MONSIEUR VIOLET (FISCLE PART-IV) by FREDERICK MARRYAT (novel books to read txt) 📖

Fire And Water, The Sun Or The Moon, A Star, A Buffalo, Or A

Snake--Any One Of Them, Will Become The Subject Of His Thoughts, And

When He Sleeps, He Naturally Dreams Of That Object Which He Has Been

Brooding Over.

 

 

 

He Then Returns Home, Engraves Upon A Stone, A Piece Of Wood, Or A Skin,

The Form Of This "Spirit" Which His Dream Has Selected for Him, Wears It

Constantly On His Person, And Addresses It, Not As A God, But As An

Intercessor, Through Which His Vows Must Pass Before They Can Reach The

Fearful Lord Of All Things.

 

 

 

Some Men Among The Indians Acquire, By Their Virtues And The Regularity

Of Their Lives, The Privilege Of Addressing The Creator Without Any

Intervention, And Are Admitted into The Band, Headed by The Masters Of

Ceremonies And The Presidents Of The Sacred lodges, Who Receive

Neophytes And Confer Dignities. Their Rites Are Secret; None But A

Member Can Be Admitted. These Divines, As Of Old The Priest Of Isis And

Osiris, Are Deeply Learned; And Truly Their Knowledge Of Natural History

Is Astonishing. They Are Well Acquainted with Astronomy And Botany, And

Keep The Records And Great Transactions Of The Tribes, Employing Certain

Hieroglyphics, Which They Paint In the Sacred lodges, And Which None But

Their Caste Or Order Can Decipher.

 

 

 

Those Few Who, In their Journey In the Wilderness, Have "Dreamt" Of A

Snake And Made It Their "Spirit," Become Invariably "Medecines." This

Reptile, Though Always Harmless In the Western Countries (Except In some

Parts Of The Mountains On The Columbia, Where The Rattlesnake Abounds),

Has Ever Been Looked upon With Dread By The Indians, Who Associate It

With The Evil Spirit. When "Kishe Manito" (The Good God) Came Upon

Earth, Under The Form Of A Buffalo, To Alleviate The Sufferings Of The

Red man, "Kinebec" (The Serpent), The Spirit Of Evil Gave Him Battle.

This Part Of Their Creed alone Would Almost Establish Their

Brahminic Origin.

 

 

 

The "Medecine" Inspires The Indian With Awe And Dread; He Is Respected,

But He Has No Friends, No Squaws, No Children. He Is The Man Of Dark

Deeds, He That Communes With The Spirit Of Evil; He Takes His Knowledge

From The Earth, From The Fissures Of The Rocks, And Knows How To Combine

Poisons; He Alone Fears Not "Anim Teki" (Thunder). He Can Cure Disease

With His Spells, And With Them He Can Kill Also; His Glance Is That Of

The Snake, It Withers The Grass, Fascinates Birds And Beasts, Troubles

The Brain Of Man, And Throws In his Heart Fear And Darkness.

 

 

 

The Shoshone Women, As Well As The Apache And Arrapahoe, All Of Whom Are

Of The Shoshone Race, Are Very Superior To The Squaws Of The Eastern

Indians. They Are More Graceful In their Forms, And Have More Personal

Beauty, I Cannot Better Describe Them Than By Saying That They Have More

Similitude To The Arabian Women Than Any Other Race. They Are Very Clean

In Their Persons And In their Lodges; And All Their Tribes Having Both

Male And Female Slaves, The Shoshone Wife Is Not Broken Down By Hard

Labour, As Are The Squaws Of The Eastern Tribes; To Their Husbands They

Are Most Faithful, And I Really Believe That Any Attempt Upon Their

Chastity Would Prove Unavailing. They Ride As Bravely As The Men, And

Are Very Expert With The Bow And Arrow, I Once Saw A Very Beautiful

Little Shoshone Girl, About Ten Years Old, The Daughter Of A Chief, When

Her Horse Was At Full Speed, Kill, With Her Bow And Arrow, In the Course

Of A Minute Or Two, Nine Out Of A Flock Of Wild Turkeys Which She Was

In Chase Of.

 

 

 

Their Dress Is Both Tasteful And Chaste. It Is Composed of A Loose

Shirt, With Tight Sleeves, Made Of Soft And Well-Prepared doe-Skin,

Almost Always Dyed blue Or Red; This Shirt Is Covered from The Waist By

The Toga, Which Falls Four Or Six Inches Below The Knee, And Is Made

Either Of Swan-Down, Silk, Or Woollen Stuff; They Wear Leggings Of The

Same Material As The Shirt, And Cover Their Pretty Little Feet With

Beautifully-Worked moccasins; They Have Also A Scarf, Of A Fine Rich

Texture, And Allow Their Soft And Long Raven Hair To Fall Luxuriantly

Over Their Shoulder, Usually Ornamented with Flowers, But Sometimes With

Jewels Of Great Value; Their Ankles And Wrists Are Also Encircled by

Bracelets; And Indeed to See One Of These Young And Graceful Creatures,

With Her Eyes Sparkling and Her Face Animated with The Exercise Of The

Chase, Often Recalled to The Mind A Nymph Of Diana, As Described

By Ovid[10].

 

 

 

[Footnote 10: The Comanches Women Very Much Resemble The Common Squaws,

Being Short And Broad In figure. This Arises From The Comanches

Secluding The Women And Not Permitting Them Air And Exercise.]

 

 

 

Though Women Participate Not In the Deeper Mysteries Of Religion, Some

Of Them Are Permitted to Consecrate Themselves To The Divinity, And To

Make Vows Of Chastity, As The Vestals Of Paganism Or The Nuns Of The

Catholic Convents. But There Is No Seclusion. They Dress As Men, Covered

With Leather From Head To Foot, A Painting Of The Sun On Their Breasts.

These Women Are Warriors, But Never Go Out With The Parties, Remaining

Always Behind To Protect The Villages. They Also Live Alone, Are

Dreaded, But Not Loved. The Indian Hates Anything Or Any Body That

Usurps Power, Or Oversteps Those Bounds Which Appear To Him As Natural

And Proper, Or Who Does Not Fulfil What He Considers As Their

Intended destiny.

 

 

 

The Fine Evenings Of Summer Are Devoted, By The Young Indian, To

Courtship. When He Has Made His Choice, He Communicates It To His

Parents, Who Take The Business Into Their Hands. Presents Are Carried to

The Door Of The Fair One'S Lodge; If They Are Not Accepted, There Is An

End To The Matter, And The Swain Must Look Somewhere Else; If They Are

Taken In, Other Presents Are Returned, As A Token Of Agreement. These

Generally Consist Of Objects Of Women'S Workmanship, Such As Garters,

Belts, Moccasins, &C.; Then Follows A Meeting Of The Parents, Which

Terminates By A Speech From The Girl'S Father, Who Mentions His Daughter

As The "Dove," Or "Lily," Or "Whisper Of The Breeze," Or Any Other

Pretty Indian Name Which May Appertain To Her. She Has Been A Good

Daughter, She Will Be A Dutiful Wife, Her Blood Is That Of A Warrior'S;

She Will Bear Noble Children To Her Husband, And Sing To Them His Great

Deeds, &C. The Marriage Day Arrives At Last; A Meal Of Roots And Fruits

Is Prepared; All Are Present Except The Bridegroom, Whose Arms, Saddles,

And Property Are Placed behind The Fair One. The Door Of The Lodge Is

Open, Its Threshold Lined with Flowers; At Sunset The Young Man Presents

Himself, With Great Gravity Of Deportment. As Soon As He Has Taken A

Seat Near The Girl, The Guests Begin Eating, But In silence; But Soon A

Signal Is Given By The Mothers, Each Guest Rises, Preparatory To

Retiring. At That Moment, The Two Lovers Cross Their Hands, And The

Husband Speaks For The First Time, Interrogatively:--"Faithful To The

Lodge, Faithful To The Father, Faithful To His Children?" She Answers

Softly: "Faithful, Ever Faithful, In joy And In sorrow, In life And In

Death"--"Penir, Penir-Asha, Sartir Nu Cohta, Lebeck Nu Tanim." It Is The

Last Formula,--The Ceremony Is Accomplished. This May Seem Very Simple

And Ridiculous; To Me It Appeared almost Sublime. Opinions Depend Upon

Habits And Education.

 

 

 

The Husband Remains A Whole Year With His Father-In-Law, To Whom Belongs

By Right The Produce Of His Hunting, Both Skins And Flesh. The Year

Expired, His Bondage Is Over, And He May If He Wishes It, Retire With

His Wife To His Own Father'S, Or Construct A Lodge For His Own Use. The

Hunter Brings His Game To His Door, Except When A Heavy Animal; There

Ends His Task; The Wife Skins And Cuts It; She Dries The Skin And Cures

The Meat. Yet If The Husband Is A Prime Hunter, Whose Time Is Precious,

The Woman Herself, Or Her Female Relations, Go Out And Seek The Game

Where It Has Been Killed. When A Man Dies, His Widow Wears Mourning

During Two Or Four Years; The Same Case Happens With The Widower, Only

His Duties Are Not So Strict As That Of A Woman; And It Often Happens

That, After Two Years, He Marries His Sister-In-Law, If There Is Any.

The Indians Think It A Natural Thing; They Say That A Woman Will Have

More Care Of Her Sister'S Children Than Of Those Of A Stranger. Among

The Better Classes Of Indians, Children Are Often Affianced to Each

Other, Even At The Age Of A Few Months. These Engagements Are Sacred,

And Never Broken.

 

 

 

The Indians In general Have Very Severe Laws Against Murder, And They

Are Pretty Much Alike Among The Tribes; They Are Divided into Two

Distinct Sections--Murder Committed in the Nation And Out Of The Nation.

 

 

 

When A Man Commits A Murder Upon His Own People, He Runs Away From His

Tribe, Or Delivers Himself To Justice. In this Latter Case, The Nearest

Relation Of The Victim Kills Him Openly, In presence Of All The

Warriors. In the First Case, He Is Not Pursued, But His Nearest Relation

Is Answerable For The Deed, And Suffers The Penalty, If By A Given Time

He Has Not Produced the Assassin. The Death Is Instantaneous, From The

Blow Of A Tomahawk. Often The Chief Will Endeavour To Make The Parties

Smoke The Pipe Of Peace; If He Succeeds, All Ends Here; If Not, A Victim

Must Be Sacrificed. It Is A Stern Law, Which Sometimes Brings With Its

Execution Many Great Calamities. Vengeance Has Often Become Hereditary,

From Generation To Generation; Murders Have Succeeded murders, Till One

Of The Two Families Has Deserted the Tribe.

 

 

 

It Is, No Doubt, Owing To Such Circumstances That Great Families, Or

Communities Of Savages Bearing The Same Type And Speaking The Same

Tongue, Have Been Subdivided into So Many Distinct Tribes. Thus It Has

Been With The Shoshones, Whose Emigrant Families Have Formed the

Comanches, The Apaches, And The Arrapahoes. The Tonquewas Have Since

Sprung From The Comanches, The Lepans And The Texas[11] (Now Extinct)

From The Apaches, And The Navahoes From The Arrapahoes. Among The

Nadowessies Or Dacotahs, The Subdivision Has Been Still Greater, The

Same Original Tribe Having Given Birth To The Konsas, The Mandans, The

Tetons, The Yangtongs, Sassitongs, Ollah-Gallahs, The Siones, The Wallah

Wallahs, The Cayuses, The Black-Feet, And Lastly The Winnebagoes.

 

 

 

[Footnote 11: Formerly There Was A Considerable Tribe Of Indians, By The

Name Of Texas, Who Have All Disappeared, From Continual Warfare.]

 

 

 

The Algonquin Species, Or Family, Produced twenty-One Different Tribes:

The Micmacs, Etchemins, Abenakis, Sokokis, Pawtuckets, Pokanokets,

Narragansets, Pequods, Mohegans, Lenilenapes, Nanticokes, Powatans,

Shawnees, Miamis, Illinois, Chippewas, Ottawas, Menomonies, Sacs, Foxes,

And The Kickapoos, Which Afterwards Subdivided again Into More Than A

Hundred nations.

 

 

 

But, To Return To The Laws Of Murder:--It Often Happens That The Nephew,

Or Brother Of The Murderer, Will Offer His Life In expiation. Very Often

These Self-Sacrifices Are Accepted, Principally Among The Poorer

Families, But The Devoted is Not Put To Death; He Only Loses His

Relationship And Connection With His Former Family; He Becomes A Kind Of

Slave Or Bondsman For Life In the Lodges Of The Relations Of

The Murdered.

 

 

 

Sometimes, Too, The Guilty Man'S Life Is Saved by A Singular And Very

Ancient Law; It, However, Happens But Rarely. If The Murdered leaves A

Widow With Children, This Widow May Claim The Criminal As Her Own, And

He Becomes Her Husband Nominally, That Is To Say, He Must Hunt And

Provide For The Subsistence Of The Family.

 

 

 

When The Murderer Belongs To A Hostile Tribe, War Is Immediately

Declared; If, On The Contrary, He Belongs To A Friendly Nation, The

Tribe Will Wait Three Or Four Months Till The Chiefs Of That Nation Come

To Offer Excuses And Compensation. When They Do This, They Bring

Presents, Which They Leave At The Door Of The Council Lodge, One Side Of

Which Is Occupied by The Relations Of The Victims, The Other By The

Chiefs And Warriors Of The Tribe, And The Centre By The Ambassadors. One

Of These Opens The Ceremony By Pronouncing a Speech Of Peace, While

Another Offers The Pipe To The Relations. If They Refuse It, And The

Great Chief Of The Tribe Entertains A Particular Regard For The Other

Nation, He Rises And Offers Himself To The Relations The Calumet Of

Conciliation. If Refused still, All The Children And Babes Of The

Murdered one'S Family Are Called into The Lodge, And The Pipe Passed a

Third Time In that Part Of The Lodge. Then If A Child Even Two Or Three

Months Old Touches It, The Indians Consider The Act As A Decision Of The

Great Master Of Life, The Pipe Goes Round, The Presents Are Carried in,

And Put At The