USA > Illinois > Will County > History of Will County, Illinois, Volume One > Part 7
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"We found a very large number of the various tribes as- sembled. Not only the village, but the entire banks of the river for miles above and below the town, and the island in the river was covered with their tents. The Dakotahs, with their high pointed buffalo skin tents, above the town, and their dec- orations and implements of flags, feathers, skins and personal 'braveries,' presented the scene of a Bedouin encampment. Some of the chiefs had the skins of skunks tied to their heels, to symbolize that they never ran, as that animal is noted for its slow and self-possessed movements.
"Wanita, the Yankton chief, had a most magnificent robe of the buffalo, curiously worked with dyed porcupine's quills
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and sweet grass. A kind of war flag, made of eagles' and vul- tures' large feathers, presented quite a martial air. War clubs and lances presented almost every imaginable device of paint; but by far the most elaborate thing was their pipes of red stone, curiously carved, and having flat wooden handles of some four feet in length, ornamented with the scalps of the red-headed woodpecker and male duck, and tail feathers of birds artificially attached by strings and quill work, so as to hang in the figure of a quadrant. But the most elaborately wrought part of the devices consisted of dyed porcupines' quills, arranged as a kind of aboriginal mosaic.
"The Winnebagoes, who speak a cognate dialect of the De- cotah, were encamped near; and resembled them in their style of lodges, arts, and general decorations.
"The Chippewas presented the more usually known traits, manners and customs of the great Algonquin family-of whom they are, indeed, the best representatives. The tall and war- like bands from the sources of the Mississippi-from La Point, in Lake Superior-from the valleys of the Chippewa and St. Croix rivers and the Rice Lake region of Lac du Flambeau, and of Sault Ste. Marie, were well represented.
"The cognate tribe of the Menomonies, and of the Potta- wattomies and Ottawas from Lake Michigan, assimilated and mingled with the Chippewas. Some of the Iroquois of Green Bay were present.
"But no tribes attracted as intense a degree of interest as the Iowas, and the Sacs and Foxes-tribes of radically diverse languages, yet united in a league against the Sioux. These tribes were encamped on the island, or opposite coast. They came to the treaty ground, armed and dressed as a war party. They were all armed with spears, clubs, guns, and knives. Many of the warriors had a long tuft of red horse hair tied at their elbows, and wore a necklage of grizzly bears' claws. Their head dress consisted of red dyed horse hair, tied in such man-
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ner to the scalp lock as to present the shape of the decoration of a Roman helmet. The rest of the head was completely shaved and painted. A long iron shod lance was carried in the hand. A species of baldric supported part of their arms. The azian, moccasin and leggins constituted a part of their dress. They were, indeed, nearly nude, and painted. Often the print of a hand, in white clay, marked the back or shoulders. They bore flags of feathers. They beat drums. They uttered yells at definite points. They landed in compact ranks. They looked the very spirit of defiance. Their leader stood as a prince, ma- jestic and frowning. The wild, native pride of man, in the savage state, flushed by success in war, and confident in the strength of his arm, was never so fully depicted to my eyes. And the forest tribes of the continent may be challenged to have ever presented a spectacle of bold daring, and martial prowess, equal to their landing.
"The martial bearing, and their high tone, and whole be- havior during their stay, in and out of council, was impressive and demonstrated, in an eminent degree, to what a high pitch of physical and moral courage, bravery and success in war may lead a savage people. Keokuk, who led them, stood with his war lance, high crest of feathers and daring eye, like an- other Coriolanus, and when he spoke in council, and at the same time shook his lance at his enemies, the Sioux, it was evi- dent that he wanted but an opportunity to make their blood flow like water. Wapelo, and other chiefs backed him, and the whole array, with their shaved heads and high crests of red horse hair, told the spectator plainly each of these men held his life in his hand, and was ready to spring to the work of slaughter at the cry of their chief."
Generals Clark and Cass conducted the negotiations. Day after day they discussed boundaries, laboring with the chiefs and making themselves familiar with the drawings presented by the Indians. The Red Men were pleased. The United States
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demanded no concessions. Many harangues were made by chiefs, men of no mean ability as orators. Mongazid, of Fond du Lac, said, "When I heard the voice of my Great Father, coming up the Mississippi Valley calling me to this treaty, it seemed as a murmuring wind. I got up from my mat, where I sat musing, and hastened to obey it. My pathway has been clear and bright. Truly, it is a pleasant sky above our heads this day. There is not a cloud to darken it. I hear nothing but pleasant words. The raven is not waiting for his prey. I hear no eagle cry, 'Come let us go. The feast is ready; the Indian has killed his brother.'" (From Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society-October, 1915.)
"The next treaty was at Prairie du Chien on July 29, 1829, with the Pottawattomies, Chippewas and Ottawas. By this treaty these tribes ceded a large territory in Illinois and Wis- consin, lying between Rock River and the Mississippi, and a further tract of land between Rock River and Lake Michigan, to the west and north of the cession of 1816. On Lake Michigan it included in width the land now constituting the City of Evanston and most of the adjoining village of Wilmette."
"So the treaties were executed at last, and about eight mil- lion acres of land added to our domain purchased from the Indians. South of the Wisconsin the Indians now own only reservations where they live, which, as soon as the white people settle on all ceded lands, will be sold to us, and the Indians will retire above the Wisconsin and across the Mississippi, where the bear, the beaver, the deer and the bison now invite them. The United States now owns all the country on the east side of the Mississippi from the Gulf of Mexico to the mouth of the Wisconsin." (Journal of Illinois Historical Society-October, 1915.)
The treaty at Prairie du Chien on July 29, 1829, concluded the transfer of lands so far as Will County is concerned. How-
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ever, the final treaty of September 26, 1833, concerns our his- tory because thousands of Indians passed this way through the Great Highway and some of them encamped within the bounds of the county. It seems entirely fitting to include an account of it here.
Chicago, in 1833, was an insignificant frontier village. The treaty made in this place is a sad commentary on the influence of the white man upon the Indian. The scenes about the village were pathetic, in many cases. The quotations given here are from the account of Charles J. Latrobe, an Englishman of learn- ing and a traveler and writer of ability. The account, which is abbreviated, is taken from the Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society.
"A public vehicle conveyed us across the peninsula of Mich- igan, over a tract of country which five or six years ago had been traversed by nothing but Indian trails, but which was now rapidly filling with a settled population from the eastward, and all the concomitants of ploughed land, girdled trees, log huts, towns, villages, and farms. Five thousand Indians were said to be collected round this upstart village, for the prosecution of the treaty, by which they were to cede their lands in Mich- igan and Illinois.
"A preliminary council had been held with the chiefs some days before our arrival. The principal Commissioner had opened it, as we learned, by stating that 'as the Great Father at Washington had heard that they wished to sell their land he had sent Commissioners to treat with them.' The Indians answered promptly 'that their Great Father at Washington must have seen a bad bird, which had told him a lie, for that, far from wishing to sell their land, they wished to keep it.' Nothing daunted, the Commissioner replied that they must take the matter into consideration. He explained to them the wishes and intentions of the Great Father and asked their
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opinion. They looked at the sky, saw a few wandering clouds, and straightway adjourned as the weather is not clear enough for so solemn a council.
"However, as the treaty had been opened, provision was supplied to them by regular rations; and the same night they had great rejoicings, danced the war dance, and kept the eyes and ears of all open by running howling about the village."
The following account of the village of Chicago in 1833 and the description of the Indians, as given Latrobe, is given here. It gives a word picture of Chicago as it was when settlers began to come into Will County. Chicago was the trade-center in which our first inhabitants had an interest. There they must purchase their supplies and there they must find a market. The description of the Indians is of interest because they were the predecessors of the Whites, depraved by contact with whites but still an interesting people. "Then for the birds of passage, exclusive of the Pottawattomies, of whom more anon-and emigrants and land speculators as numerous as the sand. You will find horse-dealers, and horse-stealers; rogues of every de- scription, white, black, brown, and red-half-breeds, quarter- breeds, and men of no breed at all dealers in pigs, poultry, and potatoes; men pursuing Indian claims, some for tracts of land, others like our friend Snipe, for pigs which the wolves had eaten; creditors of the tribes, or of particular Indians, who know that they have no chance of getting their money, if they do not get it from the Government agents; sharpers of every degree, peddlars, grog-sellers; Indian agents and Indian traders of every description, and contractors to supply the Pottawatto- mies with food. The little village was in an uproar from morn- ing to night, and from night to morning; for, during the hours of darkness, when the housed portion of the population of Chi- cago strove to obtain repose in the crowded plank edifices of the village, the Indians howled, sang, wept, yelled, and whooped
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in their various encampments, with all this, the whites seemed to me to be more pagan than the red men."
"You will have understood that the large body of Indians, collected in the vicinity, consisted not merely of chiefs and warriors, but that in fact the greater part of the whole tribe were present. For where the warrior was invited to feast at the expense of the Government, the squaw took care to accom- pany him; and where the squaw went, the children or papooses, the ponies, and the innumerable dogs followed; and here they all were living merrily at the cost of the Government."
"Of their dress, made up as it is of a thousand varieties of apparel, but little general idea can be given. There is nothing among them that can be called a national costume. That has apparently long been done away with, or at least so far cloaked under their European ornaments, blankets, and finery, as to be scarcely distinguishable. Each seemed to cloth him or her- self as best suited their individual means or taste. Those who possessed the means, were generally attired in the most fan- tastic manner, and the most gaudy colours. A blanket and breech-cloth was possessed with a very few exceptions by the poorest among the males. Most added leggings, more or less ornamented, made of blue, scarlet, green, or brown broadcloth; and the surcoats of every colour and every material; together with rich sashes, and gaudy shawl or handkerchief-turbans."
"All these diverse articles of clothing, with the embroidered petticoats and shawls of the richer squaws, and the compli- cated head-dress, were covered with innumerable trinkets of all descriptions, thin plates of silver, beads, mirrors and em- broidery. On their faces, the black and vermillion paint was disposed a thousand ways, more or less fanciful and horrible. Comparatively speaking, the women were seldom seen gaily drest, and dandyism seemed to be more particularly the prerog- ative of the males, many of whom spent hours at the morning toilet."
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"Far and wide the grassy prairie teemed with figures; war- riors, mounted or on foot, squaws and horses. Here a race between three or four Indian ponies, each carrying a double rider, whooping and yelling like fiends. There a solitary horse- man with a long spear, turbaned like an Arab, scouring along at full speed; groups of hobbled horses, Indian dogs and chil- dren; or a grave conclave of grey chiefs seated on the grass in consultation."
"It was amusing to wind silently from group to group- here noting the raised knife, the sudden brawl, quashed by the good-natured and even playful interference of the neighbors; there a party breaking up their encampment and falling, with their little train of loaded ponies and wolfish dogs into the deep, black narrow trail running to the north. You peep into a wigwam, and see a domestic feud; the chief sitting in dogged silence on the mat, while the women, of which there were com- monly two or three in every dwelling, and who appeared every evening more elevated with the fumes of whiskey than the males, read him a lecture. From another tent a constant voice of wrangling and weeping would proceed, when suddenly an offended fair one would draw the mat aside, and, taking a youth standing without by the hand, lead him apart, and sitting down on the grass, set up the most indescribable whine as she told her grief. Then forward comes an Indian, staggering with his chum from a debauch; he is met by his squaw, with her child dangling in a fold of her blanket behind, and the sobbing and weeping which accompanies her whining appeal to him, as she hangs to his hand, would melt your heart, if you did not see that she was quite as tipsy as himself."
"Here sitting apart and solitary, an Indian expends the exuberance of his intoxicated spirits in the most ludicrous sing- ing and gesticulation; and there squat a circle of unruly topers indulging themselves in the most unphilosophic and excessive peals of laughter."
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"It is a grievous thing that Government is not strong- handed enough to put a stop to the shameful and scandalous sale of whiskey to these poor, miserable wretches. But here lie casks of it for sale under the very eye of the Commissioners, met together for purposes which demand that sobriety should be maintained, were it only that no one should be able to lay at their door an accusation of unfair dealing, and of having taken advantage of the helpless Indian in a bargain, whereby the people of the United States were to be so greatly gainers. And such was the state of things day by day. However anxious I and others might be to exculpate the United States Gov- ernment from the charge of cold and selfish policy toward the remnant of the Indian tribes, and from that of resorting to unworthy and diabolical means in attaining possession of their lands-as long as it can be said with truth that drunkenness was not guarded against, and that the means were furnished at the very time of the treaty, and under the very nose of the Commissioners-how can it be expected but a stigma will at- tend every transaction of this kind? The sin may lie at the door of the individuals more immediately in contract with them; but for the character of the people as a nation, it should be guarded against, beyond a possibility of transgression. Who will believe that any act, however formally executed by the chiefs, is valid, as long as it is known that whiskey was one of the parties to the treaty ?"
On the 21st of September, the Pottawattomies resolved to meet the Commissioners. Three or four days later the treaty was concluded. The Indians received as compensation for this vast grant $100,000.00, "to satisfy sundry individuals in behalf of whom reservations were asked, which the commissioners refused to grant"; $175,000.00 to "satisfy the claims made against" the Indians; $100,000.00 to be paid in goods and pro- visions; $280,000.00 to be paid in an annuity of $14,000.00 each year for twenty years; $150,000.00 "to be applied to the erec-
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tion of mills, farm houses, Indian houses, blacksmith shops, ag- ricultural improvements," etc., and $70,000.00 "for purposes of education and the encouragement of the domestic arts."
One remarkable feature of this treaty is the fact that by its provisions some five hundred to one thousand persons, most of them with no Indian blood in their veins, derived personal gain from the transaction; the allowance and payment of in- dividual claims, ranging in amount from a few dollars to many thousands, and as already noted, about one-third of the cash consideration was thus disbursed. Among the individual bene- ficiaries also appear the following: Alexander Robinson, $10,- 000.00 cash and $300.00 annuity, "in addition to annuities al- ready granted"; Billy Caldwell, $10,000.00 cash and $400.00 an- nuity, "in addition to annuities already granted"; John Kinzie Clark, $400.00; allowance to Antoine Ouilmette and his family; John K. Clark's Indian children, $400.00 and various allowance to the Kinzie family." (Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, October, 1925.)
The accounts of treaties given above brings us down to 1833 when settlers began to come into Will County territory. The coming of the settlers will be given in another place.
CHAPTER VII.
THE PRAIRIES AND FORESTS.
SETTLERS FROM THE EAST AND EUROPE FASCINATED BY THE PRAIRIES- FERDIN AND ERNST WRITE OF THE PRAIRIES-WASHINGTON IRVING'S "TOUR OF THE PRAIRIES"-MRS. STEELE-VEGETATION-ANIMAL AND BIRD LIFE-THE BUFFALO-THE TRADE IN BUFFALO ROBES-DEER- RATTLESNAKES-WILD EGGS
Settlers from Europe were fascinated by the prairies of Will County. The virgin soil showed a fertility unknown to them. They were accustomed to the soil which had been tilled for ages. Eastern people, from New York, Pennsylvania, and New England were enthusiastic about the prairies because no trees were to be removed and no rocks were to be stumbled over by man and beast.
In 1823, Ferdin and Ernst of Hildesheim, Germany, wrote about the prairies. He traveled over Illinois on horse-back and crossed the southern part of what is now included in Illinois, hence his reports are interesting. He said that flies were ex- ceedingly troublesome to travelers on horse-back in July, August, and September. He asserts that horses were some- times killed by these pests. Two kinds were mentioned, the little green-head horse fly and the large black fly. The green- head attacked the front part of the neck where it was difficult to dislodge them. They sucked the blood of the animal and were most painful. Because of these pests, much traveling was done after sundown. Mosquitoes troubled man and beast and
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since the latter worked most in the twlight such journeys were not very pleasant.
The wild-flowers were most beautiful at all seasons. No bet- ter account can be written than that of Washington Irving, so it is reproduced here.
Washington Irving in his "Tour of the Prairies", published in 1835 says, "I should despair of being able to convey any idea to your mind of the glories of the autumnal flora, covering these immense natural meadows, like a rich carpet. God has here, with prodigal hand, scattered the seeds of thousands of beauti- ful plants, each suited to its season, where there are no hands to pluck and few eyes to admire. After the early grass of the spring begins to shoot up through the blackened surface of the scorched soil, it becomes spangled with a host of flowers the prevailing color of which are white and blue. These, as sum- mer advances give place to a race in which red predominates and, when the yellow suns of autumn incline over the West, their mild rays are greeted by the appearance of millions of yellow flowers which, far statelier and of ranker growth than their predecessors, rise over their ruins and seem to clothe the undulating surface of the prairie with a cloth of-gold. The great predominance of the Heliotrope and Solidago species gives this tint to the landscape; at the same time there are many showy and beautiful plants, products of the same season, of less glaring colors. Such are the Asters, from the large and beautiful species, which displays its clusters of blue and purple flowers in the brake, to the small, delicately leaved varieties seen in the more open grounds. You observe whole districts covered with the tall and striking flowers of the tall Eupato- rium and everywhere among the long grass, the Liatries or rat- tle snake's master, shoots up and displays its spike of red flowers. Then there are the exquisite varieties of Gentiana, with their deep blue, and a thousand other flowers which I can- not undertake to describe. At this season the dwarf sumac, in
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hollows and on such parts of the prairie as have remained un- touched by the autumnal fires, becomes a striking feature of the open ground from the blood red hue of its leaves and fruiti- fication.
Mrs. Steel (1840), "A Summer Journey in the West" wrote thus, -* I started with delight (she writes). I was in the midst of prairie. A world of grass and flowers stretched around me, rising and falling in gentle undulations. Acres of wild flowers of every hue glowed around me
* what a new and wondrous world of beauty! * * More glorious ranks of flowers. Imagine yourself in the center of an immense circle of velvet herbage, the sky for its boundary on every side; the whole clothed with a radiant efffor- escence of every brilliant hue. We rode thus through a per- fect wilderness of sweets, sending forth perfume, and animated with myriads of glittering birds and butterflies. * It
was, in fact a vast garden. You will scarcely credit the profusion of flowers upon these prairies. We passed whole acres of blossoms all having one hue, as purple, perhaps, or masses of yellow and rose; and then again a carpet of every color inter-mixed. When the sun flooded this mosiac floor with light and the summer breezes stirred among the leaves, the irridescent glow was beautiful and wondrous beyond anything I have every conceived.
"It was thus that the prairie looked to the pioneers and to the visitors who came to Illinois in the early part of the 19th century. Since that day the plow has turned many a furrow. Scarcely a foot of unreclaimed prairie can be found."
The animal and bird life were equally abundant and inter- esting. Some wild life remains among the animals such as tent-pin gopher (striped gopher) cotton-tail rabbits, snakes of the harmless or beneficial kind, and field mice of several kinds. Birds abound but not in the great variety which prevailed one hundred years ago. Migratory birds came in at the junction
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of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers and traveled northward. As they moved they swerved to the right, following the Illinois River up-stream and came to the shore of Lake Michigan through the "Great Highway", the Des Plaines valley. Most of them rested by night. Such a roost was in the dell of Dell- wood Park. One can scarcely imagine this but previous to the desecration of this dell, it contained trees and undergrowth which afforded roosts sheltered from the wind as well as wild beasts. The travelers came from their last stop in Kentucky where they had breakfasted. Thus it was that the dell showed a flora much richer in variety and more beautiful in color than any other region of Northern Illinois.
The following lists of birds and animals are given to show the abundance of wild life rather than as a complete list for scientists. The lists are correct, however, even though they may not be complete.
In forest areas were, Golden Eagle, Bald-headed Eagle, brown-tailed hawk, screech owl, barred owl, barn owl, great blue heron, night heron, ruffed grouse, American egret, warb- lers, woodpeckers, wild turkeys, buzzards commonly known as "stink turkeys", and crows. Most of these journey far in search of food and hence were to be seen on the prairies.
On the edge of the forests were, Baltimore Oriole, warbling vireo, red-eyed vireo, brown thrasher, Bell's vireo (bell bird), tanager, bluejay, yellow breasted chat, and whip-poor-will.
On the prairie were field sparrow, night-hawk, wood-duck, chewink, bob-white, dick cissel, prairie lark, meadow lark, swal- low-tailed kite, raven, plover, sand-hill crane, swans in migra- tion, prairie hen, and kill-deer.
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