Post by grahamew on Aug 4, 2018 5:16:17 GMT -5
Or, at least, that's what I can make out. I was drawn to the image because of the scout and his use of the three-bladed club. I wonder if he is Stab Plenty, a former head soldier among the Yanktonai who became a policeman - though the name doesn't seem to say that. The named white man next to him is Joe Culbertson, a scout who served under Miles. Was he related to 'Indian' Pete Culbertson, who later had a Wild West Show and who murdered Few Tails in the days following Wounded Knee (http://amertribes.proboards.com/thread/2683/indian-petes-congress-rough-riders)?
Unfortunately, I can't read much of the writing on the muslin, but I think the name of the man wearing the spotted coat and shaking hands with the white man at the top of the image is Skin of the Heart, the Yanktonai leader. I presume the images depict the action against Gall and Crow King on Poplar Creek in early 1881 - perhaps specifically Gall, in whose camp a woman was wounded. The village looks empty because most of the occupants had hidden in the surrounding trees. The name of the man the Indian shakes hand with isn't, however, Major Ilges who led the soldiers. I suspect the writing says, "Major Porter," the name of the Fort Peck agent. Maybe the top section depicts the recruitment of scouts for the action below; maybe it shows Porter thanking the Indian for his part in events and the men behind him are the surrendered Hunkpapa; maybe it shows him trying to settle things on the agency after the arrival of so many 'hostiles' or even the unrest between the Yanktonai factions. I wonder if the presence of horses amongst the men at the top right indicates this state of anxiety and unease on the agency...
I have no idea where the original is from; as is often the case, I came across this while looking for something else. It was on Pinterest with no description and no indication of its whereabouts. Perhaps the original has a careful breakdown of the events depicted, so if you come across it, please let me know.