Two Little Savages Part 33

Forty yards and first shot. Well, that's what the Injuns would call a '_grand coup_,' and Caleb's face wore the same pleasant look as when he made the fire with rubbing-sticks.

"What's a _grand coup?_" asked Little Beaver.

"Oh, I suppose it's a big deed. The Injuns call a great feat a '_coup_,' an' an extra big one a '_grand coup_.' Sounds like French, an' maybe 'tis, but the Injuns says it. They had a regular way of counting their _coup_, and for each they had the right to an Eagle feather in their bonnet, with a red tuft of hair on the end for the extra good ones. At least, they used to. I reckon now they're forgetting it all, and any buck Injun wears just any feather he can steal and stick in his head."

"What do you think of our head-dresses?" Yan ventured.

'Hm! You ain't never seen a real one or you wouldn't go at them that way at all. First place, the feathers should all be white with black tips, an' fastened not solid like that, but loose on a cap of soft leather. Each feather, you see, has a leather loop lashed on the quill end for a lace to run through and hold it to the cap, an' then a string running through the middle of each feather to hold it--just so.

Then there are ways of marking each feather to show how it was got.

I mind once I was out on a war party with a lot of Santees--that's a brand of Sioux--an' we done a lot o' sneaking an' stealing an' scalped some of the enemy. Then we set out for home, and when we was still about thirty miles away we sent on an Injun telegram of good luck. The leader of our crowd set fire to the gra.s.s after he had sent two men half a mile away on each side to do the same thing, an' up went three big smokes. There is always some one watching round an Injun village, an' you bet when they seen them three smokes they knowed that we wuz a-coming back with scalps.

"The hull Council come out to meet us, but not too reckless, coz this might have been the trick of enemies to surprise them.

"Well, when we got there, maybe there wasn't a racket. You see, we didn't lose a man, and we brung in a hundred horses and seven scalps.

Our leader never said a word to the crowd, but went right up to the Council teepee. He walked in--we followed. There was the Head Chief an' all the Council settin' smoking. Our leader give the '_How_, an' then we all '_Howed_.' Then we sat an' smoked, an' the Chief called on our leader for an account of the little trip. He stood up an' made a speech.

"'Great Chief and Council of my Tribe,' says he. 'After we left the village and the men had purified themselves, we travelled seven days and came to the Little Muddy River. There we found the track of a travelling band of Arapaho. In two days we found their camp, but they were too strong for us, so we hid till night; then I went alone into their camp and found that some of them were going off on a hunt next day. As I left I met a lone warrior coming in. I killed him with my knife. For that I claim a _coup_; and I scalped him--for that I claim another _coup_; an' before I killed him I slapped his face with my hand--for this I claim a _grand coup_; and I brought his horse away with me--for that I claim another _coup_. Is it not so,' sez he, turning to us, and we all yelled '_How! How! How!_'

For this fellow, 'Whooping Crane,' was awful good stuff. Then the Council agreed that he should wear three Eagle feathers, the first for killing and scalping the enemy in his own camp--that was a _grand coup_, and the feather had a tuft of red hair on it an' a red spot on the web. The next feather was for slapping the feller's face first, which, of course, made it more risky. This Eagle feather had a red tuft on top an' a red hand on the web; the one for stealing the horse had a horseshoe, but no tuft, coz it wasn't counted A1.

"Then the other Injuns made their claims, an' we all got some kind of honours. I mind one feller was allowed to drag a Fox tail at each heel when he danced, an' another had ten horseshoe marks on an Eagle feather for stealing ten horses, an' I tell you them Injuns were prouder of them feathers than a general would be of his medals."

[Ill.u.s.tration: The War Bonnet (See description below)]

THE INDIAN WAR BONNET--HOW TO MAKE IT

1. The plain white Goose or Turkey feather.

2. The same, with tip dyed black or painted with indelible ink.

3. The same, showing ruff of white down lashed on with wax end.

4. The same, showing leather loop lashed on for the holding lace.

5. The same, viewed edge on.

6. The same, with a red flannel cover sewn and lashed on the quill. This is a '_coup_ feather.'

7. The same, with a tuft of red horsehair lashed on the top to mark a '_grand coup_' and (_a_) a thread through the middle of the rib to hold feather in proper place. This feather is marked with the symbol of a _grand coup_ in target shooting.

This symbol may be drawn on an oval piece of paper gummed on the top of the feather.

8. The tip of a feather showing how the red horsehair tuft is lashed on with fine waxed thread.

9. The groundwork of the war bonnet made of any soft leather, (_a_) a broad band to go round the head, laced at the joint or seam behind; (_b_) a broad tail behind as long as needed to hold all the wearer's feathers; (_c_) two leather thongs or straps over the top; (_d_) leather string to tie under the chin; (_e_) the b.u.t.tons, conchas or side ornaments of sh.e.l.ls, silver, horn or wooden discs, even small mirrors and circles of beadwork were used, and sometimes the conchas were left out altogether; they may have the owner's totem on them, usually a bunch of ermine tails hung from each side of the bonnet just below the concha. A bunch of horsehair will answer as well; (_hh_) the holes in the leather for holding the lace of the feather; 24 feathers are needed for the full bonnet, without the tail, so they are put less than an inch apart; (_iii_) the lacing holes on the tail: this is as long as the wearer's feathers call for; some never have any tail.

10. Side view of the leather framework, showing a pattern sometimes used to decorate the front.

11, 12 and 13. Beadwork designs for front band of bonnet; all have white grounds. No. 11 (Arapaho) has green band at top and bottom with red zigzag. No. 12 (Ogallala) has blue band at top and bottom, red triangles; the concha is blue with three white bars and is cut off from the band by a red bar. No. 13 (Sioux) has narrow band above and broad band below blue, the triangle red, and the two little stars blue with yellow centre.

14. The bases of three feathers, showing how the lace comes out of the cap leather, through the eye or loop on the bottom of the quill, and in again.

15. The completed bonnet, showing how the feathers of the crown should spread out, also showing the thread that pa.s.ses through the middle of each feather on inner side to hold it in place; another thread pa.s.ses from the point where the two straps (_c_ in 9) join, then down through each feather in the tail.

The Indians now often use the crown of a soft felt hat for the basis of a war bonnet.

N.B. A much easier way to mark the feather is to stick on it near the top an oval of white paper and on this draw the symbol with waterproof ink.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Grand Coup for taking Scalp in Enemy's Camp G.C. for slapping his face Coup for stealing his Horse]

"My, I wish I could go out there and be with those fellows," and Yan sighed as he compared his commonplace lot with all this romantic splendour.

"Guess you'd soon get sick of it. I know _I_ did," was the answer; "forever shooting and killing, never at peace, never more than three meals ahead of starvation and just as often three meals behind.

No, siree, no more for me."

"I'd just like to see you start in horse-stealing for honours round here," observed Sam, "though I know who'd get the feathers if it was chicken stealing."

"Say, Caleb," said Guy, who, being friendly and of the country, never thought of calling the old man "Mr. Clark," "didn't they give feathers for good Deer-hunting? I'll bet I could lick any of them at it if I had a gun."

"Didn't you hear me say first thing that that there shot o' Yan's should score a '_grand coup_'?"

"Oh, shucks! I kin lick Yan any time; that was just a chance shot.

I'll bet if you give feathers for Deer-hunting I'll get them all."

"We'll take you up on that," said the oldest Chief, but the next interrupted:

"Say, boys, we want to play Injun properly. Let's get Mr. Clark to show us how to make a real war bonnet. Then we'll wear only what feathers we win."

"Ye mean by scalping the Whites an' horse-stealing?"

"Oh, no; there's lots of things we can do--best runner, best Deer hunter, best swimmer, best shot with bow and arrows."

"All right." So they set about questioning Caleb. He soon showed them how to put a war bonnet together, using, in spite of Yan's misgivings, the crown of an old felt hat for the ground work and white goose quills trimmed and dyed black at the tips for Eagle feathers. But when it came to the deeds that were to be rewarded, each one had his own ideas.

"If Sappy will go to the orchard and pick a peck of cherries without old Cap gettin' _him_, I'll give him a feather with all sorts of fixin's on it," suggested Sam.

"Well, I'll bet you can't get a chicken out of our barn 'thout our Dog gettin' _you_, Mr. Smarty."

"Pooh! I ain't stealing chickens. Do you take me for a n.i.g.g.e.r? I'm a n.o.ble Red-man and Head Chief at that, I want you to know, an' I've a notion to collect that scalp you're wearin' now. You know it belongs to me and Yan," and he sidled over, rolling his eye and working his fingers in a way that upset Guy's composure. "And I tell you a feller with one foot in the grave should have his thoughts on seriouser things than chicken-stealing. This yere morbid cravin' for excitement is rooinin' all the young fellers nowadays."

Yan happened to glance at Caleb. He was gazing off at nothing, but there was a twinkle in his eye that Yan never before saw there.

"Let's go to the teepee. It's too hot out here. Come in, won't you, Mr. Clark?"

"Hm. 'Tain't much cooler in here, even if it is shady," remarked the old Trapper. "Ye ought to lift one side of the canvas and get some air."

"Why, did the real Injuns do that?"

"I should say they did. There ain't any way they didn't turn and twist the teepee for comfort. That's what makes it so good. Ye kin live in it forty below zero an' fifty 'bove suffocation an' still be happy.