Kitchi-Gami: Life Among the Lake Superior Ojibway

CHAPTER V.

THE I'ALAVER. 53 CHAPTER V. J. PALAVER-A KNOTTY POINT-RED AND WHITE-GOLD CHAINS -~ND RA.GS-·' BAD BARGAIN-ARGUMENTUll AD HOliiNEM-PLEASANT EVENINGSINDIAN SUPERSTITIONS-PROTECTING SPIRITS-DRYADS AND OREADSTIIE GREAT SPIRIT-THE POSES-OTAMIGAN SACRIFICES-REVERENCE SIIOWN TO COPPER-TilE STORY OF KE.,TANANG. THE political discussions between the American agents and the Indians have commenced on our island. Every day we have public assemblies in the open air, iu which many chiefs distinguish themselves as orators, and much that is instructing and characteristic may be noticed. As everything said by the speakers was translated by the government interpreter sentence by sentence, I had no difficulty in following them. Although I could describe accurately many of the speeches in which the Red Skins expressed their wishes and complaints , I will confine myself to one political harangue as a specimen, which I have written down word for word, as it will furnish a parallel to the already given instances of the Indians' warlike and religious eloquence . At the outset, I must remark that the speaker had 54 RED AND WHITE. risen to express his opinion about a. point in dispute, whether the debts of all the Indians should be collectively deducted from the tribute, or whether each should receive his specified sum, and settle his own personal debts. Two opposite parties had formed on this matter, and my orator, it will be seen, was against the deduction en bloc, and took advantage of the occasion to bring forward a. variety of complaints against the white men, which, indeed, none of the speakers neglected. "There is a Great Spirit,'' he began, "from whom all good things here on earth come. He has given them to mankind-to the white as to the red men; for He sees no distinction of colour. They must settle among themselves the possession of these things given by God. " When the white men first came into this country and discovered us, we received them hospitably, and if they were hungry, we fed them, and went hunting for them. At first the white men only asked for furs and skins. I have heard from our old men that they never asked for anything else. These we gave them gladly, and received from them their iron goods, guns, and powder. " But for some years they have been asking land from us. For ten years they have asked from us nothing but land, and ever more land. We give unwillingly the land in which the graves of our fathers rest. But for all that we have given land in our generosity. We knew not that we were giving so much for so little. We did not know that such great treasures of copper were hidden in our land. " The white men have grown rich by the bargain. When I look round me in this assembly, I notice' rich RICHES AND POVERTY. 55 golden watch-chains and golden rings on the clothes and fingers of many men ; and when I look in the faces of the people who are so richly adorned, I always see that their colour is white, and not red. Among the red men I never see anything of the sort I they are all so poorly clad! they are miserably poor.! How poor they are, I must request you to judge by personal inspection. I have brought some of our poor sufferers here, that you may see them. There they comeI there they are ! How wretched do they look !" (At this passage of the speech a number of old wrinkled squaws and children clothed in rags pressed forward to heighten the effect. They certainly looked wretched enough; but, although we could all see this, the speaker described their scanty clothing, their thin and bowed forms copiously, and then proceeded:) "And through whom have they fallen into this lamentable condition? You have become rich through us, and these have grown poor through you. Your golden chains, your dollars, and all you brag of, have been taken from them and from us. We promised thee"-the speaker here turned to the chief American official-" that we would open our ears to what thou wouldst say to us, and keep it in our heads ; but now thou shouldst hear what we say to thee, and keep it in thy head I "We are not only poor, but we have also debts. At least, people say...