by Rick Revelle
The beating of the drums stirred me from my thoughts. Ah, a celebration and a new chapter in my life was about to unfold.
9
KANIEN’KEHÁ:KA (MOHAWK): (PEOPLE OF THE FLINT)
Corn Dog’s people came from the south during a period of global warming pre-1300s. They were able to plant the Three Sisters in the fertile land near present-day Lake Ontario and the Mohawk Valley and erected palisades of trees to protect the villages of longhouses. Since they were constantly at war with neighbouring tribes, protection of the village was paramount. They cleared vast acreage by burning off the forests and planting corn, squash, and beans to feed the inhabitants. At this time in history, the League of Iroquois was still 150 to 200 years in the future. The Kanien’kehá:ka survived and grew by capturing their enemies and adopting them into the tribe.
This is where we now find Corn Dog and his people, raiding along what are now the St. Lawrence and Ottawa Rivers. The Algonquin called him Mandàmin Animosh; to his people he was Ó:newhste Erhar. Surviving the raid into Algonquin Lands those six long years ago and barely escaping with his life, he and the remnants of his raiding party had stumbled through the unfamiliar lands of their enemies. Living off the land, they were able to make their way back to the village of his people near Caniaderi Guarunte (Door of the Country, present-day Lake Champlain). There they found out that his friend Panther Scar had lost his life at the Battle of the Waterfall on the Magwàizibò Sìbì, slain by the war chief of the Omàmiwinini, Mahingan. Since that day he had a burning rage in his heart to avenge the death of his friend. He also had the bait he needed to draw out the war chief of the Algonquins, his she-cat of a wife he had obtained in a trade with her captor. She was going to be the inducement to enable his vengeance. He would have both Mahingan and his shape-changing brother’s heads on a stake in front of his longhouse this year.
Corn Dog was very tempted to turn around and send a force to destroy Mahingan in his winter lodgings after learning of the encounter with his hunting party. However, he knew that it would be risky at this time of year and he needed more warriors. He had to stay focused on the task. Destroying the allies of the Algonquins in the east would weaken the Bark Eaters when the final battle occurred. Meanwhile, he would receive much-needed support from his allies the Stadaconas and the Hochelagans, both foes of the Bark Eaters.
The Hochelagans had suffered defeat at the hands of Mahingan’s people the same summer as Panther Scar’s death. Now he needed his people to stay and rest up in their winter village. In the spring they would ask the Hochelagan warriors to continue with them to the Stadacona Nation, where the plan was to cross the Kaniatarowanenneh (Big Waterway). Once on the other side they would raid the Mi’kmaq Nation and then the Wàbanaki, putting his warriors between the Innu and Maliseet people, leaving the Bark Eaters with no readily available allies on the east. After accomplishing these planned strikes, he would have the strength of the Hochelagans and Stadaconas, putting an end to the Algonquin danger to his people forevermore.
Once he had won this war, he could go to his Clan Mother and the rest of his people with the heads of his enemies. This should prove to them his leadership qualities, enabling him to unite all the peoples of the valley. After this accomplishment, none of their enemies would be able to withstand the dominance of the Kanien’kehá:ka warriors.
After raiding for most of the fall, he had his people fortify a winter village where the Haudenosaunee River leaves the Caniaderi Guarunte (Lake Champlain). Here they would stay until the ennisko:wa moon (much lateness moon of March). They would be safe here during kohsera’kène (winter). With lots of corn captured from their raids and an abundance of game nearby, they would survive. Then they would visit their friends the Hochelagans and Stadaconas to obtain their help in his plan. As soon as the bite of winter left them and the sun provided warmth during the day, he made the decision to leave.
Corn Dog
Entering Hochelagan land, we encountered a small hunting party of their people. Two of them left the next day to announce our coming to the village. The remainder joined forces with a group of our warriors and continued with their quest for fresh meat. These were the group of men that had encountered the Bark Eaters while hunting, suffering the loss of five warriors.
Winpe wanted at that time to take men and hunt down the enemy who had slain our people. Again, as much as I hated the Bark Eaters, this was not yet the time. The summer would bring our revenge.
Winpe sent two other hunting parties out after the return of the tattered group that had suffered at the hands of the Bark Eaters. The rest of us continued on our way. We were running out of food and my men were starting to question a trek like this in the spring. I told them it was essential that we made contact with the Hochelagans to convince them to join our revenge raids.
Hungry stomachs, though, do not listen well. As hungry as they were, they never dropped off the pace. All of my followers were young and the women with us were youthful and strong. The few children who travelled with the women caused no problems since their mothers made sure they kept pace.
Mahingan’s wife was diligent in her chores, and both her and her child asked for nothing other than what we gave them. I suspected that she had a hand in the escape of the three young Susquehannock boys, but I could not prove it. I kept my suspicions to myself. This woman would prove too valuable later on, and I did not need Winpe or any of my other warriors to throw her into the fire for her perceived offence.
During the day, the warriors that were on the flanks were able to kill a dozen squirrels and three porcupines. There would be fresh meat over the fires, but feeding over two hundred people on the move was a constant worry.
I have seen starvation among my people many times through the years. The Kionhekwa (Three Sisters) that we planted every year, ò:nenhste (corn), ohsahèta (beans), and onon’onhsera (squash) were the staple of the Kanien’kehá:ka diet. The practice was always to plant enough to get the people through to the next spring when hunting became better and the new season brought plants to eat. One year there was a severe drought, and the tsyòkawe (crow), atiron (raccoon), and the ohskennonton (deer) population overran our fields of corn and beans, devouring them, leaving only our squash. We were barely able to save enough seed for the following year. That winter, when all the animals were asleep in the woods, the ohskennonton (deer) and the ska’nyonhsa (moose) became elusive, causing hunger pangs among the people.
Because of the lack of food during the chill of that season, many in our tribe suffered and died. The children who survived suffered a growth setback that seemed to take years to recover from. There was much sorrow during that period of cold. Along with the weakness brought on by the lack of food, some of our people started bleeding from their gums and losing their teeth. Our shamans went out into the woods and cut several baskets full of needles from the ohnehta’kowa (pine tree) and the yonen’tòren (white cedar tree). They boiled them in separate vessels. From the pine they scooped out the needles, which left an enriching tea. The cedar tea had a scum on its surface, which they skimmed off. Everyone, with and without aliments, was given the teas to drink for the rest of the winter. These teas saved many lives.
That was twelve winters ago. After that, the Clan Mothers made a decision that in the future should avert any threat to the tribe in the times of drought or other crop crisis. They also came up with a plan to keep the animals away. During the spring, while the some of the older warriors went out to hunt, the mothers put all the remaining warriors and young boys to work to claim more land from the forest. The wood they saved for warmth and the cooking fires. The burning of the brush helped keep the biting insects at bay and produced wood ash that the women collected in turn for use in the making of corn soup and fertilizer. Using crude axes, it would take them until planting time to get all the extra land cleared. The women this year wanted to plant enough of the corn and beans to last two years. This, they concluded, should keep the people from starving if once again they had a c
rop failure or another drought in future.
When planting the corn, the women made a small hill where the seed went. The squash seed they planted beside the hill. Their leaves would help keep the weeds down. Once the corn stalk appeared, they planted the beans on the hill. The stalk provided the needed climbing trunk for the bean plant. In turn, the women knew from the lessons taught to them from their mothers that the beans supplied natural nourishment for the corn and squash.
Now the women added one more job for the young boys of the village. They had purposely instructed the men that when clearing the extra area, they were to leave small areas of three to four trees standing. Within this small grove of trees, they were to build platforms. For the areas that had previously been cleared over the years, the women tasked the warriors with taking tree posts of twelve to fourteen feet and firmly planting them in the ground, again adding platforms to these as they previously did in the tree groves.
Once this was completed, the women called together all the young boys.
“From this day forward until you become a Haudenosaunee warrior, your jobs are to protect the Three Sisters once they start to produce on the vine. Blankets to wave and drums to beat when the crows come to feed will be your weapons on the platforms. In addition, you will patrol the grounds with bow and arrow day and night to slay raccoons and deer that come to feed in our fields. The older boys will decide the rotation. All must contribute. The animals that you slay are yours to do with as you will. The survival of your families depends on how well you protect our food in the fields!”
Since that day our people have flourished. Our Clan Mothers shared their knowledge with our neighbours to the west of us. The Shotinontowane’hàka (Seneca Nation) and the Ononta’kehàka (Onondaga Nation) were at times allies and at other times bitter enemies of the Kanien’kehá:ka. Many times during the years of our ancestors, they would try to bring about a peace among the three tribes. However, for one reason or another the calm would be short-lived and they would again war amongst themselves. When there was harmony among our peoples, all our enemies feared us because of the strength of our numbers.
The hunters that Winpe had sent out in the next couple of days were able to come back to camp with a small doe, some squirrels, and rabbits. That night, at least, our bellies received a bit of nourishment. Continuing on the next morning, we came upon a party of Hochelagans that was seeking us out to bring to their village.
The Hochelagans and Stadaconas had always been allies of the Kanien’kehá:ka. They had survived along the Kaniatarowanenneh (St. Lawrence River) since our Father’s Fathers. The two nations had a diet consisting mostly of onenhste (corn) and kèntsyonk (fish). Their enemies were the Mi’kmaq, Omàmiwinini (Algonquin), Innu, Maliseet, and Wàbanaki Nations — tribes that we too were constantly at war with.
Once we arrived at the village, the old chief we called Tsyatak Erhar (Seven Dogs) came and greeted us. “Corn Dog we do not have much food, but we will share. Tonight during the evening fire we will talk.”
That night Seven Dogs and I sat beside the fire with some of our warriors. After eating what meagre offerings they could spare us, the old chief addressed all that sat in council. “What do the Haudenosaunee need that brings them to our lands in the early spring?”
I replied, “Seven Dogs, we have many common enemies, most powerful among them the Bark Eaters to your west and the Mi’kmaq to the east. I have been amassing a force to defeat the Bark Eaters, but I need your help. Knowing that the Mi’kmaq are always a threat to you and the Stadaconas, I am proposing that we join forces and raid them. In return, after destroying the Mi’kmaqs, your people and the Stadaconas will help us defeat the Bark Eaters.”
The old man sat and never said a word. The pipe that he was smoking was emitting a huge puff, almost completely obscuring his head. After what seemed an endless pause, he spoke.
“Corn Dog, I like your plan, but at the moment my people are near starvation. Soon it will be spring and the bears will come out of their dens from their long sleep; the deer and the moose will appear from the deep woods, and the river will open up for my people to fish and hunt geese. We will then become strong. We have still not recovered from the loss of the warriors that went into the land of the Algonquins six summers ago. Only three men made it back, and all of them were without their fingers. Of them, there is just one still alive. He-Who-Walks now has to rely on his sons to provide for him. He cannot hunt for his family anymore. Yes, we will help you, but not until the ohiari:wa moon (ripening time moon of June). Then you can bring your warriors back and we will walk the path of war with you. Until then my people need to gain back their strength from the long winter.”
I looked at Winpe and saw the disappointment on his face. We now had to return to the village and hope that some of the young men from our village who had stayed behind would join us when we returned.
“I accept your offer, Seven Dogs. My people will rest up for two days and then we will leave for home. The ohiari:wa moon will bring us back.”
After my answer, more of their scanty food supply appeared, along with tobacco, and we spent the rest of the evening telling stories about past raids and hunts.
In the morning I was awakened by a young girl screaming, “Wegimindj, wegimindj!” (mother) in the Algonquin language. Stepping out of the lodge, I could see two Hochelagan warriors five lodges away dragging a woman by her arms as she struggled to escape. As soon as I saw the young daughter trailing behind I knew this was going to end badly for someone, most likely the two warriors. They approached Seven Dogs’ longhouse and called to him. The old chief came outside to view the spectacle that was taking place in front of him. By this time a crowd had gathered and Winpe had started to step forward toward the woman. I held out my arm and stopped him.
The tallest warrior spoke. “Seven Dogs, I have found an enemy of the Hochelagans in our midst; this woman is an Algonquin. We want her to burn in our fires.”
However, before Seven Dogs could speak or I could say she was a slave of our people, what I feared most happened. Wàbananang turned and bit the smaller man on the bicep of the arm clutching her, taking a chunk out of his skin the size of a child’s fist. Spitting out the chunk of meat in the midst of the man’s screams of agony, she swiftly reached inside her shirt with her free hand and drew out her skinning knife. The warrior still holding the woman’s other arm turned to face her and at that moment she plunged her knife into his lower jaw at such an angle that it came out of his screaming mouth. With blood dripping from her mouth and running down her knife hand, she seized the last screaming warrior’s knife from the leather sheath hanging around his neck. Then, turning to the kneeling warrior she had just bit, she buried that knife to the hilt into his cheek, exiting the other side. She then jerked the knife forward toward the front of his mouth, tearing off the front of his face. She calmly reached down and pulled her skinning knife from the jaw of her other captor, wiped it on his leggings, and placed it back in its original spot inside her shirt. Turning to her daughter, she called her name and the young girl wrapped her hands around her mother’s waist.
All this happened in two or three heartbeats. The woman was that ruthless and decisive in her actions. The onlookers that had arrived to see the origins of all the noise stood in mute silence. Never had they seen such sudden and brutal violence from a woman.
I raised my hand in a signal to Winpe. He stepped forward and returned with Wàbananang and her daughter, Pangì Mahingan, bringing them to my side.
Seven Dogs turned to me with a look of shock and said, “If this woman is any indication of the strength of the Algonquin warriors, I want to feast on their bodies to gain this power! She has taken two warriors from my force. Neither of these men, if they survive, will be capable of hunting or warring. They will have to help the women of our village from now on. What do you offer in return? Her life?”
“Seven Dogs,” I replied, “I cannot give you her for the fires; I need this woman for my future plans. Howe
ver, I will give you five of my warriors to help you with your hunting. Then, when we come back during the ohiari:wa moon, I will lead you and your people to a successful war with our enemies, where you will have many captives for slaves or adoptions and others for the fires.”
“Corn Dog,” he warned, “your life depends on the success of this summer revenge war. Now get her out of my sight and give me ten warriors until your return!”
10
WÀBANAKI LAND
After selecting ten warriors to stay with the Hochelagans, I asked Winpe to gather our people to leave. We were down to one hundred and thirty-seven warriors, plus around a hundred captive women and young boys and a few young children.
Now we had to trek back to our village and try to convince the Clan Mother to let me go to war with our young braves. I hoped that the captives I was bringing into the encampment to replace dead and departed people of our tribe would lead to a favourable decision.
“Winpe, we will need two hunting parties out at all times plus scouts ahead of us and a rear guard. Have the women carry the loads; let the camp erhar (dogs) run loose to be our eyes and ears. The hunters also will need three or four erhars to track for them! We have a dangerous journey ahead and we must be attentive; our lives depend on it. We were able to avoid our enemies during the trip to the Hochelagan Lands, but may not be so easy on the return trip. We have to be alert once we reach the Magwàizibò Sìbì (Iroquois River, now known as the Richelieu River). Our enemies will be rising from their winter slumbers and will be hunting along both the Kaniatarowanenneh and Magwàizibò Sìbì Rivers. The sooner that we can travel clear of this area, the safer we will be.”