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Show AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF The Crows informed them that their great chief, the Medicine Calf, had been instrumental in accomplishing all this. By his long residence with the whites, after his sale to them by the Cheyennes when he had become a great brave, he had gained surprising influ.e~ce with the great white chief, who loved the Medicine Calf, and had taught him to make forts, and had suffered him to come back to his people in order to teach them to become great, and overcome all their enemies. The Snakes were wonder-stricken at such marvels. The unassailable fort (which a single bomb-shell would have blown to atoms), filled with an inexhaustible store of rich goods ; our great fort down the river, in comparison with which this was but a small lodge, and where all these marvelous products of our ingenuity were manufactured; our mysterious connection with the whites, which procured us the advantage of their unremunerated services, and shielded us with the irresistible succor of the great w bite chief-all this overpowered their imagination. The wealth and power of the Crow nation exceeded all conception, and to oppose them in war was to incur unavoidable destruction. After the Snakes had traded off their stock of pel~ try, obtaining large supplies in exchange, we returned to the village. They had wonderful narratives of the big fort and wealth of the Crow nation to spin to their fellow-villagers. In fact, they were so impressed with the idea of our superiority that two hundred lodges of the Snakes joined our nation, and never separated from them. They had a chief of their own, but conformed to our laws and regulations, proving themselves faithfulfellow- citizens, and emulating our best warriors in battle. This coalition increased our force to the num- JAMES P. BECKWOUR'l'H. 367 ber of fi"ve hundred warriors-more than we had lost in battle for four years preceding. They intermarried with our women, and in a few years were so completely transformed that they had quite forgotten their Snake origin. On our return, the remainder of our friends left us. During our absence the Black Feet had invaded our dominion, and made off with upward of three thousand of our horses, very greatly to our detriment. The Snakes were anxious to pursue them, or, at least, to assist their hosts in recapturing their stolen property, but Long Hair declined their proffered service. l-Ie said, "No, I am too old to run after them, and the warriors n:ust have some one to direct them. Should any acCident befall my people, the medicine chief would be grieved. We must wait his return from the fort ; if he then deems it proper to punish them, he will not be long without the means." Our villages still remained together, and we moved on to the head-waters of the Yellow Stone. We had se.veral war-pa~·ties out, and some endeavoring to retneve our equine losses, while those who remained in the village applied themselves to trapping and hunting. The Snake women were very skillful in dress ina- robes £ . 0 - ar supenor to our own, as they had been more en-gaged in it. My waniors were again burning with the desire for war and horse-raids, although our prairies were alive with animals. Inaction seemed to consume them. In spite of. my proh~bition, they would steal away in parties during the night. When convicted, I would inflict s~vere floggings upon them by my Dog Soldiers (who did not spare the lash); but it was to little purpose. In fact, they took it as honorable distinction to receive |
