Legends, Traditions, and Laws of the Iroquois Part 20

The hunter returned to his home and spread abroad the news of the miracle and the knowledge of the wonderful medicine, which is used to this day among the Iroquois by those who are the favorites of the Great Spirit.

NO. 2.

An Indian hunter went forth to hunt, and as he wandered through the forest he heard a strain of beautiful music far off among the trees. He listened, but could not tell whence it came; he knew it could not be by any human voice, or from any instrument he had ever heard. As it came near it ceased. The next evening he went forth again, but he heard no music, and again, but in van.

Then came the Great Spirit to him in a dream and told him to fast, wash himself till he was purified, then he might go forth and would hear again the music. So he purified himself and went again among the dark trees of the forest, and soon his ear caught the sweet strains, as he drew near they became more beautiful; he listened till he learned them and could make the same sweet sound, then he knew that it was a plant with a tall green stem and long tapering leaves. He took his knife and cut the stalk, but ere he had scarcely finished, it healed and was the same as before; he cut it again, and again it healed. Then he knew it would heal diseases, he took it home, dried it by the fire, pulverized it, and applied a few particles of it to a dangerous wound; no sooner had it touched the wound than it was healed. Thus the Great Spirit taught the Indian the nature of medicinal plants, and directed him where they were to be found, when and how used.

MEDICINE LEGENDS.

The two above are the legends concerning the princ.i.p.al medicines used among the Iroquois. The ancient manner of administering them, was to take a small wooden goblet and go to a running stream, dipping toward the way which the stream ran, fill the goblet and return, place it near the fire with some tobacco near it; a prayer is offered while tobacco is thrown upon the fire, that the words may ascend upon the smoke.

The medicine is placed on a piece of skin near the goblet, being very finely pulverized, is taken up with a wooden spoon and dusted upon the water in three spots, in the form of a triangle, thus--

The medicine man then looks at it critically, if it spreads over the surface of the water and whirls about, it is a sign that the invalid will be healed; if it sinks directly in the places where it was put, there is no hope, the sick person must die and the whole is thrown away.

Once in six months there is a great feast made, at the hunting season in fall and spring. On the night of the feast as soon as it is dark, all who are present a.s.semble in one room, where no light or fire is allowed to burn, and placing the medicine near the covered embers, the tobacco by its side, they commence singing, which proclaims that the crows are coming to their feast, and also many other birds and various animals, the brains of whose species form part of their medicine. At the end of the song some one imitates the caw of a crow, the songs of the birds, the howls of the wolf, etc., as if the animals were present.

Three times in the course of the night they offer a prayer, while throwing tobacco on the smothered flames, asking that the people may be protected from all harm, and if they receive wounds that the medicine may be effectual in healing them.

At the commencement of the ceremonies the doors are locked, and no one is allowed to enter or leave the house while they continue; neither is any one allowed to sleep, as that would spoil the medicine. The feast begins just before the dawn of day. The master of ceremonies first takes a deer's head, bites off a piece, imitates the cry of a crow and pa.s.ses the head of the animal to another, who does the same, till all have tasted and imitated the peculiar note of some bird or animal.

As soon as it begins to be light the presiding officer takes a duck's bill, and dipping it full of the medicine, gives it to each one present, who puts it in a bit of skin and wraps it in several coverings, keeps it carefully until the next semi-annual feast. The skin of a panther is preferred for the first envelope if it can be obtained.

Those who take part in the ceremonies are medicine men. Chiefs are allowed to be present; also, any who have been cured of any disease by the medicine.

Without the building the young people gather for merriment, and the fragments of the feast are given to them when it is finished.

When the medicine described in the second legend is used, the tune is sung which was heard at its discovery, both at the ceremonies of the feast and the time of administering it.

They seem to think the ceremonies effectual in making the medicinal qualities of the compound imperishable. Each medicine man has a large quant.i.ty which he keeps in a bag, and in order not to exhaust the whole, now and then, adds pulverized corn roots, squash vines, etc., and whenever it is administered several persons a.s.semble and sing. Both kinds are considered especially useful in healing wounds received in war.

In reading the first legend there will be seen very humorous allusions to the habits of the pigeon, heron and crow, and there is a curious invention inspiring faith in the means used in healing. I have seen many who affirmed that they had tested the wonderful powers of each.

CIVILIZATION.

Whatever may be the theories on the subject of Indian civilization, I think it must be evident that the present position of the Tuscarora nation on their reservation, is extremely favorable for the attainment of that object. They can no longer live by the chase. It is not now with them as it was with the Indians on the Delaware, when William Penn said, "their pleasures feed them--hunting, fishing and fowling." Surrounded by the white settlements, placed in the vicinity of cities and towns, they are obliged to apply to agriculture and other modes of labor, for the means of subsistence. They are now building good houses, planting orchards of various kinds of fruit, raising stock, etc.; they have horses and carriages. Artificial wants--the very pillars of civilization--are increasing upon them. These require exertion, call into action their mental faculties, force them to provide for coming exigencies, gradually tames down their wild nature, and prepares them for that subdued, but improved state, in which alone is to be found the highest point of cultivation, as well as the highest enjoyment intended for man in this probationary world.

If this experiment fails, we may, with melancholy, certainly look forward to a period when this futile branch of the human family shall be swept into oblivion, when the fine sounding names of the lofty mountains, the n.o.ble rivers, the splendid cataracts, the great inland seas and the silvery lakes will be the sole memorials of a race, that, only two or three centuries ago, covered the face of this vast continent.

On the other hand, if this experiment should succeed, it will open a door of hope for the preservation, or if we may use the term, physical salvation of this apparently doomed race. It may encourage the philanthrophist to stretch forth his hand for the protection of the yet remaining tribes beyond the Mississippi; and the child may already be born, who will live to behold that vast wilderness thickly dotted over with Indian communities, with towns, villages, farms and manufacturing hamlets. They may live to see the hoe and the spade take the place of the bow and the tomahawk; the lion and the lamb feeding together; the sword beaten into a plowshare, and the spear into a pruning hook.

DOMESTIC.

In the first place, to women, in every well regulated society, should be committed the management of the families and the business connected with the household concerns, and they should be qualified to exercise a salutary influence within their appropriate sphere.

Secondly, as mothers they are responsible for the nursing and rearing of their children and for the proper sustenance of them in early life. They are also responsible for the habits of their children, including cleanliness and general propriety of behavior.

A sensible, judicious mother can greatly control her children in these matters; she can make them modest or impertinent, ingenuous or deceitful, fearful or intrepid. The germ of all these traits of character exist in childhood, and a mother can repress or strengthen them.

Thirdly, a mother is responsible for the principles her children may entertain in early life, and it is for her to say whether they shall be imbued with sentiments of honesty, industry and morality, or with those of a contrary character--fraud, idleness and dishonesty.

She is, to a very considerable extent responsible for the temper and disposition of her children. Const.i.tutionally he may be irritable or revengeful, but she may correct or repress these pa.s.sions and in their places instil better feelings.

Lastly, and above all, she is responsible for the religious education of her children. The beginning of wisdom is a reverence for our creator, and obedience to his requirings; and this is within the power of every good mother to inculcate and cherish in the hearts of her children; at the same time it is the most important duty she owes them, and their usefulness and character throughout life may depend upon her correct and faithful discharge of it.

If these be the appropriate duties and obligations of a mother, will it not be vain to expect that the Indian warrior will be qualified for that station, or that they will be in a condition to give a proper education to their children, or train them up in habits or principles that will render them intelligent and good citizens, whilst they themselves are left in ignorance, and while, instead of devoting their time and attention to his discharge of these high moral duties, they are held in a state of servile degradation and compelled to perform all the menial drudgeries of life?

Women are created by Providence equal to men in everything except mere physical strength. Generally, they have much more discretion, and certainly are far more virtuous. They were designed to exercise a conservative influence in society and should be placed in a position which would enable them to fulfill this-most important office; for history confirms the deeply interesting fact, that no people ever yet were elevated to the rank of civilization, while their females were held in a servile condition, and we are also admonished by experience, that no community can be virtuous and happy, which is not chastened by the controlling example of female delicacy and refinement.

These views are submitted to the consideration of the Tuscaroras, in the hope that they will receive their serious attention, and lead to the adoption of an improved and proper division of the employments, both of the men and women of the nation; especially to the extension of more care towards the suitable education of their females, and the consequent elevation of the Tuscarora women to their appropriate station and dignity, as the wives and rational companions of intelligent and educated husbands.

In my communications, I have not felt it my duty to call your attention to any particular forms or observances in relation to your religious obligations. I believe that G.o.d is a spirit, and true worship to Him can only be performed in spirit and in truth. I also believe that however diversified the human family may be in regard to the circ.u.mstances in which they may be placed, all stand equally before their creator, as objects of His care and personal regard; in His great mercy He visits us with remorse and sadness, when we have wilfully done what we know to be wrong, and which, if persisted in, might lead us to destruction; and it is He who fills our hearts with peace and consolation when we do that which we believe to be right. His goodness is not limited to any people or place nor, is that adoration which is due to Him confined within temples built with human hands, or restricted to any particular form; He is everywhere present and in every place; the incense of a pious, devoted heart, may acceptably be offered to Him in the rude homes of the red man.

The plants of the earth are not more directly under the influences of the natural light and warmth by which they are nourished, than is the immortal soul or spirit of man under the immediate care and sustaining support of the divine presence, which is always near and round about us; for it is in Him we live, and move, and have our existence.

Deeply impressed with the certainty of these truths, and fully believing He will never fail to lead in the paths of safety and peace, those who sincerely look to Him for instruction and faithfully follow His counsel, I recommend you, with myself, carefully to attend to His manifestations of light and truth upon our minds, which will never deceive nor mslead, but, if obeyed, wisely conduct us through the dangers of this life, and finally will prepare us for a happy admission into the realms of eternal rest.

Osteological Remains.

"In the town of Cambria, six miles west of Lockport, a Mr. Hammon, who was employed with his boy in hoeing corn, in 1824, observed some bones of a child, exhumed. No farther thought was bestowed upon the subject for a time, for the plain of the Ridge was supposed to have been the site of an Indian village, and this was supposed to be the remains of some child who had been recently buried there. Eli Bruce, hearing of the circ.u.mstance, proposed to Mr. H. that they should repair to the spot, with suitable instruments, and endeavor to find some relics. The soil was a light loam, which would be dry and preserve bones for centuries without decay. A search enabled them to come to a pit but a slight distance from the surface. The top of the pit was covered with small slabs of the Medina sandstone, and was twenty-four feet square, four and a half feet deep, planes agreeing with the four cardinal points. It was filled with human bones of both s.e.xes and ages. They dug down at one extremity and found the same layers to extend to the bottom, which was the dry loam, and from their calculations, they deduced that at least four thousand souls had perished in one great ma.s.sacre. In one skull two flint arrow-heads were found, and many had the appearance of having been fractured and cleft open by a sudden blow. They were piled in regular layers, but with no regard to size or s.e.x. Pieces of pottery were picked up in the pit, and had also been plowed up in the field adjacent. Traces of a log council house were plainly discernable. For, in an oblong square, the soil was poor, as if it had been cultivated, till the whites broke it up, and where the logs of the house had decayed, was a strip of rich mould. A maple tree, over the pit, being cut down, two hundred and fifty concentric circles were counted, making the mound to be A. D. 1574.

It has been supposed by the villagers that the bones were deposited there before the discovery of America, but the finding of some metal tools with a French stamp, placed the date within our period. One hundred and fifty persons a day visited this spot the first season, and carried off portions of the bones. They are now nearly all gone and the pit plowed over. Will any antiquarian inform us, if possible, why these bones were placed here? To what tribe do they belong? When did such a ma.s.sacre occur?"

The above is taken from the writings of Mr. Schoolscraft. On account of the questions above, I propose to give a tradition, (which the Tuscaroras have preserved,) to give the antiquarians and critics a question to solve. Was the great ma.s.sacre above made in the circ.u.mstance of the tradition below, to wit: There was a settlement or Indian nation where appeared several white men under the cloak of missionaries, (the reason I use the term cloak is by the way it terminated), and preached to them the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the great love evinced by the Father in sending his only son to suffer and die on the cross to redeem the red children of nature, as well as the pale faces, from their degradation, shame and woe, to that of endless felicity beyond the sh.o.r.es of time. And that they wished to erect a house of worship in their midst, in which they might do their oblation to the Great Spirit, and that if they embraced the gospel they would have annuities from the government, to all of which the simple people of the forest made their a.s.sent. They immediately went to work, dug for the cellar, and erected the building on abutments of wood, and alleged that they would finish the cellar afterwards. When the chapel was finished the Indians began to worship in it. Now the time of the annuity arrived. The Indians were told to all congregate and into the church, men, women and children, and all those who refused to enter, should be omitted in the distribution of the annuity. Consequently the building was entered by them and filled jammed full. But there were two suspecting Indians who kept a proper distance away, ambushed, to see the result. After it was thought all had entered, there was a company of soldiers with guns and burning f.a.ggots, surrounded the building and set it on fire on all sides, after they had fastened the door. In this condition they all perished within the flames. I will not make any attempt to give a sketch or in any way write in words the horrors and heart-rendings cries and moans of the dying children of nature in the flames, through a disguise of sheep's clothing, but will leave it to the conjecture of the reader.

After the flames had subsided, these two Indians repaired to the doomed spot, and found a heap of bones hob-n.o.b, and they observed that some of the skulls and bones of the different parts of the body were fractured and broke open, supposed to have been done by, the falling timbers of the burning house. It is said, "in one skull, two flint arrow-heads were found." How easy for the artifice of the white men that accomplished the ma.s.sacre in the manner they did, to have sunk these two flint arrows into one of those skulls, to leave the conjecture in after times to have been done by an Indian war.

Mr. C. P. Turner, with an honorable age of 72 years, in 1878. told me that he visited the deposit of these bones, the next day after they were uncovered, saw the skull with the two flint arrows in it, and saw the great deposit of bones in this mound, and also said the pile was in hap- hazard, and not "in regular layers," as stated above. He also saw bones which indicated being those of a child about 20 inches in height.

The Tuscaroras who preserve this tradition are located in the vicinity in which this mound of bones were found. All historians are very cautious to leave out or omit from the pages of their history, any circ.u.mstance in the nature of the above tradition.