The Iowa

The Iowa.

by William Harvey Miner.

PREFACE

_The material forming the greater part of the present monograph is reprinted verbatim et literatim from certain portions of volume 1, Numbers 1, 2, and 3, Washington, November 30, 1876, of Foster"s_ INDIAN RECORD AND HISTORICAL DATA. _The complete work so far as carried out consists only of the three parts here mentioned, printed in folio and comprising four numbered pages each. The editor, Dr. Thomas Foster, who termed himself "Indian historiographer" hoped to be able to publish the sheet weekly "should funds permit." Evidently lack of finances or the small amount of interest shown in the venture determined against its continuance as it ceased with the third issue._

_During Foster"s connection with the Indian Bureau at Washington, John Q. Smith held the position of Commissioner of Indian Affairs and it is not improbable looked with little favor on the scheme. In any event the_ RECORD _is a desideratum in most collections and as such, even a portion of it may not be amiss in this reprint. Unfortunately its short existence did not permit of finishing the sketches of the Iowa or Winnebago, though it would appear that in the instance of the former but little more would have been added. It is hoped however, that in the foreword the more necessary data are given and that it is appropriately terminated._

_The actual worth of the_ INDIAN RECORD _is slight. Foster"s idea with reference to several monographs relating wholly or in part to certain tribes was a worthy one and could be executed to advantage even at this date. The two treatises attempted in his short-lived publication were on the Iowa and their parent stock, the Winnebago, although several shorter tribal sketches, as for example those on the Attacapa,[1] Oroyelles,[2]

Arapahoes,[3] and Eries[4] are included among other features, these being as scattered notes through the forty-eight columns and of more or less value, particularly as concerns the linguistics.[5] It is evident from his Introduction that Foster must have had many difficulties to contend with, especially in the matter of procuring suitable faces of type for his Indian vocabularies as well as in the matter of actual printing. At the best the work is poorly done. The proof-reading is wretched and the statements of fact often in grave error. Abject carelessness in the matter of transcription appears without excuse, hence quoted portions through the present text have invariably been read and compared with the originals, obviously enhancing the value of such a reissue. Although a praiseworthy effort for the period and due every consideration at this time, a project of the kind attempted today would fail ingloriously unless handled with requisite care._

_In the absence of any cognate facts referring in detail to the Iowa tribe it has been deemed best to reprint Foster"s sketch in its entirety from the_ Record _and to add to it, as appendices, some features which will be of special interest and value to the student of American aboriginal history and ethnology. In this textual portion will be found much from Schoolcraft"s_ INDIAN TRIBES OF THE UNITED STATES, _also extracts, some of considerable length, from the first volume of the Minnesota Historical Society"s_ COLLECTIONS, 1850-56, _and Neill"s_ HISTORY OF MINNESOTA. _Nevertheless such facts as are garnered from sources of this character although purloined, are to be welcomed, and in a certain sense it may be considered fortunate that all of the material is not wholly original._

_In the introductory sketch following this, an attempt has been made to gather all material readily available on the Iowa tribe. The writer acknowledges his indebtedness to the Bureau of American Ethnology, without a.s.sistance from which no authentic or in any way exhaustive sketch on any subject connected with the Indian question could be accomplished. The many references in the form of foot-notes have been verified with the greatest care. In many instances the meanings in the original are ambiguous. In the present form this fault is rectified and it is hoped that the concise yet lucid account of this important branch of the great Siouan family may a.s.sist in giving it some of that prominence to which it should rightfully aspire. A list of some of the more famous warriors is included as an appendix, and though incomplete and taken in part from printed records it will show that the tribe numbered among its members men who were famous outside of their own precincts, and these names may inspire some future historian to delve even more deeply into those archives that are known to be only memoirs of a past existence._

_Students of Iowa history or of the Indians of the central west can ill afford to overlook a work on the Indian tribes by A. R. Fulton ent.i.tled_ THE RED MEN OF IOWA. _The volume is now scarce but fortunately the writer has been able to use it and is glad to acknowledge its excellence. To Worthington C. Ford, of the Ma.s.sachusetts Historical Society, and to W. H. Holmes, of the Smithsonian Inst.i.tution, James Mooney and F. W. Hodge of the Bureau of American Ethnology, he is also indebted and wishes publicly to express his thanks for their kindly interest._

INTRODUCTION

THE IOWA INDIANS-AN HISTORICAL-SKETCH

SYNONYMS[6]

PAH8TET. _Marquette, (1673) in Shea, Discovery, etc., p. 268, map, 1852.

Variants: Nadoessi Mascouteins, Aiounouea, Avoys, Paote, Ayoes, Aiowais, Ayouez, Ainoves, Iawas._

HO-WAH. _Name given by the Mdewakanton (Sioux). Ioewaig, name given by the Santee Dakota. Iyakhwa, name given by the Teton. Maqude, name given by the Omaha Ponca. Pa"-qo-tce, name given by the Kansa. Pa"qu-te, name given by the Quapaw. Paqu?se, name given by the Osage. Pashohan, name given by the p.a.w.nee. Paxodshe, name given by the Kansa. Wa-qotc, name given by the Winnebago._

IYUHBA. _Riggs, Dak. Gram. & Dict. p. 278, 1852, trans. "Sleepy Ones."

Nadouessioux Maskoutens: Minn. Hist. Coll., 1864,_

_(Part 2, p. 30, note), trans. "Sioux of the Prairies;" Algonkin name.

Pa-ho-cha: Neb. Hist. Soc., 1885, (p. 47), trans. "Dusty Men."

Pa-ho-dje: Maximilian, (p. 507, 1843) trans. "Dust Noses."_

IOWA. _Pike"s Travels; Ed. of 1811 (p. 134). Variants: Iowai, Iaways, Ihoway, Ioway, Jowoi, Jowas, Joways, Ohoa, and Pahoja, names by which they are known among themselves. May be translated as "Gray Snow."_

SIGN. _Draw the extended right hand across the throat from left to right as if severing the head from the body. Possibly derived from an old Siouan custom of decapitating their prisoners._[7]

_Mallery refers to this branch of the Siouan tribe as "Cut Throats,"[8]

or a "Cut Throat" from a curious practice adopted by the Iowa after battle. Mooney also advocates this theory though he suggests it applied only to the Sioux and not to the whole Siouan stock and is doubtful as to the common interpretation of the sign-a sweeping motion of the hand in front of the neck-as the Kiowa and certain other tribes called the Iowa the "Necklace People." He also says that this tribe was a little too far from the plains to have a special sign and were probably merged with the Oto, Missouri, Sauk and others in the general region of the "shaved heads."_

The Iowa tribe of Indians forms one of the Southwestern branches of the great Dakota or Siouan stock and has been included both linguistically and ethnographically by careful students, with the Oto and the Missouri tribes, forming the so-called Chiwere group.[9] The real difference existing between the tribes here noted is one of dialect only.

Traditional evidence proves conclusively that they sprung originally from that stem which appears to have been the parent stock of certain other southwestern Siouan tribes, notably, the Winnebago, and from direct information obtained from their people as late as 1883, investigators have been told that not only the Iowa, Missouri, and Oto tribes were from the same source but that the Ponca and Omaha could without question be included, having "once formed part of the Winnebago Nation."[10]

From their primal home, to the north of the Great Lakes, as tradition has it, came the forebears of these tribes. Attracted by the abundance of fish, the Winnebago halted on the sh.o.r.es of Lake Michigan, while the other bands continued southwestward, eventually coming to the Mississippi. At this point another division took place and it was here that the Iowa separated from the larger group, and it is also at this period that they received the name of Pahoja or Gray Snow.[11] Without stopping for any length of time after separating from their comrades, the Iowa continued down the general course of the Mississippi until Rock River (in Illinois) was reached. At this point as in most of the early history of the tribe we must depend largely on hearsay. Certain traditions however, place them farther north. Waw-non-que-skoona-a"s map, drawn in 1848, shows their movements quite clearly until that date.

It is hardly necessary to reiterate statements here that appear textually in connection with the cartographical features, especially as these successive movements are of comparatively recent date and considered to be substantially correct. There is a tradition still popular among the Sioux that when their ancestors first came to the Falls of St. Anthony the Iowa tribe occupied the country adjacent to the Minnesota river and that the Cheyenne[12] occupied territory farther up the same stream.[13]

On the arrival of Le Sueur in 1701 for the purpose of erecting his fort near the mouth of the Blue Earth river, many of the tribe were found and messengers were sent to invite them to settle in the vicinity of the stockade, because of their excellence in farming and general husbandry.

Those despatched for this purpose found however, that the Indians had recently moved westward toward the Missouri river and wished to be closer to the Omaha who then dwelt in that region. The tribes with whom Le Sueur came in contact informed him that the river upon which he was about to settle belonged to the Sioux of the West (Dakota), the Ayavois (Iowa), and the Otoctatas (Oto), who lived nearby. Probably the first among the whites to come in actual contact with the Iowa, was Pere Andre[14] who referred to them in 1676, at which time they were situated about 200 miles west of Green Bay, Wisconsin. The next reference made by a European seems to be that of Father Zen.o.bius Membre[15] in 1680, who mentions the Authontontas (Oto), Nadouessious Maskoutens (Iowa)[16]

"about 130 leagues from the Illinois river in three great villages built near a river which empties into the Colbert (Mississippi) on the west side above the Illinois, almost opposite the mouth of the Wisconsin." He also seems to locate a portion of the Aiuoves (probably Aioues) to the west of the Milwaukee river. On Marquette"s ma.n.u.script map which accompanied his Journal, 1673,[17] the Pahoutet (Iowa) are placed on or near the Missouri river, in close company with the Maha, (Omaha) and Ontontana (Oto). This is no doubt conjecture on the part of the cartographer. The Sieuer de la Salle knew of both Oto and Iowa, and in his Hennepin letter of August 22, 1682, he refers to them as Otoutanta and Atounauea respectively. He further states that one of his company[18] was familiar with the languages of both these tribes, which, however, is doubtful.

When Le Sueur first supplied these Indians with firearms in 1700 they were situated at the extreme headquarters of the Des Moines river, though from the translation of this explorer"s narrative, as contained in WIS. HIST. COLL., Vol. XVI, it would seem that this band and the Oto removed and "established themselves toward the Missouri river, near the Maha." In Jefferys" FRENCH DOMINIONS IN NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA, 1760, the Iowa are located on the Mississippi in lat.i.tude 43 30". His map however places them on the east side of the Missouri, west of the sources of the Des Moines river and above the Oto, who were on the west side of the Missouri and below the Omaha.[19] According to Lewis & Clark"s TRAVELS, ETC., (Coues" edition, 1893), their villages consisted "of 300 men ... on the river De Moines."[20] The map by Waw-non-que-skoona-a as included in Schoolcraft and reproduced herewith, gives the final stopping place of the Iowa at a point near the junction of the Wolf and Missouri rivers, within the limits of the present State of Nebraska. Some authorities give their final location as being in two villages, one on the Platte[21] and another on the Great Nemaha river, from which places they conducted traffic with the traders from St. Louis, dealing princ.i.p.ally in beaver, otter, rac.o.o.n, deer, and bear skins. They also appear to have been cultivators of the soil to some extent, even at this early date, and it is recorded that Le Sueur made efforts to have them locate near his Fort l"Huillier[22] as they were "industrious and accustomed to cultivate the earth." In addition to corn they grew beans[23] and Pike says "they cultivated corn but not proportionately as much as did the Sauks and Foxes." This traveler also states that they were less civilized than the latter.[24] At a much earlier date Father Andre[25] writes that, while their village was a large one they were poor as a tribe, their greatest wealth being in "ox-hides[26] and red calumets,"[27] indicating thereby that the Iowa early traded in and manufactured catlinite pipes. In many customs prevailing among the Iowa it has been found that they differed but little from cognate tribes. In their visiting, marriage relations, and management of children they were not unlike the Omaha and others closely allied among the Dakota. In the matter of fraternity they were distinct.

The camp circle[28] was divided into half circles and occupied by two phratries of four gentes each.[29]

The first regulated the hunt and other affairs pertaining to the tribe during the autumn and winter. Throughout the other parts of the year the lead was taken by the other phratry.[30] In a general way however, the Iowa social inst.i.tution differs but slightly from others of the Siouan stock, nor do their visiting or marriage customs vary greatly from those of kindred tribes. Children are managed similarly to those of the Dakota or Omaha. Formerly murder was punished with death by the nearest of kin or by some friend of the murdered person.[31] Occasionally however, presents were made to the avengers by the murderer, in consequence of which the crime was palliated.

Like many other Mississippi Valley tribes the Iowa are not to any great extent a.s.sociated with the tumuli of America. With the exception of some few mounds in Wapello County, Iowa, at a point near Iowaville, the site of an early trading post, there is little evidence that the Iowa were in any way connected with the mounds in that State. Along the valley located in this section, were many spots frequented by both the Sauk and Fox as well as Iowa and here also were situated the famous race tracks of nearly a mile in length, belonging to the latter tribe.[32] The various games indulged in by the Iowa differed but slightly from those in vogue among kindred or allied tribes.[33] As is almost universal, dice games, or games of chance are more generally to be desired, while games of dexterity take second place. Catlin[34] describes under the former cla.s.s, one called Kon-tho-gra, or the game of platter which is played almost exclusively by women.[35] It is said to have been exceedingly fascinating and consists of little blocks of wood marked with certain points for counting, to be decided by throws, the lot being shaken in a bowl and thrown out on a sort of a pillow. Bets were made after the bowl was turned and decided by the number of points and colors. Another game described by Catlin[36] is called Ing-Kee-Ko-Kee, or, The Game of the Moccasin. It was played to a song accompaniment[37]

among the Iowa by two, four or six people seated on the ground in a circle. In the center are three or four moccasins, under one of which the players in turn try to conceal some small article, as a stone or a nut. The opponents choose what appears to be the lucky covering and if successful, win the stakes. The game, according to this writer, appeared simple and almost foolish, yet he professes to have seen it played for hours without intermission in perfect musical rhythm, and states that it "forms one of the principle gambling games of these gambling people." Among the Omaha, Ponca, Oto, and Iowa the game of Arrow (Manmuqpe), was most common. This however was more of a religious game and now practically obsolete since the introduction of fire arms.

Arrows were shot up into trees until they lodged in the branches. The players then tried to dislodge them and whoever brought down the first, won. There were no sides or opposing parties. Probably the most exciting and to many the most important game among many of the tribes, aside from those of the Mountain Indians, is that of Ball-playing or Racket. This is distinctly a man"s game as opposed to double-ball and some other forms commonly played by women. There are instances however of this having been played by women, and among the Santee Sioux it is at times played by both s.e.xes together. This game has been divided into two princ.i.p.al cla.s.ses, those of the single and those of the double racket or bat; the latter is more especially peculiar to the southern tribes.[38]

The racket may be likewise termed a throwing stick as it is used to pick up and throw the ball rather than for the purpose of hitting. The ball is either of wood or of buckskin stuffed with hair,[39] and the usual size is about two and one-half inches in diameter. Various kinds of rackets are used by the players, some preferring long and some short handles. Among the Oto of Oklahoma, one measured was forty inches in length.[40] Catlin[41] gives an excellent description of this game among the Iowa Indians. His details concerning the goals and byes and various points connected with the different features, make this sketch one of the most complete we have.[42]

As among all tribes east and west, north and south, the Iowa were given to their numerous dances, many of which were of the highest importance.

Mention is made here, only of several of the more common or necessary dances, inasmuch as the subject is one if it were treated fully would occupy a volume in itself.

This is a peculiar dance given in honor of one or more strangers whom [Sidenote: +The Welcome Dance+] the tribe may decide to welcome to their village. The musicians as well as spectators, out of respect, all rise to their feet while it is being performed. The song which accompanies it is at first one of lament, but ends in a gay and lively manner.

The most exciting as well as the longest and most tiresome of all [Sidenote: +The War Dance+] dances. It is usually divided into three parts, _i. e._, Eh-Ros-Ka-The Warriors Dance-usually given after a party had returned from war as a boast and was ofttimes given as an amus.e.m.e.nt.

The song used at this time ent.i.tled Wa-Sissica-The War Song-appeared to be addressed to the body of an enemy, from the name Eh-Ros-Ka, meaning tribe, war party or body.[43]

The most spirited part of this greatest of all dances was called the [Sidenote: +Approaching Dance+] in which the dancers by their gestures exhibited the methods of advancing on an enemy. The song in this portion is also similar to that above mentioned.[44]

Ha Kon-E-Crase, or as more familiarly known "the soaring eagle," forms [Sidenote: +The Eagle Dance+] the third and most pleasing part of the War Dance and is in every respect a most interesting spectacle. Each dancer imagines himself a bird on the wing, and as they dance forward from behind the musicians, they take the position of an eagle headed against the wind and about to swoop down upon some unsuspecting prey.

They have a peculiar method of singing and whistling at the same time.[45]

The Calumet Dance, the Ball-Play Dance, the Scalp Dance, the Buffalo Dance, and the Bear Dance, are all important but vary very slightly from those of similar import among other tribes of the same family. What we have said about the dances applies with equal force to the songs and music. The War Song, Death Song, Wolf Song, Medicine Song, Bread Song, and Farewell Song are all of much significance, indeed so much so that a large amount of s.p.a.ce could well be devoted to this subject as well as to the dances.

In 1836 the Iowa were a.s.signed a reservation in northeastern Kansas, having two years previous, ceded all their lands in Missouri. A portion of the tribe later moved to another tract in Oklahoma allotted to them in 1890 in severalty, the surplus acreage being opened to settlement by the whites.

It is difficult to compile a bibliography that will treat exhaustively of this tribe. Catlin"s Works, Lewis and Clark"s TRAVELS, Long"s EXPEDITION, Pike"s EXPLORATIONS, Maximilian"s TRAVELS, and in fact nearly all of the prominent trans-continental explorers knew the tribe under one or another name. In the absence of any well defined plan it is best to refer to the various t.i.tles as shown in the index to the present volume. Such t.i.tles are printed in small capitals throughout. Special stress must be laid on the value of Dr. Hayden"s important work, CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE ETHNOGRAPHY AND PHILOLOGY OF THE INDIAN TRIBES OF THE MISSOURI VALLEY. Phila., 1862. The map is particularly useful. The Burrows Brothers monumental reprint of the JESUIT RELATIONS (73 vols.

octavo) is of course invaluable.

WILLIAM HARVEY MINER

March 5, 1911

THE IOWAY MONOGRAPH