Post by clarkkimberling on Nov 15, 2010 21:22:39 GMT -5
Louie, thanks for recommending The Ojibwa Dance Drum, by Thomas Vennum, Jr. I obtained a copy, along with other materials on the Drum. After reading the materials, two questions remain: where is it first published that Tailfeather Woman was probably a Santee, and how did the Drum find its way back to the Sioux, and in particular, to Two Shields?
Possibly the earliest published account of the origin of the Drum was in the Japan Daily Mail, March 21, 1893. It was written by the Reverend Clay MacCauley, based on his visit to a gathering of Menomini Indians at Keshena, Wisconsin, in about 1881. MacCauley writes as quoted here from Hoffman (see Notes below for references):
Shown here is "Place of the drum", reproduced from the page Hoffman's The Menomini Indians where MacCauley's account begins.
Another early account is given by S. A. Barrett:
In a separate section, Barrett discusses the drum. "The objects about which this whole ceremony centers are a large drum and a special calumet. The former is elaborately decorated with strips of fur, beadwork, and cloth, with the pendants of beadwork, coins, and various other objects. Its two heads are painted in a special symbolic manner." Barrett's section on the drum occupies more than seven pages.
Barrett implies that the girl with whom the Drum originated was a Sioux, but there is no mention of Santee.
Sometime soon, I'll post a bit more, including very interesting information from Vennum's book, including a possible Santee connection.
Notes:
1. MacCauley's account, only partially quoted above, is found in Walter James Hoffman, The Menomini Indians, pages 3-328 in Part 1 of 14th Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology [for] 1892-1893, Smithsonian Institution. Johnson Reprint, New York, 1970.
2. Samuel Alfred Barrett, "The Dream Dance of the Chippewa and Menominee Indians of Northern Wisconsin," in Bulletin of the Public Museum of the City of Milwaukee, vol. I, article IV, November, 1911.
Possibly the earliest published account of the origin of the Drum was in the Japan Daily Mail, March 21, 1893. It was written by the Reverend Clay MacCauley, based on his visit to a gathering of Menomini Indians at Keshena, Wisconsin, in about 1881. MacCauley writes as quoted here from Hoffman (see Notes below for references):
I have told you of the Dreamers just as I saw them. The members of the league were evidently thoroughly, even fanatically, in earnest. That was clear. But what did they believe; what did they teach; what was their aim? I could not tell, and many had assured me they meant ill. The day following, I therefore sent for Metchikeni to interpret for me what I had seen.
Here is the interpretation... "If I thought that our dance was a step backward, I would have nothing to do with it... We are dressed in the old dress of our fathers, and we sing and dance; but I have been in the theater in Washington and have seen the white men do about the same things...
Not many years ago, in the West, when some Indians were at war, while they were fighting, a woman fled from them to save her life. As she ran she lost her way and fell into the water of a river. But she did not die. She lay in the water asleep many days -- eight days and nights. All this time she dreamed and saw wonderful sights of beauty and peace.
At the end of eight days she heard a voice calling to her to rise up; then some power lifted her out of the water and made her well and strong. She knew that the Great Spirit had brought her back to the word.
And this the Great Spirit told her: 'Go at once to your people and tell them to stop their war and to become friends with one another and with the white man. They will hear you and will believe you, and you and they must spead my words among all Indians.
Do you see the sky, how it is round?' continued the divine voice. 'Go, then, and tell your people to make a circle on the ground just like the round sky. Call that holy ground. Go there, and with a big drum in the center, sing and dance and pray to me, and speak my words. And when you speak, say always these things: "You are all children of one Father, and are brothers. You must live in peace with one anoher. You must not drink intoxicating drink. You must always speak the truth. If you are struck, you must count the blow as nothing and not strike back again." Do these things and all Indians and white men will soon be prosperous and at peace and happy. You will all have one heart.' Now, that is what our dance is for.
Shown here is "Place of the drum", reproduced from the page Hoffman's The Menomini Indians where MacCauley's account begins.
Another early account is given by S. A. Barrett:
The dream dance may be regarded as one form of the messiah cult, and, though it is in reality a ceremony of modern origin, has spread over a wide area and is now practiced by many tribes. As explained by the Chippewa and Menominee it is said to have had its origin in the following circumstances:
Somewhere in the Sioux country at a time between twenty and thirty years ago (the Chippewa and Menominee are certain of neither the place not the exact date) a band of Sioux was attacked by a detachment of United States troops. The majority of the Indians made good their excape, but their camp, which was located near a small lake, was immediately occupied by the troops. Among the Indians was a girl whose age is variously stated at from ten to sixteen years, who was unable to get away as the soldiers approached. She swam out into the lake and hid among some pond lillies. Here she remained in the hope that the soldiers would soon leave and that she would then be able to make her way back to shore. Instead of departing, however, the soldiers established their camp here and remained for quite a number of days.
After an interval of ten days, during all of which time the girl had been here in the water and without food, she heard a voice up in the sky and upon looking up saw a dark cloud approaching the lake. It settled down over the lake and in it she found the Great Spirit, who had come to rescue her. He took her up into the cloud and carried her away to a place of safety, commending her very greatly for her fortitude and complimenting her upon the virtue of her long fast. He then gave her full instructions concerning the dream dance, including the songs to be used in the dance, and told her to return to her people and teach them the ceremony.
In a separate section, Barrett discusses the drum. "The objects about which this whole ceremony centers are a large drum and a special calumet. The former is elaborately decorated with strips of fur, beadwork, and cloth, with the pendants of beadwork, coins, and various other objects. Its two heads are painted in a special symbolic manner." Barrett's section on the drum occupies more than seven pages.
Barrett implies that the girl with whom the Drum originated was a Sioux, but there is no mention of Santee.
Sometime soon, I'll post a bit more, including very interesting information from Vennum's book, including a possible Santee connection.
Notes:
1. MacCauley's account, only partially quoted above, is found in Walter James Hoffman, The Menomini Indians, pages 3-328 in Part 1 of 14th Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology [for] 1892-1893, Smithsonian Institution. Johnson Reprint, New York, 1970.
2. Samuel Alfred Barrett, "The Dream Dance of the Chippewa and Menominee Indians of Northern Wisconsin," in Bulletin of the Public Museum of the City of Milwaukee, vol. I, article IV, November, 1911.