,,goodbird ,,the ,,indian ,interdenominational ,home ,mission ,study ,course ,each volume #abmo1 cloth1 #ej;c4 net 7post4 extra72 paper1 #cj;c4 net 7post4 extra7 ,under ,our ,flag ,by ,alice ,m4 ,guernsey ,the ,call of the ,waters ,by ,katharine ,r4 ,crowell ,from ,darkness to ,light ,by ,mary ,helm ,conservation of ,national ,ideals ,a ,symposium ,mormonism1 the ,islam of ,america ,by ,bruce ,kinney1 ,d4,d4 ,the ,new ,america ,by ,mary ,clark ,barnes and ,dr4 ,l4 ,c4 ,barnes ,in ,red ,man's ,land4 ,a ,study of the ,american ,indian ,by ,francis ,e4 ,leupp ,supplementary ,america1 ,god's ,melting-,pot ,by ,laura ,gerould ,craig ,paper1 net #be;c4 7post4 extra7 ,,junior ,,course ,cloth1 net #dj;c4 7post4 extra72 paper1 net #be;c4 7post4 extra7 ,best ,things in ,america ,by ,katharine ,r4 ,crowell ,some ,immigrant ,neighbours ,by ,john ,r4 ,henry1 ,d4,d4 ,good ,bird1 the ,indian ,by ,gilbert ,l4 ,wilson ,paper1 net #be;c4 7post4 extra7 ,comrades from ,other ,lands ,by ,leila ,allen ,dimock ,illustration3 ,,edward ,,goodbird ,issued under the direction of the ,council of ,women for ,home ,missions ,,goodbird ,,the ,,indian ,his ,story ,,told ,,by ,,himself ,,to ,,gilbert ,l4 ,,wilson ,author of 8,myths of the ,red ,children10 8,indian ,hero ,tales0 ,,illustrated ,,by ,,frederick ,n4 ,,wilson ,illustration ,,new ,,york ,,chicago ,,toronto ,fleming ,h4 ,revell ,company ,,london ,,and ,,edinburgh ,copyright1 #aiad1 by ,,fleming ,h4 ,,revell ,,company ,new ,york3 #aeh ,fifth ,avenue ,chicago3 #abe ,north ,wabash ,ave4 ,toronto3 #be ,richmond ,street1 ,w4 ,london3 #ba ,paternoster ,square ,edinburgh3 #ajj ,princes ,street ,contents ,,glossary ,,of ,,indian ,,words #f ,i ,,birth #i ,,ii ,,childhood #ai ,,iii ,,the ,,gods #bg ,,iv ,,indian ,,beliefs #cf ,v ,,school ,,days #dc ,,vi ,,hunting ,,buffaloes #ec ,,vii ,,farming #fa ,,viii ,,the ,,white ,,man',s ,,way #ga ,glossary of ,indian ,words h h a 77 p tp d k t ,h dt s ,h ,wsh t t s d sh d t k t s k m h d ,k d te t k kts ,m h d w ,mn dn m h dts ,m n t r n ,sn t ,sioux 7,s74 7,the plural1 spelled also ,sioux1 is commonly pronounced ,soos47 t p ,ts k k s k ,ts w k h k ,,foreword ,catlin in #ahcb1 and ,maximilian in #ahcc1 have made famous the culture of the ,mandan and ,minitari1 or ,hidatsa1 tribes4 ,in #aijg1 ,i was sent out by the ,american ,museum of ,natural ,history1 to begin anthropological studies among the remnants of these peoples1 on ,fort ,berthold ,reservation2 and ,i have been among them each summer1 ever since4 ,during these years1 ,goodbird has been my faithful helper and interpreter4 ,his mother1 ,mahidiwia1 or ,buffalo ,bird ,woman1 is a marvelous source of information on old-time life and beliefs4 ,indians have a gentle custom of adopting very dear friends by relationship terms2 by such adoption1 ,goodbird is my brother2 ,mahidiwia is my mother4 ,the stories which make this little book were told me by ,goodbird in ,august1 #aiac4 ,i have but put ,goodbird's ,indian-,english into common idiom4 ,the stories are his own2 in them he has bared his heart4 ,in #aijh1 and again in #aiac1 my brother1 ,frederick ,n4 ,wilson1 was also sent by the ,museum to make drawings of ,hidatsa arts4 ,illustrations in this book are from studies made by him in those years2 a few are redrawn from simpler sketches by ,goodbird himself4 ,acknowledgment is made of the courtesy of the ,museum's curator1 ,dr4 ,clark ,wissler1 whose permission makes possible the publishing of this book4 ,may ,goodbird's ,story give the reader a kindly interest in his people4 ,minneapolis4 ,g4 ,l4 ,w4 ,illustration3 ,an ,old ,hidatsa ,village4 ,i ,,birth ,i was born on a sand bar1 near the mouth of the ,yellowstone1 seven years before the battle in which ,long ,hair#a was killed4 ,my tribe had camped on the bar and were crossing the river in bull boats4 ,as ice chunks were running on the ,missouri current1 it was probably the second week in ,november4 ,the ,mandans and my own people1 the ,hidatsas1 were once powerful tribes who dwelt in five villages at the mouth of the ,knife ,river1 in what is now ,north ,dakota4 ,smallpox weakened both peoples2 the survivors moved up the ,missouri and built a village at ,like-a-fish-hook ,bend1 or ,fort ,berthold as the whites called it1 where they dwelt together as one tribe4 ,they fortified their village with a fence of upright logs against their enemies1 the ,sioux4 ,we ,hidatsas looked upon the ,sioux as wild men1 because they lived by hunting and dwelt in tents4 ,our own life we thought civilized4 ,our lodges were houses of logs1 with rounded roofs covered with earth2 hence their name1 earth lodges4 ,fields of corn1 beans1 squashes and sunflowers lay on either side of the village1 in the bottom lands along the river2 these were cultivated in old times with bone hoes4 ,illustration3 ,bone ,hoe4 ,with our crops of corn and beans1 we had less fear of famine than the wilder tribes2 but like them we hunted buffaloes for our meat4 ,after firearms became common1 big game grew less plentiful1 and for several years before my birth1 few buffaloes had been seen near our village4 ,however1 scouts brought in word that big herds were to be found farther up the river and on the ,yellowstone1 and our villagers1 ,mandans and ,hidatsas1 made ready for a hunt4 ,a chief1 or leader1 was always chosen for a tribal hunt1 some one who was thought to have power with the gods4 ,not every one was willing to be leader4 ,the tribe expected of him a prosperous hunt with plenty of meat1 and no attacks from enemies4 ,if the hunt proved an unlucky one1 the failure was laid to the leader4 8,his prayers have no power with the gods4 ,he is not fit to be leader60 the people would say4 ,this leader had to be chosen by a military society of men1 called the ,black ,mouths4 ,they made up a collection of rich gifts--gun1 blankets1 robes1 war bonnet1 embroidered shirt--and with much ceremony offered the gifts1 successively1 to men who were known to own sacred bundles2 all refused4 ,they prevailed at length upon ,ediakata to accept half the gifts4 8,choose another to take the rest10 he told the ,black ,mouths3 8,i will share the leadership with him60 ,they chose ,short ,horn4 ,the two leaders fixed the day of departure4 ,on the evening before1 a crier went through the village1 calling out1 8,to-morrow at sunrise we break camp4 ,get ready1 everybody60 ,the march was up the ,missouri1 on the narrow prairie between the foothills and the river4 ,ediakata and ,short ,horn led1 commanding1 the one1 one day1 the other1 the next4 ,the camp followed in a long line1 some on horseback1 more afoot2 a few old people rode on travois4 ,camp was made at night in tepees1 or skin-covered tents4 ,my grandfather's was a large thirteen-skin tepee1 pitched with fifteen poles4 ,it sheltered twelve persons2 my grandfather1 ,small ,ankle1 and his two wives1 ,red ,blossom and ,strikes-many-woman2 his sons1 ,bear's ,tail and ,wolf ,chief1 and their wives2 my mother1 ,buffalo ,bird ,woman1 daughter of ,small ,ankle1 and ,son-of-a-,star1 her husband2 ,flies ,low1 a younger son of ,small ,ankle2 and ,red ,kettle and ,full ,heart1 mere boys1 brothers of ,flies ,low4 ,ascending the west bank of the ,missouri1 my tribe reached the mouth of the ,yellowstone at their eleventh camp2 here the ,missouri narrows1 offering a good place to cross4 ,a long sand bar skirted the south shore2 tents were pitched here about noon4 ,there was not room on the narrow bar to pitch a camping circle1 and the tepees stood in rows1 like the houses of a village4 ,my grandfather pitched his tent near the place chosen for the crossing4 ,the day was cold and windy2 with flint and steel1 my grandfather kindled a fire4 ,dry grass was laid around the wall of the tent and covered with robes1 for beds4 ,small logs1 laid along the edges of the beds1 shielded them from sparks from the fire4 ,at evening the wind died2 twilight crept over the sky1 and the stars appeared4 ,the new moon1 narrow and bent like an ,indian bow1 shone white over the river1 and the waves of the long mid-current sparkled silvery in the moonlight4 ,now and then with a swi-i-s-sh1 a sheet of water1 a tiny whirl-pool in its center1 would come washing in to shore2 while over all rose the roar1 roar1 roar of the great river1 sweeping onward1 the ,indians knew not where4 ,at midnight a dog raised himself on his haunches1 pointed his nose at the sky1 and yelped4 ,it was the signal for the midnight chorus2 and in a moment every dog in camp had joined it1 nose-in-air1 howling mournfully at the moon4 ,far out on the prairie rose the wailing yip-yip-yip-ya-a-ah6 of a coyote4 ,the dogs grew silent again and curled up1 to sleep4 ,and ,i came into the world4 ,wrapped in a bit of robe1 ,i was laid in my mother's arms1 her first born2 she folded me to her breast4 ,the morning sky was growing gray when my father came home4 ,he raised the tent door and entered1 smiling4 8,i heard my little son cry1 as ,i came10 he said2 8,it was a lusty cry6 ,i am very happy40 ,my grandmother placed me in his arms4 99 99 99 99 99 ,my tribe began crossing the river the same morning4 ,tents were struck1 one by one2 and the owners1 having loaded their baggage in bull boats1 pushed boldly out into the current4 ,a bull boat was made by stretching a buffalo skin over a frame of willows4 ,it was shaped like a tub and was not graceful2 but it carried a heavy load4 ,our boat had been brought up from the village on a travois1 and my father ferried my mother and me across4 ,he knelt in the bow1 dipping his oar in the water directly before him2 my mother sat in the tail of the boat with me in her arms4 ,our tent poles1 tied in a bundle1 floated behind us2 and our dogs and horses came swimming after1 sniffing and blowing as they breasted the heavy current4 ,we landed tired1 and rather wet4 ,the tribe was four days in crossing2 and as the season was late1 we at once took up our march to the place chosen for our winter camp4 ,my mother and ,i now rode on a travois1 drawn by a pony4 ,a buffalo skin was spread on the bottom of the travois basket2 this my father bound snugly about my mother's knees as she sat1 ,indian fashion1 with her ankles turned to the right4 ,i lay in her lap1 cuddled in a wild-cat skin and covered by her robe4 ,we reached ,round ,bank1 the place of our winter camp1 in five days4 ,my tribe's usual custom was to winter in small earth lodges1 in the woods by the ,missouri1 a few miles from ,like-a-fish-hook village2 but this winter we were to camp in our skin tents1 like the ,sioux4 ,a tent1 well sheltered1 with a brisk fire under the smoke hole1 was comfortable and warm4 ,no buffaloes had been killed on the way up to the ,yellowstone2 but much deer1 elk1 and antelope meat had been brought into camp1 dried1 and packed in bags for winter4 ,many1 also1 of the more provident families had stores of corn1 brought with them from ,like-a-fish-hook village4 ,after snow fell1 our hunters discovered buffaloes and made a kill4 ,we thus faced winter without fear of famine4 ,the tenth day after my birth was my naming day2 it came just as we were getting settled in our winter camp4 ,an ,indian child was named to bring him good luck4 ,a medicine man was called in1 feasted1 and given a present to name the child and pray for him4 ,as my grandfather was one of the chief medicine men of the tribe1 my mother asked him to name me4 ,my grandfather's gods were the birds that send the thunder4 ,he was a kind old man1 and took me gently into his arms and said1 8,i name my grandson ,tsa-ka-ka-sa-ki1--,good-bird60 ,my name thus became a kind of prayer2 whenever it was spoken it reminded the bird spirits that ,i was named for them1 and that my grandfather prayed that ,i might grow up a brave and good man4 ,the winter passed without mishap to any one in our tent4 ,an old man named ,holding ,eagle had his leg broken digging in a bank for white clay2 he was prying out a lump with a stick1 when the bank caved in upon him4 ,toward spring1 ,wolf-with-his-back-to-the-wind and his brother were surprised by ,sioux and killed4 ,a man named ,drum was also killed and scalped4 ,spring came1 but ice still lay on the ,missouri when the ,goose society gave their spring dance4 ,the flocks of geese that came flying north at this season of the year were a sign that it was time to make ready our fields for planting corn4 ,the ,goose society was a society of women1 and their dance was a prayer that the spirits of the geese would send good weather for the corn-planting4 ,most of the work of planting and hoeing our corn fell to the women4 ,our winter camp now broke up1 most of the tribe returning to the ,yellowstone2 but my grandfather and ,one ,buffalo1 with their families1 went up the ,missouri to hunt for buffaloes4 ,they found a small herd1 gave chase1 and killed ten4 ,four more tepees now joined us1 those of ,strikes ,back-bone1 ,old ,bear1 ,long ,wing1 ,spotted ,horn1 and their families4 ,to each tent owner1 my grandfather gave the half of a freshly killed buffalo and one whole green buffalo skin4 ,camp was pitched2 the meat was hung on stages to dry1 and the women busied themselves making the skins into bull boats4 ,illustration3 ,at ,work with a ,bone ,hoe4 ,when the ice on the ,missouri broke1 our camp made ready to return to the village1 for the women wanted to be about their spring planting4 ,bull boats were now taken to the river and loaded2 and the families1 six or seven tepees in all1 pushed out into the current4 ,my parents led1 with three boats lashed together1 in the first of which they sat and paddled2 my father's rifle lay by him4 ,the second boat was partly loaded with bags of dried meat1 and upon these sat ,flies ,low1 my uncle1 with me in his arms4 ,the third boat was loaded to the water with meat and skins4 ,the ,missouri's course is winding2 if a turn in it sends the current against the wind1 the waves rise heavy and choppy1 so that a single boat can hardly ride them4 ,when approaching one of these turns1 our party would draw together1 laying tight hold of one another's boats until the danger was passed2 bunched together in this manner1 the boats ran less risk of upsetting4 ,snow had disappeared from the ground1 and the grass was beginning to show green when we left the ,yellowstone4 ,we floated down the great river in high spirits4 ,all went well until we neared the mouth of the ,little ,missouri1 thirty miles from the village4 ,then a storm arose1 and as we rounded a bend1 the current carried us into the very teeth of the wind4 ,our flimsy boats1 sea-sawing up and down on the heavy waves1 threatened to overturn4 ,my parents turned hastily to shore and plied their paddles4 ,suddenly my father leaned over his side of the boat1 almost tipping it over and tumbling my mother in upon him2 she caught at the edge of the boat to save herself1 but had the presence of mind not to drop her paddle4 ,then she saw what had happened2 ,i had fallen into the water1 and my father was drawing me1 wet but unhurt1 into the boat4 ,i have said that my uncle1 ,flies ,low1 and ,i rode in the second boat4 ,i had grown restless1 and he had loosened my cradle clothes to give me room to move my limbs4 ,when we ran into the storm1 our boat rocked so violently that ,i slipped from his arms1 but my loosened clothes made me float4 ,illustration3 ,flint and ,steel1 with ,bag4 8,i did not mean to drop the baby10 my uncle said afterwards4 8,i thought the boat had upset and ,i was frightened40 ,he was only a lad1 and my mother could not blame him4 ,we reached shore in a terrible storm of snow and wind4 ,the boats were dragged up on the beach2 the two tents were hastily pitched to shelter the women and children2 and fires were lighted4 ,my father stopped only long enough to see us safe1 and then pushed on through the storm with the horses1 which my grandfather had been driving along the shore in sight of the boats4 ,he reached the village safely and drove the horses into the shelter of some woods along the river4 ,boys know that in summer1 when they go swimming1 it is warmer to stay in the water1 than upon the bank1 in a wind4 ,there was a pond in the woods2 and our horses waded into the water to escape the cold wind4 ,when they came out the wind chilled their coats1 so that three of them died4 ,the storm lasted four days4 ,when it was over1 my mother and the rest of the party re-embarked in their bull boats and floated safely down to ,like-a-fish-hook village4 ,of course ,i remember nothing of these things2 but ,i have told the story as ,i heard it from the lips of my mother4 #a ,general ,george ,a4 ,custer4 ,illustration3 ,hidatsa ,earth ,lodge4 ,,ii ,,childhood ,like-a-fish-hook village stood on a bluff overlooking the ,missouri1 and contained about seventy dwellings4 ,most of these were earth lodges1 but a few were log cabins which traders had taught us to build4 ,my grandfather's was a large1 well-built earth lodge1 with a floor measuring about forty feet across4 ,small ,ankle1 his two wives and their younger children2 his sons1 ,bear's ,tail and ,wolf ,chief1 and his daughter1 my mother1 with their families1 dwelt together4 ,it was usual for several families of relatives to dwell together in one lodge4 ,an earth lodge was built with a good deal of labor4 ,the posts were cut in summer1 and let lie in the woods until snow fell2 men then dragged them to the village with ropes4 ,holes were dug the next spring1 and the posts raised4 ,stringers1 laid along the tops of the posts1 supported rafters2 and upon these was laid a matting of willows and dry grass4 ,over all went a thick layer of sods4 ,illustration3 ,small ,ankle's ,couch4 ,the four great posts that upheld the roof had each a buffalo calf skin or a piece of bright-colored calico bound about it at the height of a man's head4 ,these were offerings to the house spirit4 ,we ,hidatsas believed that an earth lodge was alive1 and that the lodge's spirit1 or soul1 dwelt in the four posts4 ,certain medicine women were hired to raise these posts in place when a lodge was built4 ,our lodge was picturesque within1 especially by the yellow light of the evening fire4 ,in the center of the floor1 under the smoke hole1 was the fireplace2 a screen of puncheons1 or split logs1 set on end1 stood between it and the door4 ,on the right was the corral1 where horses were stabled at night4 ,in the back of the lodge were the covered beds of the household1 and my grandfather's medicines1 or sacred objects4 ,the most important of these sacred objects were two human skulls of the ,big ,birds' ceremony1 as it was called4 ,small ,ankle was a medicine man and when our corn fields suffered from drought1 he prayed to the skulls for rain4 ,against the puncheon screen on the side next the fireplace1 was a couch made of planks laid on small logs1 with a bedding of robes4 ,this couch was my grandfather's bed at night1 and his lounging place by day4 ,a buffalo skin overhead protected him from bits of falling earth or a leak in the roof1 when it rained4 ,my two grandmothers also used the couch as a bench when making ready the family meals2 and the water and grease spilled by them and trampled into the dirt floor made the spot between the couch and the fireplace as hard as brick4 ,small ,ankle filed his finger nails here against the hard floor4 ,the earliest thing that ,i remember1 is my grandfather sitting on his couch1 plucking gray hairs from his head4 ,indians do not like to see themselves growing old1 and ,small ,ankle's friends used to tease him4 8,we see our brother is growing gray--and old60 they would say1 laughing4 ,small ,ankle used to sit on the edge of his couch with his face tilted toward the smoke hole1 and drawing his loose hair before his eyes1 he would search for gray ones4 ,he had another habit ,i greatly admired4 ,the grease dropped from my grandmothers' cooking1 drew many flies into our lodge1 and as my grandfather sat on his couch1 the flies would alight on his bare shoulders and arms4 ,he used to fight them off with a little wooden paddle4 ,i can yet hear the little paddle's spat as it fell on some luckless fly1 against his bare flesh4 ,no war club had surer aim4 ,his couch1 indeed1 was the throne from which my grandfather ruled his household1 and his rule began daily at an early hour4 ,he arose with the birds1 raked coals from the ashes and started a fire4 ,then we would hear his voice1 0,awake1 daughters2 up1 sons2 out1 all of you6 ,the sun is up6 ,wash your faces60 ,my fat grandmothers made a funny sight1 washing their faces2 stooping1 with eyes tightly shut1 each filled her mouth with water1 blew it into her palms and rubbed them over her face4 ,no towels were used4 ,the men of the household more often went down for a plunge in the river4 ,some of the young men of the village bathed in the river the whole year1 through a hole in the ice in winter4 ,many bathers1 after their morning plunge1 rubbed their wet bodies with white clay2 this warmed and freshened the skin4 ,my mother usually washed my face for me2 ,i liked it quite as little as any white boy4 ,our morning meal was now eaten1 hominy boiled with beans and buffalo fat1 and seasoned with alkali salt--spring salt we called it1 because we gathered it from the edges of springs4 ,after the meal1 ,i had nothing to do all day but play4 ,my best loved toy was my bow1 of choke-cherry wood1 given me when ,i was four years old4 ,my arrows were of buck-brush shoots1 unfeathered4 ,these shoots were brought in green1 and thrust into the hot ashes of the fireplace2 when heated1 they were drawn out and the bark peeled off1 leaving them a beautiful yellow4 ,buck-brush arrows are light1 and ,i was allowed to shoot them within the lodge4 ,my uncle1 ,full ,heart1 a boy two years older than myself1 taught me how to use my bow4 ,in our lodge were many mice that nested in holes under the sloping roof1 and my uncle and ,i hunted these mice as savagely as our fathers hunted buffaloes4 ,i think ,i was not a very good shot1 for ,i do not remember ever killing one4 ,but ,i had the ill luck to shoot my mother4 ,she was stooping at her work1 one day1 when an arrow badly aimed struck her in the cheek1 its point pierced the skin1 and the shaft remained hanging in the flesh4 ,i saw the blood start and heard my mother cry1 8,oh1 my son has shot me60 ,i dropped my bow and ran1 for ,i thought ,i had killed her2 but she drew out the shaft1 laughing4 ,i was too young to have any fear of the ,sioux1 and ,i had not yet learned to be afraid of ghosts1 but ,i was afraid of owls1 for ,i was taught that they punished little boys4 ,sometimes1 if ,i was pettish1 my uncles would cry1 8,the owl is coming60 ,and in the back of the lodge a voice would call1 8,hoo1 hoo1 hoo60 ,this always gave me a good fright1 and ,i would run to my grandfather and cover my head with his robe1 or hide in my fathers bed4 ,it was not the custom of my tribe for parents to punish their own children2 usually1 the father called in a clan brother to do this4 ,my uncle1 ,flies ,low1 a clan brother of my father1 punished me when ,i was bad1 but he seldom did more than threaten4 ,sometimes my mother would say1 8,my son is bad1 pierce his flesh60 and my uncle would take an arrow1 pinch the flesh of my arm1 and make as if he would pierce it4 ,i would cry1 8,i will be good1 ,i will be good60 and he would let me go without doing more than giving me a good fright4 ,a very naughty boy was sometimes punished by rolling him in a snow bank1 or ducking him in water4 ,one winter evening ,i was vexed at my mother and would not go to bed4 8,come10 she said1 trying to draw me away1 but ,i fought1 kicking at her and screaming4 ,quite out of patience1 my mother turned to ,flies ,low4 8,apatip--duck him60 she cried4 ,a pail of water stood by the fireplace4 ,flies ,low caught me up1 my legs over his shoulder1 and plunged me1 head downward1 into the pail4 ,i broke from him screaming1 but he caught me and plunged me in again4 ,the water strangled me1 ,i thought ,i was going to die6 8,stop crying10 said my uncle4 ,my mother took me by the arm4 8,stop crying10 she said4 8,if you are bad1 ,i will call your uncle again60 ,and she put me to bed4 ,illustration3 ,sled of ,buffalo ,ribs4 ,we ,indian children knew nothing of marbles or skates4 ,i had a swing1 made of my mother's packing strap1 and a top1 cut from the tip of a buffalo's horn4 ,many boys owned sleds1 made of five or six buffalo ribs bound side by side4 ,with these they coasted down the steep ,missouri bank1 but that was play for older boys4 ,few wagons were owned by the tribe at this time4 ,when journeying1 we packed our baggage on the backs of ponies1 or on travois dragged by dogs4 ,a travois was a curious vehicle4 ,it was made of two poles lashed together in the shape of a ,v1 and bearing a flat basket woven with thongs4 ,a good dog with a travois could drag sixty or eighty pounds over the snow1 or on the smooth prairie grass4 ,but a travois's chief use was in dragging in wood for a lodge fire4 ,in our lodge my mother and my two grandmothers1 with five dogs1 went for wood about twice a week4 ,they started at sunrise for the woods1 a mile or two away1 and returned about noon4 ,it happened one morning that my father and mother went to gather wood1 and ,i asked to go along4 8,no10 they said1 8you would but be in our way4 ,you stay at home60 ,but ,i wept and teased until they let me go4 ,illustration3 ,dog ,travois4 ,my parents walked before1 the dogs following in a single file4 ,they were gentle animals1 used to having me play with them2 and ,i was amusing myself running along1 jumping on a travois1 riding a bit1 and jumping off again4 ,our road led to a choke-cherry grove1 but it was crossed by another that went to the river4 ,as we neared the place where the roads crossed1 we saw a woman coming down the river road1 also followed by three or four dogs in travois4 ,i had just leaped on the travois of one of our dogs4 ,the packs spied each other at the same instant2 and our dogs1 pricking up their ears1 burst into yelps and started for the other pack4 ,i was frightened out of my wits4 8,ai1 ai1 ai60 ,i yelled2 for ,i thought ,i was going to be eaten up4 ,the dogs were leaping along at such speed that ,i dared not jump off4 ,the woman with the strange dogs ran between the packs crying1 8,na1 na1--go way1 go way60 ,this stopped our dogs2 and ,i sprang to the ground and ran to my mother4 ,i would never ride a travois again4 ,taking it altogether1 children were well treated in my tribe4 ,food was coarse1 but nourishing2 and there was usually plenty of it4 ,children of poor families suffered for clothing1 but rarely for food1 for a family having meat or corn always shared with any who were hungry4 ,if a child's parents died1 relatives or friends cared for him4 ,my mother sighs for the good old times4 8,children were then in every lodge10 she says1 8and there were many old men in the tribe4 ,now that we live in cabins and eat white men's foods1 the children and old men die2 and our tribe dies60 ,but this is hardly true of the ,christian families4 ,,iii ,,the ,,gods ,i have said we ,hidatsas believed that an earth lodge was alive2 and that its soul1 or spirit1 dwelt in the four big roof posts4 ,we believed1 indeed1 that this world and everything in it was alive and had spirits2 and our faith in these spirits and our worship of them made our religion4 ,illustration3 ,seeking ,his ,god4 ,my father explained this to me4 8,all things in this world10 he said1 8have souls1 or spirits4 ,the sky has a spirit2 the clouds have spirits2 the sun and moon have spirits2 so have animals1 trees1 grass1 water1 stones1 everything4 ,these spirits are our gods2 and we pray to them and give them offerings1 that they may help us in our need40 ,we ,indians did not believe in one ,great ,spirit1 as white men seem to think all ,indians do4 ,we did believe that certain gods were more powerful than others4 ,of these was ,it-si-ka-ma-hi-di1 our elder creator1 the spirit of the prairie wolf2 and ,ka-du-te-ta1 or ,old-woman-who-never-dies1 who first taught my people to till their fields4 ,long histories are given of these gods4 ,any one could pray to the spirits1 receiving answer usually in a dream4 ,indeed1 all dreams were thought to be from the spirits2 and for this reason they were always heeded1 especially those that came by fasting and suffering4 ,sometimes a man fasted and tortured himself until he fell into a kind of dream while yet awake2 we called this a vision4 ,a man whom the gods helped and visited in dreams1 was said to have mystery power2 and one who had much mystery power1 we called a mystery man1 or medicine man4 ,almost every one received dreams from the spirits at some time2 but a medicine man received them more often than others4 ,a man might have mystery power and not use it wisely4 ,there once lived in our village a medicine man who had one little son4 ,on day in summer1 the little boy with some playmates crossed a shallow creek behind the village in search of grass for grass arrows4 ,it happened that the villagers' fields were suffering from drought1 and that very day1 some old men brought gifts to the medicine man and asked him to send them rain4 ,the medicine man prayed to his gods1 and in an hour rain fell in torrents4 ,the little boys1 seeking to return1 found the creek choked by the rising waters2 greatly frightened1 they plunged in1 and all got safely over but the medicine man's little son2 he was drowned4 ,the medicine man mourned bitterly for his son1 for he thought it was he that had caused the little boy's death4 ,believing as he did that the world was full of spirits1 every ,indian hoped that one of them would come to him and be his protector1 especially in war4 ,when a lad became about seventeen years of age1 his parents would say1 8,you are now old enough to go to war2 but you should first go out and find your god60 ,they meant by this1 that he should not risk his life in battle until he had a protecting spirit4 ,finding one's god was not an easy task4 ,the lad painted his body with white clay1 as if in mourning1 and went out among the hills1 upon some bluff1 where he could be seen of the gods2 and for days1 with neither food nor drink1 and often torturing himself1 he cried to the gods to pity him and come to him4 ,his sufferings at last brought on delirium1 so that he dreamed1 or saw a vision4 ,whatever he saw in this vision was his god1 come to pledge him protection4 ,usually this god was a bird or beast2 or it might be the spirit of some one dead2 the bird or beast was not a flesh-and-blood animal1 but a spirit4 ,the lad then returned home4 ,as soon as he was recovered from his fast1 he set out to kill an animal like that seen in his vision1 and its dried skin1 or a part of it1 he kept as his sacred object1 or medicine1 for in this sacred object dwelt his god4 ,thus if an otter god appeared to him1 the lad would kill an otter1 and into its skin1 which the lad kept1 the god entered4 ,the otter skin was now the lad's medicine2 he prayed to it and bore it with him to war1 that his god might be present to protect him4 ,indians even made offerings of food to their sacred objects4 ,they knew the sacred object did not eat the food2 but they believed that the god1 or spirit1 in the sacred object1 ate the spirit of the food4 ,they also burned cedar incense to their sacred objects4 ,the story of my uncle ,wolf ,chief1 as he was afterwards called1 will show what sufferings a young man was willing to endure who went out to seek his god4 ,he was but seventeen when his father1 ,small ,ankle1 said to him1 8,my son1 ,i think you should go out and seek your god60 ,the next morning my uncle climbed a high butte overlooking the ,missouri1 and prayed3 8,o gods1 ,i am poor2 ,i lead a poor life2 ,make me a good man1 a brave warrior6 ,i want to be a great warrior2 ,i want to capture many horses2 ,i want to teach much to my people2 ,i want to be their chief and save them in their need60 ,for three days and nights1 my uncle prayed2 and in this time he had not a mouthful of food1 not a drop of water to drink4 ,the fourth day his father came to him4 8,my son10 he said1 8perhaps the gods would have you become a great man3 and they are trying you1 whether you are worthy4 ,you have not suffered enough60 8,i am ready1 father10 said my uncle4 ,small ,ankle fixed a stout post in the ground and fastened my uncle to it with thongs1 so that all day he was in great suffering4 ,in the evening1 ,small ,ankle came and cut him loose4 8,you have suffered enough1 my son10 he said2 8,i think the gods will now pity you and give you a dream60 ,he took my uncle home and gave him something to eat and drink2 then he laid the boy tenderly upon a pile of buffalo skins1 before his own medicines4 ,for a long time1 my uncle could not sleep for the pain from his wounds4 ,a little before daylight1 he fell into a troubled dream4 ,he heard a man outside1 walking around the earth lodge4 ,the man was singing a mystery song2 now and then he paused and cried1 8,you have done well1 ,strong ,bull60 ,small ,ankle was very happy when my uncle awoke and told him his dream4 ,he knew that one of the gods had now come to his son to protect him and help him2 and he called the boy by his new name1 ,strong ,bull1 that the god had given him4 ,illustration3 ,buffalo ,skulls4 ,other men had different dreams4 ,my grandfather once told me of a man who had a vision of four buffalo skulls that became alive4 ,many years ago when our villages were on ,knife ,river a man named ,bush went out to find his god4 ,he sought a vision from the buffalo spirits2 and he thought to make himself suffer so that the spirits might pity him4 ,he tied four buffalo skulls in a train1 one behind another1 and as ,bush walked he dragged the train of skulls behind him4 ,he made his way painfully up the ,missouri1 mourning and crying to the gods4 ,the banks of the ,missouri are much cut up by ravines1 and ,bush suffered greatly as he dragged the heavy skulls over this rough country4 ,fifty miles north of the villages1 he came to the ,little ,missouri1 a shallow stream1 but subject to sudden freshets2 he found the river flooded1 and rising4 ,he stood on the bank and cried3 8,o gods1 ,i am poor and ,i suffer6 ,i want to find my god4 ,other men have suffered1 and found their gods4 ,now ,i suffer much1 but no god answers me4 ,i am going to plunge into this torrent4 ,i think ,i shall die1 yet ,i will plunge in4 ,o gods1 if you are going to answer me1 do it now and save me68 ,he waded in1 dragging the heavy skulls after him4 ,the water grew deeper4 ,he could no longer wade1 he had to swim2 he struck out4 ,he wondered that he no longer felt the weight of the skulls1 and that he did not sink4 ,then he heard something behind him cry1 8,whoo-oo-ooh60 ,he looked around4 ,the four buffalo skulls were swimming about him1 buoying him up2 but they were no longer skulls6 ,flesh and woolly hair covered them2 they had big1 blue eyes2 they had red tongues4 ,they were alive6 ,bush himself told this story to my grandfather4 ,it should not be thought that ,bush was trying to deceive when he said he saw these things4 ,if one had been with him when he sprang into the torrent1 and had cried1 8,bush1 the skulls are not alive2 it is your delirium that makes you think they live60 he would have answered1 8,of course you cannot see they are alive6 ,the vision is to me1 not to you4 ,the flesh and hair and eyes are spirit flesh4 ,i see them2 you see only the skulls60 ,a man might go out many times thus1 to find his god4 ,if he had ill success in war1 or if sickness or misfortune came upon him1 he would think the gods had forgotten him2 and he would throw away his moccasins1 cut his hair as for mourning1 paint his face with white clay1 and again cry to the gods for a vision4 ,a medicine man's visions were like other men's2 but we gave them more heed1 because we thought he had more power with the gods4 ,we looked upon a medicine man as a prophet2 his dreams and visions were messages to us from the spirits2 and we thought of his mystery power as white men think of a prophet's power to work miracles4 ,our medicine men sought visions for us1 and messages from the gods1 just as white men's preachers study to tell them what ,god speaks to them in ,his ,book4 ,a medicine man had much influence in the tribe4 ,he cured our sick1 called the buffalo herds to us1 gave us advice when a war party was being formed1 and in times of drought prayed for rain4 ,worshipping as we did many gods1 we ,indians did not think it strange that white men prayed to another ,god2 and when missionaries came1 we did not think it wrong that they taught us to pray to their ,god1 but that they said we should not pray to our own gods4 8,why18 we asked1 8do the missionaries hate our gods8 ,we do not deny the white men's ,great ,spirit2 why1 then1 should they deny our gods80 ,sometimes ,indians who seek to join the mission church1 secretly pray to their own gods2 more often an ,indian who accepts ,jesus ,christ and tries to follow ,him1 still fears his old gods1 although he no longer prays to them4 ,many older ,indians1 who do not know ,english1 look upon ,jesus ,christ as they would upon one of their own gods2 a story will show how ,his mission is sometimes misunderstood4 ,on this reservation lives a medicine woman1 named ,minnie ,enemy ,heart4 ,when a girl1 she went to the mission school and learned something about ,jesus ,christ4 ,afterward1 as her fathers had done1 she went into the hills to seek her god4 ,she says that she fasted and prayed1 and ,jesus came to her in a vision4 ,one side of his body was dark1 like an ,indian2 the other side was white1 like a white man4 ,in ,his white hand he carried a lamb2 in the other1 a little dog4 ,jesus explained the vision4 8,my body10 ,he said1 8half dark and half white1 means that ,i am as much an ,indian as ,i am a white man4 ,this dog means that ,indian ways are for ,indians1 as white ways are for white men2 for ,indians sacrifice dogs1 as white men once sacrificed lambs4 ,if the missionaries tell you this is not true1 ask them who crucified me1 were they ,indians or white men80 ,many ,indians believe this vision4 ,more than fifteen have left the ,catholic priest to follow ,minnie ,enemy ,heart1 and three or four have left our ,protestant mission4 ,to us ,indians1 the spirit world seemed very near1 and we did nothing without taking thought of the gods4 ,if we would begin a journey1 form a war party1 hunt1 trap eagles1 or fish1 or plant corn1 we first prayed to the spirits4 ,a bad dream would send the bravest war party hurrying home4 ,if our belief seem strange to white men1 theirs seemed just as strange to us4 ,,iv ,,indian ,,beliefs ,illustration3 ,medicine ,post and ,sacred ,bundle4 ,many medicine men added to their mystery power by owning sacred bundles1 neatly bound bundles of skin or cloth1 containing sacred objects or relics that had been handed down from old times4 ,every bundle had its history1 telling how the bundle began and what gods they were that helped those who prayed before it4 ,there were about sixty of these sacred bundles in the tribe1 when ,i was a boy4 ,the owner of a sacred bundle was called its keeper2 he usually kept it hung on his medicine post1 in the back part of his lodge4 ,a sacred bundle was looked upon as a kind of shrine1 and in some lodges strangers were forbidden to walk between it and the fire4 ,when a keeper became old1 he sold his sacred bundle to some younger man1 that its rites might not die with him4 ,the young man paid a hundred tanned buffalo skins and a gun or pony1 and made a feast for the keeper2 at this feast1 the young man received the bundle with the rites and songs that went with it4 ,this was called1 8making a ceremony40 ,illustration3 ,shrine and ,sacred ,bundle of the ,big ,birds' ,ceremony4 ,white men think it strange that we ,indians honored these sacred bundles2 but ,i have heard that in ,europe men once honored relics1 the skull1 or a bone1 or a bit of hair of some saint1 or a nail from ,jesus' cross2 that they did not pray to the relic1 but thought that the spirit of the saint was near2 or that he was more willing to hear their prayers when they knelt before the relic4 ,in much the same way1 we ,indians honored our sacred bundles4 ,they contained sacred objects1 or relics1 that had belonged each to some god--his scalp1 or skull1 the pipe he smoked1 or his robe4 ,we did not pray to the object1 but to the god or spirit to whom it had belonged1 and we thought these sacred objects had wonderful power1 just as white men once thought they could be cured of sickness by touching the bone of some saint4 ,a medicine man's influence was greater if he owned a sacred bundle4 ,men then came to him not only because the spirits answered him when he fasted1 but because1 as its keeper1 he had power from the gods of the sacred bundle4 ,the most famous of these sacred bundles belonged to my grandfather1 ,small ,ankle4 ,it was called the bundle of the ,big ,birds' ceremony4 ,it was kept on a kind of stand in the back part of our lodge1 and it contained two skulls and a carved wooden pipe4 ,these objects were thought to be very holy4 ,when my tribe came up the ,missouri to ,like-a-fish-hook ,bend1 where they built their last village1 they first camped there in tepees4 ,a question arose as to how they should plan their village1 and the more important medicine men of the tribe came and sat in a circle1 to consider what to do4 ,this was seven years after the small-pox year4 ,at that time1 the skulls of the ,big ,birds' ceremony were owned by an old man named ,missouri ,river4 ,the other medicine men1 knowing that these skulls were most important sacred objects in the tribe1 said to ,missouri ,river1 8,your gods are most powerful4 ,tell us how we should lay out our village60 ,missouri ,river brought the two skulls from his tent1 and holding one in either hand1 he walked around in a wide circle1 returning again to the place where he had started4 8,we will leave this circle open1 in the center of our village10 he said4 8,so shall we plan it60 ,he laid the skulls on the grass and said to ,big ,cloud1 ,small ,ankle's son-in-law1 8,your gods are powerful4 ,choose where you will build your earth lodge60 ,big ,cloud arose4 8,i will build it here10 he said1 8where lie the two skulls4 ,the door shall face the west1 for my gods are eagles that send thunder1 and eagles and thunders come from the west4 ,and so ,i think we shall have rain1 and our children and our fields shall thrive1 and we shall live here many years40 ,big ,cloud had once seen a vision of thunder eagles1 awake and with his eyes open4 ,the medicine men said to ,has-a-game-stick1 8,you choose a place for your lodge60 ,has-a-game-stick stood and said1 8,my god is the ,sunset ,woman4 ,i want my lodge to face the sunset1 that the ,sunset ,woman may remember me1 and ,i will pray to her that the village may have plenty and enemies may never take it1 and ,i think the ,sunset ,woman will hear me60 ,the medicine men said to ,bad ,horn1 8,you stand up60 ,bad ,horn stood and said1 8,my gods are bears1 and bears always make the mouths of their dens open toward the north4 ,i want my lodge door to open toward the north1 that my bear gods may remember me4 ,and ,i will pray to them that this village may stand many years60 ,the medicine men then said to ,missouri ,river1 8,choose a place for your lodge60 ,missouri ,river took the two skulls1 one in either hand1 and singing a mystery song1 walked around the circle with his right hand toward the center1 as moves the sun4 ,three times he walked around1 the fourth time he stopped at a place and prayed1 8,my gods1 you are my protectors1 protect also this village4 ,send also rains that our grain may grow1 and our children may eat and be strong and healthy4 ,so shall we prosper1 because my sacred bundle is in the village48 ,he turned to the company upon the grass4 8,go1 the rest of you10 he said1 8and choose where you will build your lodges2 and keep the circle open1 as ,i have marked60 ,before ,missouri ,river died1 he sold his sacred bundle to my grandfather1 ,small ,ankle2 and ,small ,ankle sold it to his son1 ,wolf ,chief4 ,after ,wolf ,chief became a ,christian1 he sold the bundle to a man in ,new ,york1 that it might be put into a museum4 ,we had other beliefs1 besides these of the gods4 ,we thought that all little babies had lived before1 most of them as birds1 or beasts1 or even plants4 ,my father1 ,son-of-a-,star1 claimed he could even remember what bird he had been4 ,we believed that many babies came from the babes' lodges4 ,there were several of these4 ,one was near our villages on the ,knife ,river4 ,it was a hill of yellow sand1 with a rounded top like the roof of an earth lodge4 ,in one side was a little cave1 and the ground about the cave's mouth was worn smooth1 as if children played there4 ,sometimes in the morning1 little footprints were found in the sand4 ,to this hill a childless wife would come to pray for a son or daughter4 ,she would lay a pair of very beautiful child's moccasins at the mouth of the cave and pray3 8,i am poor4 ,i am lonesome4 ,come to me1 one of you6 ,i love you4 ,i long for you60 ,we understood that children who came from this babes' lodge had light skin and yellowish hair1 like yellow sand4 ,a very old man once said to me3 8,i remember my former life4 ,i lived in a babes' lodge4 ,it was like a small earth lodge inside4 ,there was a pit before the door1 crossed by a log4 ,many of the babes1 trying to cross the pit1 fell in4 ,but ,i walked the whole length of the log2 hence ,i have lived to be an old man40 ,i have heard this story from other old men4 ,very small children1 who died before they teethed or were old enough to laugh1 were not buried upon scaffolds with our other dead1 but were wrapped in skins and placed in trees4 ,we thought if such a baby died1 that its spirit went back to live its former life again1 as a bird1 or plant1 or as a babe in one of the babes' lodges4 ,older children and men and women1 when they died1 went to the ghosts' village4 ,this was a big town of earth lodges1 where the dead lived very much as they had lived on earth4 ,older ,indians of my tribe still believe in the ghosts' village4 ,there were men in my tribe who had died1 as we believed1 and gone to the ghosts' village1 and come back to life again4 ,from these men we learned what the ghosts' village was like4 ,my mother's grandfather came back thus1 from the ghosts' village2 his name was ,it-si-di-shi-di-it-a-ka1 or ,old ,yellow ,elk4 ,old ,yellow ,elk had an otter skin for his medicine1 or sacred object4 ,he died in the small-pox year2 and his family laid his body out on a hill with the otter skin under his head for a pillow4 ,logs were piled about the body1 to keep off wolves4 ,men were dying so fast that there was no time to make burial scaffolds4 ,that night a voice was heard calling from the hill1 8,a-ha-he6 ,a-ha-he6 ,come for me1 ,i want to get up60 ,the villagers ran to the grave and took away the logs1 and ,old ,yellow ,elk arose and came home4 8,the ghosts' village is a fine town18 he told his family4 8,i saw many people there1 they gave me a spotted pony4 ,my god1 the otter1 brought me back4 ,he led me up the bed of the ,missouri1 under the water4 ,i brought my pony with me and tied him to a log on my grave60 ,his family went out to the grave the next morning and looked for the pony's tracks1 but found none6 ,all these things ,i firmly believed1 when ,i was a boy4 ,v ,,school ,,days ,i was six years old when ,mr4 ,hall1 a missionary1 came to us1 from the ,santee ,sioux4 ,he could not speak the ,mandan or the ,hidatsa language1 but he spoke ,sioux1 which some of our people understood4 ,he was a good singer2 and he had a song which he sang with ,sioux words4 ,our people would crowd about him to hear it1 for it was the first ,christian song they had ever heard4 ,illustration3 ,the ,sun ,man 7,redrawn from a sketch by ,goodbird74 ,the song began3 8,ho washte1 ho washte1 ,on ,jesus yatan miye2 ,ho wakan1 ho wakan1 ,nina hin yeyan60 ,the words are a translation of an ,english hymn3 8,sweetly sing1 sweetly sing1 ,jesus is our ,saviour king2 ,let us raise1 let us raise1 ,high our notes of praise60 ,it is a custom of my people to give a name to every stranger who comes among us1 either from some singularity in his dress or appearance1 or from something that he says or does4 ,our people caught the first two words of the missionary's song and named him after them1 ,ho ,washte4 ,he is still called by this name4 ,mr4 ,hall had brought his wife with him1 and they began building a house with timbers freighted up the river on a steamboat4 ,our chief1 ,crow's ,belly1 threatened to burn the house1 but the missionary made him a feast and explained that he wanted to use the house for a school1 where ,indian children could learn ,english4 ,crow's ,belly thought this a good plan1 and made no further trouble4 ,the school was opened the next winter4 ,it was soon noised in the village that ,english would be taught in the mission school1 and several young men started to attend1 my uncle1 ,wolf ,chief1 among them4 ,they went each morning with hair newly braided1 faces painted1 and big brass rings on their fingers4 ,most of them found school work rather hard1 and soon tired of it4 ,the next fall1 my parents started me to school1 for my father wanted me to learn ,english4 ,the mission house was a half mile from our village2 ,i went each morning with a little ,mandan companion1 named ,hollis ,montclair4 ,we wore ,indian dress1 leggings1 moccasins1 and leather shirt4 ,at noon ,hollis and ,i would return to the village for our noon meal2 and sometimes we would go to school again in the afternoon4 ,we went pretty faithfully all the fall1 and until ,christmas time1 when our teacher told us we were to have a ,christmas tree4 ,hollis and ,i had never seen a ,christmas tree2 and when ,christmas day came1 we could hardly wait until the time came for us to go to the school house4 ,it was a cheerful scene then1 that met our eyes4 ,the tree was a cedar cut on the ,missouri bottoms1 lighted1 and trimmed with strips of bright colored paper4 ,mr4 ,hall and his family sat at the front1 smiling4 ,my teacher moved about among the children1 greeting each as he arrived1 and speaking a kind word to those that were shy4 ,about fifteen school children of the age of ,hollis and myself were present4 ,we had music and singing1 and ,mr4 ,hall explained what ,christmas means1 that it is the birthday of ,jesus1 the ,son of ,god2 and that we should be happy because ,he loved us4 ,presents were then given us2 each child was called by name1 and handed a little gift taken from the tree4 ,and now ,i grieve to say1 that ,hollis and ,i acted as badly as two white children4 ,there was a magnet hanging on the tree1 a piece of steel shaped like a horse shoe1 that picked up bits of iron4 ,hollis and ,i thought it the most wonderful thing we had ever seen4 ,we each hoped to receive it2 but it was given to another child4 ,this vexed us2 and we left upon the floor the gifts we had received1 and stalked out of the room4 ,the last thing ,i saw as ,i went out of the door was my teacher with her handkerchief to her eyes4 ,i did not feel happy when ,i thought of this2 but ,i was an ,indian boy1 and ,i was not going to forgive her for not giving me the magnet6 ,i told the story of the magnet to my parents2 and finding ,i was unwilling to go back to the mission1 they sent me to the government school that our agent had just opened2 but ,i did not go there long4 ,i was taken sick1 and my former teacher came to see me in our earth lodge4 ,she was so kind and forgiving that ,i forgot all about the magnet1 and when ,i got well ,i went back to the mission school4 ,i grew to love my teacher1 although ,i was always a little afraid of her4 ,we boys were not allowed to talk in study hours2 but when our teacher's back was turned1 we would whisper to one another4 ,sometimes our teacher turned quickly1 and if she caught any of us whispering1 she would come and give each of us a spat on the head with a book2 but it did not hurt much1 so we did not care4 ,we used to sing a good deal in the school4 ,one song ,i liked was1 8,i need ,thee every hour40 ,i loved to sing1 although the songs we learned were very different from our ,indian songs4 ,indians are fond of music2 ,i have known my grandfather and three or four cronies to sit at our lodge fire an entire night1 drumming and singing1 and telling stories4 ,i found ,english a rather hard language to learn4 ,many of the older ,indians would laugh at any who tried to learn to read4 8,you want to forsake your ,indian ways and be white men10 they would say2 but there were many in the village who wanted their children to learn ,english4 ,my grandfather was deeply interested in my studies4 8,it is their books that make white men strong10 he would say4 8,the buffaloes will soon be killed2 and we ,indians must learn white ways1 or starve40 ,he was a progressive old man4 ,i am sorry to say that ,i played hookey sometimes4 ,big dances were often held in the village2 especially1 when a war party came in with a scalp1 there was great excitement4 ,the scalp was raised aloft on a pole1 and the women danced about it1 screaming1 and singing glad songs4 ,warriors painted their faces with charcoal1 and danced1 sang1 yelled1 and boasted of their deeds4 ,everybody feasted and made merry4 ,when ,i knew that a dance was going to be held1 ,i would hide somewhere in the village1 instead of going to school4 ,the next day my teacher would say1 8,where were you yesterday80 8,at the dance10 ,i would answer4 ,she would then tell me how naughty ,i was2 but she never punished me1 for she knew if she did1 ,i would leave the school4 ,my parents also scolded1 but did not punish me4 ,i am afraid ,i was a bad little boy6 ,one day1 on my way to school1 ,i was overtaken by a very old white man1 with white hair4 ,i had been going to school about a year and could talk a little ,english4 0,what is your name1 little fellow80 the old man asked4 ,he had a friendly voice4 8,my name is ,goodbird10 ,i answered4 8,but what is your ,english name80 8,i have none40 8,then ,i will give you mine10 the old man said1 smiling4 8,it is ,edward ,moore40 ,it is a common custom for an ,indian to give his name to a friend2 so ,i did not know the old man's words were said in fun4 ,at the school1 ,i told ,mr4 ,hall what the old man had said1 and he laughed4 8,i think ,moore is not a good name for you10 he said4 8,moore sounds like moor1 a marshy place where mists rise in the air1 but ,edward is a very good name48 ,so ,i have called myself ,edward ,goodbird ever since4 ,every ,friday ,mr4 ,hall gave a dinner in the mission house to his pupils4 ,we ,indian children thought these dinners wonderful4 ,many of us had never tasted white men's food2 some things1 as sour pickles1 we did not like4 ,mr4 ,hall wanted us to learn to eat white bread and biscuits1 so that we would ask our mothers to bake bread at home4 ,he hoped this would be a means of getting us to like white men's ways4 ,on ,saturdays we had no school1 and ,mr4 ,hall would go around the village1 shaking hands with the ,indians and inviting them to come to church the next morning4 ,later1 ,poor ,wolf acted as his crier1 and on ,saturday evenings he would go around1 calling out1 8,ho ,washte1 ,ho ,washte6 ,come you people1 to-morrow1 and sit for him60 ,he meant for them to come to church the next morning and sit in chairs4 ,mr4 ,hall's janitor1 a young ,indian named ,bear's ,teeth1 swept out the mission house1 made the fires1 and got the school room ready for the services4 ,there was no bell on the mission1 so a flag was run up as a signal for the congregation to gather4 ,not many came to the services1 fifteen or twenty were a usual congregation1 sometimes only ten4 ,mr4 ,hall preached1 and to make his sermons plainer1 he often drew pictures on the blackboard4 ,my father thought the missionary's religion was good1 but would not himself forsake the old ways4 8,the old gods are best for me10 he used to say1 but he let me go to hear ,mr4 ,hall preach4 ,i cannot say that ,i always understood the sermon4 ,sometimes ,mr4 ,hall would say1 8,thirty years ago1 my friends1 ,i saw the light60 ,i thought he meant he had seen a vision4 ,but ,i learned a good deal from ,mr4 ,hall's preaching2 and my lessons and the songs ,i learned at school made me think of ,jesus2 but ,i thought an ,indian could be a ,christian and also believe in the old ways4 ,it came over me one day1 that this could not be4 ,a story of our ,indian god1 ,it-si-ka-ma-hi-di1 tells us that the sun is a man1 with his body painted red1 like fire2 that the earth is flat1 and that the sky covers it like a bowl turned bottom up2 but in my geography1 at school1 ,i learned that the earth is round4 ,in our earth lodge1 that night1 ,i said to my parents1 8,this earth is round2 the sun is a burning ball60 ,my cousin ,butterfly was disgusted4 8,that is white man's talk10 he grunted4 8,this earth is flat4 ,white men are foolish60 ,this ,i would in no wise admit1 and ,i came home almost daily with some new proof that the earth was round4 ,as ,i grew older and began to read books1 ,i thought of myself as a ,christian1 but more because ,i went to the mission school1 than because ,i thought of ,jesus as my ,saviour4 ,i loved to read the stories of the ,bible2 and ,mr4 ,hall taught me the ,ten ,commandments4 ,some of the ,indian boys learned to swear1 from hearing white men2 but ,i never did1 because ,mr4 ,hall told me it was wrong4 ,i thought that those who did as the ,bible bade1 would grow up to be good men4 ,i had a cousin1 three years older than myself1 in the ,santee ,indian school1 who had become a ,christian4 ,one day ,i received a letter from him4 8,i believe in ,jesus' way10 he wrote4 8,i believe ,jesus is a good ,saviour4 ,i have tried ,his way1 and ,i want you to try to join in and have ,him for your ,saviour40 ,this letter set me to thinking4 ,in these years1 my life outside the school room was wholly ,indian4 ,we ,hidatsa children knew nothing of base ball1 or one hole cat1 or other white children's games1 but we had many ,indian games that we played4 ,some of these games ,i think better than those now played on our reservation4 ,in ,march and early ,april1 we boys played the hoop game4 ,a level place1 bare of snow1 was found1 and the boys divided into two sides1 about thirty yards apart4 ,small hoops1 covered with a lacing of thongs1 were rolled forward1 and were caught by those of the opposite side on sticks1 thrust or darted through the lacings4 ,a hoop so caught1 was sent hurtling through the air1 the object being to hit some one of the opposing players4 ,illustration3 ,hoop and ,stick of the ,hoop ,game4 ,the game was played but a few weeks1 for as soon as the ice broke on the ,missouri1 we boys went to the high bank of the river1 and hurled our hoops into the current4 ,we were told1 and really believed1 that they became dead buffaloes as soon as they had passed out of sight1 beyond the next point of land4 ,such buffaloes1 drowned in the thin ice of autumn and frozen in1 came floating down the river in large numbers at the spring break-up4 ,the carcasses were always fat1 and the frozen flesh was sweet and tender4 ,after the first thunder in spring1 we played u-a-ki-he-ke1 or throw stick4 ,willow rods were cut1 peeled1 and dried1 and then stained red1 with ochre1 or a bright green1 with grass4 ,these rods1 darted against the ground1 rebounded to a great distance4 ,the player won whose rod went farthest4 ,u-a-ki-he-ke is still played on the reservation4 ,in ,june1 when the rising waters have softened the river's clay banks1 we fought sham battles4 ,each boy cut a willow withe1 as long as a buggy whip1 and on the smaller end squeezed a lump of wet clay4 ,with the withe as a sling1 he could throw the clay ball to an astonishing distance4 ,hidatsa and ,mandan boys often fought against one another1 using these clay balls as missiles4 ,illustration3 ,war ,bonnet 7,on ,lodge ,post74 ,it was exciting play1 for we fought like armies1 each side trying to force the other's position2 when an attack was made1 a storm of mud balls would come whizzing through the air like bullets4 ,a hit on the bare flesh stung like a real wound4 ,once one of my playmates was hit in the eye1 and badly hurt4 ,i was just over fourteen1 when my parents let me join in the grass dance1 or war dance1 as the whites call it4 ,the other dancers made me an officer1 and my father was so pleased1 that he hung up a fine eagle's feather war bonnet in our lodge4 8,if enemies come against us10 he said1 8my son shall go out to fight wearing this war bonnet60 ,one evening1 ,bear's ,arm1 a lad of eighteen years1 came in from hunting a strayed pony2 he was much excited4 8,i saw two ,sioux in war dress1 hiding in a coulee10 he told us4 ,our warriors ran for their ponies4 8,put on your war bonnet18 my father said to me4 8,i am going to take you in the party4 ,keep close to me2 and if there is a fight1 see if you cannot strike an enemy68 ,we rode all night1 ,bear's ,arm leading us4 ,we reached the coulee and surrounded it a little before daybreak1 and with the first streak of dawn1 we closed in1 our rifles ready2 but we found no enemies4 ,this was my one war exploit4 ,illustration3 ,buffaloes4 ,,vi ,,hunting ,,buffaloes ,the summer ,i was twelve years old1 our village went on a buffalo hunt1 for scouts had brought in word that herds had been sighted a hundred miles west of the ,missouri4 ,my father1 ,son-of-a-,star1 was chosen leader of the hunt4 ,my tribe no longer used travois1 for the government had issued wagons to us4 ,these we took apart1 loading the wheels into bull boats while the beds were floated over the river4 ,we made our first camp at the edge of the foot hills1 on the other side of the river4 ,the next morning1 we struck tents1 loaded them into our wagons1 and began the march4 ,my father led1 carrying his medicine bundle at his saddle head2 behind him rode two or three elder ,indians1 leaders of the tribe1 also on horseback4 ,then followed the wagons in a long line2 and on either side rode the young men1 on their tough1 scrubby1 little ponies4 ,some of our young men as they rode1 drove small companies of horses4 ,neighbors commonly put their horses together1 and a young man1 or two or three young men1 acted as herders4 ,sometimes a girl1 mounted astraddle like a man1 drove them4 ,now and then a youth might be seen reining in his pony to let the line of wagons pass1 while he kept a sharp watch for his sweetheart4 ,she hardly glanced at him as she rode by1 for it was not proper for a young man's sweetheart to let him talk to her in the marching line4 ,the time for courtship was in camp1 in the evening4 ,illustration3 ,clay ,pot with ,thong ,handle4 ,toward five or six in the afternoon1 we made camp4 ,the wagons were drawn up in a big circle1 and the women pitched the tents1 while the men unhitched and hobbled their horses1 and brought firewood4 ,the women brought water and lighted the fires4 ,water was carried in pails4 ,i have heard that in old times1 they used clay pots made of a kind of red clay1 and burned2 a thong went around the neck of the pot1 for a handle4 ,my mother1 an active woman1 often had her fire started before her neighbors4 ,while she got supper1 my father sat and smoked4 ,friends frequently joined him1 and they would sit in a circle1 passing the pipe around1 telling funny stories and laughing4 ,my father was a capital story teller4 ,for supper we had deer or antelope meat1 boiled or roasted1 and my mother often fried wheat-flour dough into a kind of biscuits that were rather hard4 ,corn picked green the year before1 and boiled and dried1 was stewed in a kettle1 making a dish much like the canned com we buy at the store4 ,more often we had succotash1 hominy boiled with fat and beans4 ,we drank black coffee1 sweetened2 my mother put the coffee beans into a skin1 pounded them fine with an ax1 and boiled them in an iron pot4 ,you see1 we were getting civilized4 ,when supper was ready1 my mother would call 8,mi-ha-dits--,i have done60 and my father would put up his pipe and come to eat4 ,my mother gave him meat1 steaming hot1 in a tin dish1 and poured coffee into a cup2 another cup held meat broth1 which made a good drink also4 ,we did not bring wooden feast bowls with us1 as some families did4 ,my mother and ,i ate with my father1 much as white families do2 a robe or blanket was spread for each to sit upon4 ,i wore moccasins and leggings2 and my hair was braided1 ,indian fashion1 in two tails over my shoulders1 but my mother had made me a white man's vest1 of black cloth1 embroidered all over with elk teeth4 ,i was proud of this vest1 and cared not a whit that ,i had no coat to wear over it4 ,the seventh day out1 we made camp near the ,cannon ,ball ,river4 ,my father had sent two mounted scouts ahead1 with a spy glass1 to see if they could find the herds2 at evening1 they returned with the report1 8,there is a big herd yonder60 ,everybody got ready for the hunt the next morning1 and my father made me happy by telling me that ,i might go along4 ,illustration3 ,quirt 7,indian ,whip47 ,we arose early4 ,my father saddled two ponies1 one of them a pack animal2 and ,i mounted a third1 with a white man's saddle4 ,my father's were pack saddles1 of elk horn1 covered with raw hide2 ropes1 looped up like a figure #h1 were tied behind them to be used in binding the packs of meat we would bring home from the hunt4 ,there were about forty hunters in our party1 mounted1 and leading each a pack horse2 eight boys1 of twelve or fifteen years of age1 and three old men4 ,i remember one of the old men carried a bow and arrows1 probably from old custom4 ,only the hunters expected to take part in the actual chase of the buffaloes2 they were armed with rifles4 ,the party's leader1 ,e-di-a-ka-ta--the same who led our tribe to the ,yellowstone--rode ahead1 and we followed at a brisk trot4 ,five miles out of camp1 the two scouts were again sent ahead with the spy glass4 ,we saw them coming back at a gallop and knew that the herd was found1 and we urged our horses at the top of their speed4 ,i remember the slap of the quirts on the little ponies' flanks2 and the beat-beat1 beat-beat6 of their hoofs on the hard ground4 ,indians do not shoe their horses4 ,we drew rein behind a hill1 a half mile to leeward of the herd1 and1 having dismounted1 hobbled our led horses4 ,our hunters laid aside their shirts and leggings1 stripped the saddles from their ponies' backs1 and twisted bridles of thong into their ponies' mouths2 it was our tribe's custom to ride bare-back in the hunt4 ,e-di-a-ka-ta went a little way off and stood1 facing in the direction of the herd2 from a piece of red cloth he tore a long strip1 ripped this again into three or four pieces and laid them on the ground4 ,i saw his lips move1 and knew he was praying1 but ,i could not hear his words4 ,the pieces of red cloth ,were an offering to the spirits of the buffaloes4 ,our hunters remounted and drew up in a line facing the herd1 ,e-di-a-ka-ta on the right1 and at a signal1 the line started forward1 neck-and-neck1 at a brisk gallop4 ,a guard1 named ,tsa-wa1 or ,bear's ,chief1 rode in advance2 if a hunter pressed too far forward in the line1 ,tsa-wa struck the hunter's pony in the face with his quirt4 ,we boys and the three old men rode a little behind the line of hunters2 we did not expect to take part in the hunt1 but wanted to see the kill4 ,as we cleared the brow of the hill we sighted the buffaloes1 about four hundred yards away1 and ,e-di-a-ka-ta gave the signal1 8,ku'kats--,now then60 ,down came the quirts on the little ponies' flanks1 making them leap forward like big cats4 ,the line broke at once1 each hunter striving to reach the herd first and kill the fattest4 ,an iron-gray horse1 ,i remember1 was in the lead4 ,we boys followed at breakneck speed--unwillingly on my part2 my pony had taken the bit in his mouth and was going over the stony ground at a speed that ,i feared would throw him any moment and break his neck and mine4 ,i tugged at the reins and clung to the saddle1 too scared to cry out4 ,bang6 ,a fat cow tumbled over4 ,bang6 ,bang6 ,bang6 ,bang6 ,the frightened herd started to flee1 swerved to the right1 and went thundering away up wind1 in a whirl of dust4 ,buffaloes1 when alarmed1 fly up wind if the way is open2 their sight is poor1 but they have a keen scent1 and running up wind they can nose an ,indian a half mile away4 ,for such heavy beasts1 buffaloes have amazing speed1 and only our fastest horses were used in hunting them2 indeed1 a young bull often outran our fastest ponies4 ,only cows were killed4 ,the flesh of bulls is tough and was not often eaten2 that of calves crumbled when dried1 making it unfit for storing4 ,some buffalo calves1 forsaken by the herd1 were running wildly over the prairie1 bleating for their mothers2 two of our hunters caught one of the smallest with a lariat1 and brought it to me4 8,here1 boy10 they said1 8keep this calf40 ,i caught the rope and drew the calf after me2 but my pony1 growing frightened1 reared and kicked the little animal2 paying out more rope1 ,i led the calf at a safer distance from my horse's heels4 ,the hunters came straggling back1 and my father seeing the calf1 cried out1 8,let that calf go6 ,buffaloes are sacred animals4 ,you should not try to keep one captive68 ,i was much disappointed1 for ,i wanted to take it into camp4 ,my father had killed three fat cows1 and these he now sought out and dressed4 ,the shoulders1 hams1 and choicer cuts he loaded on our led horse1 covering the pack with a green hide and tying it down with the rawhide ropes brought for the purpose2 the rest he left in a pile on the prairie1 covered with the other two hides4 ,we intended to return for these with wagons1 the next day4 ,as my father was cutting up one of the carcasses1 ,i saw him throw away what ,i thought were good cuts2 ,i did not like to see good meat wasted1 and when ,i thought he was not looking1 ,i slyly put the pieces back on the pile4 ,illustration3 ,drying ,meat and ,boiling ,bones4 ,we returned to camp slowly1 at times urging our ponies to a gentle trot1 more often letting them walk4 ,my father had to dismount several times to secure our pack of meat1 which threatened to slip from our pack horse's back4 ,in our tent that evening1 ,i heard him telling my mother of my part in the hunt4 8,our son10 he said1 8is no wasteful lad4 ,he put back some tough leg pieces that ,i had thrown away4 ,he would not see good meat wasted60 ,and they both laughed4 ,stages were built in the camp1 and for two days1 every body was busy drying meat or boiling bones for marrow fat4 ,the dried meat was packed in skin bags1 or made into bundles2 the marrow fat was run into bladders2 and all was taken to ,like-a-fish-hook village1 to be stored for winter4 ,illustration3 ,goodbird at the ,age of ,twenty4 7,redrawn from ,portrait by ,gilbert ,saul4 ,report ,indian ,census1 #ahij47 ,,vii ,,farming ,the time came when we had to forsake our village at ,like-a-fish-hook ,bend1 for the government wanted the ,indians to become farmers4 8,you should take allotments10 our agent would say4 8,the big game is being killed off1 and you must plant bigger fields or starve4 ,the government will give you plows and cattle40 ,all knew that the agent's words were true1 and little by little our village was broken up4 ,in the summer of my sixteenth year nearly a third of my tribe left to take up allotments4 ,we had plenty of land2 our reservation was twice the size of ,rhode ,island1 and our united tribes1 with the ,rees who joined us1 were less than thirteen hundred souls4 ,most of the ,indians chose allotments along the ,missouri1 where the soil was good and drinking water easy to get4 ,unallotted lands were to be sold and the money given to the three tribes4 ,forty miles above our village1 the ,missouri makes a wide bend around a point called ,independence ,hill1 and here my father and several of his relatives chose their allotments4 ,the bend enclosed a wide strip of meadow land1 offering hay for our horses4 ,the soil along the river was rich and in the bottom stood a thick growth of timber4 ,my father left the village1 with my mother and me1 in ,june4 ,he had a wagon1 given him by the agent2 this he unbolted and took over the river piece by piece1 in a bull boat2 our horses swam4 ,we camped at ,independence in a tepee1 while we busied ourselves building a cabin4 ,my father cut the logs2 they were notched at the ends1 to lock into one another at the comers4 ,a heavier log1 a foot in thickness1 made the ridge pole4 ,the roof was of willows and grass1 covered with sods4 ,cracks between the logs were plastered with clay1 mixed with short grass4 ,the floor was of earth1 but we had a stove4 ,we were a month putting up our cabin4 ,though my father's coming to ,independence was a step toward civilization1 it had one ill effect3 it removed me from the good influences of the mission school1 so that for a time ,i fell back into ,indian ways4 ,winter1 also1 was not far off2 the season was too late for us to plant corn1 and the rations issued to us every two weeks rarely lasted more than two or three days4 ,to keep our family in meat1 ,i turned hunter4 ,there were no buffaloes on the reservation1 but blacktailed deer were plentiful1 and in the hills were a good many antelopes4 ,i had a ,winchester rifle1 a #dj4fj caliber1 and ,i was a good shot4 ,to hunt deer1 ,i arose before daylight and went to the woods along the ,missouri4 ,deer feed much at night1 and as evening came on1 they would leave the thick underbrush by the river and go into the hills to browse on the rich prairie grasses4 ,i would creep along the edge of the woods1 rifle in hand1 ready to shoot any that ,i saw coming in from the feeding grounds4 ,i was careful to keep on the leeward side of the game2 a deer running up wind will scent an ,indian as quickly as a buffalo4 ,i loved to hunt1 and although a mere boy1 ,i was one of the quickest shots in my tribe4 ,i remember that one morning ,i was coming around a clump of bushes when ,i saw a doe and buck ahead1 just entering the thicket4 ,i fired1 hardly glancing at the sights2 ,i saw the buck fall1 but when ,i ran up ,i found the doe lying beside him1 killed by the same bullet4 ,independence was a wild spot4 ,the hill from which the place took its name had been a favorite fasting place for young men who sought visions2 at its foot1 under a steep bank1 swept the ,missouri1 full of dangerous whirlpools4 ,such spots1 lonely and wild1 we ,indians thought were haunts of the spirits4 ,once1 when ,i was a small boy1 my father took me to see the ,sun dance4 ,a man named ,turtle-no-head was suspended from a post in a booth1 and dancing around it4 ,turtle-no-head's hands were behind him1 and he strained at the rope as he danced4 ,women were crying1 8,a-la-la-la-la-la60 ,old men were calling out1 8,good2 ,turtle-no-head is a man4 ,one should be willing to suffer to find his god2 then he will strike many enemies and win honors60 ,i was much stirred by what ,i saw1 and by the old men's words4 8,father10 ,i said1 8when ,i get big1 ,i am going to suffer and seek a vision1 like ,turtle-no-head60 8,good60 said my father1 laughing4 ,at ,independence1 ,i thought of this vow made years before4 ,one day1 ,i said to my father1 8,i want you to suspend me from the high bank1 over the ,missouri40 ,when evening came1 my father stripped me to my clout and moccasins1 and helped me paint my body with white clay4 ,he called a man named ,crow1 and they took me to the bank1 over the ,missouri4 ,my father fastened me to the rope1 and ,i swung myself over the bank1 hanging with my weight upon the rope4 8,suffer as long as you can60 called my father1 and left me4 ,i did not feel much pain1 but ,i became greatly wearied from the strain upon my back and thighs4 ,toward morning ,i could stand it no longer4 ,i drew myself up on the bank1 and went home and to bed2 and ,i slept so soundly that no dream came from the spirits4 ,a year later1 ,i again sought a vision4 ,this time my father took me to a high hill1 a mile or two from the river4 ,he drove a post into the ground1 fastened me to it1 as before1 and left me1 just at nightfall4 ,i threw myself back upon the rope and danced around the post1 hoping to fall into a swoon and see a vision4 ,it was autumn1 and a light snow was falling2 the cold flakes on my bare shoulders made me shiver till my teeth chattered4 ,the night was black as pitch4 ,a coyote howled4 ,i was so lonely that ,i wished a ghost would sit on the post and talk with me1 though ,i was dreadfully afraid of ghosts1 especially at night4 ,i grew so cold that my knees knocked together4 ,about two o'clock in the morning1 ,i untied the rope and went home4 ,for an hour ,i felt sick1 but ,i soon fell into a sleep1 again dreamless4 ,i was eating my breakfast when my father came in4 8,i have seen no vision1 father10 ,i told him2 he said nothing4 ,the next year the government forbade the ,indians to torture themselves when they fasted4 ,my father was quite vexed4 8,the government does wrong to forbid us to suffer for our gods60 he said4 ,but ,i was rather glad4 8,the ,indian's way is hard10 ,i thought4 8,the white man's road is easier60 ,and ,i thought again of the mission school4 ,other things drew my thoughts to civilized ways4 ,our agent issued to every ,indian family having an allotment1 a plow1 and wheat1 flax1 and oats1 for seeding4 ,my father and ,i broke land near our cabin1 and in the spring seeded it down4 ,we had a fair harvest in the fall4 ,threshing was done on the agency machine1 and1 having sacked our grain1 my father and ,i hauled it1 in four trips1 to ,hebron1 eighty miles away4 ,our flax we sold for seventy-five cents1 our wheat for sixty cents1 and our oats for twenty-five cents a bushel4 ,our four loads brought us about eighty dollars4 ,i became greatly interested in farming4 ,there was good soil on our allotment along the river1 although our fields sometimes suffered from drought2 away from the river1 much of our land was stony1 fit only for grazing4 ,my parents had been at ,independence eight years1 when one day the agent sent for me4 ,i went to his office4 8,i hear you have become a good farmer10 he said1 as ,i came in4 8,i want to appoint you assistant to our agency farmer4 ,your district will include all allotments west of the ,missouri between the little ,missouri and ,independence4 ,i will pay you three hundred dollars a year4 ,will you accept88 8,i will try what ,i can do10 ,i answered4 8,good10 said the ,major4 8,now for your orders6 ,you are to measure off for every able-bodied ,indian1 ten acres of ground to be plowed and seeded4 ,if an ,indian is lazy and will not attend to his plowing1 report him to me and ,i will send a policeman4 ,in the fall1 you are to see that every family puts up two tons of hay for each horse or steer owned by it40 ,i did not know what an acre was4 8,it is a piece of ground10 the agent explained1 8ten rods wide and sixteen rods long40 ,from this ,i was able to compute pretty well how much ten acres should be2 but ,i am not sure that all the plots ,i measured were of the same size4 ,i began my new duties at once1 and at every cabin in my district1 ,i measured off a ten-acre plot and explained the agent's orders4 ,not a few of the ,indians had done some plowing at ,like-a-fish-hook village1 and all were willing to learn4 ,once a month1 ,i took a blacksmith around to inspect the ,indians' plows4 ,rains were abundant that summer1 and the ,indians had a good crop4 ,some families harvested a hundred bushels of wheat from a ten-acre field2 others1 seventy-five bushels2 and some had also planted oats4 ,the government began to issue cattle in payment of lands sold for us4 ,the first issue was one cow to each family1 and the agent ordered me to see that every family built a barn4 ,these barns were put up without planks or nails4 ,a description of my own will show what they were like2 it rested on a frame of four forked posts1 with stringers laid in the forks2 puncheons1 or split logs1 were leaned against the stringers for walls2 rough-cut rafters supported a roofing of willows and dry grass1 earthed over with sods4 ,more cattle were issued to us until we had a considerable herd at ,independence4 ,the cattle were let run at large1 but each steer or cow was branded by its owner4 ,calves ran with their mothers until fall2 the herd was then corralled and each calf was branded with its mother's brand4 ,my own brand was the letters ,,su on the right shoulder4 ,herders guarded our cattle during the calving season2 we paid them ten cents for every head of stock herded through the summer months4 ,i had been assistant farmer six years and our herd had grown to about four hundred head1 when ,bird ,bear and ,skunk1 our two herders1 reported that some of our cattle had strayed4 0,we have searched the coulees and thickets1 but cannot find them10 they said4 ,branding time came2 we corralled the herd and found about fifty head missing4 ,we now suspected that our cattle had been stolen4 ,cattle thieves1 we knew1 were in the country2 they had broken into a corral one night1 on a ranch not far from ,independence and killed a cowboy named ,long ,john4 ,winter had passed1 when the agent called me one day into his office4 8,goodbird10 he said1 8,i want you to take out a party of our agency police and find those thieves who stole your cattle4 ,start at once60 ,i got my party together1 eight in all2 ,hollis ,montclair1 my boyhood chum2 ,frank ,white ,calf1 ,crow ,bull1 ,sam ,jones1 ,white ,owl1 ,little ,wolf1 ,no ,bear1 and myself4 ,only ,hollis and ,i spoke ,english4 ,we started toward the ,little ,missouri1 where we suspected the thieves might be found4 ,i drove a wagon with our provisions and tent2 my men were mounted4 ,we reached the ,little ,missouri before nightfall1 and camped4 ,illustration3 ,prairie ,dogs4 ,the next morning1 we turned westward2 before noon1 we crossed a prairie dog village1 and shot three or four prairie dogs for dinner4 ,the hair was singed off the carcasses1 and they were drawn1 and spitted on sticks over the fire4 ,prairie dogs are not bad eating1 especially in the open air1 by a good wood fire2 ,i have never become so civilized that ,i would not rather eat out of doors4 ,toward evening we met a cowboy4 8,how60 ,i called1 as ,i drew in my team4 8,have you seen any stray cattle1 with ,indian brands1 ,,id1 #g bar1 #g1 or the like88 ,and ,i told him of our missing cattle4 8,i know where they are10 said the cowboy4 8,you will find them on a ranch near ,stroud's post-office2 but don't tell who told you60 8,have no fear10 ,i answered4 ,stroud's post-office was farther west1 near the ,montana border2 we reached it the third or fourth day out4 ,we made camp1 and after supper1 ,i went in and told ,mr4 ,stroud our errand4 8,yes10 he said1 8your cattle are three miles from here1 on a ranch owned by ,frank ,powers2 he hired two cowboys to steal them for him40 ,the next morning my men and ,i mounted1 and leaving our wagon at ,stroud's1 started for ,powers' ranch4 ,i was unarmed2 the others of my party had their rifles4 ,we stopped at the cabin of a man named ,crockin1 to inquire our way4 ,a white man came in2 after he had gone out again1 ,i asked ,crockin1 8,who is that man80 8,he is ,frank ,powers10 said ,crockin4 ,i turned to my men and said in their own language1 8,that is the man who stole our cattle40 ,little ,wolf drew his cleaning rod4 8,i am going to give that bad white man a beating10 he cried angrily4 8,you will not10 ,i answered4 8,we will go into ,powers' pasture and round up his cattle2 and ,i will cut out all that ,i think are ours4 ,if that bad white man comes out and says evil words against me1 do nothing4 ,if he shoots at me1 kill him quick2 but do not you shoot first68 ,my men loaded their rifles1 and about two o'clock ,i led them into the pasture4 ,powers' cattle were all bunched in a big herd2 we drove them to a grassy flat1 and ,i began cutting out those that were ours4 ,powers saw us and came out1 revolver in hand1 and two or three white men joined him4 ,he was so angry that he acted like a mad man2 he grew red in the face1 talked loud1 and swore big oaths2 but he did not shoot1 for he knew my men would kill him4 ,i cut about twenty-five head out of the herd1 all that ,i found with altered brands on the right shoulder or thigh4 ,maybe ,i took some of ,powers' cattle by mistake1 but ,i did not care much4 ,powers left us after a while4 ,my men rounded up our cattle1 and we drove them back to ,stroud's and camped4 ,after supper1 ,i asked ,mr4 ,stroud to write a letter to our agent1 telling him what ,i had done4 8,to-morrow10 ,i told my men1 8we will set out for home4 ,you drive our cattle back to the reservation in short stages1 so that they will not sicken with the heat4 ,i will go ahead with ,mr4 ,stroud's letter40 ,i set out before sunrise2 at four o'clock ,i reached ,independence1 eighty miles away2 and at sunset1 ,i was at ,elbowoods4 ,it was ,decoration day1 and the ,indians were having a dance4 ,the agent was sitting in his office with the inspector1 from ,washington4 8,i have found our cattle10 ,i said2 and ,i gave him ,mr4 ,stroud's letter4 ,he read it and handed it to the inspector4 8,report this matter to the ,united ,states marshal10 the inspector said to him4 8,tell him to have ,powers arrested48 ,illustration3 ,the ,chapel at ,independence4 ,,viii ,,the ,,white ,,man',s ,,way ,my thirty-fifth winter--as we ,indians count years--found me still assistant farmer2 but time had brought many changes to our reservation4 ,antelope and blacktailed deer had gone the way of the buffalo4 ,a few earth lodges yet stood1 dwellings of stern old warriors who lived in the past2 but the ,indian police saw that every child was in school learning the white man's way4 ,a good dinner at the noon hour made most of the children rather willing scholars4 ,the white man's peace had stopped our wars with the ,sioux2 and the young folks of either tribe visited1 and made presents to one another4 ,i had visited the ,standing ,rock ,sioux and had learned to rather like them4 ,indeed1 ,i liked one ,sioux girl so well that ,i married her4 ,we had a comfortable cabin2 my wife was a good cook1 and my children were in school4 ,living so far from the mission1 it was not possible for me to attend church services at the mission house2 but ,mr4 ,hall came to ,independence and preached to us4 ,until a school house was built1 he often held his meetings in my cabin4 ,i usually interpreted for him4 ,he would speak in ,english and ,i would translate into ,hidatsa1 which the ,mandans also understand4 ,indians are good linguists2 not a few young men of my tribe speak as many as four or five languages4 ,i drew no salary as interpreter2 but ,i felt myself well repaid by what ,i learned of the ,bible4 ,interpreting ,mr4 ,hall's sermons made them sink into my heart1 so that ,i would think of them as ,i went about my work4 ,as time went on1 there grew up quite a company of ,christians at ,independence4 ,one of their active leaders was ,frank ,white ,calf2 and he and ,sitting ,crow called a kind of praying council at ,two ,chiefs' cabin4 ,all the ,independence ,christians came2 and ,i was invited to meet them4 ,some of the ,indians prayed2 and ,frank ,white ,calf asked me1 8,goodbird1 why do you not join us in this ,christian way8 ,tell us your mind60 ,i arose and spoke3 8,my friends1 ,i learned of this ,christian way at the mission school4 ,it is a good way4 ,you ask me my thoughts4 ,i answer1 ,i have tried to live like a ,christian and ,i love to read my ,bible1 but ,i have not received baptism2 ,i am now ready to be baptized40 ,a few days after this1 ,frank ,white ,calf said to me1 8,mr4 ,hall wants you to come to the mission house and be baptized40 ,i went the next ,sunday with my family1 and was received into the church4 ,my sons ,charles and ,alfred were baptized at the same time4 ,in part1 ,i was influenced to become a church member by the thought that it was the white man's way4 ,our ,indian beliefs1 ,i felt sure1 were doomed2 for white men's customs were becoming stronger with us each year4 8,i am traveling the new way1 now60 ,i thought1 when ,i was baptized4 8,i can never go back to ,indian ways again40 ,but for some years1 even after ,i became a church member1 ,i was not a very firm ,christian2 and ,i did not keep ,god's commandments very well1 because ,i did not believe all that the missionaries taught me4 ,i was unwilling to trust any white man's words1 until ,i had proved that they were true4 ,i did not want to take anything on faith4 ,mr4 ,hall made ,independence a preaching station1 and put an assistant in charge2 ,i interpreted for her4 ,sometimes ,mr4 ,hall1 or his son1 preached to us4 ,the missionary teacher let me know each week what was to be the next ,sunday's lesson1 and she gave me books to read4 ,knowing something of her subject1 ,i was better able to interpret for her4 ,in this way1 also1 ,i learned more of ,christ's teachings2 and ,i learned how to study my ,bible4 ,this study of the ,bible influenced me a great deal2 and my having to interpret made me fall into the habit of going to church regularly4 ,my interest in church work grew4 ,in #aijc1 the government abolished the position of assistant farmer4 ,in ,october of the following year1 ,mr4 ,hall's son said to me1 8,we need an assistant missionary at ,independence1 and my father and ,i want to appoint you4 ,come and talk with my father about it40 ,i went to ,elbowoods and saw ,mr4 ,hall4 8,edward10 he asked1 8are you willing to be our assistant missionary80 8,yes10 ,i answered4 ,i knew some one must preach to the ,independence ,indians2 and ,i thought ,i could do this1 because ,i could speak their language as well as read ,english4 ,i felt also that ,i was closer to ,god than ,i had been when ,i was baptized4 ,so ,i became ,mr4 ,hall's assistant1 and have been in charge of the ,independence station ever since4 ,every ,sunday ,i preach to the ,indians in the ,hidatsa language4 ,my text is the ,sunday-school lesson of the week1 for we ,indians do not care for sermons1 such as white men hear4 ,our older men cannot read ,english1 and we do not have the ,bible in our own tongue2 we like best to hear the ,sunday-school lesson because it explains the stories of the ,bible1 which my people cannot read for themselves4 ,things do not always go smoothly in an ,indian congregation4 ,frictions and misunderstandings arise1 as ,i have heard they do in white churches2 and ,indians sometimes seek to become church members from unworthy motives4 ,our former life makes us ,indians clannish2 members of the same clan feel bound to help one another1 and many ,indians seem to look upon the church as a kind of clan4 ,sometimes a young man will say1 8,i will be baptized and join your church4 ,then all the ,christians will work to make me agency policeman60 ,others1 again1 will say1 8,i want to join the church because ,i am sick2 perhaps ,god will make me well60 ,some1 with clearer faith1 say1 0,i want to become a ,christian because ,i believe ,jesus will save me to be a spirit with ,him40 ,they mean that they hope ,jesus will take them to live with ,him when they die4 ,my uncle1 ,wolf ,chief1 says of the ,christian way3 8,i traveled faithfully the way of the ,indian gods1 but they never helped me4 ,when ,i was sick1 ,i prayed to them1 but they did not make me well4 ,i prayed to them when my children died2 but they did not answer me4 ,i have but two children left1 and ,i am going to trust ,god to keep these that they do not die like the others4 ,i talk to ,god every day1 as ,i would talk to my father2 and ,i ask ,him for everything ,i want4 ,i try to do all that ,he bids me do4 ,i hope that ,he will take my spirit to travel in that new heaven about which ,i have learned4 ,i cannot change now4 ,i can never go back to the old gods60 ,wolf ,chief has been a strong ,christian for more than eight years4 ,he has given much to our mission work2 and he is never absent from ,sunday services4 ,six years ago1 we ,christians at ,independence became dissatisfied with our log meeting house1 and began to talk of building a chapel1 or church-house1 as we call it4 ,a council was called in ,wolf ,chief's cabin4 ,it was an evening in ,december2 all the leading ,christians of ,independence came with their wives--,wolf ,chief1 ,tom ,smith1 ,frank ,white ,calf1 ,mike ,basset1 ,hollis ,montclair1 ,sam ,jones1 ,louis ,baker1 and myself4 ,each woman brought something for a feast1 and we ate together4 ,we had fried bread1 tea1 pie1 tomato soup1 and other good things4 ,when our feasting was over1 ,wolf ,chief made a speech4 8,we ,christian ,indians10 he said1 8should have a chapel4 ,we should raise the money to build a house to ,god1 where we can go and worship68 ,tom ,smith and others spoke1 and we called for subscriptions4 ,frank ,white ,calf's wife gave five dollars4 ,wolf ,chief's brother1 ,charging ,enemy1 although not a ,christian1 gave a pony4 ,others promised1 some ten1 some fifteen1 and some twenty-five dollars4 ,i was appointed treasurer to make collections1 and get more subscriptions4 ,i wrote a letter to ,water ,chief's dancing society and asked them to give something4 ,the dancing ,indians are pagans2 but they gave us a subscription4 ,mr4 ,hall gave us fifty dollars2 ,mr4 ,shultis1 our school-teacher1 gave us ten dollars2 and other white friends gave us subscriptions2 but most of the money was given by the ,indians4 ,when we had collected three hundred and fifty dollars1 we began buying lumber4 ,wolf ,chief wanted to give us the land for our chapel2 but the ,indian commissioner wrote1 8,no1 you may sell your land1 but you must not give it away40 ,so we bought the land for a dollar an acre2 but ,wolf ,chief gave the money back to us1 outwitting the commissioner after all6 ,we bought ten acres4 8,when white men build a house10 said ,wolf ,chief1 8they leave land around it for a yard4 ,we should be ashamed not to have some land around ,god's house68 ,our ten-acre plot makes a fine big church yard2 at one end is our ,indian cemetery4 ,wolf ,chief also gave us a colt1 and much money1 and bought paint and nails4 ,we ,indians think ,wolf ,chief wealthy4 ,he owns five hundred acres of land1 thirty head of cattle1 eight horses1 and pigs and chickens2 he has a potato field and a corn field1 and owns a trading store4 ,more than fifty were present when we dedicated our chapel4 ,a minister from ,minneapolis preached the sermon1 and ,i interpreted for him4 ,a young white lady sang1 and played the organ1 and my cousin played a clarionet4 ,our school teacher had lent us his phonograph1 and it sang 8,there are ninety and nine10 just like a choir in a city church4 ,i asked for subscriptions to clear off our debt1 and we raised eighty-three dollars in money1 and ,wolf ,chief gave us another colt4 ,the minister prayed ,god to bless our chapel1 and we went home1 all very happy4 ,older ,indians1 who came from ,like-a-fish-hook village1 find their life on allotments rather lonesome4 ,cabins are often two or three miles apart and the old men cannot amuse themselves with books1 for they cannot read4 ,in old times1 ,indians often met in big dances2 but pagan ceremonies are used in these dances1 and ,mr4 ,hall does not like the ,christian ,indians to go to them4 ,that our ,christian ,indians may meet socially now and then1 we now observe many white men's holidays2 and at such times1 we make our chapel the meeting place4 ,in ,august1 we hold a ,young ,men's ,christian ,convention1 when families come from miles around1 to camp in tents around the chapel4 ,at ,christmas1 we have feasting and giving of presents2 and our chapel is so crowded that many have to stand without1 and look through the windows4 ,of late years1 we have also observed ,decoration ,day at ,independence4 ,our camp last ,decoration ,day was ten or more tents1 with two or three families in a tent4 ,we made a booth1 after old custom1 of leafy branches and small trees4 ,in this we gathered at about ten o'clock4 ,our school teacher began our exercises with a speech telling us what ,decoration ,day should mean to us4 ,we sang 8,america10 and other hymns1 and had speeches by ,indians4 ,a committee had been appointed to choose the speakers4 ,rabbit ,head spoke1 8,i do not know anything about your way1 but ,i encourage you6 ,go on1 do more4 ,i have nothing against your going the ,christian way60 ,rabbit ,head is a chief in the ,grass dance society1 and a pagan4 ,wounded ,face spoke1 8,i do not belong to this church1 ,i am a ,catholic2 but ,i thus show that ,i like white men's ways60 ,after dinner we made ready to decorate our graves4 ,every family having a son buried in our graveyard1 hired a clan father to clean the grave of weeds and stones2 if a daughter1 a clan aunt was asked4 ,an ,indian calls the members of his mother's clan1 his brothers and sisters2 members of his father's clan1 he calls his clan fathers and aunts4 ,at two o'clock we formed a procession and marched to the cemetery4 ,two aged scouts led1 ,high ,eagle and ,black ,chest2 ,high ,eagle bore a large ,american flag4 ,we marched by two's in a long line1 the men first1 then the women and children4 ,having marched around the graveyard1 we stood and sang some hymns1 and ,i made a speech3 8,all you relatives and friends of these dead1 ,i want to make a speech to you6 8,it seems sad to our hearts to come here1 and yet we are glad1 because we come to remember our loved ones at their graves2 so both gladness and sorrow are in our hearts4 8,these warrior men1 that you see here1 fought against our enemies4 ,they fought to save us1 so that to-day we are not captive1 but free4 ,some of the brave men who fought to save us1 died in battle4 ,also1 some of your loved ones have died and are buried in this graveyard4 ,many of these loved ones did not die fighting against enemies1 yet they were brave warriors against evil and temptation4 ,now they are gone from us4 ,they are in a new world1 the ghost land2 they are with ,god4 ,i am sure they are in a safe1 happy place4 8,now come forward1 all who want to put flowers on the graves40 ,we had had a cold1 dry spring1 and the prairie flowers had not come into bloom1 but we had sent to ,plaza and bought artificial silk flowers4 ,the clan fathers and aunts placed these flowers on the graves1 while many of the women wept4 99 99 99 99 99 ,we ,hidatsas know that our ,indian ways will soon perish2 but we feel no anger4 ,the government has given us a good reservation1 and we think the new way better for our children4 ,i think ,god made all peoples to help one another4 ,we ,indians have helped you white people4 ,all over this country are corn fields2 we ,indians gave you the seeds for your corn1 and we1 gave you squashes and beans4 ,on the lakes in your parks are canoes2 ,indians taught you to make those canoes4 ,we ,indians think you are but paying us back1 when you give us schools and books1 and teach us the new way4 ,for myself1 my family and ,i own four thousand acres of land2 and we have money coming to us from the government4 ,i own cattle and horses4 ,i can read ,english1 and my children are in school4 ,i have good friends among the white people1 ,mr4 ,hall and others1 and best of all1 ,i think each year ,i know ,god a little better4 ,i am not afraid4 ,printed in the ,united ,states of ,america4