The Medicine Man’s SignalIllustration fromTHE SIOUX OUTBREAK IN SOUTH DAKOTAbyFrederic RemingtonOriginally published inHarper’s Weekly,January 24, 1891
Group of indians dancing in a lineThe Ghost Dance by the Ogallala Sioux at Pine Ridge Agency, Dakota, December, 1890Illustration fromTHE NEW INDIAN MESSIAHbyLieutenant Marion P. Maus, U.S.A.Originally published inHarper’s Weekly,December 6, 1890
The Ghost Dance by the Ogallala Sioux at Pine Ridge Agency, Dakota, December, 1890Illustration fromTHE NEW INDIAN MESSIAHbyLieutenant Marion P. Maus, U.S.A.Originally published inHarper’s Weekly,December 6, 1890
“I was very hungry, and I opened the tepee and came out, and it was sunrise. My father was sleeping on the ground, and when I touched him, he woke quickly and said:
“‘My son, I am glad to see you. I heard voices that were not yours calling in the tepee, and I was afraid.’
“‘All is well,’ I said. ‘Give me food.’
“When I was fed, I took my bow and arrow and went forth to kill a weasel. When I was alone, I sat down and prayed to the Great Spirits of the six world directions, and smoked, beginning at the southeast, and a voice came in my ear which said, ‘I will lead you.’ Soon I came upon a large, sleeping weasel; he was white all over as snow, though it was yet fall. Him I killed and skinned, and stretched the pelt on a flat stick to make a pouch. Then I sought the medicine to go in it. What that was I will not tell, but at last it was filled, and then I slew a big red fox, and out of his fur I made my cap.
“Each night I went into my tepee alone to smoke and chant, and each night strange birds and animals came to me and talked and taught me much wisdom. Then came voices of my ancestors, and taught me how to cure the sick and how to charm the buffalo and the elk. Then I began to help my father to heal the sick people, and I became honored among my companions; and when I caught a maid on her way to the spring, she did not struggle; she was glad to talk with me, for I had a fine tepee and six horses and many blankets.
“I grew skillful. I could do many things white people never see. I could be buried deep in the ground, while a mighty stone which six men alone could lift was rolled upon me. Then in the darkness, when I cried to the Great Spirits, they came swiftly and put their hands to the stone and threw it far away, and I rose and walked forth, and the people wondered. I cured many people by the healing of my hands, and by great magic like this: I had a dried mouse, and once when a man came to be stiff and cold with a hole in his side, I said, ‘Put him before me.’
“When they did as I bid, I took the mouse and put it before the man who was dead, and I blew smoke upon the mouse and said: ‘Great Spirits, help me to do this great magic.’ Then the mousecame to life, and ran to the dead man and put his beak in the hole, and pulled out the bad flesh, and the wound closed up and the man rose.
“These wonderful things I did, and I became rich. I had a fine, large tepee and many horses and skins and blankets. People said: ‘See, there goes Rising Wolf. He is young, but he has many horses.’ Therefore, I came to be called ‘Many Horses’; but I had only one wife, Sailing Hawk. I cared only for her.”
The chief’s handsome face had long since become grave and rapt. Now it suddenly grew grim. His little wife moved uneasily in her seat by his side, and he looked at her with a strange glance. Between them had crept the shadow of Sailing Hawk’s death.
“One day while I sat with Sailing Hawk in my tepee, a big, black cloud came flying from the west like an eagle, and out of it the red fire stabbed and killed my wife and set my tepee on fire. My heart was like ice when I rose and saw my Sailing Hawk dead. I seized my gun. I fired many times into the cloud. I screamed at it in rage. My eyes were hot. I was crazy.—At last I went away, but my wife was dead, and my heart empty and like ashes. I did not eat for many days, and I cared no more for the Great Spirits. I prayed no more. I could not smoke, but I sat all night by the place where my Sailing Hawk lay, and no man dared come to me. My heart was very angry toward everybody and all things. I could not see the end of my trail. All was black before me.
“My people at this time were living on their own lands. The big fight with ‘Long Hair’ had passed away, and we were living at peace once more; but the buffalo were passing also, and we feared and wondered.
“Then the white man came with his soldiers, and made a corral here in the hot, dry country, and drove us therein, and said, ‘If you go outside we will shoot you.’ Soon we became poor. We had then no buffalo at all. We were fed poor beef, and had to wear white men’s clothes which did not fit. We could not go to hunt inthe mountains, and the land was waterless and very hot in summer, and we froze in winter. Then there were many sick, but the white men sent a doctor, and he laughed at me, and ordered me not to go near the sick ones. This made my heart black and sorrowful, for the white man gave strange white powders that were very bitter in the mouth, and the people died thereafter.
“But many times when he had gone I went in and made strong magic and cured the sick, and he thought it was his white powders. Nevertheless, more and more of my people came to believe in the white man, and so I grew very poor, and was forced to get rations like the rest. It was a black time for me.
“One night there came into our midst a Snake messenger with a big tale. ‘Away in the west,’ he said to us in sign talk, ‘a wonderful man has come. He speaks all languages, and he is the friend of all red men. He is white, but not like other white men. He has been nailed to a tree by the whites. I saw the holes in his hands. He teaches a new dance, which is to gather all the Indians together in council. He wants a few head men of all tribes to meet him where the big mountains are, in the place where the lake is surrounded by pictured rocks. There he will teach us how to make mighty magic and drive away the white man and bring back the buffalo.’
“All that he told us we pondered long, and I said: ‘It is well, I will go to see this man. I will learn his dance.’
“All this was unknown to the agent, and at last, when the time came, four of us set forth at night on our long journey. On the third day two Snake chiefs and four Burnt Thighs joined us, then four Cut Throat people, and we all journeyed in peace. At last we came to the lake by the pictured rocks where the three snow mountains are.
“There were many Indians there. The Big Bellies were there from the north; and the Blackfeet, and the Magpies, and the Weavers, and the People-of-the-south-who-run-round-the-rocks, and the Black-people-of-the-mountains all were there. We had council, andwe talked in signs, and we all began to ask, ‘Where is the Great Helper?’ A day passed, and he did not come; but one night when we sat in council over his teachings, he suddenly stepped inside the circle. He was a dark man, but not so dark as we were. He had long hair on his chin, and long, brown head-hair, parted in the middle. I looked for the wounds on his wrists; I could not see any. He moved like a big chief, tall and swift. He could speak all tongues. He spoke Dakota, and many understood. I could understand the language of the Cut Throat people, and this is what he said:
“‘My people, before the white man came you were happy. You had many buffalo to eat and tall grass for your ponies. You could come and go like the wind. When it was cold, you could go into the valleys to the south, where the healing springs are; and when it grew warm, you could return to the mountains in the north. The white man came. He dug the bones of our mother, the earth. He tore her bosom with steel. He built big trails and put iron horses on them. He fought you and beat you, and put you in barren places where a horned toad would die. He said you must stay there; you must not hunt in the mountains.
“‘Then he breathed his poison upon the buffalo, and they disappeared. They vanished into the earth. One day they covered the hills, the next nothing but their bones remained. Would you remove the white man? Would you have the buffalo come back? Listen, and I will tell you how to make great magic. I will teach you a mystic dance, and then let everybody go home and dance. When the grass is green, the change will come. Let everybody dance four days in succession, and on the fourth day the white man will disappear and the buffalo come back; our dead will return with the buffalo.
“‘The earth is old. It will be renewed. The new and happy world will slide above the old as the right hand covers the left.
“‘You have forgotten the ways of the fathers; therefore great distress is upon you. You must throw away all that the white manhas brought you. Return to the dress of the fathers. You must use the sacred colors, red and white, and the sacred grass, and in the spring, when the willows are green, the change will come.
“‘Do no harm to any one. Do not fight each other. Live in peace. Do not tell lies. When your loved ones die, do not weep, nor burn their tepees, nor cut your arms, nor kill horses, for you will see the dead again.’
“His words made my heart glad and warm in my breast. I thought of the bright days when I was a boy and the white man was far away, when the buffalo were like sagebrush on the plains—there were so many. I rose up. I went toward him. I bowed my head, and I said:
“‘Oh, father, teach us the dance!’ and all the people sitting round said, ‘Good! teach us the dance!’
“Then he taught us the song and the dance which white people call ‘the ghost dance,’ and we danced all together, and while we danced near him he sat with bowed head. No one dared to speak to him. The firelight shone on him. Suddenly he disappeared. No one saw him go. Then we were sorrowful, for we wished him to remain with us. It came into my heart to make a talk; so I rose, and said:
“‘Friends, let us now go home. Our father has given us the mighty magic dance. Let us go home and teach all our people, and dance the four days, so that the white man may go and the buffalo come back. All our fathers will come back. The old men will be made young. The blind will see again. We will all be happy once more.’
“This seemed good to them, and we all smoked the pipe and shook hands and took our separate trails. The Blackfeet went north, the People-that-click-with-their-tongues went west, and the Magpies, the Cut Throats, and the Snakes started together to the east. The Burnt Thighs kept on, while the Magpies and the Cut Throats turned to the northeast.
“At last we reached home, and I called a big dance, and at thedance I told the people what I had seen, and they were very glad. ‘Teach us the dance,’ they cried to me.
“‘Be patient,’ I said. ‘Wait till all the other people get home. When the grass is green and the moon is round, then we will dance, and all the red people will dance at the same time; then will the white man surely fade away, and the buffalo come up out of the earth where he is hid and roam the sod once more.’
“Then they did as I bid, and when the moon was round as a shield, we beat the drum and called the people to dance.
“Then the white man became much excited. He called for more soldiers everywhere to stop the dance, so I heard afterward. But the people paid no attention, for was not the white man poor and weak by the magic of the dance?
“Then we built five fires, one to each world direction and one in the center. We put on our best dress. We painted our faces and bodies in memory of our forefathers, who were mighty warriors and hunters. We carried bows and arrows and tomahawk and war clubs in memory of the days before the white man’s weapons. Our best singers knelt around the drum, and the women sat near to help them sing. When the drum began to beat, our hearts were very glad. There were Magpies and Cut Throats among us, but we were all friends. We danced between the fires, and as we danced the drummers sang the mystic song:
“Father, have pity on us.We are crying for thirst—All is gone!We have nothing to eat,Our Father, we are poor—We are very poor.The buffalo are gone,They are all gone.Take pity on us, O Father!We are dancing as you wish,Because you commanded us.We dance hard—We dance long.Have pity!
“Father, have pity on us.We are crying for thirst—All is gone!We have nothing to eat,Our Father, we are poor—We are very poor.The buffalo are gone,They are all gone.Take pity on us, O Father!We are dancing as you wish,Because you commanded us.We dance hard—We dance long.Have pity!
“Father, have pity on us.
We are crying for thirst—
All is gone!
We have nothing to eat,
Our Father, we are poor—
We are very poor.
The buffalo are gone,
They are all gone.
Take pity on us, O Father!
We are dancing as you wish,
Because you commanded us.
We dance hard—
We dance long.
Have pity!
“The agent came to see us dance, but we did not care. He was a good man, and we felt sorry for him, for he must also vanish with the other white people. He listened to our crying, and looked long, and his interpreter told him we prayed to the Great Spirits to destroy the white man and bring back the buffalo. Then he called me with his hand, and because he was a good man I went to him. He asked me what the dance meant, and I told him, and he said, ‘It must stop.’ ‘I cannot stop it,’ I said. ‘The Great Spirits have said it. It must go on.’
“He smiled, and went away, and we danced. He came again on the third day, and always he laughed. He said: ‘Go on. You are big fools. You will see the buffalo will never come back, and the white man is too strong to be swept away. Dance till the fourth day, dance hard, but I shall watch you.’
“On the fourth night, while we danced, soldiers came riding down the hills, and their chiefs, in shining white hats, came to watch us. All night we prayed and danced. We prayed in our songs.
“Great Spirit, help us.You are close by in the dark.Hear us and help us.Take away the white man.Send back the buffalo.We are poor and weak.We can do nothing alone.Help us to be as we once were,Happy hunters of buffalo.
“Great Spirit, help us.You are close by in the dark.Hear us and help us.Take away the white man.Send back the buffalo.We are poor and weak.We can do nothing alone.Help us to be as we once were,Happy hunters of buffalo.
“Great Spirit, help us.
You are close by in the dark.
Hear us and help us.
Take away the white man.
Send back the buffalo.
We are poor and weak.
We can do nothing alone.
Help us to be as we once were,
Happy hunters of buffalo.
“But the agent smiled, and the soldiers of the white chiefs sat not far off, their guns in their hands, and the moon passed by, and the east grew light, and we were very weary, and my heart was heavy. I looked to see the red come in the east. ‘When the sun looks over the hills, then it will be,’ I said to my friends. ‘The white man will become as smoke. The wind will sweep him away.’
“As the sun came near we all danced hard. My voice wasalmost gone. My feet were numb, my legs were weak, but my heart was big.
“‘Oh, help us, Great Spirits,’ we cried in despair.
“‘Father, the morning star,Father, the morning star,Look on us!Look on us, for we have danced till dawn;Look on us, for we have danced until daylight.Take pity on us,O Father, the morning star!Show us the road—Our eyes are dark.Show us our dead ones.We cry and hold fast to you,O morning star.We hold out our hands to you and cry.Help us, O Father!We have sung till morningThe resounding song.’
“‘Father, the morning star,Father, the morning star,Look on us!Look on us, for we have danced till dawn;Look on us, for we have danced until daylight.Take pity on us,O Father, the morning star!Show us the road—Our eyes are dark.Show us our dead ones.We cry and hold fast to you,O morning star.We hold out our hands to you and cry.Help us, O Father!We have sung till morningThe resounding song.’
“‘Father, the morning star,Father, the morning star,Look on us!Look on us, for we have danced till dawn;Look on us, for we have danced until daylight.
“‘Father, the morning star,
Father, the morning star,
Look on us!
Look on us, for we have danced till dawn;
Look on us, for we have danced until daylight.
Take pity on us,O Father, the morning star!Show us the road—Our eyes are dark.
Take pity on us,
O Father, the morning star!
Show us the road—
Our eyes are dark.
Show us our dead ones.We cry and hold fast to you,O morning star.We hold out our hands to you and cry.Help us, O Father!We have sung till morningThe resounding song.’
Show us our dead ones.
We cry and hold fast to you,
O morning star.
We hold out our hands to you and cry.
Help us, O Father!
We have sung till morning
The resounding song.’
“But the sun came up, the soldiers fired a big gun, and the soldier chiefs laughed. Then the agent called to me,
“‘Your Great Spirit can do nothing. Your Messiah lied.’
“Then I covered my head with my blanket and ran far away, and I fell down on the top of the high hill. I lay there a long time, thinking of the white man’s laugh. The wind whistled a sad song in the grass. My heart burned, and my breath came hard.
“‘Maybe he was right. Maybe the messenger was two-tongued and deceived us that the white man might laugh at us.’
“All day I lay there with my head covered. I did not want to see the light of the sun. I heard the drum stop and the singing die away. Night came, and then on the hills I heard the wailing of my people. Their hearts were gone. Their bones were weary.
“When I rose, it was morning. I flung off my blanket, and looked down on the valley where the tepees of the white soldiers stood. Iheard their drums and their music. I had made up my mind. The white man’s trail was wide and dusty by reason of many feet passing thereon, but it was long. The trail of my people was ended.
“I said, ‘I will follow the white man’s trail. I will make him my friend, but I will not bend my neck to his burdens. I will be cunning as the coyote. I will ask him to help me to understand his ways, and then I will prepare the way for my children. Maybe they will outrun the white man in his own shoes. Anyhow, there are but two ways. One leads to hunger and death, the other leads where the poor white man lives. Beyond is the happy hunting ground, where the white man cannot go.’”