Illustrations of the manners, customs, & condition of the North American Indians, Vol. 2 (of 2): With letters and notes, written during eight years of travel and adventure among the wildest and most remarkable tribes now existingCatlin, George
History
Illustrations of the manners, customs, & condition of the North American Indians, Vol. 2 (of 2): With letters and notes, written during eight years of travel and adventure among the wildest and most remarkable tribes now existing
Catlin, George
Indians of North America
In +plates+ 219 and 220, I have given the portraits of two
distinguished men, and I believe, both chiefs. The first by the name of
_Stee-cha-co-me-co_ (the great king), familiarly called “Ben Perryman;”
and the other. _Hol-te-mal-te-tez-te-neehk-ee_ (——), called “Sam
Perryman.” These two men are brothers, and are fair specimens of the
tribe, who are mostly clad in calicoes, and other cloths of civilized
manufacture; tasselled and fringed oft by themselves in the most
fantastic way, and sometimes with much true and picturesque taste. They
use a vast many beads, and other trinkets, to hang upon their necks,
and ornament their moccasins and beautiful belts.
+The CHOCTAWS.+
Of fifteen thousand, are another tribe, removed from the Northern
parts of Alabama, and Mississippi, within the few years past, and now
occupying a large and rich tract of country, South of the Arkansas and
the Canadian rivers; adjoining to the country of the Creeks and the
Cherokees, equally civilized, and living much in the same manner.
[Illustration: 223]
In this tribe I painted the portrait of their famous and excellent
chief, _Mo-sho-la-tub-bee_ (he who puts out and kills, +plate+ 221),
who has since died of the small-pox. In the same plate will also be
seen, the portrait of a distinguished and very gentlemanly man, who
has been well-educated, and who gave me much curious and valuable
information, of the history and traditions of his tribe. The name of
this man, is _Ha-tchoc-tuck-nee_ (the snapping turtle, +plate+ 222),
familiarly called by the whites “_Peter Pinchlin_.”
These people seem, even in their troubles, to be happy; and have,
like all the other remnants of tribes, preserved with great tenacity
their different games, which it would seem they are everlastingly
practicing for want of other occupations or amusements in life. Whilst
I was staying at the Choctaw agency in the midst of their nation, it
seemed to be a sort of season of amusements, a kind of holiday; when
the whole tribe almost, were assembled around the establishment, and
from day to day we were entertained with some games or feats that were
exceedingly amusing: horse-racing, dancing, wrestling, foot-racing, and
ball-playing, were amongst the most exciting; and of all the catalogue,
the most beautiful, was decidedly that of ball-playing. This wonderful
game, which is the favourite one amongst all the tribes, and with these
Southern tribes played exactly the same, can never be appreciated by
those who are not happy enough to see it.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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