A Child of the Sea; and Life Among the MormonsWilliams, Elizabeth Whitney
History
A Child of the Sea; and Life Among the Mormons
Williams, Elizabeth Whitney
Beaver Island (Mich.); Latter Day Saints -- Michigan; Strang, James Jesse, 1813-1856
The Chief's daughter was a beautiful Indian maiden. She was an only
child. Her mother died when she was quite young. Her aunt, her mother's
sister, had taken the place of a mother to her. The Chief, her father,
was very proud of her and greatly attached to her. She was of medium
height, oval face and clear olive skin with red cheeks and lips, her
eyes were large and dark with nearly always a sad look in them. Her
teeth were like two rows of small white pearls, small hands and feet,
she was a royal princess dearly loved by the whole tribe. Her Indian
name was Wa-bun-an-nung (the Morning Star.) We always called her Mary.
She was gentle in her manner and could sew very nicely, being always
busy with her bead work and quills, making many pretty little boxes from
the birch bark and ornamenting them with bright colored porcupine quills
which the Indian women colored in bright, gay colors. Her father had
always taken her with him on his long trips to Canada and the Sault,
also to Green Bay on many of his hunting expeditions. She could paddle
her canoe as swift as any of the braves in her tribe.
THE CHIEF AND HIS DAUGHTER VISITING US.
To me Mary seemed like some bright being from another world. Her voice
was soft and sweet. She always came to our home with her father, the
chief. Then she would take me in her arms, calling me her little white
"papoose." She would put me in my cradle, rocking and singing me to
sleep with her quiet, soft voice. Many were the strings of beads and
deer skin moccasins she gave me. She made me some dolls and put pretty
dresses on them. She was always doing something nice for us children and
was very fond of us. One day she asked little brother if he would give
her little sister, meaning me, for one of her pretty pet fawns. He
said, "Yes." When she started with me in her arms toward the door he
screamed and cried so hard before she could make him know she was only
in fun. He said, "Don't take my little sister. Go over the river to the
big house and take that 'papoose' because it cries so much." When the
older brothers came they said, "Why didn't you trade little sister for
the fawn and two cub bears?" Mary told her father. When he came again he
brought the fawn and two cubs to see if the boys would trade me away for
them. As soon as the boys saw the fawn and the cubs they began to cry
and beg mother not to let me go. They did not want to trade little
sister off for any thing. All the time the chief remained they watched
me, fearing he might take me. He was greatly amused at the joke. I was
delighted to play with the fawn and the cubs were like kittens to play.
The fawn was inseparable from Mary, it loved her so.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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