftly in its efforts to
catch insects.
Of bees318 nothing was known
when we came here in '72,
now they are to be found in large
numbers in hollow trees in
the woods.
Wasps319are found in large
numbers.
2)
Among the quadrupeds the flying squirrel320 should be
noted. This animal is about the size of
a rat, has a thin mem-
A History of the Indians. 153
braneous continuation of the skin of the
sides and belly by which
its hind and forelegs are connected.
This supports the animal
in leaping from one tree to another. In
other respects it re-
sembles the common squirrel.
3)
There is found here a variety of rattlesnake312 I have
seen nowhere else. It is hardly a foot
long and very slender, it
has rattles as have the other varieties
and its bite is quite as ven-
omous. The color is, also, like that of
the other rattlers, yellow
with black markings.
4)
Plants. Laurel,322 also called the wild box, grows along
river banks, or in the swamps in cool
places or on the north
side of mountains. It grows so thickly
that it is impossible
to get through. In swamps of laurel, bears like to make
their winter quarters. The wood is fine
and hard. The In-
dians make spoons of it. The main stem
does not become
thicker than a leg. The leaves are green
summer and winter.
THE END.
154 Ohio Arch. and
Hist. Society
Publications.
NOTES.
1. It is of the Iroquois and Delawares that the
author is speak-
ing. Six footers among them were the
exception; Red Jacket measured
five feet eight; Logan, six feet;
Shenandoah, six feet three. School-
craft (History .. . of the Indian
Tribes, Pt. IV, 349) states that
he found about one-half of the men of
the Chippewa nation in 1822,
six feet high; yet the Dakotas averaged
live feet nine. Keokuk was
six feet two. The Ottawas were of
smaller stature than the average
lake tribes. Schoolcraft did not find
muscular development large save
among tribes located near white
settlements where the means of suste-
nance was more constantly supplied.
2. The color of the American Indian
ranged from the "brown
yellow" of the mulatto to the paled
faced "White Indians" of the Red
River, whose seeming likeness to the
Welsh has been discussed (Samuel
Gardner Drake, The Aboriginal Races
of North America, 1, 52-55).
The Blanc Barbus of Canada and Menomonies of Wisconsin were of
lighter complexion, while the darkest of
aborigines were found in the
Caribbean Islands, in Guinea and
California. The Cherokees and Chippe-
was have been classed with the darker
Indians of southern California,
the West Indies, etc., as of possible
Malay origin. By all accounts the
skin of the red man is as thin and soft
as that of the white man;
poison ivy affected some Indians if they
only came in contact with
wind blowing over it upon them.
3. Peter A. Brown, Esq., in 1852, found the fibre or shaft of the
average Indian's hair to be cylindrical,
while in the case of the Anglo-
Saxon it is oval and in the African
race, elliptical; thus the first would
be straight, the second curly and the
third fetted or wooly.
4. The Seneca Tribe of the Six Nations
were generally known
west of New York by the name of Mingo,
especially in the Ohio Valley.
The name was also used as an equivalent
for the more general term of
Iroquois, but oftentimes meaning those
who migrated from their New
York homeland.
5. Shawanese or Shawnees of the Scioto
Valley.
6. Wyandots of the region between the
Sandusky Valley and the
Detroit River.
7. The general impression that is
current concerning the hard-
ship of the life of Indian squaws could
not have been gained from
a careful reading of men who wrote of
the Indians in their original
environment. Writes Heckewelder:
"There are many persons who be-
lieve, from the labour that they see
Indian women perform, that they
are in a manner treated as slaves . . .
but they have no more than
their fair share . . of the hardships attendant on savage life.
The
A
History of the Indians. 155
work of the women is not hard or
difficult. They are both able and
willing to do it, and always perform it
with cheerfulness. I have never
known an Indian woman to complain of the
hardship of carrying this
burden (a pack on making a journey)
which serves for their own
comfort and support as well as their
husbands .... the fatigue of
the women is by no means to be compared
to that of the men. Their
hard and difficult employments are
periodical and of short duration,
while their husbands' labours are
constant in the extreme. Were a
man to take upon himself a part of his
wife's duty, in addition to his
own, he must necessarily sink under the
load, and of course his family
must suffer with him"-An account
of the History, Manners and
Customs of the Indian nations (1817) 146-7. As to the universal cheer-
fulness of Indian women Zeisberger is at
variance with his compatriot.
"The Indian women," writes
Loskiel, "are more given to stealing, lying,
quarreling, backbiting and slandering
than the men"-History of the
Mission of the United Brethren, (1794), 16. In our numerous references
to the above mentioned writers, in
footnotes, we shall use the following
terminology, Heckewelder's History, Heckewelder's
Narrative, and Los-
kiel's History.
8. Zeisberger, it must always be
remembered, is writing in Ohio;
his references to the country to the
northward are the result of his
acquaintance with the Six Nations in New
York State.
9. The Onondaga tribe of Six Nations,
located near Syracuse,
New York.
91/2. Zeisberger seems here to imply
that the country of the Shaw-
anese was Kentucky; elsewhere he clearly
speaks of the Scioto Valley
as but one hundred miles distant.
10. Contrary to the taste of other
Indians, as the Dakotas, School-
craft, History, Pt. IV, 67.
11. Breech cloth.
12. Singularly enough, everything in an
Indian's cabin had its
specific owner. "Every individual
knows what belongs to him, from the
horse or cow down to the dog, cat,
kitten and little chicken. For a
litter of kittens or brood of chickens
there are often as many dif-
ferent owners as there are individual
animals. Thus while the prin-
ciple of community of goods prevails in
the State, the rights of property
are acknowledged among the members of a
family"- Heckewelder,
History, 147-8.
13. Indian Hemp; Apocynum cannabium.
L.
14. Monsey, one of the Three Tribes of
the Delawares living
chiefly on the Beaver River.
15. Bunks made of boards.
16. The expression here is singular and
shows that the western,
migratory Iroquois were clearly
distinguished from those who remained
in the "Long House" in New
York State.
156 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
17. The Rev. David McClure states that
such was the desire for
dancing among the Delaware Indians that
"they are building a dancing
house in this small village, [the
capital of the Delawares near the
present site of Newcomerstown, O.] which
will cost them more labour
than one-half of the houses in it"-Diary,
77. This is one of the most
valuable volumes of early travel
(1770-1790) in the Middle West and
will often be quoted.
18. It is interesting to compare the
accounts of Zeisberger and
Heckewelder, the former a jotter down of
facts, the latter a formal
historian. "The Indians are proud
but not vain," write Heckewelder;
"They consider vanity as degrading
and unworthy the character of a
man. This passion of the Indians which I
have called pride, but which
might perhaps, be better denominated highmindedness,
is generally com-
bined with a great sense of honour, and
not seldom produces actions
of the most heroic kind"-History,
159, 161. The plain, unpretentious
words of Zeisberger, often derogatory of
the Indians, have a ring of
accuracy that is found in almost no
other record.
19. The length of space to which a man
can extend his arms.
20. "Courage, art and
circumspection, are the essential and in-
dispensable qualifications of an Indian
warrior"-Heckewelder, History,
166. According to Zeisberger's notion,
how appropriate the first lines of
the Delaware's chant on going to war:
"0 poor me!" Id. 204.
21. Pontiac's Rebellion.
22. Ottawas.
23. Revolutionary war.
24. Heckewelder's descriptions of Indian
abhorrence of marital
infidelity are not borne out by
Zeisberger or Loskiel. David McClure,
writing at Coshocton, in 1772, records:
"Several of the aged Councillors
had lived with one wife from their
youth; but a great part of husbands
and wives at Kekalemahpehoong [Delaware
capital], had separated and
taken others. I was astonished at the
profligate description which young
Killbuck (whose father had directed him
to lodge in my house, and
to wait on me), gave me of himself. He
slept in a loft, which was
ascended by a ladder at the farther end
of the house. He conducted
a squaw up the ladder every night. I
asked him one day, if it was his
wife? He said no. I admonished him for
his conduct. He said he
was nineteen years old, and had had
several wives, and that he wanted
one more, and he should be happy. It is
natural to expect that but
few children can be the fruit of such
unbounded licentiousness. On an
average there are about two or three to
a family"-Diary, 91.
241/2. The distinction here between
"Indians" and "savages" implies
that the former are Christian and the
latter non-christian.
25. Goschgoschunk, in Venango County,
Pennsylvania, a Delaware
(Monsey) town on the Allegheny
River-Edmund De Schweinitz, Life
and Times of David Zeisberger, 324. seq. Few
volumes relating to the
A
History of the Indians.
157
Middle West of pre-Revolutionary and
Revolutionary days are written
with the care and scholarly accuracy of
this Life of Zeisberger, as we
shall call it in our numerous
references. It is a book of very great merit.
26. Canoes were often buried in the sand
to preserve them through
the winter.
27. Heckewelder records that he has seen
boys of ten and twelve
whose limbs were so contracted by colds
or "fits of sickness" that they
were useless. History, 217. By
all accounts pneumonia and consumption
were exceedingly common among the
Indians; cf. McClure, Diary, 67.
28. Heckewelder calls these bands Happis;
by them, he asserts,
Indians will carry a load "which
many a white man would not have
strength enough to raise from the ground"-History,
214.
29. Probably boils; possibly syphilitic
sores.
30. It is of passing interest to note
some of the remedies used by
the Indians as given by the late Dr.
Zina Pitcher, U. S. A., in School-
craft History, Pt. IV, pp. 502, seq.:
Disease. Herb. Remarks.
Fever Eupatorium, cambium of
horse chestnut, butternut,
etc. Carthartics.
Pleurisy Asclepias decumbens, An-
themis cotula and Poly-
gonum presecoris.
Consumption Poltices of mucillage of the
Ulmus americanus, etc. Consumption w as
treated as an ul-
cer and little un-
derstood.
Asthma Saururus, benzoin, sassa-
faras and Istodes foetida. Palliative remedies.
Dyspepsia Cambium of the
Desculus
glabra, inglans, etc. Little
known save
among
t ri bes
somewhat c i vi l-
ized.
Liver complaint and
gravel A r b u t u s-uva-ursi, spice-
wood, gooseberry root,
etc.
Dysentery and Diar-
rhea Blackberry, Geranium macu-
latum, Spirea tomentosa,
Quercus alba, etc.
Dropsy Prickly ash (Zanthoxylum
americanum) wild goose-
berry (Ribes trifolium).
Amenorrhoea S a s s a fa r a s, spice-wood,
worm-wood.
158 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
Disease. Herb. Remarks.
Hemorrhage Powder of puff-ball (Lyco-
perdon bovista)
pulver-
ized charcoal.
Wounds Washed with decoction of
lichen, bass-wood or
slip-
pery elm. Great care was giv-
en to keeping up
t h e suppurating
process and keep-
ing wounds open.
Ulcers Acorus calamus and caut-
ery.
Salt Rheum Rumex crispus or yellow
dock.
Phlegmon Onion poltices.
Gonorrhoea Various species of genus
Pi-
nus. The balsaam used in
modern remedies.
Syphilis Local applications as for ul-
cers.
Paralysis None.
Obstetrics: S a n g u i n a
r i a canaden-
sis (blood-root) used to
facilitate
parturition.
31. Stings of
poisonous reptiles were treated variously by the dif-
ferent tribes. The
Senecas used a plant called Polygala senega; others
used Liatris
spicata, Asclepias tuberosa, Prenanthus alba, Fraximus
juglandifolia, and many applied locally Alisma plantago. Scientists
are
today studying, for
perhaps the first time, the action of various forms
of venom and the
appropriate remedies for each. The poison of the
rattler destroys the
tissues and blood-cells; that of the cobra paralyzes
the nervous system.
See Dr. J. T. Case, Good Health, June, 1909.
32. Heckewelder
distinguishes between "good" and "bad" medicine-
men, terming the
former "physicians and surgeons" and the latter
"doctors or
jugglers," but states of these latter, "I am sorry that truth
obliges me to confess,
that in their profession they rank above the
honest
practitioners." One whimsical
conceit of the Indian doctor
which well illustrates
their superstition and "science" was that the
water used to concoct
an emetic must be dipped from a stream against
the current, while for
a cathartic it must be dipped with the current.
Heckewelder, suffering
from a painful felon, was put at ease within
half an hour by an
Indian woman who applied a poultice made from
the root of the common
blue violet. Heckewelder, History, 217-225.
33. It would seem here
that male practitioners were called to at-
tend labor cases. Dr.
Pitcher has asserted that, to his knowledge, only
A
History of the Indians.
159
women officiated under such
circumstances, Schoolcraft History, Pt. IV,
515. Loskiel refers to the efficiency of
female doctors in child-birth.
History, 110.
34. These primitive Turkish baths were,
unquestionably, a great
means of health to this race which
suffered so largely from colds. Dr.
McClure, who gives an interesting
description of a sweating oven on the
Muskingum, asserts, however, that to
pulmonary disorders and small
pox, the treatment was quite fatal. Diary,
67.
35. The Unamis, the chief tribe of the
Delawares, lived on the
Tuscarawas River.
36. The Unalochtgos, the tribe of second
importance, lived beside
the Tuscarawas.
37. The Monseys lived mostly on the Big
Beaver River.
38. Orange Co., N. Y.
39. It is refreshing, in the face of so
many idealistic accounts of
primitive Indian life to read these
blunt, plain statements of facts from
Zeisberger's pen. We probably know more
accurately concerning the
Six Nations than of any other Indians.
One of the earliest reports
claims that De Nonville's soldiers in
1687 destroyed a million and a
quarter bushels of corn in four Seneca
villages. And yet we know
that the eating of children in time of
utter famine was known among
the Senecas- Cadwallader Colden, History
of the Five Indian Nations
(1755) II, 8. If such destitution could
exist in a region exceedingly
well watered and fertile, what of
Indians not so fortunately placed?
40. Bracket fungus.
41. Remains of the Mound-building
Indians. These were found on
the site of at least one of the Moravian
Mission towns, Lichtenau. De
Schweinitz, Life of Zeisberger, 433,
436 Note.
42. Unquestionably a European idea; no
mounds in the Middle
West were high enough to serve the
purpose of rolling blocks or stones.
The greater part of the mounds so far
opened prove to have been
raised over charnel houses after the
latter had been filled with bodies.
43. These facts concerning the wooden
wampum and the sub-
stitute for wampum are of utmost
interest.
44. Allegheny River.
45. Neville's Island? This is clearly,
the Delaware tradition.
46. Tennessee River, commonly known in
early days as the Chero-
kee River. See A. B. Hulbert's, "Washington's Tour to the Ohio,"
Ohio State Arch. and Hist. Quart. XVII, (Oct. 1908), 484.
461/2. At the Treaty of Fort Stanwix?
47. Here begins Zeisberger's version of
the legend of the con-
quest of the Iroquois over the Delawares,
one of the famous Indian
legends. It is possible that this
Zeisberger account is the original English
(German) version upon which so many
versions have been based.
Heckewelder (History 11)
referring to the source of his information.
160 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
cites Loskiel, who had only Zeisberger's
manuscript to follow. It is
peculiar that Heckewelder should refer
his readers to an authority who
had no first-hand knowledge. Turning to Loskiel's version of the
events which led up to the Delawares
being made "women" we find
(History, 124, seq.) that Zeisberger's plain account has
been improved
upon by being fashioned into formal
speeches. These begin as follows:
"It is not profitable, that all the
nations should be at war with
each other, for this will at length be
the ruin of the whole Indian race.
We have therefore considered of a
remedy, by which this evil may be
prevented. One nation shall be the
woman. We will place her in the
midst, and the other nations who make
war shall be the man, and
live around the woman. No one shall
touch or hurt the woman, and
if anyone does it, we will immediately
say to him, 'Why do you beat
the woman?'"
By comparison it will be seen that
Loskiel has put Zeisberger's
words into the mouth of speakers,
whereas Zeisberger did not include
his account in quotation-marks, giving
merely the story as it was told
to him. Loskiel, by putting the same
words into the mouths of the
speakers and phrasing it all in the
first instead of the third person, as
Zeisberger wrote it, turned a legend
into a seemingly accurate historical
document. Parkman takes both Loskiel and
Heckewelder to task for
taking the story in "good faith,"
(Conspiracy of Pontiac, I, 31) but
Loskiel had no reason to take
Zeisberger's account as actual history;
and De Schweinitz (Life of
Zeisberger, 47) states that neither Zeis-
berger or Loskiel argue in favor of the
story, while Heckewelder does.
This forms an interesting example of the
evolution of a legend into
history: Zeisberger tells the Delaware
legend, plainly and simply, in
the third person; Loskiel forms it into
speeches in the first person;
Heckewelder takes these formal speeches
and argues in their favor as
true history.
48. Gourd or pumpkin.
481/2. See William L. Stone, The Life
and Times of Sir William John-
son, 214-215.
49. Woapanochky, "a people living
toward the rising of the sun,"
was another name of the Delawares.
Loskiel, History I, 2.
50. Albany, N. Y.
51. Bethlehem, Pa.
52. Roccus lineatus (Bloch) an
important source of food to the
early Virginians as attested by Captain
John Smith and others.
53. Alosa sapidissima (Wilson).
54. Vernacular names of fishes are so
numerous and so variable,
the same common name being applied to
very different fishes in dif-
ferent localities, that it is hard to
identify some of these references with
certainty. This however refers to Perca
flavescens (Mitchill), commonly
known as the yellow perch.
A
History of the Indians.
161
55. Stizostedion vitreum (Mitchill) the pike or sauger.
56. Lepisosteus osseus (L.)
57. Salvelinus fontinalis (Mitchill),
the speckled or brook trout.
58. Anguilla chrysypa Rafinesque.
59. Phoca vitulina L., the
harbour seal, common farther north,
though rare in this latitude even in
salt water. Their occurrence at Wy-
oming nearly 200 miles up the
Susquehanna River is quite remarkable,
though other similar occurrences have
been recorded.
60. Chamaecyparis thyoides (L.),
the white cedar.
61. Alces americanus (Clinton).
The animals migrated south in
the winter crossing the Niagara, or the
Lakes on the ice.
62. Salmo salar Linnaeus, the
Atlantic salmon, formerly very
abundant in the Hudson River though now
nearly or quite exterminated
there.
63. Anguilla chrysypa Rafinesque. Possibly the author was more
familiar with the lamprey eel, Ichthyomyzon
concolor (Kirtland) in the
Muskingum region, hence his reference to
the more slender head of
Anguilla chrysypa. However,
inasmuch as there is but the one true
eel in our fresh waters and the lamprey
is small and seldom seen, it
seems probable that the eels which the
author knew in New York
and along the Muskingum were of the same
sort. In autumn there is
a universal migration of the adult eels
to the sea to spawn. The In-
dians, true to their insight into
nature, made the best of this opportunity
for securing them in great quantities.
64. Niagara Falls.
65. Probably one of the Three Sister
Islands.
66. Oneida Lake.
67. Cayuga Lake.
68. Seneca and Ithaca Lakes.
69. Pyrus coronaria L., the
American crab apple or wild apple.
70. Mohawks.
71. Reference here is to Sullivan's
expedition of 1779. The date
of the writing of this history is here
shown to be 1780.
72. Indicating that even with the
unskilled cultivation of the In-
dians, the corn in different regions
developed varieties each suited to
its particular locality.
73. North Carolina.
74. Fort Frontenac, now Kingston,
Canada.
75. One of the most elaborate descriptions
of this route through
Central Pennsylvania is given in Francis
Baily's Journal of a Tour in
Unsettled parts of North
America. Sideling Hill is near the Juniata;
Laurel Hill is a continuance of Chestnut
Ridge, the latter being the
local name of the range in Pennsylvania.
Zeisberger's mention of it
as the important western route at this
period (pointing, as it does well
back in the eighteenth century) is
significant.
Vol. XIX. -11.
162 Ohio
Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
76. The parallel chains of the Blue
Ridge now known as Second
and Third and Peters Mountains, being at
that time without a name,
Conrad Weiser called them, on the
occasion of Zinzendorf's second
journey into the Indian country,
"The Thurnstein" in honor of this
distinguished personage, one of whose
titles was Lord of Thurnstein.
77. Jack's Mountain.
78. The present Erie, Pa.
79. By way of French Creek. Perhaps no
other authority gives
the name of Venango or Onenge as
the name of this stream.
80. Turtle Creek.
81. Ligonier, Pa.
82. Kentucky River.
83. Cuyahoga River.
84. Scioto River.
85. Fragaria virginiana Duchesne.
86. Rubus nigrobaccus Bail, the
common blackberry and Rubus
villosus L., the dewberry.
87. Rubus occidentalis L.
88. Vaccinium pennsylvanicum Lam., the dwarf blueberry.
89. Ribes cynosbati L., the
prickly gooseberry.
90. Ribes floridum L'Her., the wild black current.
91. Vaccinium macrocarpon Ait, the common cranberry and
Viburnum opulus L., the tree cranberry.
92. Prunus serotina Ehrh., the
common wild cherry.
93. Prunus pennsylvanica L, and
probably Prunus cuneata Raf.
94. Prunus pumila L., the sand
cherry.
95. Morus rubra L., the common
red mulberry.
96. Prunus americana Marsh.
97. Vitis aestivalis Michx.
98. Vitis cordifolia Michx. and Vitis
vulpina L.
99. Pyrus coronaria L. and Pyrus angustifolia Ait., both occur
along the Muskingum and probably both
were used by the Indians.
100. Corylus americana Walt.
101. Carya species (?) .Doubtless the
Indians made use of most
of the half dozen edible species of the
region.
102. Juglans cinerea L.
103. Juglans nigra L.
104. Assimina triloba Dunal.
105. Benzoin aestivale (L.) the
common spice-bush, apparently.
106. Spicebush.
107. Castanea dentata (Marsh).
108. An interesting reference to the
Ohio Buckeye, Aesculus glabra
Willd.
109. Ipomoea pandurata (L.) a
relative of the morning glory with
tuberous roots.
A
History of the Indians.
163
110. Podophyllum peltatum L., the
root of which is still a staple
medicinal herb.
110a. Quercus alba L., the white
oak.
110b. Quercus velutina Lam., the
black or quercitron oak.
110c. Quercus rubra L., red oak.
110d. Quercus falcata Michx.,
Spanish oak.
110e.
Quercus palustris Muench., the swamp Spanish or pinoak.
111. Doubtless more than three!
112. Fraxinus americana L., is
the most common one, though other
species occur in the region.
113. Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.
There is but one beech though the
wood in some is quite different in color
from that of others.
114. Sassafras variifolium (Salisb.)
115. Liriodendron tulipifera L.,
the tulip tree, commonly called
poplar.
116. Castanea denatat (Marsh).
117. Tilia americana L., basswood
or linden.
118. Acer saccharinum L., the
silver maple is most abundant near
the water, though Acer saccharum Marsh,
the sugar maple, and var.
nigrum (Mx) also occur in the bottom lands.
119. Carpinus caroliniana Walt.,
the American hornbeam, is usually
known as water beech but this
description evidently refers to the
sycamore, Platanus occidentalis L.,
sometimes called water beech. There
is no other reference which could apply
to the sycamore and it was
then as now, a conspicuous tree of the
river banks.
120. Crataegus species (?) Several of the 65(!)
species accepted
by the seventh edition of Gray's Manual
occur here.
121. Pyrus coronaria L., and Pyrus
angustifolia Ait.
122. Fraxinus nigra Marsh., the
black ash.
123. Gleditsia triacanthos L.
124. Cornus florida L.
125. The bark of Cinchona succirubra and
other species of
Cinchona from which quinine is prepared. The Cinchonas grow wild
in
the Andes Mountains.
126. Juniperus virginiana L.
127. Picea mariana (Mill.) Black or log spruce.
128. Pinus rigida Mill. Pitch
pine.
129. Pinus strobus L. White pine.
130. Abies balsamea (L.)
131. Pinus pungens Lamb, the
table mountain pine, presumably.
132. Ulmus americana L., and V. racemosa
Thomas.
133. Betula nigra L., the river
birch.
134. Populus tremuloides Michx.,
the American aspen.
135. Cladrastis lutea (Michx.).
136. Loskiel records that Indians sold
oil to the whites "at four
guineas a quart." History, 118.
164 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
137. A very questionable statement.
138. It is doubtful what Zeisberger
means here by "marble;" pos-
sible it was gritty sandstone.
139. Iron Pyrites or "Fool's
Gold."
140. Kaolin or China clay; colors in
clays are due to impurities.
The black clay which burns white
evidently contained carbonaceous
matter.
141. Yellow ochre.
142. Possibly a decoction made from
polk-berries which would
stimulate the secretion of the glands of
the breasts, etc.
143. Rhus toxicodendron L., the
poison vine or poison ivy.
144. Rhus vernix L., the poison
sumac, our most poisonous plant.
145. Not used by the medical profession
today.
146. Odocoileus virginianus (Boddaert).
147. The introduction of the rifle was
the first step in destroying
Nature's balance as applied to man and
the native wild animals. Doubt-
less the deer and buffalo easily held their own in spite of
the onslaughts
of the Indians until the rifle gave the
Indians a tremendous advantage
as compared with their former weapons.
148. Ursus americanus Pallas.
149. In many cases the Indians
multiplied the species of our larger
mammals, basing their ideas on one or
two unusually large individuals
they happened to meet, or on some
peculiar condition of the pelage.
There is only one species of bear known
from eastern United States.
150. Cervus canadensis (Erxleben)
the wapiti, or "American Elk."
The author is correct. The wapiti is
nearly related to the stag, Cervus
elaphus L., of Europe and is not an elk at all.
151. Bison bison (L.)
152. Felis couguar Kerr.
153. Lynx ruffus (Guldenstaedt).
154. Vulpes fulvus (Dasmarest).
155. Urocyon cinereoargenteus (Schreber).
156. A black phase of the red fox Vulpes
fulvus.
157. Procyon lotor (L.)
158. Lutra canadensis (Schreber).
159. Castor canadensis Kuhl.
160. The steel trap was another white
man's invention which,
placed in the hands of the Indians,
proved most destructive to some
of the animals which formerly held their
own against the less effective
methods of the Indians. The price paid
for the pelts by the whites,
was of course an additional factor in
the destruction of many of the
native animals.
161. Didelphis virginiana Kerr.
162. Certainly open to question and
probably merely an Indian
belief.
A History of the Indians. 165
163. Mephitis mephitis Schreber.
164. Erethizon dorsatum (L.)
165. Mustela americana Turton,
the pine marten or American sable,
and the larger Mustela pennautii Exleben,
the fisher, or fisher marten,
both range into New York.
166. Alces americanus Clinton.
167. Fiber zibethicus (L).
168. A melanistic form of the next. At
times in some localities
it is very abundant.
169. Sciurus carolinensis Gmelin,
the common grey squirrel.
170. Sciurus hudsonicus loquax Bangs.
171. Tamias striatus lysteri (Rich.)
172. Marmota monax (L.)
173. Lynx canadensis Kerr, the
Canada lynx.
174. Lepus floridanus mearnsi Allen.
175. Lepus americanus virginianus Harlan,
the varying hare.
176. Doubtless partial albinos of the
common deer, Odocoileus
virginianus.
177. An instance of the erroneous belief
that an animal in any
way conspicuously different from its
fellows becomes a leader. On the
contrary, the unfortunate variant is
often mistreated by his fellows
and sometimes even ostracised. "Sentiment" plays no part in the
selection of leaders. It is simply a
question of superior strength and
endurance.
178. Branta canadensis (L.), the
common wild goose, or Canada
goose. Other species occur but are rare
and probably never reared
their young hereabouts.
179. Aix sponsa (L.) the
beautiful wood duck. The young are
said to be carried to the water in the
bill of the parent.
180. Both Mergus americanus Cassin
the American merganser or
sheldrake, and Lophodytes cucullatus (L.,)
the hooded merganser were
formerly abundant in this region.
181. Probably the hooded merganser,
which is said to be quite
palatable, the flesh of the other
mergansers being rank and fishy.
182. This is evidently Grus mexicana (Mull),
the sandbill crane, a
bird now very rare in Ohio.
183. Olor columbianus (Ord.), the
whistling swan, and Olor
buccinator (Rich.), the trumpeter swan, have been uncommon birds
in
this locality, the latter formerly
breeding here. Both fit the description
given. The former is now much less rare
than the other.
184. Meleagris galopavo silvestris Vieill.
185. Bonasa umbellus (L.), the
ruffed grouse or pheasant, a beau-
tiful, harmless and valuable bird now in
danger of extermination if not
rigidly protected.
186. This apparently refers to Tympanuchus
americanus (Reich.),
the prairie hen, now exterminated in
Ohio and not generally supposed
166 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
to have lived as far southeast as tile
Muskingum region, though it may
possibly refer to the heath hen, Tympanuchus
cupido (L.), once dis-
tributed from Massachusetts to Virginia, though doubtfully along the
Muskingum, now extinct except on
Martha's Vineyard Island, Mass. The
heath hen is smaller than the ruffed
grouse however.
187. Ectopistes migratonus (L.),
the passenger pigeon, perhaps
extinct, or if not already, it is most
certain to become so.
188. Zenaidura macroura carolinensis (L.)
189. Colinus virginianus (L.),
the bobwhite. The quail was for-
merly, while the dense forests were
still undisturbed, much less abundant
and generally distributed than in more
recent years. One Ohio ornithol-
ogist, J. M. Wheaton, goes so far as to
say that "-it was probably
absent or at least confined to but
few localities in the State at the
time of its first settlement and has
steadily increased in numbers as
the forest has been cleared
away." Report on the birds of
Ohio,
Rep. Geol. Surv. Ohio, (1882) IV, Pt. I, 449.
190. Haliaeetus leucocephalus (L.),
the bald eagle.
191. Probably a young bald eagle. The young are three years
in attaining the adult plumage, and
often contend viciously with the
parents for the possession of the nest
to which the parents return year
after year. Possibly this may have been a golden eagle, Aquila
chrysaetos (L.), though it has apparently always been rare in the
region
and is not very pugnacious.
192. Elanoides forficatus (L.),
the swallow-tailed kite, another beau-
tiful, beneficial and entirely harmless
great bird which is almost ex-
tinct and will probably never be seen in
Ohio again, thanks to the skill
of the brainless hunter!
193. The author did not distinguish
between the red-tailed hawk,
Buteo borealis (Gmel.) and the red-shouldered hawk Buteo lineatus
(Gmel.), the two commoner species of
large hawk.
194. Meaning probably Falco
peregrinus anatum (Bonap.) the
peregrine falcon or duck hawk, a near
relative of the European "falcon
gentil of song and story."
195. Falco columbarius L.
196. Melanerpes crythrocephalus (L.)
197. Dryobates pubescens medianus (Swains.),
the downy wood-
pecker, and Dryobates villosus (L.),
the hairy woodpecker, are almost
alike except in size. Doubtless they
were not distinguished. The for-
mer, the smaller one, is much the more
abundant.
198. Colaptes auratus luteus Bangs,
the flicker or yellow hammer.
199. Conurus carolinensis (L.),
the Carolina paroquet, now almost
extinct and long since disappeared from
Ohio, another victim of the
sportsman's gun and the milliner's art.
200. Gavia immer (Brunn.)
A History of the Indians. 167
201. It seems hard to determine what
this refers to but it is most
likely the second year bald eagle. The
young requires three years to
acquire the adult plumage.
202. Ceryle alcyon (L.), the
kingfisher, which nests in a hole in
the bank.
203. Ardea herodias L., the great
blue heron.
204. Strix varia (Barton), the
barred owl and Bubo virginianus
(Gmel.), the great horned owl, were both
abundant in early days. The
small owl referred to is doubtless the
ubiquitous screech owl, Otus
asio (L.) though several other owls occur in the region.
205. Corvus brachyrhynchos Brehm.
206. Cathartes aura septentrionalis Wied.
207. Corvus corax principalis Ridgw.
Ornithologists have believed
that in Ohio the raven occurred only in
the northern part. This record
for southern Ohio is as interesting as
authentic.
208. Butorides virescens (L.),
the green heron or fly-up-the-creek,
is meant.
209. The author, without doubt here refers to Planesticus
migratorius L, the common American robin. A European bird, Merula
merula, a near relative of our robin, is black, has habits like
our robin,
and is commonly known as the blackbird.
Before the white settlers
came the robin doubtless lived in open
places in the forest, so that in
the author's experience it was met with
only in breaks in the forest,
usually remote from the Indian villages.
With the opening up of clear-
ings the robin made acquaintance with
the white man and came to live
in open groves and orchards. This the
robin did in common with many
of our other native birds which formerly
lived only in the open places
in the forest. With the coming of the
white settlers these birds found
congenial homes in the clearings and
orchards where they were also less
subject to the attacks of predaceous
birds and mammals.
210. Sialia sialis (L.)
211. Mimus polyglottos (L.) Very
rare in the locality now.
212. Astragulinus tristis (L.),
the American goldfinch or yellow
bird.
213. Icterus galbula (L.), the
Baltimore oriole.
214. Piranga rubra (L.), the
summer tanager or summer red-bird.
215. Piranga erythromelas Vieill.,
the scarlet tanager.
216. The European starling is a member
of the black-bird family
(Icteridae) hence this reference is to
our black-birds, of which the
common species are Quiscalus quiscula
aeneus (Ridgw.) the bronzed
grackle or crow black-bird, Molothrus
ater (Bodd.), the cow-bird, and
Agelaius phoeniceus (L.), the red-winged black-bird.
217. Dumetella carolinensis (L.)
218. The many dull-colored sparrows
(Fringillidae), most of the
thrushes (Turdidae), probably some of
the warblers, (Mniotiltidae),
168 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
and doubtless other of the smaller birds
are all here referred to as
finches.
219. Baeolophus bicolor (L.), the
tufted titmouse, and probably
also Parus atricapillus (L.), the
chickadee.
220. Though other species occur, Thryothorus
ludovicianus (Lath.).
the Carolina wren is the most abundant
and most conspicuous species
in this region.
221. Archilochus colubris (L.),
the ruby-throated humming-bird.
222. Crotalus horridus. L.
223. Ancistrodon contortrix (L.)
224. Heterodon platyrhinus Latr.
(probably var. niger) the spread-
ing viper or hissing adder, an entirely
harmless snake generally thought
poisonous.
225. Apparently refers to Natrix
fasciata erythrogaster Shaw, the
red-bellied water-snake. The aquatic
habits would seem to indicate this
species. It is a harmless snake though
generally thought poisonous.
226. Copperheads, Ancistrodon
contortrix (L.), with the tail, as
described, somewhat horny in appearance.
227. Zamenis constrictor (L.,)
black snake or blue racer.
228. Natrix fasciata sipedon (L.)
229. Eutaenia sirtalis (L.), the
garter snake.
230. Liopeltis vernalis (Dekay),
the green or grass snake.
231. Stizostedion vitreum (Mitchill),
the pike perch or jack sal-
mon. The former large size of this fish
is attested by the following:
The pike is the king of fish in the
western rivers. Judge Gilbert Devoll
took a pike in the Muskingum which
weighed nearly one hundred
pounds, on the 2nd day of July, 1788. He
was a tall man but when
the fish was suspended on the pole of
the spear from his shoulder,
its tail dragged on the ground, so that
is was about six feet in length.
This enormous fish was served up on the
4th of July at a public dinner."
S. P. Hildreth, Pioneer History, 498.
232. Refers to one or more than one
species of sucker. Probably
Moxostoma auroleum (Le Seur), the common red-horse, was most taken,
though Catostomus commersonii (Lacepede),
the white sucker, Cycleptus
elongatus (Le Seur), the black-horse, and other species are not
un-
common.
233. Ictiobus cyprinella
(Cuvier & Valenciennes), the large
mouthed buffalo, Ictiobus bubalus (Rafinesque),
the small-mouthed buf-
falo, and Ictiobus urus (Agassiz),
the black buffalo, are species re-
sembling each other closely. All occur
in the region.
234. The calcareous earstones or
otoliths.
235. Several species of catfish occur in
the Muskingum. Among
the valuable food species are Ictalurus
punctatus (Rafinesque), the blue
cat, Ameiurus lacustris (Walbaum), the Mississippi cat, Ameiurus
nebulosus (Le Sueur), the bull head, and Leptops olivaris (Rafinesque),
the mud cat. The Ohio catfish sometimes
weigh sixty or seventy pounds.
A
History of the Indians.
169
236. Acipenser rubicundus Le Sueur.
237. Lepisosteus osseus (L.), the gar pike.
238. Polydon spathula (Walbaum),
the spoon-bill cat.
239. Aplodinotus grunniens Refinesque, the white
perch, called also
fresh water drum in allusion to its
producing a grunting or drumming
noise.
240. Perca flavescens (Mitchill).
241. Anguilla chrysypa Rafinesque.
Possibly the author was more
familiar with the so-called lamprey eel,
Ichthyomyzon concolor (Kirt-
land) (cf. note 63), in the region of
the Muskingum.
242. This is a very peculiar reference
to the water dogs, Necturus
maculatus Rafinesque, the water
dog with external gills, and
Cryptobranchus alleganiensis (Daudin), the hell-bender or water dog
without external gills.
243. Trionyx spinifer (Le Sueur),
the common soft shelled turtle.
244. Cistudo carolina (L.), the
common box or wood tortoise.
245. There are many species of mussels
belonging to the genera,
Unio, Anodonta, Lampsilis, etc., occurring in the region and the shells
of several of these have a colored
nacrous layer.
246. Other Unio species (?).
247. The snails, most likely referring
to the larger species of
Helix and related forms, were innocent of any connection with
the
gad flies.
248. In places where cattle destroy the
weeds and other dense
vegetation, conditions are not agreeable
either to the snails or the gad
flies, hence both are less abundant.
These gad flies (family Tabanidae),
Tabanus, Chrysops, etc., more commonly known as the horse fly, deposit
their eggs on aquatic plants near the
surface of the water and the larvae
live in the mud and water feeding upon
various soft bodied aquatic
animals, snails among the rest, but of
course not upon the land snails
which the author apparently had in mind.
249. The frog with the call described is
one of the tree frogs,
Hyla pickeringii Storer, which lives near the water in spring and early
summer. The Hylas go to the water very
early in spring to deposit
their eggs. The most common Hyla is Hyla
versicolor Le Conte. The
frogs the Mingoes caught were doubtless
not the little hylas but more
likely the leopard frog, Rana
virescens Kalm, and the green frog, Rana
clamata Daudin.
250. Rana clamata Daudin.
251. Rana catesbiana Shaw.
252. It would be interesting to know if
the pestiferous house
mouse, Mus musculus L., had even
then reached this locality. The
reference is most likely to the white
footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus
(Rafinesque.)
170 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
253. The reader will not fail to note
that Zeisberger, writing at
the beginning of the last quarter of the
eighteenth century continually
pictures the Indian as he once was; his
tenses are largely past tenses
and he shows the contemporary Indian as
a degenerate. It will be re-
membered that Pontiac's appeal to the
red race in 1763 was for re-
generation, for the abandonment of the
practices learned of the white
man and readoption of the lost arts of
forest life which were rapidly
being forgotten. Lack of respect for old age was one of the
im-
portant signs of racial degeneration.
Does this apply to the red race
only?
Heckewelder's chapter on "Respect for the Aged," pictures the
red man in the primitive state but his
tenses are present tenses, though
writing at the beginning of the
nineteenth century. History, 152-158.
254. Heckewelder states that when
parents negotiate a marriage
the bridegroom's mother acts as
negotiatrix. The latter "begins
her
duties by taking a good leg of venison,
or bear's meat . . to the house
where the bride dwells, not forgetting
to mention, that her son has
killed it." The bride's mother soon
brings in return some fruit or handi-
work produced by her daughter. If both
the children expressed them-
selves favorably towards the respective
gifts, the matter was quickly
arranged; if not, the affair was at an
end.
255. A Yellow ochre, found near the
Muskingum, when burnt,
made a rich red paint, which Indians
came many miles to obtain.
Vermillion River in Ohio derived its
name from the clay there ob-
tained for painting; the same was true
of Paint Creek.
256. Figures of animals being most
commonly used, especially
the turtle, deer, bear and wolf.
257. Heckewelder records: "The
women make use of vermillion
in painting themselves for dances, but
they are very careful and cir-
cumspect in applying the paint, so that
it does not offend or create sus-
picion in their husbands; there is a
mode of painting which is left
entirely to loose women and
prostitutes." History, 196.
258. The Revolutionary war.
259. The Delaware leader often called
King Newcomer, from his
capital Newcomerstown or
Gekelemukpechunk, Ohio, who refused to
attend Bouquet's treaty in 1764 at
Coshocton. A generous friend of
the Moravians. See De Schweinitz, Life and Times of Zeisberger,
366, seq.
260. The writer speaks from notable
experience, the archives of
the Six Nations, than which no Indian
archives were of equal moment,
were deposited in Zeisberger's house at
Onondaga during his residence
at that mission. See Bethlehem Diary,
Aug. 2, 1755.
261. 4 s. 4 d.
262. The primitive wampum was made of
pieces of wood variously
stained with different colors.
263. Containing four, eight or twelve
fathoms of wampum.
264. A most interesting fact perhaps
noted by no other authority.
A
History of the Indians.
171
265. Little Turtle, the famous Miami
Chief, was such by choice
and not by birth; for, though his father
was a Miami chief, his
mother was of common stock.
266. A terrible scene of drunkenness in
the capital of the Dela-
wares on the Muskingum is described by
Dr. McClure, Diary 73-76.
267. The famous Delaware leader who
assisted Netawatwees and
befriended and favored the Colonies in
the Revolution; Loskiel de-
scribes him as the man who "kept
the chiefs and council in awe"-
History III, 101.
268. It happens to be a matter of record
that both Netawatwees
and White Eyes transgressed each their
authority during the Revolu-
tion, the former taking the initiative for
war (De Schweinitz, Life of
Zeisberger, 415) and White Eyes overstepping the bounds on the oc-
casion of his visit to the American
Congress (Id. 438.)
269. The battle at Point Pleasant in
Dunmore's War between
General Lewis and Cornstalk's Shawanese
was the notable example of
Indian preservation of the bodies of
their dead from capture. During
the night after the engagement all the killed and wounded were re-
moved across the Ohio River unknown to
the white army.
270. A gourd or pumpkin.
271. The Revolution.
272. Treaty of Fort Stanwix?
273. Catawbas.
274. Mohicans, a New England tribe.
275. Twightwees, called
"Flatheads" in Pennsylvania, the Miamis.
276. Wawiachtenos, located in Indiana.
277. Kickapoos, settled west of Lake
Michigan.
278. Tukashas? a western tribe.
279. Potawatomies of Indiana.
280. Kaskaskias, located on the river of
the same name.
281. Wabash.
282. Creeks.
283. Zeisberger here follows Delaware
traditions. The Shawanees
were permitted to settle in Pennsylvania
by the Six Nations. According
to the legend given by Heckewelder, (History,
70-71) there was bitter
warfare between the Shawanese and the
Delawares.
284. Wyoming.
285. Neville's Island, below Pittsburg?
286. Kittaning, Armstrong County,
Pennsylvania, at the end of
the Kittaning Trail or "Ohio
Path," as called on Scull's map.
287. Economy, Pa.
288. Reference here is to Dunmore's War,
1774, and the depot of
Cornstalk at Point Pleasant, West
Virginia.
289. Chippewas.
290. Wyoming, Pennsylvania.
172 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
291. Big Bone Lick, Kentucky.
2911/2. This information is of great
value. It makes sure the fact
that the Hurons were identical with the Talamatans
mentioned by Cyrus
Thomas, "Indian Tribes in
Prehistoric Times," Mag. Amer. History, XX,
3. (Sept. 1888.)
292. White Eyes declared the Delawares
independent at Pitts-
burg in 1775, but the Iroquois refused
to admit this until the treaty
of Greenville in 1795. Cf. Heckenwelder, History, 52-53;
also De
Schweinitz, Life of Zeisberger, 253.
293. Gelelemend. The weakness of this chief is fully
described
by De Schweinitz, Life of Zeisberger,
473, seq. The Europeans men-
tioned may have included General Morgan,
Matthew Elliott, Simon
Girty, etc.
294. The Delawares are said to have been
so called because they
were found on the river named from Lord
De La Ware.
295. Sioux.
296. Soup.
297. Calico.
298. Such a compact seems to have
existed between White Eyes
and the noted warrior Glikkikan. De
Schweinitz, Life of Zeisberger, 404.
299. An extremely interesting
explanation of the origin of the
name "Big Knives", the story
here has truer ring, to our minds, than
that which states that the tale came
from Colonel Gibson and his
sword. Cf. C. H. Mitchner, Historic
Events in the Muskingum and
Tuscarawas Valleys, 143.
300. Nantocoke, corrupted from Nechticok.
The tribe, descendants
of the Delawares, lived on the Maryland
river of the same name.
301. Heckewelder states in his chapter
on "Superstition" that
a white man once informed him that a
noted sorcerer once confessed
that the source of their power was
mental, the stronger mind acting
on the weaker. "Such is the
credulity of many," the sorcerer stated,
"that if I only pick a little wool
from my blanket and roll it between
my fingers into a small round ball . .
it is immediately supposed that
I am preparing the deadly substance with
which I mean to strike some
person or other."-History, 233-4.
3011/3. Great Kanawha. The reference is
to Dunmore's War.
3012/3. Concerning this remark we can
only say with De Schweinitz,
"We neither adopt these views of
Zeisberger, nor pronounce them ab-
surd. In the present aspect of
demonolgy, opinions of this kind remain
an open question." Life of
Zeisberger, 341. Zeisberger's chief experience
with sorcerers seems to have been in the
Seneca country at the Monsey-
town of Goschgoschunk on the Allegheny. Here
the sorcerers banded
together in a conspiracy to undo the
missionaries work and drive them
off. Id. 341.
302. 1748-9.
A
History of the Indians.
173
303. Waketameki, the Indian town near
Dresden, 0., was called
"Vomit Town" by Indian traders
because some of its inhabitants at-
tempted to achieve salvation by emetics.
The reference here may be
to these poor dupes. Cf. De Schweinitz, Life
of Zeisberger, 383.
304. Big Stillwater Creek, was Gegelemukpechunk
Sipo. The
town was the first Delaware Capital at
its junction with the Muskingum
near Newcomerstown, Ohio; spelled
Gekelemukpechuenk by Loskiel and
Kekalemahpehoong by Dr. David McClure.
305. Like the famous eat-all feasts of
the northern nations.
306. Monseys.
307. Mohicans.
308. Or Iroquois and Algonquin.
309. Minisink, Orange County, N. Y.
3091/2. Probably Cassiopeia.
310. Hirundinidae.
311. Macrorhamphus griseus (Probably).
312. Larus (sp.?)
313. Aegialitis vocifera, larger
variety.
314. Agelaius phoeniceus.
315. Antrostoma vociferus.
316. Zenaidura macroura.
317. Chordeiles virginianus.
318. Apina.
319. Vespina.
320. Sciuroptems volana.
321. Crotalus honidus. Probably a
young specimen.
322. Laurus (sp.?).