Bill's indian name as:given by him is:No-ka-wa-ta, meaning "War clan. His son frank's indian name is:Pa-ta-ko-to, meaning Wolf Clan. Bill's wife is:Sa-ke-ta-no-qua, --- Beaver Clan.
The daughter Matilda's indian name is:Na-na-me-ka-we-qua--War Clan.
This year's Boys'Outing, June 8 to 18, took us to Tama Co. Ia., where we made the acquaintance of Bill and his family. Bill came to Rock Island to attend the 100th anniversary of battle of Campbell's Island arriving Sunday morning, July 19th.for breakfast. Took him to Grace S. School and to Broadway church, and in the afternoon, with officers of Boys'Band on an auto ride to Cleveland ferry etc.
Bill says his grandfather lived at the Watch Tower, and that his father was an official interpreter between indians and whites at the erection of Fort Des Moines in Iowa. His Grandfather's name was:Okke-ka-ha, meaning farmer, and his father was Ta-ta-ba-ko, meaning leaf.
Bill and I lounged on the grass in the shade of the elm north of the house, but Bill said:"You know what's the matter with me? I get dizzy frm this high hill. You know we live in the bottoms at home. I can't get used to it. When I shut my eyes I can feel that we are high up. I can't forget it." So we went to the Hawthorn near the garage, but Bill said he still could feel that we were on a high hill.
Over night with the Clif.Ellis', Indian Farmer, Tama Co. Ia, Sept. 14, 1914. Mr. Ellis isn't home but we have a fine visit with his wife and with Dr. Truman Michelson, of the U.S. Bureau of Ethnology, who is staying with a neighboring farmer, to whom Mrs. Ellis 'phoned. The Doctor came over and staid until midnight. Miss Sherwood, teacher in the indian day school boards with the Ellis', her school room being in the same building, so she too was a part of our company.
"These indians can buy their lands but the Government does not permit them to sell it'".
"It is hard to get anything for these indians from the U.S. Govt.really, the Govt. is mean with them, and they claim these indians are more difficult to work with, as they are so independent. Last fall when we moved here, we could get only $25.00 to repair and fix up the house with".
"This is Dr. Mikelson's fourth Summer here. He pays the indians as much per page, written by indians in Mesquaki, for the stories they write. He is paying one indian about $50.00 per month for getting together these stories, or traditions."
"Somewhere, in some Treaty, it is claimed, the Government is to give indian school children their dinner while they attend school. Today we gave them bread, potatoes and prunes (they were preparing beans for tomorrow) Tomorrow they will have beans, bread and dried apples. The Government is going to build a new school for the indians, and requires that it shall be built on ground owned by the indians".
"The Government doesn't recognize Fairs, Field Meets etc. by the indians, so the Superintendent here, nor Mr. Ellis have had any part in making up the program for this Meet, though the indians did want Mr. Ellis to take gate receipts and sell the "concessions".
Per Kensinger, Livery man: "No the indians here do not dance the white mans' dances".
"The Head Chief among the Sacs taken from the Bear Clan. Keokuk was a member of the Fox Clan and therefore could not be head chief, but could be an under chief."
"Black Hawk was of the Thunder Clan and could not be a Head Chif which always necessarily fell to the Bear Clan".
"Chiefs were either hereditary; were elected, or were automatic on account of some distinguished act or service"--Michelson.
"Aside from division into Clans as Bear; Fox; Eagle; Thunder, etc, there was a grand division into two classes: the Kishkos and the Too kans. The former painted themselves white and the latter used black. These divisions were filled by alternation, i.e. If the father was a Kishko, the first child, regardless of sex would belong to the Tokan, and the second child to the Kishkos. At dances, or say, at games of La Crosse the Kishkoes and the Tokans are always on opposite sides, never together on the same side."
"Tracoma--eye trouble is very common, and relics bought of the indians should be treated with formaldehyde. There is lots and lots of consumption here. Bill's girl Matilda is doomed with glandular tuberculosis."
"I have 11,000 pages of manuscripts. The Mesquakis are the richest of all Tribes in indian lore. It seems almost inexhaustible and is hard to get. They are so conservative.---not like some tribes who are very ready to tell all they have."
"These Mesquakis came back in 1845 and '46 under Poweshiek, grand father of Frank(?) Poweshiek here. It was all some of their stubbornness etc. of which even the early French speak".
"Fox Tribe" is a mis-nomer. They were the Fox Clan of the Mesquaki. The Fox Clan or Reynards as they called them, happened to be the first met by the french, and they applied the name Foxes to all the Mesquakies".
"Historical Societies can gather together all that has been written on certain indians. Such work doesn't require special ability, but as for the rest --- getting their traditions etc. this should be given over to men who make it their life-work--their profession.'
"Practically all our indians here are full-blood. Jennie Davenport is half white, and is entitled to more property than she has received. Push-e-to-ne-qua, the present Chief, is half white, his mother being a french woman".
"Miss Owen's "Legends of the Mesquaki" is very inaccurate. She is a well-meaning, lovable amateur".
Tuesday, Sept. 15, 1914. At Mr.Ellis', indian Farmer over night.
We attended the indian school at 9.00 A.M. Sixteen scholars present, Miss Sherwood, teacher. Opened school with the singing of a couple of hymns --- english and in Mesquaki; repeat together the Twenty-third Psalm, and the Lord's Prayer. Instruction begins with reading, in concert, from the blackboard: "Good morning, Miss Sherwood". Some of the youngsters are unable to pronounce the words plainly.
The advanced class reads from the Primer, of the child Hiawatha and Grandmother Nokomis, in the wigwam, with the xxxxxx sea before them and the gloomy forest bekind. Hiawatha her little owl-let with his big eyes, the light of her wigwam. etc. Nokomis wrinkled- --Miss Sherwood has the children wrinkle their faces to show the meaning of the word. A little fellow reads "run Rose run" etc. and the teacher has him run across front of the room to impress the meaning of the word in his mind.---For not only are these indian children learning to read, they are getting their first lessons in the english language.
The girls giggle and laugh loud, and the boys shout at play, just as do their white brethren, and sisters.
We visited at Joe Tesson's also in the forenoon. In their front yard is a depressed, concrete horseshoe, about five feet in length. In it is outlined a cross, and at the cross a heart. This is used in the forms of worship in the Meschal religion. Mrs. Ellis, last night, showed us a couple of meschal buttons. They are the product of cactus, from the southwest, and are about 1 1/2 inches in diameter, and are flattened discs. They are eaten, andcause the users to see visions, etc.
Joe Tesson's have a good frame house; a telephone; an automobile and a windmill. We saw no carpets in the house, but saw two chairs. Mrs. Tesson, said to be part Siouxn, sat flat on the floor, and was at work sewing on some blue calico. A younger indian woman was scrubbing the floor of the adjoining room. Mrs. Ellis, Miss Haft the missionary, and I sat on the bed and Sue occupied a chair while we visited with Mrs. Tesson. Mrs. T. couldn't speak english, but understood what the xxxxxx local ladies were saying, and she had a pleasant smile, and a kind voice. I never heard a gentler cooing to little tots, than when they toddled in to Mrs. Tesson's presence. They were probably her grandchildren.
Joe Tesson is a veteran of the Civil war. Says he enlisted in Nebraska, and served as scout with U.S. Cavalry forces against Sioux in-dians. He participated in a three days' battle, and a lot of skirmishes. They took 300 prisoners, taking them to Ft. Thompson. As we were unable to stay longer--in fact Mr. Tesson was just coming from the barn as we were ready to go, I didn't get a real story from him regarding his life.
Thursday, Nov. 12, 1914, Dr. Truman Michelson, Mr. & .rs. Edwin Putnam and Sue and I go over the old indian remains in South Rock Island. OMounds. Village site. Lodge mound, etc. On the Peterson farm I find two iron discs, rimmed with lead. Mr. Putnam said "Traders sold these to indians for ornaments. These are the most valuable things we've found today. We had found about a dozen pieces of indian pottery below the Looney farm also.---- But, Will Spencer afterwards, when some of our Band boys found more of these discs, said they were from the canning factory a little above this Peterson field.
Michelson says "Our indians have more art in their little fingers than the whites have in their whole body". Says Keokuk couldn't have been any kind of a chief. He was not of the right Clan. He should have been either of the Trout or the Sturgeon Clan--both Sauk, or of the Bear Clan of the Foxes, and he was neither. But he played into the hands of the U.S. Government so well, that they recognized him as Head Chief.
Dr.Michelson says the picture I took of the Dance Hall, near Wa-na-tah's, Tama Co. is where they have but one kind of a dance: The Dream Dance. Says Joe Tesson was the first of the Tama indians to have a frame house.
Papoose Board, made by Sa-ke-ta-no-qua, Bill Leaf's squaw, especially for us, and we got it Sept. 15, 1914 when Sue and I went there to see the "First Annual Field Meet of the Tama Indians.
Bill brought it to Ellis' for us and I asked him to explain all about it. He said: "Let's go in the house. I don't want the others (indians) to seei it. He explained as follows:
"It is carried on the back by straps with the baby in a horizontal position--not vertical. The feet-board fits tight against the baby's feet so as to give them the proper angle. Baby's arms and legs are tightly bound so it will develops their muscles as the child will work his arms and legs to free them. A sort of awl is stuck each side of the baby's head to hold it straight, and keep it from being held to one side--developing it crooked--keeps neck straight.
The Papoose board is little used now. Where the long beaded straps pass over the front, they used to have substantial buffalo-hide straps so it could be quickly and surely seized in case of attack. The straps for carrying it on the back fasten to the cross pieces on the back of the board.
The bells overhead are to tingle the baby to sleep by gently rocki ing the Board or cradle. The three shells are amulets or charms to keep away disease.
The square beaded leather pendant, hung with the bells and shells, is in this Board only a single piece because we know you wanted this only to look at; but for real use it has a double leather square. Inside, that is, between these two pieces of leather is sewed a piece of the xx navel cut from the baby when it is about four days old, and th subsequent disposition of this square with its contents, determines the future inclinations of the child. If it is a girl baby, the mother takes off this square. If a boy the father takes it off--at the age of about ten years, and if it is for instance placed in a trunk, the child during its life will be inclined to be searching and working through trunks, baggage, etc. If, for instance, it is cast into a field or garden the child all its life will be a worker in garden or field. I believe in this, for my life was shaped by the way my father disposed of mine. He took it out while hunting and cast it away. Then he hunted for it and found it. Then he threw it away [in the bushes] again and though he hunted for it he was unable to find it again. It was lost for all time, and to this day I naturally take to hunting the woods, looking for things there. I do not naturally take to other work".
The bead work was all done by Bill's wife, also the "Be-sika-a" or waist. German silver discs are made by an indian jeweler, and the bentwood parts were made by an indian specialist in that line.
Bill is fifteen years younger than his wife. Frank is her son. Bill is a "Kish-ko".
