208 BOOK LXXXI. BOOK THE DESCRIPTION OF AMERICA CONTINUED. United States continued.—The Aborigines.-Manners and We now leave the confines of civilization, and proceed to LXXXI. survey those tribes of Indians who roam over the vast region from the Alleghanies to the Pacific Ocean, in a state of savage independence, and who are evidently destined, at no distant day, to be supplanted by the continued encroachments of the whites, and probably to disappear entirely from a continent of which, three centuries ago, they held undisputed possession from sea to sea. The works of Major Pike, and of Lewis and Clarke, and of various other travellers, will be our authorities. Taking the former for our guide in the first place, we shall describe briefly the Indians of the Upper Mississippi. The powerful nation of the Sioux is the terror of all the savage hordes, from the river Corbeau to the mouth of the Missouri. It is divided into several tribes. The Minoa Kantong, or "People of the Lake," who occupy the country from the Prairie de Chiens to the Prairie Française, are subdivided into four parties, obeying four different chiefs. Of all the Sioux, they are the bravest and LXXXI. most civilized, and they alone make use of canoes. They BOOK build cabins with the trunks of trees; but though they practise agriculture, and raise a small quantity of maize and beans, the wild oats, which grow spontaneously over all the north-west parts of the continent, chiefly supply them with bread. They are generally provided with fire-arms. The Waspetongs, or “ People of Leaves," wander in the country between the Prairie des Français and the river Saint Peter. The Sassitongs hunt along the Mississippi from the river St. Peter to the river De Corbeau. The erratic band of the Yanetongs maintains its independence in the vast solitudes between Red River and Missouri, but partly mixed with the Tetons, who are dispersed along the two sides of the latter river, from the river Du Chien to the country of the Mahas and Minetares. The bison supplies these tribes with food, clothes, places of residence, and saddles and bridles to their horses, of which they possess vast numbers. The small band of the Waschpecontes hunts towards the source of the river Des Moines. The Sioux are the most warlike of all the independent tribes in the territories of the United States. War is their delight. They understand the art of forming entrenchments of earth capable of protecting their wives and children from arrows and musket balls, when exposed to danger from the sudden incursions of an enemy. Merchants may travel safely among these savages, if they avoid offending them in matters that touch their rude ideas of honour. On the other hand, no traveller loses their esteem by seeking vengeance for an injury he has received from one of their tribe. The articles they sell to the Americans are the skins of the tiger, deer, elau, castor, otter, marten, the white, black, and gray fox, the musk rat, and small rat. Their guttural prnounciation, their prominent cheek bones and their features generally, their manners and traditions, confirmed by the testimony of the neighbouring tribes, all indicate that they have emigrated from the north-west part BOOK of the continent. LXXXI. Mexicans.* They write in hieroglyphics like the The Chippeways inhabit the country on the west and south of Lake Superior, and towards the sources of the rivers Chippeway, St. Croix, Rouge, Mississippi, and De Corbeau. They are divided like the Sioux into several bands with distinct names. The Chippeways and Sioux carried on a ferocious contest with one another for two generations, till they were reconciled by Pike in 1805. The Chippeways have more gentleness and docility of character than the Sioux, but more coolness and resolution in battle. The Sioux are impetuous in their attacks; the Chippeways defend themselves with skill and address, taking advantage of the natural strength of their country, which is intersected by a multitude of lakes, rivers, and impassable marshes. The latter have, besides, the advantage of being all provid ed with fire-arms, while one half of the Sioux are armed only with bows, which can do little execution in the woods. The Chippeways are immoderately addicted to the use of strong liquors, a vice in which they are encouraged by the merchants, in order to obtain their furs on more advantageous terms. Among this tribe also, hieroglyphics cut in wood supply the place of written language. Travellers describe with delight the fine features of the Menomenies. Their physiognomy expresses at once gentleness and independence. They have a clearer complexion than the other indigenous tribes; large expressive eyes, fine teeth; they are well formed and of middle stature, have much intelligence, and a patriarchal simplicity of manners. They dwell in spacious huts, formed with red mats, like those of the Illinois. They repose upon the skins of bears and other animals killed in the chase. They drink the syrup of the maple. Though few in numbers, they are respected by all their neighbours, especially the Sioux and Chippeways. The whites consider them as friends and protectors. They live chiefly on the river Menomenie, Pike's Travels. and at Green Bay in lake Michigan, but hunt as far as the BOOK Mississippi. They speak a particular language, which the LXXXI. whites have never learned, but they all understand the Algonquin. The Winebagoes, who dwell on the rivers Wisconsin and Renard, speak the same language with the Ottos of the river Platte, and, according to their own traditions, are the descendants of a nation who fled from Mexico to escape the oppression of the Spaniards. For 150 years they have lived under the protection of the Sioux, whom they profess to regard as brothers. The Ottogamies, or Renards, hunt from the river bearing their name to the Mississippi. They live in close alliance with the Sacks, and devote themselves to the culture of grain, beans, melons, but above all, maize, of which they are able to sell some hundred bushels annually. The Sacks, established upon the Mississippi above St. Louis, raise a small quantity of maize, beans, and melons. The Ayonas, closely allied with the Sacks, but less civilized and less depraved, cultivate a little grain, and push their hunting excursions even beyond the Missouri. Though the destruction of game in the civilized parts of the United States has induced the Indians gradually to retire farther back into the wilderness, there are still some small parties of them that live among the whites. Of these we shall speak very briefly. A small remnant of the celebrated Oneidas live near the lake of that name in the State of New York, where they have embraced Christianity, and adopted the industrious habits of American citizens. A still smaller party of the Tuscaroras reside near Lewistown, and have assumed the character of farmers. The Senecas and Cornplanters live on the Niagara, and at the head waters of the Alleghany river. Prior to the late war (1814) the whole number of persons belonging to the Six Nations, once so powerful, was estimated at 6330. About 150 of the Narragansets reside at Charleston, in Rhode Island, where they have a school, which is supported by the Missionary Society of BOOK Boston. The Virginia Indians, once so numerous, are now LXXXI. reduced to thirty or forty individuals of the Notaways, and about as many of the Pamunkeys, who reside in the eastern parts of the state. The most considerable Indian nations inhabiting the states east of the Mississippi, reside in the country south of the Ohio. The Creeks, or Muskogees, including the Seminoles, occupy districts in Georgia and Alabama. Their number in 1814 was estimated at 20,000, of whom 5000 were warriors. A part of them have made some progress in agriculture and the mechanic arts. They have cultivated fields, gardens, inclosures, flocks of cattle, and different kinds of domestic manufactures. The Choctaws, who inhabit the country between the Yazoo and Tombigbee rivers, boasted some years since of 4041 warriors in forty-three villages, but are now reduced to less than one-half of this number. The scarcity of game, and the example of the whites, has induced them to adopt agricultural habits. They have herds of swine and horned cattle, and manufacture their own clothing. The Chickasaws, including about 1000 warriors, live in the neighbourhood of the Choctaws, and like them, cultivate corn, cotton, potatoes, and beet root, and have herds of cattle, sheep, and swine. Some of the best inns on the public road are kept by persons of this nation, and their zeal for improvement has led them to establish a school at their own expense. The Cherokees, inhabiting the country about the mutual boundaries of Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee, are perhaps farther advanced in civilization than any other of the Indian tribes. They inhabit the northern parts of Georgia and Alabama, and the southern borders of Tennessee. The tribe consisted in 1810 of 12,400 persons, including 583 slaves, and what is still more surprising, 341 white persons, of whom one-third had Indian wives. The Cherokees have made considerable progress in husbandry and domestic manufactures. They raise cattle for the market, which multiply prodigiously in their fertile country. In |