The pioneer West : $b Narratives of the westward march of empire
History
The pioneer West : $b Narratives of the westward march of empire
Frontier and pioneer life -- West (U.S.)
My wife’s deportment coincided with her name; she would have reflected
honor upon many a civilized household. She was affectionate,
obedient, gentle, cheerful, and, apparently, quite happy. No domestic
thunder-storms, no curtain-lectures ever disturbed the serenity of our
connubial lodge. I speedily formed acquaintance with all my immediate
neighbors, and the Morning Star (which was the name conferred upon me
on my recognition as the lost son) was soon a companion to all the
young warriors in the village. No power on earth could have shaken
their faith in my positive identity with the lost son. Nature seemed
to prompt the old woman to recognize me as her missing child, and
all my new relatives placed implicit faith in the genuineness of her
discovery. Greenwood had spoken it, “and his tongue was not crooked.”
What could I do under the circumstances? Even if I should deny my Crow
origin, they would not believe me. How could I dash with an unwelcome
and incredible explanation all the joy that had been manifested on my
return--the cordial welcome, the rapturous embraces of those who hailed
me as a son and a brother, the exuberant joy of the whole nation for
the return of a long-lost Crow, who, stolen when a child, had returned
in the strength of maturity, graced with the name of a great brave, and
the generous strife I had occasioned in their endeavors to accord me
the warmest welcome? I could not find it in my heart to undeceive these
unsuspecting people and tear myself away from their untutored caresses.
Thus I commenced my Indian life with the Crows. I said to myself, “I
can trap in their streams unmolested, and derive more profit under
their protection than if among my own men, exposed incessantly to
assassination and alarm.” I therefore resolved to abide with them, to
guard my secret, to do my best in their company, and in assisting them
to subdue their enemies.[9]
THE PATHFINDER IN THE HIGH ROCKIES
JOHN C. FRÉMONT
1842
From Frémont’s Journal of the First Expedition.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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