He invited me
to dine with him, and nothing but want of time prevented my accepting
his polite invitation. He was very neatly dressed, and is quite
prepossessing in his appearance. He is younger than I supposed before
seeing him. I judge him to be about thirty-four. He is a man of strong
sense, of great sagacity, and considerable ambition.
There is no reason why the Indians should not speedily become
civilized. Those who have longest lived amongst them, and who best
understand their character, tell me so. I fully believe it. The Indian
follows his wild habits because he has been educated to do so. The
education of habit, familiar from infancy, and the influence of
tradition, lead him to the hunt, and as much to despise manual labor.
He does what he has been taught to consider as noble and honorable,
and that is what the most enlightened do. Certainly his course of life
is the most severe and exposed; it is not for comfort that he adheres
to his wild habits. He regards it as noble to slay his hereditary foe.
Hence the troubles which occasionally break out between the Chippewas
and the Sioux.
Pages:
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96