Autobiography of Ma ka tai me she kia kiak, or Black Hawk

B >> Black Hawk >> Autobiography of Ma ka tai me she kia kiak, or Black Hawk

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When our national dance is over, our cornfields hoed, every weed dug
up and our corn about knee high, all our young men start in a
direction toward sundown, to hunt deer and buffalo and to kill Sioux
if any are found on our hunting grounds. A part of our old men and
women go to the lead mines to make lead, and the remainder of our
people start to fish and get meat stuff. Every one leaves the village
and remains away about forty days. They then return, the hunting
party bringing in dried buffalo and deer meat, and sometimes Sioux
scalps, when they are found trespassing on our hunting grounds. At
other times they are met by a party of Sioux too strong for them and
are driven in. If the Sioux have killed the Sacs last, they expect to
be retaliated upon and will fly before them, and so with us. Each
party knows that the other has a right to retaliate, which induces
those who have killed last to give way before their enemy, as neither
wishes to strike, except to avenge the death of relatives. All our
wars are instigated by the relations of those killed, or by
aggressions on our hunting grounds. The party from the lead mines
brings lead, and the others dried fish, and mats for our lodges.
Presents are now made by each party, the first giving to the others
dried buffalo and deer, and they in return presenting them lead, dried
fish and mats. This is a happy season of the year, having plenty of
provisions, such as beans, squashes and other produce; with our dried
meat and fish, we continue to make feasts and visit each other until
our corn is ripe. Some lodge in the village a feast daily to the
Great Spirit. I cannot explain this so that the white people will
understand me, as we have no regular standard among us.

Every one makes his feast as he thinks best, to please the Great
Spirit, who has the care of all beings created. Others believe in two
Spirits, one good and one bad, and make feasts for the Bad Spirit, to
keep him quiet. They think that if they can make peace with him, the
Good Spirit will not hurt them. For my part I am of the opinion, that
so far as we have reason, we have a right to use it in determining
what is right or wrong, and we should always pursue that path which we
believe to be right, believing that "whatsoever is, is right." If the
Great and Good Spirit wished us to believe and do as the whites, he
could easily change our opinions, so that we could see, and think, and
act as they do. We are nothing compared to his power, and we feel and
know it. We have men among us, like the whites, who pretend to know
the right path, but will not consent to show it without pay. I have
no faith in their paths, but believe that every man must make his own
path.

When our corn is getting ripe, our young people watch with anxiety for
the signal to pull roasting ears, as none dare touch them until the
proper time. When the corn is fit for use another great ceremony
takes place, with feasting and returning thanks to the Great Spirit
for giving us Corn.

I will has relate the manner in which corn first came. According to
tradition handed down to our people, a beautiful woman was seen to
descend from the clouds, and alight upon the earth, by two of our
ancestors who had killed a deer, and were sitting by a fire roasting a
part of it to eat. They were astonished at seeing her, and concluded
that she was hungry and had smelt the meat. They immediately went to
her, taking with them a piece of the roasted venison. They presented
it to her, she ate it, telling them to return to the spot where she
was sitting at the end of one year, and they would find a reward for
their kindness and generosity. She then ascended to the clouds and
disappeared. The men returned to their village, and explained to the
tribe what they had seen, done ad heard, but were laughed at by their
people. When the period had arrived for them to visit this
consecrated ground, where they were to find a reward for their
attention to the beautiful woman of the clouds, they went with a large
party, and found where her right hand had rested on the ground corn
growing, where the left hand had rested beans, and immediately where
she had been seated, tobacco.

The two first have ever since been cultivated by our people as our
principal provisions, and the last is used for smoking. The white
people have since found out the latter, and seem to it relish it as
much as we do, as they use it in different ways: Smoking, snuffing
and chewing.

We thank the Great Spirit for all the good he has conferred upon us.
For myself, I never take a drink of water from a spring without being
mindful of his goodness.

We next have our great ball play, from three to five hundred on a side
play this game. We play for guns, lead, homes and blankets, or any
other kind of property we may have. The successful party takes the
stakes, and all return to our lodges with peace and friendship. We
next commence horse racing, and continue on, sport and feasting until
the corn is secured. We then prepare to leave our village for our
hunting grounds.

The traders arrive and give us credit for guns, flints, powder, shot
and lead, and such articles as we want to clothe our, families with
and enable us to hunt. We first, however, hold a council with them,
to ascertain the price they will give for our skins, and then they
will charge us for the goods. We inform them where we intend hunting,
and tell them where to build their houses. At this place we deposit a
part of our corn, and leave our old people. The traders have always
been kind to them and relieved them when in want, and consequently
were always much respected by our people, and never since we were it
nation, has one of them been killed by our people.

We then disperse in small parties to make our hunt, and as soon as it
is over, we return to our trader's establishment, with our skins, and
remain feasting, playing cards and at other pastimes until the close f
the winter. Our young men then start on the beaver hunt, others to
hunt raccoons and muskrats; the remainder of our people go to the
sugar camps to make sugar. All leave our encampment and appoint a
place to meet on the Mississippi, so that we may return together to
our village in the spring. We always spend our time pleasantly at the
sugar camp. It being the season for wild fowl, we lived well and
always had plenty, when the hunters came in that we might make a feast
for them. After this is over we return to our village, accompanied
sometimes by our traders. In this way the time rolled round happily.
But these are times that were.

While on the subject of our manners and customs, it might be well to
relate an instance that occurred near our village just five years
before we left it for the last time.

In 1827, a young Sioux Indian got lost on the prairie, in a snow
storm, and found his way into a camp of the Sacs. According to Indian
customs, although he was an enemy, he was safe while accepting their
hospitality. He remained there for some time on account of the
severity of the storm. Becoming well acquainted he fell in love with
the daughter of the Sac at whose village he had been entertained, and
before leaving for his own country, promised to come to the Sac
village for her at a certain time during the approaching summer. In
July he made his way to the Rock river village, secreting himself in
the woods until he met the object of his love, who came out to the
field with her mother to assist her in hoeing corn. Late in the
afternoon her mother left her and went to the village. No sooner had
she got out of hearing, than he gave a loud whistle which assured the
maiden that he had returned. She continued hoeing leisurely to the
end of the row, when her lover came to meet her, and she promised to
come to him as soon as she could go to the lodge and get her blanket,
and together they would flee to his country. But unfortunately for
the lovers the girl's two brothers had seen the meeting, and after
procuring their guns started in pursuit of them. A heavy thunderstorm
was coming on at the time. The lovers hastened to, and took shelter
under a cliff of rocks, at Black Hawk's watchtower. Soon after a loud
peal of thunder was heard, the cliff of rocks was shattered in a
thousand pieces, and the lovers buried beneath, while in full view of
her pursuing brothers. This, their unexpected tomb, still remains
undisturbed.

This tower to which my name had been applied, was a favorite resort
and was frequently visited by me alone, when I could sit and smoke my
pipe, and look with wonder and pleasure, at the grand scenes that were
presented by the sun's rays, even across the mighty water. On one
occasion a Frenchman, who had been making his home in our village,
brought his violin with him to the tower, to play and dance for the
amusement of a number of our people, who had assembled there, and
while dancing with his back to the cliff accidentally fell over it and
was killed by the fall. The Indians say that always at the same time
of the year, soft strains of the violin can be heard near that spot.

On returning in the spring from oar hunting grounds, I had the
pleasure of meeting our old friend, the trader of Peoria, at Rock
Island. He came up in a boat from St. Louis, not as a trader, but as
our Agent. We were well pleased to see him. He told us that he
narrowly escaped falling into the hands of Dixon. He remained with us
a short time, gave us good advice, and then returned to St. Louis.

The Sioux having committed depredations on our people, we sent out war
parties that summer, who succeeded in killing fourteen.

I paid several visits to Fort Armstrong, at Rock Island, during the
summer, and was always well received by the gentlemanly officers
stationed there, who were distinguished for their bravery, and they
never trampled upon an enemy's rights. Colonel George Davenport
resided near the garrison, and being in connection with the American
Fur Company, furnished us the greater portion of our goods. We were
not as happy then, in our village, as formerly. Our people got more
liquor from the small traders than customary. I used all my influence
to prevent drunkenness, but without effect. As the settlements
progressed towards us, we became worse off and more unhappy.

Many of our people, instead of going to the old hunting grounds, when
game was plenty, would go near the settlements to hunt, and, instead
of saving their skins, to pay the trader for goods furnished them in
the fall, would sell them to the settlement for whisky, and return in
the spring with their families almost naked, and without the means of
getting anything for them.

About this time my eldest son was taken sick and died. He had always
been a dutiful child and had just grown to manhood. Soon after, my
youngest daughter, an interesting and affectionate child, died also.
This was a hard stroke, because I loved my children. In my distress I
left the noise of the village and built my lodge on a mound in the
corn-field, and enclosed it with a fence, around which I planted corn
and beans. Here I was with my family alone. I gave everything I had
away, and reduced myself to poverty. The only covering I retained was
a piece of buffalo robe. I blacked my face and resolved on fasting
for twenty-four moons, for the loss of my two children--drinking only
of water during the day, and eating sparingly of boiled corn at
sunset. I fulfilled my promise, hoping that the Great Spirit would
take pity on me.

My nation had now some difficulty with the Iowas. Our young men had
repeatedly killed some of them, and the breaches had always been made
up by giving presents to the relations of those killed. But the last
council we had with them, we promised that in case any more of their
people were killed ours, instead of presents, we would give up the
person or persons, who had done the injury. We made this
determination known to our people, but notwithstanding this, one of
our young men killed an Iowa the following winter.

A party of our people were about starting for the Iowa village to give
the young man up, and I agreed to accompany them. When we were ready
to start, I called at the lodge for the young man to go with us. He
was sick, but willing to go, but his brother, however, prevented him
and insisted on going to die in his place, as he was unable to travel.
We started, and on the seventh day arrived in sight of the Iowa
village, and within a short distance of it we halted ad dismounted.
We all bid farewell to our young brave, who entered the village
singing his death song, and sat down on the square in the middle of
the village. One of the Iowa chiefs came out to us. We told him that
we had fulfilled our promise, that we had brought the brother of the
young man who had killed one of his people--that he had volunteered to
come in his place, in consequence of his brother being unable to
travel from sickness. We had no further conversation but mounted our
horses and rode off. As we started I cast my eye toward the village,
and observed the Iowas coming out of their lodges with spears and war
clubs. We took the backward trail and travelled until dark--then
encamped and made a fire. We had not been there long before we heard
the sound of homes coming toward us. We seized our arms, but instead
of an enemy it was our young brave with two horses. He told me that
after we had left him, they menaced him with death for some time--then
gave him something to eat--smoked the pipe with him and made him a
present of the two horses and some goods, and started him after us.
When we arrived at on, village our people were much pleased, and for
their noble and generous conduct on this occasion, not one of the Iowa
people has been killed since by our nation.

That fall I visited Malden with several of my band, and was well
treated by the agent of our British Father, who gave us a variety of
presents. He also gave me a medal, and told me there never would be
war between England and America again; but for my fidelity to the
British, during the war that had terminated some time before,
requested me to come with my band and get presents every year, as
Colonel Dixon had promised me.

I returned and hunted that winter on the Two Rivers. The whites were
now settling the country fast. I was out one day hunting in a bottom,
and met three white men. They accused me of killing their hogs. I
denied it, but they would not listen to me. One of them took my gun
out of my hand and fired it off--then took out the flint, gave it back
to me and commenced beating me with sticks, ordering me at the same
time to be off. I was so much bruised that I could not sleep for
several nights.

Some time after this occurrence, one of my camp cut a bee tree and
carried the honey to his lodge. A party of white men soon followed
him, and told him the bee tree was theirs, and that he had no right to
cut it. He pointed to the honey and told them to take it. They were
not satisfied with this, but took all the packs of skins that he had
collected during the winter, to pay his trader and clothe his family
with in the spring, and carried them off.

How could we like a people who treated us so unjustly? We determined
to break up our camp for fear they would do worse, and when we joined
our people in the spring a great many of them complained of similar
treatment.

This summer our agent came to live at Rock Island. He treated us well
and gave us good advice. I visited him and the trader very often
during the summer, and for the first time heard talk of our having to
leave our village. The trader, Colonel George Davenport, who spoke
our language, explained to me the terms of the treaty that had been
made, and said we would be obliged to leave the Illinois side of the
Mississippi, and advised us to select a good place for our village and
remove to it in the spring. He pointed out the difficulties we would
have to encounter if we remained at our village on Rock river. He had
great influence with the principal Fox chief, his adopted brother,
Keokuk. He persuaded him to leave his village, go to the west side of
the Mississippi and build another, which he did the spring following.
Nothing was talked of but leaving our village. Keokuk had been
persuaded to consent to go, and was using all his influence, backed by
the war chief at Fort Armstrong and our agent and trader at Rock
Island, to induce others to go with him. He sent the crier through
our village, to inform our people that it was the wish of our Great
Father that we should remove to the west side of the Mississippi, and
recommended the Iowa river as a good place for the new village. He
wished his party to make such arrangements, before they started on
their winter's hunt, an to preclude the necessity of their returning
to the village in the spring.

The party opposed to removing called on me for my opinion. I gave it
freely, and after questioning Quashquame about the sale of our lands,
he assured me that he "never had consented to the sale of our
village." I now promised this party to be the leader, and raised the
standard of opposition to Keokuk, with a full determination not to
leave our village. I had an interview with Keokuk, to see if this
difficulty could not be settled with our Great Father, and told him to
propose to give any other land that our Great Father might choose,
even our lead mines, to be peaceably permitted to keep the small point
of land on which our village was situated. I was of the opinion that
the white people had plenty of land and would never take our village
from us. Keokuk promised to make an exchange if possible, and applied
to our agent, and the great chief at St. Louis, who had charge of all
the agents, for permission to go to Washington for that purpose.

This satisfied us for a time. We started to our hunting grounds with
good hopes that something would be done for us. Doing the winter I
received information that three families of whites had come to our
village and destroyed some of our lodges, were making fences and
dividing our cornfields for their own use. They were quarreling among
themselves about their lines of division. I started immediately for
Rock river, a distance of ten days' travel, and on my arrival found
the report true. I went to my lodge and saw a family occupying it. I
wished to talk to them but they could not understand me. I then went
to Rock Island; the agent being absent, I told the interpreter what I
wanted to say to these people, viz: "Not to settle on our lands, nor
trouble our fences, that there was plenty of land in the country for
them to settle upon, and that they must leave our village, as we were
coming back to it in the spring." The interpreter wrote me a paper, I
went back to the village and showed it to the intruders, but could not
understand their reply. I presumed, however, that they would remove
as I expected them to. I returned to Rock Island, passed the night
there and had a long conversation with the trader. He advised me to
give up and make my village with Keokuk on the Iowa river. I told him
that I would not. The next morning I crossed the Mississippi on very
bad ice, but the Great Spirit had made it strong, that I might pass
over safe. I traveled three days farther to see the Winnebago sub-
agent and converse with him about our difficulties. He gave no better
news than the trader had done. I then started by way of Rock river,
to see the Prophet, believing that he as a man of great knowledge.
When we met, I explained to him everything as it was. He at once
agreed that I was right, and advised me never to give up our village,
for the whites to plow up the bones of our people. He said, that if
we remained at our village, the whites would not trouble us, and
advised me to get Keokuk, and the party that consented to go with him
to the Iowa in the spring, to return and remain at our village.

I returned to my hunting ground, after an absence of one moon, and
related what I had done. In a short time we came up to our village,
and found that the whites had not left it, but that others had come,
and that the greater part of our cornfields had been enclosed. When
we landed the whites appeared displeased because we came back. We
repaired the lodges that hid been left standing and built others.
Keokuk came to the village, but his object was to persuade others to
follow him to the Iowa. He had accomplished nothing towards making
arrangements for us to remain, or to exchange other lands for our
village. There was no more friendship existing between us. I looked
upon him as a coward and no brave, to abandon his village to be
occupied by strangers. What right had these people to our village,
and our fields, which the Great Spirit had given us to live upon?

My reason teaches me that land cannot be sold. The Great Spirit gave
it to his children to live upon and cultivate as far as necessary for
their subsistence, and so long as they occupy and cultivate it they
have the right to the soil, but if they voluntarily leave it, then any
other people have a right to settle on it. Nothing can be sold but
such things as can be carried away.

In consequence of the improvements of the intruders on our fields, we
found considerable difficulty to get ground to plant a little corn.
Some of the whites permitted us to plant small patches in the fields
they had fenced, keeping all the best ground for themselves. Our
women had great difficulty in climbing their fences, being
unaccustomed to the kind, and were ill treated if they left a rail
down.

One of my old friends thought he was safe. His cornfield was on a
small island in Rock river. He planted his corn, it came up well, but
the white man saw it; he wanted it, and took his teams over, ploughed
up the crop and replanted it for himself. The old man shed tears, not
for himself but on account of the distress his family would be in if
they raised no corn. The white people brought whisky to our village,
made our people drink, and cheated them out of their homes, guns and
traps. This fraudulent system was carried to such an extent that I
apprehended serious difficulties might occur, unless a stop was put to
it. Consequently I visited all the whites and begged them not to sell
my people whisky. One of them continued the practice openly; I took a
party of my young men, went to his house, took out his barrel, broke
in the head and poured out the whisky. I did this for fear some of
'the whites might get killed by my people when they were drunk.

Our people were treated very badly by the whites on many occasions.
At one time a white man beat one of our women cruelly, for pulling a
few suckers of corn out of his field to suck when she was hungry. At
another time one of our young men was beat with clubs by two white
men, for opening a fence which crossed our road to take his horse
through. His shoulder blade was broken and his body badly braised,
from the effects of which be soon after died.

Bad and cruel as our people were treated by the whites, not one of
them was hurt or molested by our band. I hope this will prove that we
are a peaceable people--having permitted ten men to take possession of
our corn fields, prevent us from planting corn, burn our lodges, ill-
treat our women, and beat to death our men without offering resistance
to their barbarous cruelties. This is a lesson worthy for the white
man to learn: to use forebearance when injured.

We acquainted our agent daily with our situation, and through him the
great chief at St. Louis, and hoped that something would be done for
us. The whites were complaining at the same time that we were
intruding upon their rights. They made it appear that they were the
injured party, and we the intruders. They called loudly to the great
war chief to protect their property.

How smooth must be the language of the whites, when they can make
right look like wrong, and wrong like right.

During this summer I happened at Rock Island, when a great chief
arrived, whom I had known as the great chief of Illinois, (Governor
Cole) in company with another chief who I have been told is a great
writer (judge James Hall.) I called upon them and begged to explain
the grievances to them, under which my people and I were laboring,
hoping that they could do something for us. The great chief however,
did not seem disposed to council with, me. He said he was no longer
the chief of Illinois; that his children had selected another father
in his stead, and that he now only ranked as they did. I was
surprised at this talk, as I had always heard that he was a good brave
and great chief. But the white people appear to never be satisfied.
When they get a good father, they hold councils at the suggestion of
some bad, ambitious man, who wants the place himself, and conclude
among themselves that this man, a, some other equally ambitious, would
make a better father than they have, and nine times out of ten they
don't get as good a one again.

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