Blackfeet Tales of Glacier National ParkSchultz, James Willard
History
Blackfeet Tales of Glacier National Park
Schultz, James Willard
Glacier National Park (Mont.); Indians of North America -- Folklore; Siksika Indians -- Folklore
"One summer night One Horn had an uneasy dream about his horses, and
with the first faint light of coming day arose, washed and dressed
himself, and took up his weapons and went out to see if his herd was
anywhere in sight. He climbed to a little rise on the edge of the
plain, saw them quietly feeding at a distance, and then saw something
else: two men asleep in a _coulée_ close under the little rise. They
were, he thought, young men of the camp, watchers of the horse herds,
and he concluded to surprise them and scold them for sleeping when
they should be watching the plains for the approach of enemies. More
from habit than anything else, he drew his bow, fitted a war arrow to
it, and then, creeping close to the sleeping ones, shouted: 'Awake!
You lazy ones, awake!'
"To his great surprise they were two enemies, who sprang up at the
sound of his voice, and he shot one of them in the breast, and he
fell, and as the other turned and ran, he fired an arrow at him and
struck him in the back, but he kept on running, the arrow dangling and
swaying from his back, and he soon disappeared in the thick brush
bordering the river. One Horn went back to camp and sent the warriors
out to look for the wounded man, but they never found him.
"Although a very brave warrior, One Horn's voice was always for peace.
He thought much about the wars of tribe against tribe and the great
loss of lives they caused, and wished that he could put an end to it
all. He counted up the different tribes with whom his people were at
war--the Sioux, the Assiniboines, Cheyennes, Pawnees, Snakes,
Bannocks, Pend d'Oreilles, Flatheads, Nez Percés, Kootenai, and Crows.
And the worst of them all were the Crows. He determined to go to the
Crows and try to make peace between them and his people.
"Another thought came to him: It was best to say nothing to his people
about his plan, for many would make serious objection to it. If he
succeeded, they should know all about it upon his return. If he
failed, he would never tell them where he had been. So, one evening,
he gave his women orders what to do, and kept his horses close in
around his lodge. Late that night, when all the camp was asleep, down
came the lodge, the pack and travois horses were quietly loaded, and
he and his women headed southward, he driving his big herd in the
lead. The next morning the people found that they had a mystery that
they could not solve: One Horn was gone with all his belongings, gone
without telling them one word of his intentions! Why had he left them
so secretly, and whither had he gone? They never ceased talking about
it and wishing that he would return; they felt safe when he was at
their backs.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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