Part 6
Sometimes the doctor performs alone and keeps up the drumming, etc., all night. In this way by a repetition of visits, if the case is of long duration, the whole of the property of the relatives of the sick person falls to the doctor and his assistants, who are also slightly paid for the music. And this is the cause of great individual distress and poverty, though the property given does not go out of the nation, but only changes hands and is liable in like manner to revert to others should the divining man fall sick. In case, after all, the patient dies, it is then the doctor who is in danger, and runs great risk of losing his life, by the parents or relatives of the deceased. Indeed, being aware of this they generally abscond to other camps when death approaches, and whatever property they leave behind is taken from them. No later than last winter the writer paid an Indian to prevent his killing the “Bull’s Dry Bones” (doctor) who the man said had poisoned his two children six years ago. But the old doctor, although a humbug, is an innocent man and would harm no one.
They have various forms of doctoring, in all of which the drum forms a principal figure, and songs and incantations, all of which are most religiously believed in by the Indians. Old women are as often practitioners as old men and of as great celebrity. There is also another reason why these Indians give away so much of their property to the divining man. Independent of these payments securing the doctor’s services, they are considered as sacrifices; that is, the man makes himself poor with a view of propitiating the Great Spirit.
Also it is considered and spoken of as a great honor to give away large articles to the divining man, such as horses, guns, etc., and goes to prove the affection with which they regard their sick relatives. For a long time afterwards the giver will boast of his liberality in these respects and is also looked upon as a man with a “large heart.” We must, at the risk of not being believed, state that on two particular occasions, and before witnesses, we have examined the divining man’s mouth, hands, and all his person, which was entirely naked, with the view of discovering where these worms, snakes, etc., were hidden, and that these examinations were made without any previous intimations to him who, never having been subject to examinations of the kind by Indians, was completely unprepared for the trial, yet he acquiesced cheerfully, afterwards continued his performance, and repeated it in our presence, drawing and spitting out large worms, clots of blood, tufts of hair, skin, etc., too large to be easily secreted, and leaving no visible mark on the patient’s body. The trick was well done and not yet known to any of us.
Their knowledge of anatomy consists in being acquainted with the larger bones and joints. They can set a broken arm or simple fracture tolerably well, and even replace a dislocated shoulder, which they do by pulling and outward pressure from the armpit, but this knowledge is not confined to the divining man nor is it his business more than any other who happens to be present. Most men of middle age have witnessed so many accidents of the kind that they can do this.
They are, however, unacquainted with the circulation of the blood and with any judicious treatment of internal diseases, for all of which they resort to incantations and drumming. They do, however, indiscriminately use the vapor bath or sweat house for various complaints. This construction is a small lodge thrown over a basketwork of willows stuck in the ground and bent in an oval or round form, the skins well pinned down and every aperture well closed. The doctor after heating some large stones red hot and putting them into the lodge enters with the patient, both entirely naked and taking along a kettle of water and, as usual, his drum. The lodge is then shut tight by the people on the outside. A brisk singing and drumming is kept up in the lodge by the doctor, who at intervals throws water on the stones and steam is raised. A violent heat and perspiration takes place, which they endure as long as they can; as soon as the patient is taken out he is immersed in cold water, which in nine cases out of ten results in his death. In this way the Crow Indians lost nearly 200 persons three years since during a prevailing influenza. The Mandan and Gros Ventres, however, being accustomed to cold bathing from their youth, are said seldom to suffer any inconvenience but often receive benefit from the vapor bath and immediate cold immersion. They have no names for fevers, consumptions, obstructions of the liver, etc., and can not explain further than by pointing out that part of their body which is in a state of pain.
Indeed, in this climate, except consumption, rheumatism and quinsy, diseases are extremely rare; and no febrile symptoms seen except in cases of wounds and parturition when puerperal fever often occurs, and assuming a typhoid form is generally fatal. They are also exempt from paralysis, toothache and almost all the thousand nervous complaints to which the whites are subject, among which might be mentioned baldness or failure of eyesight from age. Their materia medica is consequently in a very primitive state. They have no medicine except some roots, some of which are known to be good for the bite of the rattlesnake, frozen parts, and inflammatory wounds. The principal of these is the black root, called by them the comb root (pl. 67, _a_), from the pod on the top being composed of a stiff surface that can be used as a comb. It is called by the French racine noir, and grows everywhere in the prairie throughout the Indian country. It is chewed and applied in a raw state with a bandage to the part affected. We can bear witness to the efficacy of this root in the cure of the bite of the rattlesnake or in alleviating the pain and reducing the tension and inflammation of frozen parts, gunshot wounds, etc. It has a slightly pungent taste resembling black pepper, and produces a great deal of saliva while chewing it. Its virtues are known to all the tribes with which we are acquainted, and it is often used with success. A decoction of the root of cat-tail (pl. 67, _b_) is also used to reduce inflammation, and given internally to produce perspiration, but mostly as an external application for wounds, sprains, and pains of all kinds, as also the inner bark of the red willow; both of which are said to be beneficial, and are much used by the Indians and French voyageurs in all the Indian country.
[Illustration: FIGURE 30.—Lancet]
At the risk of a smile and perhaps something more from the enlightened civilized medical fraternity we will now state how they absolutely can and do cure hydrophobia, in hopes of furnishing them with a hint that may be improved upon. We have never actually seen this operation, but are as certain of its being done as we can be of anything not seen but in all other respects well authenticated. Although Indians are often bitten by mad wolves, yet they never die from the disease if operated upon. After it is known that the patient has hydrophobia, the symptoms of which they are well acquainted with, and has had a fit or two, he is sewed up in a fresh rawhide of a buffalo. With two cords attached to the head and foot of the bale the man is swung backward and forward through a hot fire until the skin is burnt to cinders and the patient is burned and suffocated [sic]. He is brought to the brink of the grave by the operation; taken out in a state of profuse perspiration and plunged into cold water; and if he survives the treatment the disease disappears. The remedy is terrible. Now, if the poison of the rattlesnake is expelled by perspiration by administering ammonia and other remedies, might not the poison communicated by the rabid animal undergo a like process by the violent treatment mentioned, or intense heat produce the desired constitutional revolution and effect a cure.
DEPLETION BY BLEEDING.—They bleed often, both when the pulse is full from sickness and at any time they think it beneficial.
The instrument is a sharpened arrow point or any other small piece of pointed iron. (Fig. 30.) They wrap the whole of this with sinew except as much as they wish to enter the vein. It is then tied into a split stick and secured firmly with sinew and being laid on the vein is knocked in suddenly with the thumb and middle finger. They also open the veins of their legs and arms while crying over dead relatives, making large transverse cuts with knives, arrow points, or flints. When they bleed they generally let the blood flow as long as it will without bandage. Cupping is done with a part of the upper end of a buffalo horn, about 2½ inches long, and a vacuum is produced by suction with the mouth which, with their powerful muscles and exertions, is, of course, double force. It is said to be useful in drawing out the poison of snake bites and is also used for pains and cramps in the stomach, besides for extracting worms, bugs, snakes, etc., as mentioned in the general practice. We believe it may have something of the effect of dry cupping with glasses; they do not, however, scarify before cupping except in cases of snake bites.
STOPPAGE OF BLOOD AND HEALING ART.—For stopping of blood they use cobwebs, dried pulpy fungus, or very fine inner bark of trees. When these are not to be had finely pulverized rotten wood is used. These answer tolerably well when the divided artery is small. They have no good plasters or healing salves.
Bandages are mostly tied on too tight, with the view of stopping the bleeding and are left too long before being removed, which frequently results in gangrene. They are not skillful nor clean in these things, seldom washing a wound. From actual observation, which has been pretty extensive with regard to cuts and wounds of all kinds, we are disposed to believe that their cure does not depend upon any skill in treatment nor care taken of them, but upon their vigorous constitutions, extremely healthy climate, and strictly temperate mode of life, with perhaps a disposition to heal naturally in the absence of scientific knowledge vouchsafed to the ignorant Indian by an all-wise Creator.
AMPUTATION.—They never amputate a limb, though fingers and toes often undergo that operation.[8] The Assiniboin run a sharp knife around the joint of the finger and snap it off. The Crows do the same, but on other occasions take them off by placing a sharp tomahawk on the finger, it being laid on a block and the tomahawk being struck with a mallet. Whenever a Crow Indian dies his near relatives, male and female, sacrifice each a finger and sometimes two, and the loss of these people by sickness and enemies the last few years having been great, there is scarcely such a thing as a whole hand to be found in the Crow Nation. The men reserve the thumb and middle finger on the left and the thumb and two forefingers of the right hand to use the bow and gun, but all the rest are sacrificed.
[8] In the few cases where the Indians have an arm or leg missing, they have been shot off, or so nearly off as not to come under the head of amputation, as but little skin or nerve were to be cut.
They mostly take them off at the first and second joints, though occasionally lower down. These small amputations are seldom attended with any serious effect, but from their awkward operations the bone frequently projects and requires a long time to heal. They use splints and bark in fractures and lacerated bones, but are not skillful in applying them, nor attentive in removing them, and in a short time the wound smells bad. Their wounded are carried from the field in a blanket, robe, or skin, by four men each holding a corner, who are relieved by others when fatigued, in which way they transport them for days and sometimes weeks together. When very badly wounded in an enemy’s country and supposed to be mortally wounded they are left in some point of timber to die. A small stock of provisions and ammunition is left with them. They sometimes recover almost by miracle. Instances of this kind are not uncommon and serve to show the suffering an Indian will undergo and the different means he will use to preserve life.
THEORY OF DISEASES AND THEIR REMEDY.—They understand nothing of the properties of mineral medicines except a few simple ones given them by whites of later years, neither are they acquainted with the theory of diseases, being for the most part unable to describe their complaint so that any person could prescribe. They are as ignorant of any true knowledge of diseases or medicines as they are of astronomy or any other science.
It is hardly conceivable how the smallpox among Indians could be cured by any physician. All remedies fail. The disease kills a greater part of them before any eruption appears. We have personally tried experiments on nearly 200 cases according to Thomas’s Domestic Medicine, varying the treatment in every possible form, but have always failed, or in the few instances of success the disease had assumed such a mild form that medicines were unnecessary. It generally takes the confluent turn of the most malignant kind (when the patient does not die before the eruption), which in 95 cases out of 100 is fatal. It appears to be the natural curse of the red men, and here we leave it, perfectly willing others should do more. We have from year to year tried to introduce general vaccination with kinepock among them, and have even paid them to vaccinate their own children, but they will not have it done to any extent, and the few who will do it more to please us than to benefit themselves. Moreover, should any accident happen to the child or even should the Indian miss his hunt, or any casualty befall him or his family, the vaccination would be blamed for it and the good-hearted operator would find himself in a position of danger and expense. There is also great risk in giving them medicines, for should the patient die the whites would be blamed for poisoning him, and should he live the Indian drummer or doctor will get both the credit and the pay. Therefore, as their customs at present stand but little can be done for them, however willing people are to attempt it.
PARTURITION.—Men never interpose their services in cases of parturition.
When there is danger a midwife is called, and the deobstruents administered are castoreum and pulverized rattles of the rattlesnake, either of which have the effect of the ergot. Shampooing is also resorted to with the view of detaching the fetus or expelling the envelope. Nevertheless strangulation and consequently death of both mother and child often happens, not so much in the natural course as when destroyed expressly in utero, as is done by the Crow women and sometimes by the Assiniboin, though not to such an extent by the latter. This is accomplished by violent pressure on the abdomen, by leaning on a stick planted in the ground, and, swinging the whole weight of their body, they run backward and forward, or by violent blows administered by some other person called for the purpose, in all which operations, if the time be not well calculated for expelling the fetus, death is the consequence.
Their vapor baths have been alluded to and might prove efficacious in some cases of chronic rheumatism, catarrh, etc., if proper care was taken, but are very pernicious owing to their negligence afterwards, or cold immersion during perspiration. In conclusion we would remark that with regard to any judicious treatment of any disease whatever (that is, any such treatment as would meet medical approbation) they are entirely in the dark. The most of their dependence is on the drumming, singing, and incantations which perhaps sometimes have some little effect on the mind of youthful patients, though in these cases the probability is they are more frightened than sick.
In a large camp the drum can be heard at all hours of the day and night, as there is always some one who is sick, or thinks he is. What appears singular is that the doctor, knowing his art to be deception, should he fall sick calls for another divining man and pays for the drumming the same as his patients have paid him. This would seem to prove they actually have faith in their own incantations, etc. They can not distinguish between an artery and a vein. They call both by the same name, though they say the arteries are large veins. Arteries are compressed, not taken up when cut, and if a large one is cut, the consequence is either mortification from the ligature or, if loosely tied, death by bleeding, which invariably happens when the large artery of the thigh is separated.
Indians will receive extensive wounds, apparently mortal, and yet recover. Some years ago an Assiniboin was surrounded by three Blackfeet a few miles from this place. He had fired at a prairie hen, and the moment his gun was discharged the three enemies fired on him. The three balls took effect. One broke his thigh, another the shin bone of the other leg, and the third entered his abdomen and came out near the kidney and backbone. They then ran in upon and endeavored to scalp him, running a knife around the cranium and partially withdrawing the scalp. Finding that he struggled they stabbed him with a long lance downward under the collar bone, the lance running along the inside and against the right ribs about 12 inches. They also gave him several more stabs in the body with their knives.
In the struggle the man got out the lance and plunging it at them alternately they retired a few paces. The camp in the meantime having heard the firing and suspecting the cause, turned out. The enemies seeing this, decamped, and the Assiniboin carried the wounded man to his lodge. In a few days afterwards the camp passed by the fort and the writer saw this man in so helpless a state that, expecting him to die, nothing was done. The weather was very hot, the wounds had a purple color, smelt bad, and had every appearance of gangrene. The camp moved off and the man in time recovered. The scalp was replaced and grew on again. Here was no judicious treatment, not even ordinary care, for in traveling that is impossible, and very unfavorable weather. This man is yet living and is said by the Indians to bear a charmed life, is respected as a warrior and brave, called “He who was many times wounded,” and can be seen any time in the Band des Canots of the Assiniboin.
GOVERNMENT
TRIBAL ORGANIZATION AND GOVERNMENT.—The tribe of Indians called Assiniboin is separated into the following distinct bands, viz., Wah-to´-pah-han-da´-tok, or “Those who propel boats,” by the whites Gens du Gauche, from the circumstance of the old Gauche (chief) spoken of before who for a half century governed this band. It now numbers 100 lodges. The second band, Wah-ze-ab-we-chas-ta, or Gens du Nord, thus named because they came from that direction in 1839 as already represented, though their original appellation was Gens du Lac. These count 60 lodges. Third band, Wah-to-pan-ah, or Canoe Indians, Gens des Canots, who may be recorded at 220 lodges that trade on the Missouri, and 30 lodges more who deal with American and British traders near the mouth of Pembina and Red Rivers, occasionally visiting the Missouri. Fourth band, We-che-ap-pe-nah, or Gens des Filles, literally the “Girls Band”; these can be put down at 60 lodges. Fifth, E-an-to-ah or Gens des Roches, literally “Stone Indians,” comprising 50 lodges. The original name for the whole nation given them by the Chippewa (As-see-ni-pai-tuck) has the same[9] signification. Within the last 10 years another division has again arisen, called Hoo-tai-sha-pah or “Lower End Red,” alias “Red Root.” These are a branch, from the Gens des Canots and odds and ends of other bands and consist of 30 lodges.
[9] For correct meaning see footnote 1.
RECAPITULATION -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Indian name | French name |Lodges| Chiefs of bands | Head chief -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wah-to-pah-han-da-toh|Gens du Gauche | 100 |La Main que tremble|} Wah-ze-ab-we-chas-tah|Gens du Nord | 60 |Le Robe de vent |} Wah-to-pan-ah |Gens des Canot | 220 |Le Serpent |} L’ours Fou or We-che-ap-pe-nah |Gens des Filles| 60 |Les Yeux Gris |} Crazy Bear. E-an-to-ah |Gens des Roches| 50 |Premier qui volle |} Hoo-tai-sha-pah |Le Bas Rouge | 30 |Le Garçon bleu |} | |------| | | | 520 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Average, four and one half persons per lodge. Total, 2,340 souls.
These 520 lodges form the nation, with the exception of those residing in the north, whom they never visit. The bands named are distinct and usually encamped in different sections of country, though they mingle for a short time when circumstances require it, such as scarcity of buffalo in some part of their lands or on an approach of a numerous enemy. When these causes for combination cease they separate and occupy their customary grounds severally, within three or four days’ travel of each other. The chief of the whole nation is Crazy Bear, made so by the commissioner of the United States at the Laramie treaty in 1851, not having as yet, however, that popular rule which will follow in due time if the treaty stipulations on both sides are complied with.
CHIEFS.—In each and all the bands mentioned there are several men bearing the character, rank, and name of chiefs. But he only is considered as chief of the band who heads and leads it. Yet this power does not give him a right to tyrannize over any of the other chiefs, or dictate to them any course they would not willingly follow; neither does it detract from their dignity and standing to acknowledge him as the head. Some one must be the nominal leader, and as this place involves some trouble and action and is not repaid with any extra honors or gifts it is not in general much envied. Moreover, this leader is mostly, if not always, supported by numerous connections who second his views and hence his authority. In fact, these bands are nothing more than large families, the chiefs resembling the old patriarchs, being intermarried and connected in such a way as to preclude the probability of clashing of interests or separation. These are the elements of the bands. The chief is little more than the nominal father of all and addresses them as his children in a body.
Now, although some of these children may be as brave as he, and have accomplished greater feats in war and the chase, yet they do not feel disposed to dispute his acknowledged authority, neither would such insubordinate conduct be submitted to by the mass of the people, without some great mismanagement on the part of the chief, rendering such a course necessary and inevitable.