Dawnland Voices: An Anthology of Indigenous Writing from New England

Fidelia Fielding

573 Fidelia Fielding (1827–1908) Fidelia Ann Hoscott Fielding is remembered as the last speaker of the Mohegan language, although many tribal members today are active in language reclamation . Fielding understood the weight of that responsibility, collecting anything that that was written in Mohegan-Pequot and keeping her own language alive by writing in her diaries. In 1902 she gave her collected works, including her diaries, to the anthropologist Frank Speck, then a philology student at Columbia. While Speck was away doing fieldwork, the house where Fielding’s collection was stored caught fire and was destroyed. After her death, her adopted son, John Fielding, gave Speck four small diaries that she had kept in her final years. The source for most of Speck’s writing on Mohegan-Pequot, those diaries are now in the rare books collection of Kroch Library at Cornell University. The diary entries below have been poetically transliterated by Stephanie Fielding. Man’s Relationship with God God is good because he knows all things. A person does not know but a little unless knowing God. God is very great, exceedingly good. You must be good too, then when you die you will rest in heaven, that says God. You must not become weary. If you become tired you must look to God, then you will get strength. Then you will be strong because God helps you. In heaven there does not come anything that is not good, because God cannot accept it, 574 mohegan That is why there came Jesus. He came because people were dreadfully bad. They are. The great father gave his son so that not all should die. He was never bad. He gave himself for bad people. God’s son’s name is Jesus Christ. Bad people killed him here on Earth. He gave himself in order that all people will go to heaven when they die. Jesus died that we might live. The Devil goes by running so that he may catch all people. The Devil thinks that the earth is his own, people too. Nothing, yes! Only for that Jesus Christ came. He (the Devil) cannot do anything. Jesus Christ will put the Devil from heaven because he lied and wants Jesus Christ’s place. Jesus Christ will put the Devil in the fire, just as the Devil knows. Jesus Christ died that all people wanting to can come to heaven. The Truth of Tomorrow Rain. Great rain today. Maybe tomorrow I can go to Landing. I cannot say because I do not know, perhaps I will, perhaps I won’t. Fidelia Fielding 575 Those people who can say much, half of what they say is not true as they say it. Weather Early this morning the sun can see. Nearly noon, the sun is hot. The sun is warm, nearly night, already it is night, the sun is gone. Cloudy day. Great rain today, already noon, rain all night. Cold this morning, snow gone; clear it is nearly night. Cold tonight, windy all day, wind is strong tonight. Clear rising today, only cold, snow is falling, nearly night, snow is falling. Snow is very much. I saw a fox this early morning and a hound chasing the fox. Snow is falling partly night, sun gone, night. Sun rising, much fallen snow. You can see the sun today, nearly noon. Nearly night, it is warm. Nearly night, cannot see the sun, it was clear today, all snow. Already noon, it is going to go and rain. Night, rain. Tonight the moon is clear. Sun is rising clear, warm today. The sun is rising clear, already night. The sun rising this early morning, Sun rising this early morning cold; snow gone, wind is strong here. Night, sun gone, cold here. 576 The day has hurried away. Since not anyone can get ahead of it, he must go fast. It is windy. It goes by whistling. God is good. I see another sun. Already noon. Very cold for anyone not having someone. Already night, all things will fall asleep now that it is night. Mary Virginia Morgan (1897–1988) An intriguing Connecticut public figure known as the Duchess of Noank, Mary Virginia Morgan (Goodman) wrote over five hundred newspaper articles and historical lectures. A former Groton teacher, she was civically involved with the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Indian and Colonial Research Center in Mystic. Starting in the 1970s...