toise, the Wolves, and the
Turkeys, all confederated to declare war against the Bears, who were a
very numerous and savage tribe; and the hatchet has not been buried yet.
But they made a firm peace with the Rattlesnakes, which lasted till the
coming of the Big-knives, when the latter broke the calumet of peace by
biting an Indian, whom they mistook for a white man. Since then these
two people have also been at war.

When the Minnatarees arrived in the upper air, they established
themselves on the spot where they now reside. Very soon after, a party
of strange men appeared among them, mounted on animals, or rather they
seemed a part of strange animals, with four legs, possessed of great
fleetness, and whose long and beautiful tails swept the earth where they
trod. They attacked the wonderful creatures with their bows and arrows,
and succeeded in killing one of them, upon which the others ran away.
Not at first perceiving that the man and horse were two distinct
animals, how much were they surprised to see the former fall to the
earth, as if one part of the compound of the animal was dead, and the
other still active, having received no injury. They at length succeeding
in capturing the horse, and, after admiring the beauty of his form, and
becoming familiar with him, they proceeded to tie one of their young men
upon his back with cords that he might not fall off. The horse was then
led cautiously by the halter until he became sufficiently tame to ride
alone, and without a leader. It was in this manner that our nation
procured the horse, and from this one sprung the breed we now have.

Brothers, this is what our fathers told us of the manner in which the
Minnatarees and other Indian tribes became possessed of their present
hunting-grounds, and of the way in which our nation procured the
horse.--I have done.

NOTES.

(1) _The Hissing-Snake_.--p. 201.

This snake is the most remarkable of the different species of snake that
infest the western wilds. It is of the small speckled kind, and about
eight inches long. When any thing approaches, it flattens itself in a
moment, and its spots, which are of various dyes, become visibly
brighter through rage; at the same time it blows from its mouth, with
great force, a subtle wind, that is reported to be of a nauseous smell,
and, if drawn in with the breath of the unwary traveller, it is said,
will infallibly bring on a decline, that in a few months must prove
mortal. So says C