Chapter I —Osage Genealogy — This is the opening chapter of Father Paul Mary Ponziglione's voluminous unpublished memoir. I use the word "voluminous" not just because of its size — more than 560 pages [1] — but because of the enormous amount of information he provides. In reading his work, realize this is a very educated man who watched the central plains region grow from grasslands to a network of trails, roads, and railroads that connected farms, towns and cities that didn't exist when he arrived at the Catholic Misson.
His memoir was written in bound, ruled composition notebooks. Most chapters include a date in the margin that provides a timeframe for his chapter. The chapters are chronological. However, this chapter is simply dated "A.D." because the time frame described is large. His sixth paragraph describes the of Osage genealogy as boing back, beyond Noah. His memoir covers a Lot Of Ground!
His memoir was written in bound, ruled composition notebooks. Most chapters include a date in the margin that provides a timeframe for his chapter. The chapters are chronological. However, this chapter is simply dated "A.D." because the time frame described is large. His sixth paragraph describes the of Osage genealogy as boing back, beyond Noah. His memoir covers a Lot Of Ground!
Chapter I
A.D. — Osage genealogy — how they received the gift of knowledge — they go exploring — meaning of their name — their home government.
The will of knowing our own origin, seems to be inborn in the heart of man, and of a single individual is anxious to know his pedigree, so nations are. The numbers of monuments, which are to be seen all over the world, the countless volumes which fill up its libraries, are but historical records through which men have tried to transmit to posterity the glorious deeds of their ancestry, and from these most authentic sources the history of nations was compiled.
In these noble aspirations of the human heart the aborigines of our great continent are by no means inferior to the European races. They, like all most ancient people have their bards and orators, who daily celebrate by songs and speeches the names and battles of their heroes. The great difficulty, which one meets in trying to give a correct account of their history (comes) in the fact that as for hundreds of years they never had any knowledge of writings, or of any other sort of conventional signs to convey their ideas to others, it follows that, the only reliable document one can have about their history, is that of oral tradition.
And this exactly happens to be the case with the Osage, who though known in the history of North America since 1673, they seem to have never taken much interest in the study of literature. Some schools indeed began to be established for the education of their children as early as 1824, but it does not appear that the nation as a whole, did not appreciate such institutions. The fact is that from them never came out a scholar able to give us in writing some information in regard to their origin, or the glorious deeds of their chiefs and braves.
I must therefore acknowledge that in giving the account of their origin, as well as of their early history, I do depend on what I have learned from some of their best educated Medicine-men, from whom I frequently addressed questions on this subject living my long missionary life among them. In a most elaborate article of the “Catholic World” for December 1884, an account is given of Chinese traditions, regarding the origins of the human family. The learned Mandarin however supposed, that man was already existing long before the data of his account, and represents him playing, as it were, (short) hand tricks with the sun and moon, but he does not tell of whence the first man came.
The Osage traditions on this point give us more satisfaction, for they tell us clearly how the first Osage Man and Woman came over this world, how they became the parents of a large progeny, of children and grandchildren, from whom their nation gradually was formed. Their traditions take for granted, that other nations did also come in existence about the same time, but they were living far apart, and unknown to them for a long while.
Here I must acknowledge that the Osage as well as almost all other tribes of aborigines, have great many traditions concerning their origins. The one, however, which I am going to write, is in my judgment, the best of all. I did learn it from one of their most intelligent medicine-men.
The traditions of most all our western Indians do not seem to go any farther back then to Noah’s time, and most all believe, that their ancestors, long long time ago, came to this continent from a land far away beyond the sea after floating for many days on big trees. They generally point to the East as the direction whence they came from. As it is but natural, they, like all other nations, (preserves?) special legends, all showing, that in the earliest ages of their existence, something quite wonderful took place, and their grand grandfathers had an intercourse with the Great Spirit. Of such tales they are as proud as the ancient Egyptian, the Greeks and Romans were of their myths.
Now to come to our point, the following is the most remarkable legend the Osages have about their origin. According to this the first Osage man walked down from the sun, and the first woman from the moon, nearly at the same time, both in a mature age, and gifted of some intelligence. Having met together, they married and in progress of time had six children, 3 sons and 3 daughters. As these children were growing, their mental faculties were also gradually developing, and they became anxious to know how was it, that they came into existence. How was it that the whole firmament was moving, by whose hand the sun the moon and stars were directed in their diurnal evolutions, and how was it that the different seasons of the yr ear regularly succeeded one another with such perfect harmony. They next wondered by what sources the rivers were daily supplied with fresh waters, in a word they felt, that there must have been some Great One, a Great Spirit, a Master of all things, by whom the whole world was governed, and on this Great One whom they could not see, they incessantly call for assistance.
Wishing to know something about the mystery by which they see themselves encompassed, the elder of the sons proposes to the others, that by offering to the Great Spirit some acts of self punishment, they might gain his favor, and attain the knowledge they so much coveted. To this effect he puts up his mind to undertake a journey of seven days through the wilderness,fasting most directly during the whole of that time. He starts all alone on a western course, and keeps going on for 7 days. Fasting and mourning, but to no purpose, for the Great Spirit shows him no favor, and he returns home in a state of great despondency.
Here the second son, seeing that his brother had been badly disappointed, and in hope that he himself might have a better luck, full of confidence undertakes a similar journey through the same wilderness, fasting and mourning for seven consecutive days, but the Great Spirit seems to be deaf also to his prayers. Fatigued and hungry he returns to his people.
The failure of these two Adventures discourages the balance greatly, and they are at a loss to find out, what they should do, to propitiate the Great Spirit. While they are in this mental distress, the youngest of the 3 daughters feels a kind of an inward impulse, telling her to try her chances. Accordingly she concludes to undertake a like penitential journey, but in a quite opposite direction. Taking no provisions of any sort, she starts off alone, hurrying over an eastern course, through a mountainous country, determined not to return home, unless she first has an interview with the Great Spirit. And now she is going, making the mountains reecho (echo) her pitiful wailings, while tears stream from her eyes, and speak more eloquently to the Great Spirit, than all her words might have done, neither is she disappointed! The Great Spirit moved by her fervent entreaties, has pity on her, and grants her all the wishes of her pure and innocent heart. As the night of the 7th day is approaching, the poor child exhausted by her long fasting, and weeping, enters a very large cave to rest. The sweet evening breeze, which was gently moaning through the crevices of the rocks, envelopes her, as it were, in a calm slumber and in her dreams she fancies to hear the sound of many charming voices singing melodious songs, she feels as if she would be awake, but some invisible power does not allow her to move. All at once it seems to her that the large cave is enlightened by a dazzling splendor, its brightness being like that of the Sun, and at once a most brilliant rain beam (rainbow) enamels the whole place. Then she notices that the nicest kind of flowers were creeping all along the wall of the cave, and hanging around in luxuriant festory. She experiences the sensation of an enchanting fragrance arising from aromatic herbs carpeting the floor, and here and there she sees elegant looking plants overflowing with luscious fruits, equal to which she never had seen any before.
And lo! While she is contemplating this mysterious scenery, the high ceiling of the cave all of a sudden opens itself, and through it she can see countless stars dancing, as it were, in the pure azure sky. At that moment it seems to her, that a heavy dark veil is removed from her mind! Her heart is at rest, and her soul enjoys a most perfect calm. In that state she thinks to hear a voice revealing to her the secrets of nature. She perceives and understands with what admirable harmony the heavenly bodies revolve in their immense orbits, and how through their agency, and the periodical succession of the seasons, an unlimited productive power is imparted to the earth, and by this are developed the hidden virtues of roots, seeds and minerals. How happy the poor child feels at the sight of so many wonders! She now has an inward assurance that the Great Spirit is friendly to her, for He has granted to her all the wishes of her heart. Her eyes are gazing in all directions, and she does not know what to admire most, either the brightness of the stars over her head, or the enchanting beauty that surrounds her.
The flowers however are those, that fashinate (fascinate) her most, and she puts up her mind to pluck out one at least of them, to preserve it as a dear remembrance of that happy night. She tries to stretch her arm and snatch the nearest. When lo! The beautiful vision suddenly disappears! She looks around bewildered, not knowing whether she is awake or sleeping. She perceives that she is free, yet for a while she dares not to stir. She surveys the whole cave with her eyes, but everything was changed, all was quite (quiet) around her, and the stillness of the place was only interrupted by the gentle breeze, which was as yet softly moaning through the crevices of the rocks. The Morning Star was just rising, and by the faint light of the moon now disappearing in the far western horizon, she sees, that she is on the very same spot where she had withdrawn to rest, on the previous evening. She feels as having been gifted with an additional mental power, nay even with a new vitality, and far from experiencing any weakness on account of her long 7 days fasting, fresh and vigorous she returns to her people, to give them an account of her successful expedition.
Her almost unexpected return brings great joy to the whole family, whose idol she was on account of her innocence and beauty. Here the youngest of the brothers, moved by a kind of childish jealousy, and confident that the Great Spirit would not be less kind to him, than He had been to his little sisters, put up his mind, that without losing any time, he must go on her tracks till he would be favored with some knowledge. Without any farther delay he starts on the same direction on which his sister had gone, and while he carefully tries to walk on the foot-prints she had left on the sand, he makes the air resound with heart-rending lamentations. Going on, day after day, he at last reaches near to the spot where his sister had received the gift of knowledge. Weakened by his long fasting, here he stops, and clapping his hands together, and stamping on the ground with his feet, he roars with all the strength of his lungs, calling on the Great Spirit to have pity on him, and be as good to him, as He had been to his sister.
Wonderful to tell, in the midst of his excitement, he hears as it were a loud thunder-clap, which being at once reverberated, by a thousand echos from the surrounding mountains fills the air with a rumbling noise. This is followed by a sudden darkness frequently interrupted by flashes of lightnings darting in every direction, and all at once a dashing rain begins to fall. The poor boy now runs for shelter to a near tree laden with dense foliage, and lo! A fierce wind from the East begins to blow a hurricane, and carries everything on its path. The boy fearing, lest he too might be carried off, quickly seizes the tree under which he is standing. But the wind uproots the tree and hurls it with the boy into a very deep ravine. And indeed he would surely have been killed by the fall, had not the large branches and spreading roots checked its speed so, that he felt no other sensation, than that experience by one balancing on a swing.
On looking around he perceives, that he is standing in a deep unknown place from which he does not see how he will ever he able to extricate himself. While in this state of suspense, not knowing what to do, or where to go, a Man of gigantic proportions stands before him, looking on him most kindly, and reaching him his hand, takes him up at once to the very spot from whence he had been hurled down. But here a great change had taken place; for the hurricane had rooted up and carried away several trees with a large amount of dirt and gravel, leaving two high rocks standing not very far apart one from the other. At the same time quite a number of tall slender trees blown down from the top of the mountain, had fallen over these two rocks, and formed a ceiling like over the intervening space giving to the whole the appearance of a spacious hall.
Now the giant leaving the little boy by himself, picks up two sticks and rubbing them sharply together, he extracts sparks from them, which falling over a pile of leaves and twigs, start a big fire. While the boy full of amazement is wondering at the light of the rising blaze by which the whole of that place is enlightened, the Giant making use of a long pole, as of a lever, removes a huge boulder, and gathering from under it several hand full of small rocks throws them on the raging fire. These falling among the embers after a little while change their appearance, and melt away. In their liquid condition some look as red as the embers themselves, and some as yellow as the straw, meanwhile others shine as limpid as a clear looking glass. The primitive form the had is now lost, and in hardening, the take different shapes, according to the cavities of the ground on which they cool, as in molding boxes.
In beholding all these wonders the Boy comes to the conclusion that the Giant before whom he stands, must be the Great Spirit Himself, and at once he tries to fall to his knees to adore Him. When lo! The whole apparition vanishes of a sudden, and he finds himself standing by the tree, under which he had ran for shelter at the beginning of the storm. Bewildered at the change he looks all around, and as the light of the day is increasing, he recognizes the country where he is.
Feeling most confident that the Great Spirit had heard his prayers, for he has given him the knowledge of two great powers, that namely of the lever and of the fire, of which he had no idea before. He is now happy, and as he feels as vigorous and fresh as ever, perfectly satisfied with the result of his expedition, he returns home.
It is hard to tell how happy the whole family did feel when they found out that the Great Spirit had also favored their little brother! Following the knowledge they had received, they soon improved their condition. Before this time they had lived without like brutes on the open air, sheltering themselves under trees, or in caves, feeding on roots, wild fruits and small game. But now they begin to till the ground, they gather seeds and plant them, they improve the land by cultivation. By degrees they discover iron, and different kinds of ores, and melt them in useful tools, and needed utensils. Next they build themselves shelters, and begin to live more comfortably. They marry among themselves, and so do their children once grown up, this in a few years their number greatly increased. As it was natural they transmitted to the rising generation, all the knowledge that had been imparted to them, and all that they had acquired through their labor and experience. They daily improved their condition. And at last they became a powerful people. Love of nationality now develops in their heart, and national ambition excites in them the spirit of conquest, of discovering new lands.
Anxious to extend their power over new territory, they determine to start on an exploring expedition. They arm themselves with long spears, made of sharp canes, and with strong bows, and plenty of arrows, to be prepared for hunting game, as well as for self defense. After a long long journey through a desert country, they at last meet with other nations. They attack them and conquer them. Proud of their success they advance farther, on their march of conquest, and in a short (time) they become the terror of all those they meet on their way. People bot knowing by what to call their aggressors, call them Wha-Sha-She, which means “daring, daring-men”. By this name they have been called for hundreds of years, by all the nations with whom they had any dealings, till at last French adventurers meeting with them in their voyages along the Mississippi River, began to call them Osages, a word which in their language means, “hommes-qui-ajent” (note*probably “najent” which means men of the water) or, in other words, daring men.
Whosoever will follow their traditions will see in them a faint trace of the story of Noah’s family, after the days of the great flood, and of their subsequent rapid increase, and dispersion over the world. To what concerns the way by which the medicine men claim they did receive knowledge, or rather revelation, I do not think they claim for themselves more supernatural assistance, than the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans of old did in their theogonies. Of the two systems, that of the Medicine-Men would seem more reasonable in regard to the marriage of Brothers with their sisters, we cannot find anything to blame, for they had no other way to propagate their race, since they knew of no other people.
The Medicine-Men theory, if I be allowed so to call it, gives an easy explanation of the wonderful growth of this Nation, and is by far more satisfactory than that which ancient mythologies give us of Deucalion and Pyrrha. Moreover after giving due consideration to all their traditions, we cannot help but concluding that a link of some sort must certainly have existed between the descendants of Noah and the ancestry of our Aborigines, whose very countenances outlines, show them to be of Asiatic origin, perhaps a degenerated progeny of some of the lost tribes of Israel.
A careful investigation in the religious practices of the Osages, as well as of the largest part of our Western Indians, will compel us to admit, that, with but very few exceptions, they never did follow idolatry, on the contrary they always did worship but One Supreme Being, who in their language they call Wha-con-ta, which name according to the opinion of some intelligent Indian philologists, is claimed to be a corruption or rather a labial inflection of the word Ye-ho-wah. Nat more in the opinion of Father Calamette, as given by Chateaubriant in his “Genius of Christianity book I Ch. 3” the North American Aborigines by the name of “Wha-con-ta” or “Great Spirit” mean a Triune God, in whose honor they always sing “Tha-he-hon” and that this in truth is their liturgical chant. I myself can testify.
Here however some might remark that the Indians generally do worship great many Monitous, how then can one say that they are not idolaters? I will grant, that they do worship great many Monitous, but I must beg leave to notice, that their Monitous are not regarded by them as gods, but simply as genii, or we may call them, titular spirits, always inferior to “Wha-con-ta.”
Finally the custom they have of marrying their brother’s widow, in order to keep up his name, the ceremonies used by them in giving a name to a child, the adoption of children, the calling of their cousins by the name of brothers and sisters, their daily supplications to the Great Spirit, at the first daybreak, at noon and at sunset, their psalmody, which they regularly do sing on a certain number of short sticks, each of them representing a different prayer, their daubing their face with mud, and covering their heads with dust and ashes, when they are mourning, their most pitiful cries, and lamentations over their dead, their fasting most rigorously for seven days, seven weeks, and seven months, mourning over a departed wife, or dear child, their continual calling on the aid of a “most-dear-great-one-expected” who is to come at last, a Redeemer, that he might give them power to avenge themselves over their enemies, by killing them, these and like customs, which our western Indians, the Osages in particular, preserve most faithfully, bear evident signs of having at some very remote time been identified with the Jews. Moreover they are very jealous of keeping up their periodical religious ceremonies; of these the principal, which they do fulfill about the full moon of spring, frequently coincides with our Easter time.
Even in their home government on may notice traces of ancient Jewish institutions. In fact those few nations, who do as yet preserve their old habits, so far they have adhered to a regular patriarchal government of a Theocratic form. The Big Chief, or “Ca-hi-ckie”, as they call him, is also their High Priest, and acts as such in all their religious ceremonies, nay receives tithes from his people. Moreover in the family of the Chief there is a well organized dynasty, for the dignity of Chief with all its emoluments, is hereditary, and if on the death of a Chief his son would happen to be too young to govern the nation, then the Brother of the deceased, or some of his near relatives, would be called to assume the government, until the lawful heir comes of age, and is qualified for the office. The Salic law is in full force in all the Western Nations; and among our pagan Indians woman is of yet the wretched slave she used to be in ancient times.
Their towns are laid out with remarkable symmetry. First come the lodges, or rather wigwams of the Chiefs and Counselors, next those of the principal Braves, and Medicine-Men, and those are followed by the lodges of the balance of the people, forming two or three streets, according to the number of the families living in that community.
Every town has its special Chief, and officers; viz counselors, Braves, Medicine-Men, Town Cryers, and Kettle-tenders. Of all these officers the two last are considered the most lucrative. The Town-cryer’s duty is to give all the orders of the day, he is like a living newspaper. Having received his orders from the chief in the evening, he early in the next morning proclaims them with a stentorian voice at the four corners of the town, and gives besides all the news the Chief might have received during the preceding day. This done he visits every (*illegible note above “every”) lodge, and everywhere he is treated to some dry meat, bread. He eats what he needs, and brings the balance of what was placed before him to his wife and children.
The kettle tender is another important man. He is a kind of public steward, and his duty is to manage all the feasts and games of the town, and meanwhile he is engaged in attending to all public dinners & he never forgets his family, and provides for it abundantly. As the kettle is the most prominent of his utensils, so it has become the insignia of his office, and has given a name to it.
The will of knowing our own origin, seems to be inborn in the heart of man, and of a single individual is anxious to know his pedigree, so nations are. The numbers of monuments, which are to be seen all over the world, the countless volumes which fill up its libraries, are but historical records through which men have tried to transmit to posterity the glorious deeds of their ancestry, and from these most authentic sources the history of nations was compiled.
In these noble aspirations of the human heart the aborigines of our great continent are by no means inferior to the European races. They, like all most ancient people have their bards and orators, who daily celebrate by songs and speeches the names and battles of their heroes. The great difficulty, which one meets in trying to give a correct account of their history (comes) in the fact that as for hundreds of years they never had any knowledge of writings, or of any other sort of conventional signs to convey their ideas to others, it follows that, the only reliable document one can have about their history, is that of oral tradition.
And this exactly happens to be the case with the Osage, who though known in the history of North America since 1673, they seem to have never taken much interest in the study of literature. Some schools indeed began to be established for the education of their children as early as 1824, but it does not appear that the nation as a whole, did not appreciate such institutions. The fact is that from them never came out a scholar able to give us in writing some information in regard to their origin, or the glorious deeds of their chiefs and braves.
I must therefore acknowledge that in giving the account of their origin, as well as of their early history, I do depend on what I have learned from some of their best educated Medicine-men, from whom I frequently addressed questions on this subject living my long missionary life among them. In a most elaborate article of the “Catholic World” for December 1884, an account is given of Chinese traditions, regarding the origins of the human family. The learned Mandarin however supposed, that man was already existing long before the data of his account, and represents him playing, as it were, (short) hand tricks with the sun and moon, but he does not tell of whence the first man came.
The Osage traditions on this point give us more satisfaction, for they tell us clearly how the first Osage Man and Woman came over this world, how they became the parents of a large progeny, of children and grandchildren, from whom their nation gradually was formed. Their traditions take for granted, that other nations did also come in existence about the same time, but they were living far apart, and unknown to them for a long while.
Here I must acknowledge that the Osage as well as almost all other tribes of aborigines, have great many traditions concerning their origins. The one, however, which I am going to write, is in my judgment, the best of all. I did learn it from one of their most intelligent medicine-men.
The traditions of most all our western Indians do not seem to go any farther back then to Noah’s time, and most all believe, that their ancestors, long long time ago, came to this continent from a land far away beyond the sea after floating for many days on big trees. They generally point to the East as the direction whence they came from. As it is but natural, they, like all other nations, (preserves?) special legends, all showing, that in the earliest ages of their existence, something quite wonderful took place, and their grand grandfathers had an intercourse with the Great Spirit. Of such tales they are as proud as the ancient Egyptian, the Greeks and Romans were of their myths.
Now to come to our point, the following is the most remarkable legend the Osages have about their origin. According to this the first Osage man walked down from the sun, and the first woman from the moon, nearly at the same time, both in a mature age, and gifted of some intelligence. Having met together, they married and in progress of time had six children, 3 sons and 3 daughters. As these children were growing, their mental faculties were also gradually developing, and they became anxious to know how was it, that they came into existence. How was it that the whole firmament was moving, by whose hand the sun the moon and stars were directed in their diurnal evolutions, and how was it that the different seasons of the yr ear regularly succeeded one another with such perfect harmony. They next wondered by what sources the rivers were daily supplied with fresh waters, in a word they felt, that there must have been some Great One, a Great Spirit, a Master of all things, by whom the whole world was governed, and on this Great One whom they could not see, they incessantly call for assistance.
Wishing to know something about the mystery by which they see themselves encompassed, the elder of the sons proposes to the others, that by offering to the Great Spirit some acts of self punishment, they might gain his favor, and attain the knowledge they so much coveted. To this effect he puts up his mind to undertake a journey of seven days through the wilderness,fasting most directly during the whole of that time. He starts all alone on a western course, and keeps going on for 7 days. Fasting and mourning, but to no purpose, for the Great Spirit shows him no favor, and he returns home in a state of great despondency.
Here the second son, seeing that his brother had been badly disappointed, and in hope that he himself might have a better luck, full of confidence undertakes a similar journey through the same wilderness, fasting and mourning for seven consecutive days, but the Great Spirit seems to be deaf also to his prayers. Fatigued and hungry he returns to his people.
The failure of these two Adventures discourages the balance greatly, and they are at a loss to find out, what they should do, to propitiate the Great Spirit. While they are in this mental distress, the youngest of the 3 daughters feels a kind of an inward impulse, telling her to try her chances. Accordingly she concludes to undertake a like penitential journey, but in a quite opposite direction. Taking no provisions of any sort, she starts off alone, hurrying over an eastern course, through a mountainous country, determined not to return home, unless she first has an interview with the Great Spirit. And now she is going, making the mountains reecho (echo) her pitiful wailings, while tears stream from her eyes, and speak more eloquently to the Great Spirit, than all her words might have done, neither is she disappointed! The Great Spirit moved by her fervent entreaties, has pity on her, and grants her all the wishes of her pure and innocent heart. As the night of the 7th day is approaching, the poor child exhausted by her long fasting, and weeping, enters a very large cave to rest. The sweet evening breeze, which was gently moaning through the crevices of the rocks, envelopes her, as it were, in a calm slumber and in her dreams she fancies to hear the sound of many charming voices singing melodious songs, she feels as if she would be awake, but some invisible power does not allow her to move. All at once it seems to her that the large cave is enlightened by a dazzling splendor, its brightness being like that of the Sun, and at once a most brilliant rain beam (rainbow) enamels the whole place. Then she notices that the nicest kind of flowers were creeping all along the wall of the cave, and hanging around in luxuriant festory. She experiences the sensation of an enchanting fragrance arising from aromatic herbs carpeting the floor, and here and there she sees elegant looking plants overflowing with luscious fruits, equal to which she never had seen any before.
And lo! While she is contemplating this mysterious scenery, the high ceiling of the cave all of a sudden opens itself, and through it she can see countless stars dancing, as it were, in the pure azure sky. At that moment it seems to her, that a heavy dark veil is removed from her mind! Her heart is at rest, and her soul enjoys a most perfect calm. In that state she thinks to hear a voice revealing to her the secrets of nature. She perceives and understands with what admirable harmony the heavenly bodies revolve in their immense orbits, and how through their agency, and the periodical succession of the seasons, an unlimited productive power is imparted to the earth, and by this are developed the hidden virtues of roots, seeds and minerals. How happy the poor child feels at the sight of so many wonders! She now has an inward assurance that the Great Spirit is friendly to her, for He has granted to her all the wishes of her heart. Her eyes are gazing in all directions, and she does not know what to admire most, either the brightness of the stars over her head, or the enchanting beauty that surrounds her.
The flowers however are those, that fashinate (fascinate) her most, and she puts up her mind to pluck out one at least of them, to preserve it as a dear remembrance of that happy night. She tries to stretch her arm and snatch the nearest. When lo! The beautiful vision suddenly disappears! She looks around bewildered, not knowing whether she is awake or sleeping. She perceives that she is free, yet for a while she dares not to stir. She surveys the whole cave with her eyes, but everything was changed, all was quite (quiet) around her, and the stillness of the place was only interrupted by the gentle breeze, which was as yet softly moaning through the crevices of the rocks. The Morning Star was just rising, and by the faint light of the moon now disappearing in the far western horizon, she sees, that she is on the very same spot where she had withdrawn to rest, on the previous evening. She feels as having been gifted with an additional mental power, nay even with a new vitality, and far from experiencing any weakness on account of her long 7 days fasting, fresh and vigorous she returns to her people, to give them an account of her successful expedition.
Her almost unexpected return brings great joy to the whole family, whose idol she was on account of her innocence and beauty. Here the youngest of the brothers, moved by a kind of childish jealousy, and confident that the Great Spirit would not be less kind to him, than He had been to his little sisters, put up his mind, that without losing any time, he must go on her tracks till he would be favored with some knowledge. Without any farther delay he starts on the same direction on which his sister had gone, and while he carefully tries to walk on the foot-prints she had left on the sand, he makes the air resound with heart-rending lamentations. Going on, day after day, he at last reaches near to the spot where his sister had received the gift of knowledge. Weakened by his long fasting, here he stops, and clapping his hands together, and stamping on the ground with his feet, he roars with all the strength of his lungs, calling on the Great Spirit to have pity on him, and be as good to him, as He had been to his sister.
Wonderful to tell, in the midst of his excitement, he hears as it were a loud thunder-clap, which being at once reverberated, by a thousand echos from the surrounding mountains fills the air with a rumbling noise. This is followed by a sudden darkness frequently interrupted by flashes of lightnings darting in every direction, and all at once a dashing rain begins to fall. The poor boy now runs for shelter to a near tree laden with dense foliage, and lo! A fierce wind from the East begins to blow a hurricane, and carries everything on its path. The boy fearing, lest he too might be carried off, quickly seizes the tree under which he is standing. But the wind uproots the tree and hurls it with the boy into a very deep ravine. And indeed he would surely have been killed by the fall, had not the large branches and spreading roots checked its speed so, that he felt no other sensation, than that experience by one balancing on a swing.
On looking around he perceives, that he is standing in a deep unknown place from which he does not see how he will ever he able to extricate himself. While in this state of suspense, not knowing what to do, or where to go, a Man of gigantic proportions stands before him, looking on him most kindly, and reaching him his hand, takes him up at once to the very spot from whence he had been hurled down. But here a great change had taken place; for the hurricane had rooted up and carried away several trees with a large amount of dirt and gravel, leaving two high rocks standing not very far apart one from the other. At the same time quite a number of tall slender trees blown down from the top of the mountain, had fallen over these two rocks, and formed a ceiling like over the intervening space giving to the whole the appearance of a spacious hall.
Now the giant leaving the little boy by himself, picks up two sticks and rubbing them sharply together, he extracts sparks from them, which falling over a pile of leaves and twigs, start a big fire. While the boy full of amazement is wondering at the light of the rising blaze by which the whole of that place is enlightened, the Giant making use of a long pole, as of a lever, removes a huge boulder, and gathering from under it several hand full of small rocks throws them on the raging fire. These falling among the embers after a little while change their appearance, and melt away. In their liquid condition some look as red as the embers themselves, and some as yellow as the straw, meanwhile others shine as limpid as a clear looking glass. The primitive form the had is now lost, and in hardening, the take different shapes, according to the cavities of the ground on which they cool, as in molding boxes.
In beholding all these wonders the Boy comes to the conclusion that the Giant before whom he stands, must be the Great Spirit Himself, and at once he tries to fall to his knees to adore Him. When lo! The whole apparition vanishes of a sudden, and he finds himself standing by the tree, under which he had ran for shelter at the beginning of the storm. Bewildered at the change he looks all around, and as the light of the day is increasing, he recognizes the country where he is.
Feeling most confident that the Great Spirit had heard his prayers, for he has given him the knowledge of two great powers, that namely of the lever and of the fire, of which he had no idea before. He is now happy, and as he feels as vigorous and fresh as ever, perfectly satisfied with the result of his expedition, he returns home.
It is hard to tell how happy the whole family did feel when they found out that the Great Spirit had also favored their little brother! Following the knowledge they had received, they soon improved their condition. Before this time they had lived without like brutes on the open air, sheltering themselves under trees, or in caves, feeding on roots, wild fruits and small game. But now they begin to till the ground, they gather seeds and plant them, they improve the land by cultivation. By degrees they discover iron, and different kinds of ores, and melt them in useful tools, and needed utensils. Next they build themselves shelters, and begin to live more comfortably. They marry among themselves, and so do their children once grown up, this in a few years their number greatly increased. As it was natural they transmitted to the rising generation, all the knowledge that had been imparted to them, and all that they had acquired through their labor and experience. They daily improved their condition. And at last they became a powerful people. Love of nationality now develops in their heart, and national ambition excites in them the spirit of conquest, of discovering new lands.
Anxious to extend their power over new territory, they determine to start on an exploring expedition. They arm themselves with long spears, made of sharp canes, and with strong bows, and plenty of arrows, to be prepared for hunting game, as well as for self defense. After a long long journey through a desert country, they at last meet with other nations. They attack them and conquer them. Proud of their success they advance farther, on their march of conquest, and in a short (time) they become the terror of all those they meet on their way. People bot knowing by what to call their aggressors, call them Wha-Sha-She, which means “daring, daring-men”. By this name they have been called for hundreds of years, by all the nations with whom they had any dealings, till at last French adventurers meeting with them in their voyages along the Mississippi River, began to call them Osages, a word which in their language means, “hommes-qui-ajent” (note*probably “najent” which means men of the water) or, in other words, daring men.
Whosoever will follow their traditions will see in them a faint trace of the story of Noah’s family, after the days of the great flood, and of their subsequent rapid increase, and dispersion over the world. To what concerns the way by which the medicine men claim they did receive knowledge, or rather revelation, I do not think they claim for themselves more supernatural assistance, than the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans of old did in their theogonies. Of the two systems, that of the Medicine-Men would seem more reasonable in regard to the marriage of Brothers with their sisters, we cannot find anything to blame, for they had no other way to propagate their race, since they knew of no other people.
The Medicine-Men theory, if I be allowed so to call it, gives an easy explanation of the wonderful growth of this Nation, and is by far more satisfactory than that which ancient mythologies give us of Deucalion and Pyrrha. Moreover after giving due consideration to all their traditions, we cannot help but concluding that a link of some sort must certainly have existed between the descendants of Noah and the ancestry of our Aborigines, whose very countenances outlines, show them to be of Asiatic origin, perhaps a degenerated progeny of some of the lost tribes of Israel.
A careful investigation in the religious practices of the Osages, as well as of the largest part of our Western Indians, will compel us to admit, that, with but very few exceptions, they never did follow idolatry, on the contrary they always did worship but One Supreme Being, who in their language they call Wha-con-ta, which name according to the opinion of some intelligent Indian philologists, is claimed to be a corruption or rather a labial inflection of the word Ye-ho-wah. Nat more in the opinion of Father Calamette, as given by Chateaubriant in his “Genius of Christianity book I Ch. 3” the North American Aborigines by the name of “Wha-con-ta” or “Great Spirit” mean a Triune God, in whose honor they always sing “Tha-he-hon” and that this in truth is their liturgical chant. I myself can testify.
Here however some might remark that the Indians generally do worship great many Monitous, how then can one say that they are not idolaters? I will grant, that they do worship great many Monitous, but I must beg leave to notice, that their Monitous are not regarded by them as gods, but simply as genii, or we may call them, titular spirits, always inferior to “Wha-con-ta.”
Finally the custom they have of marrying their brother’s widow, in order to keep up his name, the ceremonies used by them in giving a name to a child, the adoption of children, the calling of their cousins by the name of brothers and sisters, their daily supplications to the Great Spirit, at the first daybreak, at noon and at sunset, their psalmody, which they regularly do sing on a certain number of short sticks, each of them representing a different prayer, their daubing their face with mud, and covering their heads with dust and ashes, when they are mourning, their most pitiful cries, and lamentations over their dead, their fasting most rigorously for seven days, seven weeks, and seven months, mourning over a departed wife, or dear child, their continual calling on the aid of a “most-dear-great-one-expected” who is to come at last, a Redeemer, that he might give them power to avenge themselves over their enemies, by killing them, these and like customs, which our western Indians, the Osages in particular, preserve most faithfully, bear evident signs of having at some very remote time been identified with the Jews. Moreover they are very jealous of keeping up their periodical religious ceremonies; of these the principal, which they do fulfill about the full moon of spring, frequently coincides with our Easter time.
Even in their home government on may notice traces of ancient Jewish institutions. In fact those few nations, who do as yet preserve their old habits, so far they have adhered to a regular patriarchal government of a Theocratic form. The Big Chief, or “Ca-hi-ckie”, as they call him, is also their High Priest, and acts as such in all their religious ceremonies, nay receives tithes from his people. Moreover in the family of the Chief there is a well organized dynasty, for the dignity of Chief with all its emoluments, is hereditary, and if on the death of a Chief his son would happen to be too young to govern the nation, then the Brother of the deceased, or some of his near relatives, would be called to assume the government, until the lawful heir comes of age, and is qualified for the office. The Salic law is in full force in all the Western Nations; and among our pagan Indians woman is of yet the wretched slave she used to be in ancient times.
Their towns are laid out with remarkable symmetry. First come the lodges, or rather wigwams of the Chiefs and Counselors, next those of the principal Braves, and Medicine-Men, and those are followed by the lodges of the balance of the people, forming two or three streets, according to the number of the families living in that community.
Every town has its special Chief, and officers; viz counselors, Braves, Medicine-Men, Town Cryers, and Kettle-tenders. Of all these officers the two last are considered the most lucrative. The Town-cryer’s duty is to give all the orders of the day, he is like a living newspaper. Having received his orders from the chief in the evening, he early in the next morning proclaims them with a stentorian voice at the four corners of the town, and gives besides all the news the Chief might have received during the preceding day. This done he visits every (*illegible note above “every”) lodge, and everywhere he is treated to some dry meat, bread. He eats what he needs, and brings the balance of what was placed before him to his wife and children.
The kettle tender is another important man. He is a kind of public steward, and his duty is to manage all the feasts and games of the town, and meanwhile he is engaged in attending to all public dinners & he never forgets his family, and provides for it abundantly. As the kettle is the most prominent of his utensils, so it has become the insignia of his office, and has given a name to it.
Some Reference Information.
1, As noted above, the memoir was written in a set of bound, ruled composition notebooks similar to those used by students today. In her book Beacon on the Plains, Sister Mary Paul Fitzgerald describes is writing a 'his diamond fine script.' Once I got past some eccentric script habits — like his "S" — he is pretty easy to read. If you are viewing on a monitor, the background of many of these pages are photographic images of his pages.
2. I have had some help with some of the transcription. The name of the chapter transcriber will appear here.
Transcribed by: Christopher Hunt
1, As noted above, the memoir was written in a set of bound, ruled composition notebooks similar to those used by students today. In her book Beacon on the Plains, Sister Mary Paul Fitzgerald describes is writing a 'his diamond fine script.' Once I got past some eccentric script habits — like his "S" — he is pretty easy to read. If you are viewing on a monitor, the background of many of these pages are photographic images of his pages.
2. I have had some help with some of the transcription. The name of the chapter transcriber will appear here.
Transcribed by: Christopher Hunt
