How the Lark Won the Race – Dakota Oglala Division of the Teton Dakota The Old Woman told the wolf, the turtle, and the lark that if they would help her grandson find his wife she would give each of them what he most wished. They helped her grandson and he found that his wife was stolen by the Crazy Buffalo. He killed the Crazy Buffalo and brought his wife to his grandmother's tipi. Then the wolf wished for fur clothing for himself and his people. The turtle wished for tough clothing for himself and his people. The lark and all his people had clothing which would hide them where there was no cover, so he wished for a pleasant voice for himself and all his people. The Old Woman gave each one what he wished and together they went on the trail. Each claimed that his gift was the best and they argued and soon quarreled. They were about to fight when a young man appeared and asked them why they quarreled. They told him. He said that the only way to decide whose gift was the best was to find which would help the most in a game. The wolf proposed a hunting game, but the turtle and the lark said they could not hunt. The turtle proposed a swimming game, but the wolf and lark said they could not swim. The lark pro posed a singing game, but the wolf and turtle said they could not sing. Then the young man said that a running game would decide the question and all agreed to run a race. The young man told them that they must run by a plum thicket, across a marsh, and to the top of a hill where they would find white and colored clays; and that the first that brought white clay to him would win the race. They ran. The wolf and turtle ran side by side, for neither could run swifter than the other; but the lark ran far behind them. When the wolf was near the thicket he saw a bundle in a plum bush and sniffed toward it. The scent was not like any he had smelled, so he became curious and wanted to know what was in the bundle. He asked the turtle to wait. The turtle. said he would when he came to the marsh. The wolf walked around the bush and eyed the bundle with care. Then he reared against the bush and sniffed at it, but still he was puzzled. He jumped to pull the bundle down, but did not reach it and the thorns on the bush pricked him. Again he jumped, and again the thorns pricked him. This made him angry and he determined to get the bundle. He jumped many times. Each time the thorns pricked him and made many wounds on his back and sides. Finally, he pulled the bundle down. He was so angry that he shook it from side to side and it flopped against his sides. The bundle was a young woman's menstrual bundle and it smeared its contents into the wounds of the wolf. This made him itch so that he must scratch himself, but the more he scratched the more he itched. He scratched and scratched, until he tore his fur clothing and his blood flowed and he forgot the race. The turtle ran to the marsh and there waited for the wolf a long time. He thought that the wolf had tricked him and gone on to the hill. He saw a puff ball; because it looked like white clay he thought he would trick the wolf and fool the young man with it. So he carried it back and showed it to the young man who said that the turtle was the first to show something as proof that he had been on the top of the hill. When the lark ran by the thicket, he saw the wolf jumping and this encouraged him to run faster. When he came to the marsh, he saw the turtle waiting, and he was more encouraged, so he ran on to the top of the hill. Here he took a lump of yellow clay and ran to carry it back to the young man. When he was crossing the marsh, he stumbled and dropped the clay into black mud. He picked it up, but was in too much of a hurry to clean the black mud from it. When he was near the young man, he saw the turtle sitting and smiling so he thought he had lost the race and wept. His tears washed the yellow clay from his mouth and made the. front of his clothes yellow while the mud made a black stripe on the yellow. The wolf came last, scratching and howling, and the turtle taunted him, saying that he howled like an old woman mourning for the dead, and whimpered like a hungry babe. The turtle strutted and swaggered saying that nothing could make him whimper. The young man said that the turtle was first to return in the race, but he must prove his boast that nothing could make him cry out if he should lose. The turtle said he could prove in any manner all that he had said. Then the young man placed the puff ball on the turtle's back. It quickly grew so large that its weight was all that the turtle could hold up. The puff ball continued to grow and soon it crushed the turtle's body to the ground and made his legs short and cracked. Still the puff ball grew and mashed the body of the turtle flat, and forced his breath from him so that he lay as if dead. Then the puff ball became black and light as a feather, but still the turtle could not straighten his legs or make his body as it was, so he hid his head under his thick hard skin. Then the young man laughed loud and long and told the wolf, the turtle, and the lark that his name was Iktomi and that because they quarreled about the good things the Old Woman had given instead of using them, he had tricked them and caused them to bring on themselves that which would be with them and with their people forever; that because the wolf had meddled with that which was not his affair whenever he or any of his people meddled with a young woman's bundle they should itch and scratch and lose their fur clothing. In this manner the wolves get the mange. He said that because the turtle had cheated to win the race his legs and his people's should forever be short and crooked and their bodies should be flat, so that they could never run in a race; that because he had lied about the puff ball by saying that it was white clay, neither he nor his people should ever speak and should always hide their heads for shame; that the lark had won the race, but because he had brought yellow instead of white clay, his clothes and the clothes of his people should always be yellow in front and there should be a black stripe on the yellow, so that none of them could ever hide themselves where there was no cover.

How the Lakota Came Upon the World – Dakota Oglala Division of the Teton Dakota Iktomi tricked the animals and laughed at the misery he caused them, but they were not shamed, so he longed to play his pranks on mankind. At that time the only persons of mankind on the world were the old man, the old woman, and the double-woman. Iktomi feared the old man because he was a wizard and the old woman because she was a witch, but the double-woman feared him because he had caused her much shame and misery. He appeared as a young man before the tipi of the double- woman, but she knew who he was, and went inside and drew the flap over the door. He sat with his head bowed and his robe drawn over it as if he were grieved or in sorrow. Many times she peeped and saw him sitting thus. In the evening she gathered wood near him, but he did not speak. Then she went to him and asked him why he sat with his head bowed. He told her that he was sorry and ashamed because he had caused her to suffer, and that he wished to do that which would please her. She said that nothing would please her until she could be with her people. He told her that if she would tell him how he could bring her people, he would do so. She told him that if her people tasted meat and saw clothes and tipis made of skins they would covet such things and come where they could get them. He told her that if she would help him he would trick her no more and she agreed. Since that time Iktomi has not played a prank on the double-woman. He called the wolves and told them that if they would help him he would bother them no more. They agreed to help him and since that time he has never bothered the wolves. Then he told the wolves to make a drive for game and to give to the double-woman as much meat as she wished. They drove and gathered many moose, deer, and bears, and killed them near the tipi of the double-woman. She dried the flesh and tanned the skins, and gathered much meat and many robes and soft tanned skins. She made clothes for a man and for a woman and decked them with colors. Then she made a pack of the clothes and choice bits of the meat. Iktomi gave the pack to a wolf and went with it to the entrance of the cave that opens down through the world. He told it to go and watch the people under the world and when it saw a strong and brave young man to speak with him alone, and to give him the pack and tell him that there were plenty of such things in the world. It went through the cave and saw the camp of the people far away. Before it came to the camp it met a strong young man. The young man asked who it was, whence it came, and what it wanted. The wolf replied that it was a friend of the people and came from the world to give them that which they most desired. It asked the young man his name and what he most wished. He said his name was Tokahe and told him that the pack would cause him to become a leader. He told him to take it and show it to the people and let them taste the food and see the clothing that was in it and to tell them that there were plenty of such things in the world, but he said it must not tell how he got the things and must say nothing of the wolf. Tokahe showed the meat to the people. They ate of it and said it was good. He and his woman wore the clothes and all the people envied them. He told the people there were plenty of such things in the world. They asked him how they could get things like these, but he could not tell them. Then an old man suggested that three men go with Tokahe to see these things, so that the people would know that Tokahe told the truth. Tokahe chose three strong and brave young men and when the moon was round they met the wolf. It led them through the cave and when they were on the world, it led them to the lake where the double-woman had her tipi. Iktomi and the double-woman saw them coming, and while she prepared a feast of meat and soup he invited them to the feast. She served them with choice bits of meat and plenty of good soup. She covered her other face with her robe and appeared to them as a beautiful woman. Iktomi appeared as a handsome young man, and he told them that both he and the woman were very old, but because they ate meat they remained young. Iktomi had told the wolves to drive the game so the young men saw many moose, deer, and bears. When the young men went back to their people Iktomi gave them presents of meat, robes, and soft tanned skins. He went with them to the entrance of the cave and there he told the wolf to guide them back to their people. When it returned he told it to wait and guide others who wished to come to the world, and when they had passed through the cave to lead them far from food and water. Tokahe and his friends showed their presents to the people and told them that they had been to the world and had seen plenty of game; that the people oh the world ate meat and appeared as young men and beautiful women even when they were very old. An old woman warned the people that these things were done by a wizard, and they wrangled, for some wished to follow Tokahe and some said he was a wizard. Tokahe said he would lead those who wanted to go with him where they could get these things. Then the chief warned the people that they who passed through the cave could never again find the entrance and must remain on the world; that the winds blew on the world and were cold; that game must be hunted and skins tanned and sewed to make clothes and tipis. Six brave men chose to go with Tokahe. They took their women and children and went from camp. The wolf met them and guided them through the cave, all day. At night they came to a strange place and the children cried for food and drink. Then Iktomi appeared and laughed at their misery and Tokahe was shamed. The double-woman appeared to comfort them, ,but they saw. her horrid face, and fled from her in terror. In the morning the people did not know where to go.. They were hungry and thirsty. Then the old man and the old woman appeared and they gave them food ,and drink. The old man led the people so they traveled swiftly and came to the region of the pines. Then he and the old woman showed them how to hunt the game and how to care for the meat and the skins, and how to make clothing and tipis. Thus Tokahe and his friends were the first people on the world and their children are the Lakota.

How the Lakota Came To Be – Lakota This story was told to me by a Santee grandmother. - :Lame Deer] A long time ago, a really long time when the world was still freshly made, Unktehi the water monster fought the people and caused a great flood. Perhaps the Great Spirit, Wakan Tanka, was angry with us for some reason. Maybe he let Unktehi win out because he wanted to make a better kind of human being. Well, the waters got higher and higher. Finally everything was flooded except the hill next to the place where the sacred red pipestone quarry lies today. The people climbed up there to save themselves, but it was no use. The water swept over that hill. Waves tumbled the rocks and pinnacles, smashing them down on the people. Everyone was killed, and all the blood jelled, making one big pool. The blood turned to pipestone and created the pipestone quarry, the grave of those ancient ones. That's why the pipe, made of that red rock, is so sacred to us. Its red bowl is the flesh and blood of our ancestors, its stem is the backbone of those people long dead, the smoke rising from it is their breath. I tell you, that pipe, that *chanunpa*, comes alive when used in a ceremony; you can feel power flowing from it. Unktehi, the big water monster, was also turned to stone. Maybe Tunkshila, the Grandfather Spirit, punished her for making the flood. Her bones are in the Badlands now. Her back forms a long high ridge, and you can see her vertebrae sticking out in a great row of red and yellow rocks. I have seen them. It scared me when I was on that ridge, for I felt Unktehi. She was moving beneath me, wanting to topple me. Well, when all the people were killed so many generations ago, one girl survived, a beautiful girl. It happened this way: When the water swept over the hill where they tried to seek refuge, a big spotted eagle, Wanblee Galeshka, swept down and let her grab hold of his feet. With her hanging on, he flew to the top of a tall tree which stood on the highest stone pinnacle in the Black Hills. That was the eagle's home. It became the only spot not covered with water. If the people had gotten up there, they would have survived, but it was a needle-like rock as smooth and steep as the skyscrapers you got now in the big cities. My grandfather told me that maybe the rock was not in the Black Hills; maybe it was the Devil's Tower, as white men call it , that place in Wyoming. Both places are sacred. Wanblee kept that beautiful girl with him and made her his wife. There was a closer connection then between people and animals, so he could do it. The eagle's wife became pregnant and bore him twins, a boy and a girl. She was happy, and said: "Now we will have people again. *Washtay*, it is good." The children were born right there, on top of that cliff. When the waters finally subsided, Wanblee helped the children and their mother down from his rock and put them on the earth, telling them: Be a nation, become a great Nation – the Lakota Oyate." The boy and girl grew up. He was the only man on earth, she the only woman of child-bearing age. They married; they had children. A nation was born. So we are descended from the eagle. We are an eagle nation. That is good, something to be proud of, because the eagle is the wisest of birds. He is the Great Spirit's messenger; he is a great warrior. That is why we always wore the eagle plume, and still wear it. We are a great nation. It is I, Lame Deer, who said this. Told by Lame Deer in Winner, South Dakota, in 1969.

How the Koasati Got Their Name - Koasati Tonight I'll tell you all a story of how we got the name Koasati. Koasati means "lost tribe." A while back, when [we] were living around the Alabama area, our tribe decided to move. But it was decided that the whole tribe could not move together at once. So the council decided that part of the tribe would go ahead of us, and the second group would follow, after tying up loose ends. So the first group took off and left some signs for the other group to follow. And maybe a week or so afterwards, the second group followed. And they followed the signs, I guess, halfway up to the Mississippi River. But they lost it right after that. And, to this day, we don't know what happened to the first group, but we assume they got swept up -- maybe in a trail of tears movement -- and got moved to Oklahoma. But we don't know where they at today -- to this day. But our second group, when they went to the Mississippi River, they ran into some explorers who asked them who they were. But naturally, since they didn't understand the language, they said Koasa which means, "we are lost." So, up until that time, we don't know what name we went by, but the explorers wrote the name Koasati in their journals, so from that point on, we've been known as the Koasati, which means "lost people." Bertney Langley Elton, Jefferson Davis Parish Recorded September 18, 1993, by Pat Mire and Maida Owens. Bertney Langley, a Koasati Indian and the nephew of Bel Abbey, shared this story with his family in Elton.

How the Kiwi Lost His Wings - Maori One day, Tanemahuta was walking through the forest. He looked up at his children reaching for the sky and he noticed that they were starting to sicken, as bugs were eating them. He talked to his brother, Tanehokahoka, who called all of his children, the birds of the air together. Tanemahuta spoke to them. "Something is eating my children, the trees. I need one of you to come down from the forest roof and live on the floor, so that my children can be saved, and your home can be saved. Who will come?" All was quiet, and not a bird spoke. Tanehokahoka turned to Tui. "E Tui, will you come down from the forest roof?" Tui looked up at the trees and saw the sun filtering through the leaves. Tui looked down at the forest floor and saw the cold, dark earth and shuddered. "Kao, Tanehokahoka, for it is too dark and I am afraid of the dark." All was quiet, and not a bird spoke. Tanehokahoka turned to Pukeko. "Pukeko, will you come down from the forest roof?" Pukeko looked up at the trees and saw the sun filtering through the leaves. Pukeko looked down at the forest floor and saw the cold, damp earth and shuddered. "Kao, Tanehokahoka, for it is too damp and I do not want to get my feet wet." All was quiet, and not a bird spoke. Tanehokahoka turned to Pipiwharauroa. "Pipiwharauroa, will you come down from the forest roof?" Pipiwharauroa looked up at the trees and saw the sun filtering through the leaves. Pipiwharauroa looked around and saw his family. "Kao, Tanehokahoka, for I am busy at the moment building my nest." All was quiet, and not a bird spoke. And great was the sadness in the heart of Tanehokahoka, for he knew, that if one of his children did not come down from the forest roof, not only would his brother loose his children, but the birds would have no home. Tanehokahoka turned to Kiwi. "E kiwi, will you come down from the forest roof?" Kiwi looked up at the trees and saw the sun filtering through the leaves. Kiwi looked around and saw his family. Kiwi looked at the cold damp earth. Looking around once more, he turned to Tanehokahoka and said, "I will." Great was the joy in the hearts of Tanehokahoka and Tanemahuta, for this little bird was giving them hope. But Tanemahuta felt that he should warn kiwi of what would happen. "E kiwi, do you realise that if you do this, you will have to grow thick, strong legs so that you can rip apart the logs on the ground and you will loose your beautiful coloured feathers and wings so that you will never be able to return to the forest roof. You will never see the light on day again." All was quiet, and not a bird spoke. "E kiwi, will you come down from the forest roof?" Kiwi took one last look at the sun filtering through the trees and said a silent goodbye. Kiwi took one last look at the other birds, their wings and their coloured feathers and said a silent goodbye. Looking around once more, he turned to Tanehokahoka and said, "I will." Then Tanehokahoka turned to the other birds and said, "E Tui, because you were too scared to come down from the forest roof, from now on you will wear the two white feathers at your throat as the mark of a coward. Pukeko, because you did not want to get your feet wet, you will live forever in the swamp. Pipiwharauroa, because you were too busy building your nest, from now on you will never build another nest again, but lay your eggs in other birds nests. But you kiwi, because of your great sacrifice, you will become the most well known and most loved bird of them all." http://www.maori.org.nz/story/Default.asp

How The Kingfisher Got His Bill – Cherokee Some old men say that the Kingfisher was meant in the beginning to be a water bird, but as he had not been given either web feet or a good bill he could not make a living. The animals held a council over it and decided to make him a bill like a long sharp awl for a fish-gig (fish-spear). So they made him a fish-gig and fastened it on in front of his mouth. He flew to the top of a tree, sailed out and darted down into the water, and came up with a fish on his gig. And he has been the best gigger ever since. Some others say it was this way: A Blacksnake found a Yellowhammer's nest in a hollow tree, and after swallowing the young birds, coiled up to sleep in the nest, where the mother bird found him when she came home. She went for help to the Little People, who sent her to the Kingfisher. He came, and after flying back and forth past the hole a few times, made one dart at the snake and pulled him out dead. When they looked they found a hole in the snake's head where the Kingfisher had pierced it with a slender tugälû'nä fish, which he carried in his bill like a lance. From this the Little People concluded that he would make a first-class gigger if he only had the right spear, so they gave him his long bill as a reward. Myths of the Cherokee by James Mooney. From the Nineteenth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology 1897-98, Part I. [1900] and is now in the public domain.

How the King of Birds was Chosen – Mayan Long ago, In Maya Land flowers. birds, trees butterflies and mammals appeared in other colors and shapes than those of today. Halach-Uinic, the Great Spirit guarded over all the Maya World. His will was law. One day be grew tired of the constant chatter and fighting among the birds. At a meeting in the center of the forest, he announced that the birds must choose a king to keep peace. Of course, each bird thought it possessed the best qualifications. Col-pol-che, the cardinal sang, "Look at me. No one else is bright red and so beautiful. All the birds admire me. I should he king." And he strutted in front of the impressed bird audience, fluttering his wings and raising his crest. X-col-col-chek, the tropical mockingbird, trilled out, "I'm the only bird with such a lovely voice. Everyone listens to me." Enlarging his throat, X-col gave a short performance of enchanting and complicated melodies. This was a tremendous sensation among the birds and went far in convincing them that the mockingbird should be king. Then the wild turkey, Cutz, strode into the circle and gobbled, "There's no doubt that I should be king because I'm the biggest and strongest bird. With my size and strength, I can stop fights and also defend any bird. You need a powerful king. I'm the one!" And so, throughout the day various birds displayed their qualities. The only one that kept quiet was Kukul, the quetzal. This bird was very ambitious and proud. He had elegant manners and a graceful body, but his plumaged was shabby. Kukul thought it would be impossible to be chosen as king while he was dressed so poorly. After thinking carefully he flew over to his friend, Xtuntun-kinil, the roadrunner. "I want to make you a proposition, my dear friend," he said. "Your feathers are so handsome as any bird's here, but you are too busy with your work as messenger of the roads to become king. Also, I don't think you posses quite the flair and sophistication that is necessary for this job. I'm afraid I can't loan these qualities to you, but you could loan me your feathers just for this occasion. After I'm elected king, I'll share the wealth and honors with you." It was a tempting offer, yet the roadrunner did not feel too eager to part with his plumage. Kukul kept persuading and assuring Xtuntun of his integrity and fine intentions. He painted bright visions of the riches to come. At last, he convinced his trusting friend. One by one, the feathers disappeared from Xtuntsun's body and the clever quetzal adjusted them to his own. Within minutes, they had multiplied and grown so that the ambitious bird was attired in the most splendid costume imaginable. Kukul's tail hung in a sweeping curve of jade green plumes. His body shimmered with soft, iridescent hues of blue and green like the Maya sky and jungle. His breast blazed with the colors of a tropical sunset. And his beak turned yellow as corn. Swinging his exquisite 4-foot tail in an arc, the bold bird promenaded into the circle where the birds of Maya Land were congregated. His entrance caused a hush. Then cries of "Bravo," "Hurrah," "Oh" and "Ah" filled the forest. Halach-Uinic was very pleased with the miraculous change from the quiet, drab bird to this radiant, proud creature before him. Calling the audience to order, the Great Spirit declared: "I name the quetzal to be king or the birds." A loud applause followed this announcement and each bird hopped over to the quetzal with congratulations. Finally, they all flew home and left Kukul to begin his new duties. He found himself extremely busy so he never had time to return the borrowed feathers. In fact, he forgot all about his promise to the roadrunner. One day, a group of birds noticed that the roadrunner had not appeared in several days. In fact, no one had seen him since the great election. They began to suspect Kukul of some trick, so they organized a search. Deep into the forest behind a bush, they found Xtuntun-kinil, naked, trembling with cold and almost dead of hunger. Quickly, the birds gave him some black (honey drink) to help him recover. When he was able, the roadrunner told them of the cruel deception played by the quetzal. He kept saying, "Puhuy? Puhuy?" which means "Where is he? Where is he?" in the Maya language. All the birds felt sorry for the roadrunner and decided each should donate a few feathers to cover him. The mockingbird even sang a jolly song to raise the courage of the embarrassed bird. That is why today the roadrunner's feathers are so oddly colored and varied in pattern, and why he always watches the Maya roads. He is still searching for the quetzal that took away his plumage and still running anxiously in front of travelers asking, "Puhuy? Puhuy?"

Buffalo Field Campaign PO Box 957 West Yellowstone, MT 59758 http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org bfc-media@wildrockies.org BFC's Mission: To protect the natural habitat of wild migratory buffalo and native wildlife, to stop the slaughter and harassment of America's last wild buffalo as well as to advocate for their lasting protection, and to work with people of all Nations to honor the sacredness of wild buffalo. Yellowstone Bison Update from the Field March 20, 2014 *You can view the HTML version of the Update from the Field, which includes photos and hyperlinks, on http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org ********************* * Update from the Field * Video: Leftover Salmon Honors BFC * LISTEN! BFC Show Podcast with Comfrey Jacobs * TAKE ACTION TO END THE WAR AGAINST WILD BUFFALO! * The Buffalo Need You. Please Volunteer or Donate Today * Participate in BFC's Summer Program! * By the Numbers * Last Words of Buffalo Inspiration ~ BFC Issues Apology to ITBC for an Individual's Harsh Words ********************* * Update from the Field As the Spring Equinox approaches, wild buffalo calving season is barely a month away. This is a most critical time for buffalo and other wildlife who have struggled to survive the harsh winter, living on the meager offerings of sleeping grasses and their own stores of body fat. With these stores are nearly depleted most of the buffalo we are seeing appear thin with protruding ribs, backs, and hump bones. Being forbidden access to lower elevation winter range takes a huge toll on the bison. In the past few months more than 630 wild buffalo have been killed by humans and winter kills will also be significant. Though snows are quickly melting, green-up is still weeks away, and now is the time when only the strongest will survive. There is danger even in the new ultra-rich spring grasses that will come as the digestive systems of buffalo (and elk), used to breaking down coarse, dry winter-fare, are vulnerable to overindulgence in the green grasses they so desperately need. Meanwhile, treaty hunting has continued. Twenty-three more wild buffalo, including pregnant cows, were harvested over the weekend. Thankfully, no wild buffalo have been killed since Monday. We anticipate that treaty hunts will finally be over soon, though it is difficult to predict. Yellowstone National Park issued a press release on Tuesday, announcing that three buffalo were poached in the Blacktail region of the park; shot and killed. While this news is very disturbing, we find great hypocrisy in the fact that the Park Service can capture and send hundreds of buffalo to slaughter while condemning others for committing similar crimes against the buffalo. Closure signs are still in place all around Yellowstone's Stephens Creek bison trap, and we have noticed a few more horses arriving to their corrals. While capture and slaughter operations may have ceased for the time being, we are ever-vigilant for hazing (harassment) operations to take place. Livestock interests are attempting to turn year-round habitat for buffalo into a slaughter agreement. Montana's Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks and Department of Livestock met this week to discuss a draft proposal that would exchange wild buffalo lives for access to year-round habitat in the Hebgen Basin west of Yellowstone National Park. Essentially, if there are 4,000 bison or more, no additional tolerance will be given, and so-called tolerance would only be given as the population declines. The proposal is unacceptable to Buffalo Field Campaign, as we will not compromise the buffalo or make them pay a blood-sacrifice to gain ground. This proposal shows that broad public support for year-round buffalo habitat has been corrupted by ranchers to force an agreement, a public buy-in, for slaughtering buffalo and driving the population down to a few thousand. The proposal it is still in draft form and we are currently reviewing the details. In the meantime, please send a letter to Montana Governor Steve Bullock telling him you reject slaughter-for-habitat, and urge him to step up and take a meaningful leadership role for America's last wild, migratory buffalo. It is, after all, Montana's livestock industry anti-bison policies that currently drive all of the mismanagement of the world's most important bison populations. Though the buffalo are up against incredible odds, there is a new BFC video below that shows they have awesome friends in many places. Enjoy this light-hearted piece and know that everyone, everywhere, who cares about wild buffalo is Buffalo Field Campaign. WILD IS THE WAY ~ ROAM FREE! ********************* * Video: Leftover Salmon Honors Buffalo Field Campaign http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22lwerkFveU&list=UUIRWaQWXjK1RXc6_hG-kZzQ Live from Whiskey Jack's, Big Sky, Montana: Leftover Salmon with Little Feat's Bill Payne sing "Willin'" and change some lyrics to honor Buffalo Field Campaign. Including interviews with Bill Payne and Vince Herman. Notice Bill's t-shirt! ********************* * LISTEN! BFC Show Podcast Interview with Comfrey Jacobs This episode of the Buffalo Field Campaign Show goes in-depth with Comfrey Jacobs, the young man who became a hero to buffalo advocates after he blocked access to the Stephens Creek buffalo trap. Listen in to see why he recently took direct action and what it was like when he was discovered by authorities. Listen Now! http://www.ecojive.org/BFC204.mp3 Comfrey's second arraignment is scheduled for April 2nd. He will have significant restitution and court fines to pay, and sincerely appreciates all of the offers many of you have made to help with these costs. Help Comfrey with his legal fees and any fines: GoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/7h179w PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_donations&business=rockyrevolution%40gmail%2ecom&lc=US&item_name=Comfrey%20Root%20Legal%20Fund¤cy_code=USD&bn=PP%2dDonationsBF%3abtn_donate_LG%2egif%3aNonHosted Visit BFC's web site to read all the news related to Comfrey's action http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org ********************* * TAKE ACTION TO END THE WAR AGAINST WILD BUFFALO! CONTACT MONTANA GOVERNMENT: Contact Montana Governor Steve Bullock and urge him to stop the war against wild buffalo in Montana! >>> http://org.salsalabs.com/o/2426/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=13718 Visit our Take Action page to contact other decision-makers who need to hear from you and please share the links to these take action alerts on Facebook and other social media outlets. >>> http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/actnow/takeaction.html ********************* * The Buffalo Need You. Please Volunteer or Donate Today. If you have ever dreamed of standing with buffalo and fighting for their rights to be wild, NOW IS THAT TIME! BFC is in need of caring people to make this sacred sacrifice to help the buffalo. Buffalo Field Campaign invites you to join us on the front lines, here on the edge of the world's first national park, to defend America's last wild, migratory buffalo. State, federal, and tribal governments are in the process of capturing and killing hundreds of wild bison. They aim to reduce the already vulnerable population of America's last wild, migratory buffalo to a mere 3,000 animals. We need more people to stand with us and protect the buffalo. Please, if you have ever thought about coming out we need help from now until the end of May. BFC provides room, board, gear, and training while the wildlife and wild lands provide incredible inspiration. Please visit our volunteer page to fill out an application or email our volunteer coordinators at volunteer[AT]buffalofieldcampaign[DOT]org or 406-646-0070. Bring your passion and your ideas. See you on the front lines! If you can not join us in person we could still use your help. Please use the DONATE link below to make a tax-deductible contribution to our important work for the buffalo. Thanks for giving us the honor of standing with these sacred beings and please come experience it for yourselves, it will change your life. WITH THE BUFFALO, Mike Mease ********************* * Participate in BFC's Summer Program! BFC is looking for at least six people to help us spread the word to save the herds this Summer. BFC is looking for help from June until the first week of September. The positions would entail working in our Buffalo Museum in West Yellowstone, Montana, tabling and camping inside Yellowstone National Park, and going to music festivals and Summer events. Each week we will have you do a different job so you would not be stuck doing one thing the whole Summer. If spending your Summer in the Yellowstone ecosystem and helping save the buffalo is something that interests you please contact Mike at mease[AT]wildrockies[DOT]org. I promise this will be a summer you will never forget. ********************* *By the Numbers The last wild, migratory buffalo populations are currently estimated at fewer than 4,000 individual animals, living in and around Yellowstone National Park. Wild, migratory bison are ecologically extinct throughout their native range in North America. 2013-2014 Total Buffalo Killed: 631 Government Capture: 450 (+/-) Buffalo Released from Capture: unknown Government Slaughter: Tribal - ITBC Slaughter: 157 Tribal - CSKT Slaughter: 101 Tribal - Nez Perce Slaughter: 0 Died in Government Trap: Died in Government Research Facility**: 1 Miscarriage in Government Trap: State Hunt: 31 Treaty Hunts: 310 Unknown Hunts: Poached in Yellowstone: 3 Sent to Quarantine: Sent to APHIS Research Facility: 60 Shot by Agents: Highway Mortality: 1 Cause of Death Unknown: Total Killed in Previous Years* 2012-2013: 261 2011-2012: 33 2010-2011: 227 2009-2010: 7 2008-2009: 22 2007-2008: 1,631 Total Killed Since 2000: 4,869 *includes lethal government action, trap-related fatalities, quarantine/experiments, hunts, and highway deaths **bison stolen from the wild and placed in APHIS research facilities (such as for GonaCon) have already been counted as being "eliminated from the population" so bison that have died in a government research facility are not reflected in the total. ********************* *Last Words of Buffalo Inspiration ~ BFC Issues Apology to ITBC for an Individual's Harsh Words Two weeks ago, an individual sent a letter to the InterTribal Buffalo Council's board of directors and member-tribe representatives through BFC's take action alert, addressing the ITBC's participation in Yellowstone buffalo slaughter. This person edited our sample letter to include extreme, hateful language. Though this individual's words were their own, BFC issued an apology to the ITBC, which we've included below. Our Take Action items are meant to present a unified voice for wild buffalo. We encourage everyone to take these actions to persuade decision-makers to protect migratory buffalo and the native habitat they seek. Personalized comments are more powerful when they unify people around pro-buffalo, pro-habitat messages. Here is the letter we sent to the ITBC: March 9, 2014 Dear InterTribal Buffalo Council Board of Directors & Member-Tribe Representatives, We have recently learned that you received a letter sent by an individual through our Take Action page containing disrespectful and offensive language. We are sorry this happened. The individual expressed personal language that was not in any way reflective of our original message. Buffalo Field Campaign is committed to a strict code of non-violence and we wanted to get in touch with you immediately to offer our sincere apology. While we cannot control the sentiments of individual citizens, we are taking this very seriously. We do not encourage or condone this type of language. If you are not an ITBC board member, we have removed your email address so that you will no longer receive letters from people taking action from our web site. We got your email address from the ITBC website, a public forum, so you may want to have it removed if you do not wish to hear from the public. We have also changed this alert so that people can no longer edit the letter, and have placed in bold, red letters, a notice that Buffalo Field Campaign neither encourages, condones, nor tolerates violent language or behavior. As a federally-chartered organization, ITBC is subject to receiving public opinion. Indeed, we still look to you and the rest of the ITBC to stop participating in the slaughter of the last wild, migratory buffalo of the nation. Sincerely, Michael S. Mease, Buffalo Field Campaign Co-Founder Rosalie Little Thunder, Sicangu Lakota Oyate & Buffalo Field Campaign Co-Founder Daniel M. Brister, Buffalo Field Campaign Executive Director Stephany J. Seay, Buffalo Field Campaign, Media Coordinator Please send us your submissions for Last Words to bfc-media[AT]wildrockies[DOT]org. Thank you for all the poems, songs, quotes and stories you've contributed! Keep them coming! ********************* Click here to unsubscribe http://org.salsalabs.com/o/2426/t/7926/p/salsa/supporter/unsubscribe/public/?unsubscribe_page_KEY=42

How The Kîksa'dî Came To Sitka – Tlingit When we were first born people hated us. And after that some beings named Sky-people brought war upon us. They destroyed us completely. A woman saved herself. And right here at Q!ântû'lk!î she dug a hole under a log to conceal herself from the enemy. Various creatures came out in f rout of her. "I wonder who can tell me about things," she said. Grizzly bear came out near her. She said, "What can you do?" "Whenever I catch a man I slap my paws down upon him." The woman said, "That is nothing." Some one in the sun spoke to her. "How am I?" it said. "What can you do?" Then he said, "My father in the sun peeps out through the clouds, through the mottled clouds." That was the one that married her. Then she began to have children. There were five of them, including one woman. After that he lowered down a big fort on them. They grew up inside of it. And when the enemy saw that they were inside of it they started to come. One [of the brothers], named Coward, was quarrelsome. Another was named Lq!ayâ'k! and another KAck!A'Lk!, and to all of them he gave directions. "When they get stronger than you put your minds on me." So, when the enemy became too strong for them, they put their minds on their father (grandfather), the sun. He peeped out on the enemy. It was smoking hot. The sea water out here boiled. The [hostile] people ran down quickly into the water. They were all destroyed. Then it stopped [boiling] out on the water. The brothers stayed inside of their fort. Abstract: How The Kîksa'dî Came To Sitka When the KîksA'dî first reached Sitka some people, called Sky people, killed all of them except one woman who concealed herself in a cave. She called for some one to marry her, and, after having refused all the animals, married the sun's son. By him she had four boys and a girl, and their grandfather placed them inside of a fort which he let down on the site of their former village. Then the enemy came upon them, and when they were in danger, their grandfather heated the land so hot that the enemy ran down into the sea. They found that boiling hot also and were destroyed. Tlingit Myths and Texts, by John R. Swanton; Smithsonian Institution; Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin 39; Washington, Government Printing Office; [1909] and is now in the public domain.

How The Kangaroo Got A Long Tail, And The Wombat A Flat Forehead – Australian Many years ago, Mirram the kangaroo and Warreen the wombat were both men. They were very friendly, and hunted and lived together in the same camping-ground. Warreen had a very comfortable gunyah made of bark and soft leaves, but Mirram who was a careless fellow-did not trouble to build a home. He was content to sleep in the open, by the side of a big fire, with the blue sky for a cover, and the green grass for a couch. This open air life was very nice in fine weather, when the stars twinkled in the sky like golden fire-flies, but it was extremely uncomfortable in the rainy season. Ore night a great storm arose. The wind howled eerily, and rocked the tall trees to and fro as though they were shaken by the strong arms of an invisible giant. The rain fell in torrents, and darkness covered the light of the stars. The rain quickly quenched the glowing embers of Mirram's fire, and he was left to the mercy of the storm. After shivering in the cold for some time, he decided to seek the hospitality of Warreen. "Surely my friend would not refuse me shelter on such a night as this," he thought. "I will ask him." Feeling very cold and miserable, he crept to the opening of Warreen's tent, and seeing there was sufficient space for both of them to sleep comfortably, he woke him and said: "The storm has killed my fire. I am very wet, and the cold wind has chilled me to the bone. May I sleep in the corner of your tent?" Warreen blinked his eyes sleepily and answered in a gruff voice: "No. I want to place my head in that corner. There isn't any room." With this rude remark he moved into the corner, but, as he could not occupy the whole space of the tent, another corner became vacant. Mirram went away and sat by the wet ashes of his fire, and his thoughts were as miserable as the weather. The fury of the storm increased, and looking anxiously at the rainproof gunyah of his friend, he decided to approach Warreen again. He entered the shelter, and, touching Warreen gently on the shoulder, said: "The wind is very cold, and as biting as the teeth of the wild dog. The rain is falling heavily and will not cease. I should be grateful if you would allow me to sleep in that corner. I will not disturb you." Warreen raised his head, listened to the moaning of the storm outside, and then replied: "I will not have you here; there isn't any room. Go outside and do not keep waking me." "But," replied Mirram, "there is room in that corner. Surely you wouldn't drive me out into the storm to die!" Thereupon, Warreen moved one leg into the corner and again a space became vacant. Seeing he could no longer hoodwink Mirram and hide from him his selfish intentions, he grew very angry and yelled: "Get out! Get out! I won't have you in my tent. I don't care where you die." This harsh treatment exasperated Mirram and he left the tent in a terrible rage. Outside the tent, he groped around in the dark until he found a large flat stone. Then he crept silently to the gunyah. By the sound of heavy breathing he knew Warreen was asleep. Moving very silently, he entered the tent, and, raising the stone high in his arms, dashed it on the head of the sleeper. The terrible blow did not kill Warreen but flattened his forehead. When he had recovered from his pained surprise, he heard the mocking voice of Mirram saying: "That is your reward for treating a friend so cruelly. You and your children and their children's children will wander through the land with flat foreheads that men may know them for your selfishness." As Warreen was no match for his opponent, he did not answer, but nursed his sore head and some very bad thoughts. From that moment, he was always planning revenge for his injury. Some time later, Warreen was hunting in the forest, and, through the shadow of the trees, he saw Mirram a short distance ahead. He crept noiselessly towards him, and, when Mirram was looking for the marks of a possum on the bark of a tree, he threw a spear at him with all his strength. The spear struck Mirram at the bottom of the back, and so deeply did it enter that he could not pull it out. While he was struggling with the spear, Warreen walked up to him, and, in a bantering voice, said: "Aha! My turn has come at last. I have waited long to repay you. You will always carry the spear in your back and wander without a home while you live. Your children will carry the spear and be homeless for ever. By these tokens, men will always remember your attempt to kill me while I slept." >From that time the kangaroo has had a long tail, which makes a low, thudding sound as he wanders homeless through the bush, and the wombat still has a very flat forehead as an everlasting sign of selfishness. Some Myths and Legends of the Australian Aborigines by William Jenkyn Thomas [1923] and is now in the public domain.

How the Hunter Became a Partridge – Passamaquoddy ONE day in late autumn a hunter in the Micmac country travelled through the woods, and he heard in the distance the sound of footsteps beating on the ground. He hastened to the spot whence the noise came, and found a man and his wife dancing around a tree. And on the tree, high among the boughs, was a Raccoon. The man and his wife had danced so long that they had worn a trench in the earth; indeed, they were in it up to their waists. "Why are you dancing in this strange manner?" asked the hunter. "We are hungry," they answered, "and we are trying to dance the tree down to the ground, so that we may catch the Raccoon." "If I show you a better way than that," said the hunter, "will you give me the Raccoon's skin?" "We will give you the skin," answered the others, "if you will catch him for us." So the hunter took his hatchet, and cut down the tree, and caught the Raccoon. After which he took the skin and went his way. He had not gone far along the trail before he met a strange man carrying on his head a large Birch wigwam of many rooms. The hunter was astonished and frightened at such a sight. But the stranger stopped, and putting down the wigwam, seated himself on the ground, and invited the hunter to smoke and talk with him. They smoked and talked together for a while. Then the stranger pointed to the Raccoon's skin in the hunter's belt, and said, "That is a fine skin; where did you get it?" "I got it from the dancing man and his wife," replied the hunter. "Sell it to me," said the stranger, "and I will give you my belt in exchange." "I will not have your belt," said the hunter. "Sell it to me, and I will give you my bow," said the stranger. "I will not have your bow," said the hunter. "Sell it to me, and I will give you my Birch wigwam," said the stranger. xx "But I cannot carry your wigwam," replied the hunter. "Lift it upon your head, and see," said the stranger. The hunter lifted the wigwam, and placed it on his head, and found it as light as an empty basket. So he gave the stranger the Raccoon's skin, and, carrying the wigwam, went on his way. And when night came he set the wigwam upon a grassy ridge by the side of a stream, and entering he looked about. Every room was hung with fine blankets and rich furs, and furnished beautifully. The hunter found one room in which was a bed covered with a White Bear's skin. Now this was a magic skin, but the hunter did not know it. As the bed was soft, and he was weary, he lay down and went to sleep. And when he woke in the morning he saw to his wonder and delight that above him hung all sorts of good things to eat-dried Venison and Ducks, strings of Indian Corn, and baskets of red berries and Maple Sugar. He stretched out his arms, and gave a spring toward the food, when, lo! the White Bear's skin melted away, for it was only a heap of snow. The wigwam was only a Birch Tree, and the food that hung above were the early buds of the Birch. The hunter's arms grew spreading like wings, his body was covered with feathers, and he flew up to the Birch Tree. And he was no longer the hunter, but Pulowech the Partridge. And he had been wintering under the snow, as the Partridge does, and was now come forth to greet the beautiful Spring and the Summer. The Red Indian Fairy Book: For the Children's Own Reading and for Story-Tellers, by Frances Jenkins Olcott, with illustrations by Frederick Richardson, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1917. Public domain.

How The Hopi Selected Shung-Opovi For Their Home – Hopi THE Hopis had forgotten about the other tribes by this time and did not know where they were. They were hoping to see the Eastern Star so that they could settle down and not travel any more. Well, finally the Bear Clan did see the Eastern Star and they were ready to settle down, but they didn't know just where would be a good place for them. They thought that they would do better cultivating by depending on rain, so they went out onto the Painted Desert to Shung-opovi (the place by the spring where the tall weeds grow). Being out here in such a desolate place they thought that they would be safe from other people, who would not think that they had anything worth taking. By that time the other Hopis were down around the vicinity of Sunset Crater, Canyon Diablo and the Little Colorado River. After a good many years these other Hopis heard of the Bear Clan being out at Shung-opovi, so the Strap Clan who were settled along Canyon Diablo, thought they would go out and join the Bear Clan. So they started out. When they did start out they stopped along the ridge below Ma-teuvi, which is now called Big Burro Spring. From there they sent off a messenger to Shung-opovi to tell the Chief that his brothers, the Strap Clan, would like to join him. When the messenger came to the Chief of Shung-opovi and told him what the Strap Clan leader wished to do, he could not very well answer his message just then. So he sent word back that he would like to have the Strap Clan chief come himself. When the Strap Clan leader heard this word he went up to Shung-opovi with his bag of tobacco and his pipe. Of course, in those days, they had guards that were always on the lookout for someone coming, for fear it might. be an enemy. Well, this man was seen coming and the Chief was notified. He knew who it was, the man being alone, so he went out to meet him and he met him at the place called Teuviovi (point that runs out south of Shung-opovi Day School). When they met there, they greeted one another by smoking their pipes. After they had smoked their pipes, the Strap Clan leader told the chief of the Bear Clan how he had followed his trail and that he had taken his clan name from the same dead bear that he had. So for that reason, he considered himself as his brother and he would like to join his establishment, because he thought being of the same clanship the Bear Clan was not any greater than the Strap Clan was. So the Bear Clan told him he could go back and bring his people. Well, the Strap Clan leader went back and told his people this good news and asked the people to get ready, as they would start for Shung-opovi in four days. On the fourth day they started out and when they got to Shung-opovi they were very well received. When the Strap Clan entered the village they thought they would have the same rights as the Bear Clan but the Bear Clan did not like the way the Strap Clan felt about their rights and the way they were acting, so finally they had to have a council and talk this over. They decided the Bear Clan would give the Strap Clan a chance to become a royal clan and to rule the village. Of course, after this the Strap Clan was always looking forward to this agreement. Now later, the other clans began to drift in. When they came up to the town they would send word up to the chief and the chief would usually send for the leader to come to see him, because it was not his business to go down and meet the people. They had to come up before the chief. He would always ask the leader about his religious rites or ceremonies--of how he had been serving his people in the way of prosperity, if his ceremonies have any effect on the gods and if his ceremonies would bring rain. And of course this chief would have to tell what he did to bring rain or how he did it. Then, if the chief thought he was rather bragging about himself, or exaggerating his ceremonies, he would tell him to stay away, because if he could take care of his people that way, he could get along all right by himself. The chief knew that no human would have such power and that he had to ask the gods or make prayers for rain to make his crops grow. Many a time some clan leader had to go up to the chief four times before he was permitted to enter with his people. Every time when a band or clan was received, the chief would allot them so much land. The last few clans to arrive were just the common class of people. They didn't have a high priest, or ceremonies of any kind, and they were the ones that had a hard time getting into the village. They were not alloted any land. They wished to have land also, so they asked the chief. The chief asked them what they could do--or what right they had to be given that land. They said that they were willing to have the land on the edges and they would guard his people and keep away the enemies, so since they told him all this, they were given all the outside land which was not allotted to any other clan. After this was all settled, another clan came along and they were also a common class, and the chief asked them if they had any ceremonies of any kind by which they lived, or by which they prayed to the gods to bring them rain. They said no, they didn't have any and they told him they didn't have any time for ceremonies, they were nothing but warriors and had to fight their way up there, for the country was full of other tribes that were enemies of these people. So the chief said that if they were warriors and had to fight their way up there, they would be his braves. This was the Sun Forehead Clan. Then the chief went to the Parrot Clan (Gash-wunga) and asked them if they would give up some of their land to the Sun Forehead Clan, that they too might take their place in guarding the chief's rights and those of his people. The Parrot Clan was very glad to do this, so from then on the Sun Forehead Clan had to be out first if enemies made an attack. Then, later on, another clan came along, the Sun Clan. They too were without a religion and ceremonies. This Sun Clan was given the same treatment as the clan before them and the Sun Forehead Clan gave up part of their land that the Sun Clan might guard the rights of the people, so to this day, their lands are still on the edge of the Hopi lands. Truth of a Hopi, by Edmund Nequatewa; Museum of Northern Arizona Bulletin No. 8. [1936, copyright not renewed] and is now in the public domain.

Adiene, thanks for writing. Your post evokes memories long dead---or so I thought---just didn't have the right impetus to get the ole' brain cells a'movin'. Poke salat was a delicacy for us. To my delight, I discovered a few bushes growing in the back yard of a daughter/son-in-law. Said daughter is about 1 -11/2 hours from me, so getting me over there is problematic. I began trying to instruct them in the fine art of picking the poke at the right time, how to boil and dump the water, etc., to no avail. Once I told them the leaves can kill, they will not touch it with the proverbial ten foot pole. LOL I wonder if you ever used the poke root as a cure for poison oak/ivy/sumac? Not sure of this statement as applicable to all, but one treatment of the boiled poke root insured we never again "caught the stuff", walking/wandering with impunity from that poison in our area of the world; for lifetime. The root was boiled in one specific washtub, poured into another washtub where the afflicted one sat and the affected parts were immersed. Never do I recall such burning pain as when the solution first came into contact with affected part. This makes me laugh even today: my cousin, Betty, was the fastest runner of us all and none of us were slow. Betty's and my job when we were about ten-twelve was to go out into the yard and literally run down the chicken Granny had chosen. Betty did the running, caught the bird, I picked it up, took it to Granny who either did ring its neck or sometimes hung it on the clothesline and cut its head right off, leaving it to hang until bled out. BTW: Granny and her family became converts to the Primitive Baptist Church and on some basis the Preacher visited each household of his congregation once or so each year. It was the Preacher's visit that we had chicken. Otherwise, we ate from that provided by the land where we lived. Except pigs. And even now, not sure they were/were not wild hogs rather than "domestic" hogs. I know the men hunted the wild ones with their bows/arrows and knives at certain times of the year and butchering was a neighborhood occasion. One of my grands asked me one day about the "olden" days and where did we buy our chicken. I explained above procedure and the grand, who was about eight or so, listened intently and when I was through, he said to me Granny, you mean the chicken Mama cooks was alive at one time. Affirmative. He said to me that he would never again eat chicken as he thought all came packaged in the super market and he didn't want to eat anything dead-----he did not again eat chicken until about age seventeen or so. LOL Granny had us kids plant something around the walk up to the house so that ants would not enter the residence. It seems they were yellow, but not sure. Maybe orange, but not sunflowers as those were food for us and the birds. Recollect that when Daddy took me out and taught me how to live in our environment, he taught me about the moss and walking down-river; feeling animal droppings to see if they were warm so we would know whether to go on or go back. We all carried Buck knives from that age of four-five so that we could cut, suck, spit if snake-bitten. Etc. Can you even imagine giving the four-five year old of today a Buck knife???? FWIW: I do not know that our Buck knife was/was not that Buck knife of today, but that is what all called them. Well, Adiene, as can readily be seen, I am on a roll. Reliving my childhood is my delight/my joy. So will stop for now as the old fingers tire out faster than I would like----- Thoroughly enjoyed your reminiscing. Fran Chinkapin On Thu, Mar 13, 2014 at 12:26 AM, Adiene Humble <ahumble@consolidated.net>wrote: > Fran, reading your message is so much how I was raised. We had huge > gardens > and mom would not plant anything unless "the moon was right" and yes, my > grandpa would plant corn in the moonlight. He grew up in LA and the > 'gators > were very much a factor. I was raised on creamed corn, pinto beans, corn > bread, okra (fried & boiled, corn on the cob, baked sweet potates, ice tea > (after we were able to go to the ice plant and get "blocks" which we put in > the old refrig), buttermilk, sweet milk (hopefully the cow didn't eat > bitter > weeds), chucks of pork fried and "streakady gravy", pork chops and fried > chicken for breakfast, homemade sausage, collard greens, turnips and turnip > greens with pepper sauce and a wedge of onion. > > Grandma always grew her cucumbers and those big ones, we threw away, too > seedy, and planted flower seeds around the garden and the house to keep > certain pests away. Mom got the old "safe" (cabinet) that was brought > across the Mississippi River and since we were here by the 1834's the old > safe is old. It was screened and the legs white from sitting in water to > keep out the ants. But for some memories of "flies" stayed with me and > actually distasteful. > > Oh, Poke Salad Anne was really about greens that mom cooked with scrambled > eggs and you had to pick it before it flowered or you could die, if you > were > lucky. I know now what it looks like as I mowed the plants down near her > garden in 2006 or so not knowing what it was. > > Times were rough back then but there was good times. Granddad made sure we > knew which side the moss grew on the tree in case we got lost, I shutter to > rememer the squirrels he killed and grandma cooked. > > There are some good things about buying from a market. Not wringing a > chickens neck for one. > Adiene > > > ======*====== > List archives > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > CHEROKEE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

How the Hills and Valleys were Formed - Winnebago Version 1 (of the Waterspirit Clan). When Earthmaker created the earth it was perfect: its surface was as flat and smooth as a piece of ice. But when the people of this new earth tried to walk upon it, they slipped and slid and could not keep their footing. When they cried out to Earthmaker to pity them, the Creator was moved to tears by their plight. His first tear fell from the sky with such force that the whole earth quaked, and the ground reverberated in colliding ripples. When his second tear struck the earth, craters appeared and mountains were forced up from the impact. His tears soon formed rivers, lakes, and the ocean, making the land so uneven everywhere that the people could now walk without any worry of falling. [1] Version 2 (of the Thunderbird Clan). When the earth was young it had neither hill nor valley, but was without any contour. Then the Thunders strode forth upon the land, and where they stepped the valleys formed, and where they struck the land with the Thunderbird Warclub, great indentations were pressed upon it. [2] Version 3 (of the Thunderbird Clan). When living things were newly created, the ground that they lived on was perfectly flat so that both men and animals found it easy to travel over its surface. In this limitless prairie-earth was a village where a young man named Wakâjagiciciga ("Bad Thunderbird") lived with his grandmother. His uncles, who loved him very much, were Thunderbirds. One day Wakâjagiciciga went on a hunt with the approval of his uncles. On the fourth day out he spotted a herd of elk, but they escaped before he could kill any. Later he ran across a herd of deer, but the same thing happened. Finally he came to a village where an evil chief lived with his son. The chief told his people that they were about to be attacked by an enemy. So when Wakâjagiciciga approached, the chief's son riddled him with arrows. The Thunderbirds were furious, and sought revenge. They put charcoal upon their faces and fasted. Over the face of the land they wandered ceaselessly and struck the earth with their mighty warclubs until countless valleys and ravines were hammered into the ground. The chief and his son fled in terror to the Lower World where they devolved into earthworms. The earthworm is the lowest of Earthmaker's creations, for they are food even for the fishes. [3] Notes: [1] Keeley Bassette (Waterspirit Clan), "Legend," in David Lee Smith, Folklore of the Winnebago Tribe (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1997) 149. [2] Charles E. Brown, Wisconsin Indian Place Legends (Madison: Works Progress Administration, Wisconsin, 1936): 5; Paul Radin, The Winnebago Tribe (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1990 [1923]) 166. [3] David Lee Smith (Thunderbird Clan), "How Valleys and Ravines Came to Be," in David Lee Smith, Folklore of the Winnebago Tribe (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1997) 100-101.

How The Haimara Came To Have Such Fine Big Eyes - Guiana Returning on his way home from the bush one afternoon, a hunter met a Konoko-kuyuha making a basket, but though he did not actually recognize it as the Spirit of the Bush, he certainly recognized the uncanny appearance it presented on account of its having the entire face, body, and limbs covered with thick hair. He asked the Spirit what it was doing, but the only word it deigned to answer was bako, the shortened form of bako-ké. At any rate, when he reached home, he related his experiences to his family and friends, and advised them strongly not to go to sleep that night, because It, whatever it was, might pay them a surprise visit after nightfall; all he could tell them was that it was covered with hair, and that it was making an eye-socket basket. But they all laughed at him, and turning into their hammocks as usual, told one another stories, and soon fell off to sleep. The man who had warned them alone kept awake, and, recognizing the low whistle in the distance, tried to arouse his friends by shaking their hammocks; but it was all in vain, and he had only just time enough to clamber up into the roof, when It, which he now recognized to be a Konoko-kuyuha, entered the house. Once in, the hunter was able to watch its movements without being himself seen. He saw the Spirit stealthily approach each hammock and remove both eyes of the snoring occupant without waking him. These eyes it carefully placed in the now completed basket, and then it left the house. Next morning, when all the people awoke, they discovered that they could see nothing, and they wondered what had happened, but he who had previously warned them told them eyerything. They said they were not now fit to live on the land, and that he must take them to some waterside. He thereupon tied them one to the other, and when they reached the stream he tied the last one to a tree: they could not lose their way now, and they knew where they were. He accordingly left them, as he thought, in perfect safety, promising to visit them shortly. After a time he redeemed his word, but he found that all of them had in the meanwhile been under water, and had changed into fish, the one exception being the individual tied to the tree who, being able to get into the water only up to his middle, had turned but halfway into a fish. So the man went away, promising to come again. He was a long time returning, so long, in fact, that the Spirit took pity on the last man, and completed his transformation, giving him back his own two eyes, which "are all very fine and large," so to speak, especially for a haimara fish (Hoplias malabaricus), which was what the Spirit changed him into. And when their old friend did return at last, he cut the rope from the tree, thus allowing the haimara and other fish to play about with perfect freedom in the water, where they have since remained. They were punished for their unbelief. Bush Spirits are excellent hunters, and some of them even know how to employ the rattle, just like a medicine-man. An Inquiry into the Animism and Folk-Lore of the Guiana Indians, Walter E. Roth, from the Thirtieth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, 1908-1909, pp. 103-386, Washington D.C., 1915, and is now in the public domain.[ British Guiana ][ South America ]

Fran, reading your message is so much how I was raised. We had huge gardens and mom would not plant anything unless "the moon was right" and yes, my grandpa would plant corn in the moonlight. He grew up in LA and the 'gators were very much a factor. I was raised on creamed corn, pinto beans, corn bread, okra (fried & boiled, corn on the cob, baked sweet potates, ice tea (after we were able to go to the ice plant and get "blocks" which we put in the old refrig), buttermilk, sweet milk (hopefully the cow didn't eat bitter weeds), chucks of pork fried and "streakady gravy", pork chops and fried chicken for breakfast, homemade sausage, collard greens, turnips and turnip greens with pepper sauce and a wedge of onion. Grandma always grew her cucumbers and those big ones, we threw away, too seedy, and planted flower seeds around the garden and the house to keep certain pests away. Mom got the old "safe" (cabinet) that was brought across the Mississippi River and since we were here by the 1834's the old safe is old. It was screened and the legs white from sitting in water to keep out the ants. But for some memories of "flies" stayed with me and actually distasteful. Oh, Poke Salad Anne was really about greens that mom cooked with scrambled eggs and you had to pick it before it flowered or you could die, if you were lucky. I know now what it looks like as I mowed the plants down near her garden in 2006 or so not knowing what it was. Times were rough back then but there was good times. Granddad made sure we knew which side the moss grew on the tree in case we got lost, I shutter to rememer the squirrels he killed and grandma cooked. There are some good things about buying from a market. Not wringing a chickens neck for one. Adiene

I appreciate your reply. Thank you. Fran Chinkapin On Wed, Mar 12, 2014 at 9:15 AM, <jgreece55@gmail.com> wrote: > Fran, Almost everyone in this part of the country planted by the signs. I > am in southeast Tennessee. I would venture to say that the practive likely > began with the ancient astronomers of Europe or Great Britian. BUT that > is > not to say that the Cherokee of the last few hundred years didn't exercise > the practice. The Cherokee's and whites lived together here for a few > hundred years. > > > > Joyce Gaston Reece > -----Original Message----- > From: Fran West-Powe > Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 6:51 AM > To: cherokee@rootsweb.com > Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Granddaddy's crops > > Joyce, enjoyed your note. Do you object to telling me if your family is > Cherokee/Cherokee descent? As I am writing my life story for my children, > grands, grgrands, etc., I like to name the source of info: where I found > it. So, minus the given name, I would say something like: "planted by the > moon is/was a Cherokee/Native practice". > > If you do not care to answer my question, that's okay and I am grateful you > did write. > > It is noted that, for me, once I left my roots of S GA, N FL back country, > locating a source of okra, was impossible in those days. Nor would okra > grow up north to where I had re-located. Cooking without okra was > difficult. Nowadays, one walks into the local market and there it is, > frozen, but some of it seems to cook up well although just plain boiled as > we used to do, does not taste the same so I don't do that anymore. > > BTW: tell your Mom to "keep on goin' '" and pretty soon she will catch up > to me/my years. > > Again, thanks for writing and maybe you have answered the question for > William and me. > > Fran > Chinquapin > > > On Sun, Mar 9, 2014 at 5:31 PM, Joyce Gaston Reece > <bjreece@bellsouth.net>wrote: > > > Planting by the moon referred to the moons phases and the body parts each > > phase represented. IE, my mom still says, at 86, that you needn't go > > fishing when the signs were in the feet. Crops were planted by the > > 'signs'. > > The old Cardui Ladies Almanac was highly sought after in this part of the > > country until the 1950's and 60's and we still see copies of it today. > > > > Mom would never allow us to chop the cabbage for kraut or churn the milk > > when we had our 'monthlies'. Always said it would go bad. > > > > It's a funny thing about Okra. Seldom is it seen north of Tennessee. My > > husband was born and raised in Bell Co, KY and Union Co., Indiana. He > had > > never seen Okra planted until he moved to McMinn, TN in the mid 1970's. > I > > can't recall never having it in our gardens. > > > > I also recall the first motorized push lawn mower we got. I'd mowed the > > yard with a rotary until then. My older brother and sister weren't known > > for helping out around the house a whole lot. > > > > We had white half runner beans, pink peanut beans and others that were > > heirloom seeds so we planted them year after year. Field Corn or Silver > > Queen Corn, occasionally some sweet golden queen corn. Planted the beans > > to > > climb the corn stalks. Cucumbers and yellow crookneck squash. > > > > Then there was the canning.......which I still do now > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: wthreerivers@aol.com > > Sent: Sunday, March 09, 2014 4:59 PM > > To: cherokee@rootsweb.com > > Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Granddaddy's crops > > > > > > I have to admit Fran that I am very curious and would know that as well > > > > William Threerivers > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Fran West-Powe <fwestpowe@gmail.com> > > To: CHEROKEE <CHEROKEE@rootsweb.com> > > Sent: Fri, Mar 7, 2014 3:54 pm > > Subject: [Cherokee Circle] Granddaddy's crops > > > > > > My Daddy who told us we are Cheery-kee, left the farm early on, picked > > strawberries in FL and fished for folks for a living so I never knew him > > to > > farm. Daddy did teach me how to live alone in our environment so that I > > did > > not need planted food. > > > > Granddaddy was another matter. With a wife and seventeen kids to feed, he > > planted literally from daylight to dark with his mule and plow. I > remember > > our gourds were always removed first off, then re-planted elsewhere. Corn > > was next, sweet potatoes. Beans and squash were planted by Granny, as > > was okra . As best as I can recall all these years later, they were > > planted pretty much in that order. Granny planted her peppers, the little > > round ones that my people fancied. Today, Burpee has something that looks > > similar called birdseye. > > > > Granny took her "digging stick", dug holes with it, and we eleven > > grandchildren filled each hole with the number of seeds Granny > > wanted/needed. Granny made us all flour sack bags, filled them with the > > seeds she wanted each to plant and we followed her around dropping our > > seeds where, and as, she told us. The biggest one of us always followed > > with water bucket. > > > > Granddaddy was crazy about his sweet potatoes. He said he kept moving his > > vines up closer to the house due to the 'gators also liking sweet > potatoes > > and the closer Granddaddy went to the house, the closer went the 'gators. > > Granddaddy started loosing his dogs, he called them Cherokee bulldogs, in > > the back yard when his potato vines were moved the last time. Do y'all > > believe those bulldogs attacked 'gators? I didn't see it, but then > > Granddaddy said it was so and the 'gators quit coming up near the house, > > so > > something worked. > > > > We still lived a lot off the land: wild greens, green plums, berries of > > many kinds, roots that grew down near the water, turtle, fish and > > squirrel; > > but the vegetables/peppers named above were planted using the methods > > described. > > > > One other item of possible interest: Granddaddy planted by the "moon". > > Now, > > being a child, I don't know what that meant. Maybe a reader knows and > will > > explain. > > > > Fran > > Chinkapin > > ======*====== > > List archives > > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > CHEROKEE-request@rootsweb.com > > with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the > body > > of > > the message > > > > > > ======*====== > > List archives > > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > CHEROKEE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > > quotes > > in the subject and the body of the message > > > > ======*====== > > List archives > > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > CHEROKEE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > > quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > ======*====== > List archives > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > CHEROKEE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes > in the subject and the body of the message > > ======*====== > List archives > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > CHEROKEE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

True......which is why I was asking about the Cherokee :) But....we also had similar foods & they weren't in the "desert" per say......at least not compared where I am & they did have nuts.....I'll share more about what they ate. Maybe it'll be similar, at least for when the Europeans came into play. -----Original Message----- From: cherokee-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:cherokee-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Joyce Gaston Reece Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 10:19 AM To: cherokee@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Granddaddy's crops Each tribe of Native Americans would have had different resources for their food depending on the environment of where they lived. What she is telling about would pertain to her tribe and WHERE they lived. With the Cherokee here in the southeast that, naturally would have been different. The Appalachian Mountains are known for having more species of trees and plants than any other place in the world with the exception of a very similar region in China. That one fact would highly influence what they grew and what natural resources they tapped into. Desert and plains Indians would likely have had a completely different diet and plant/grow different kinds of crops. (These Native Americans of the south began seen white influence as early as the mid 1500's.) For instance, here they would have had, use of 30+ types of acorns, beech, hickory, pecan, chestnut and several other nut producing trees. Swamp potatoes, cattail roots, the usual corn, squash etc. They would have had several different types of berries. Meats included turkey, grouse, chicken (introduced in the 1300's via south and central America), bison, deer, elk and, of course, fish. I realize these aren't all 'crops' but there ya go. Joyce Gaston Reece -----Original Message----- From: Alli :) Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 11:47 AM To: cherokee@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Granddaddy's crops Never heard of that other Almanac. My original post was what the Cherokee's planted/grew before Columbus or the European Settlers had become an influence. Buffalo Bird Woman is a Hidatsa Indian & shared her family's & people's ways of what they had before the traders & soldiers came & afterwards. I found it fascinating & am interested in finding out what the Cherokee people had prior to the 100 yrs they were with the whites. :) She (Buffalo Bird Woman) was born around 1839 in an Earth Lodge along the Knife River which is in present day North Dakota. Her people moved upstream & built a new village in which they called it Like-a-fishhook village which they shared with the Mandan & Arikara. She became the expert gardener of the Hidatsa tribe. She used practices that were centuries old for her people. They grew corn, beans, squash, & sunflowers (which I became particularly interested in this) in the fertile bottomlands of the Missouri River. In the mid-1880's the US government for the villiage to break up & dispersed the families onto individual allotments on the For Berthold Reservation. He women continued to grow the veggies that provided the Midwestern Farmers some of their most important crops. She describes the field care, preparation, planting, harvesting, processing & storing of the veggies. Even gives some recipes & songs that they song. I don't know if the Cherokee people.....anyone has passed on such knowledge like this woman has made possible. But it'd be interesting to learn if they did. This village planted near a water source, they used natural fertilizer. They "dehydrated" their foods to preserve it & a few other things. I will go through it & list some of her ways...maybe they are similar to how others have done it too? -----Original Message----- From: cherokee-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:cherokee-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of jgreece55@gmail.com Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 7:15 AM To: cherokee@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Granddaddy's crops Fran, Almost everyone in this part of the country planted by the signs. I am in southeast Tennessee. I would venture to say that the practive likely began with the ancient astronomers of Europe or Great Britian. BUT that is not to say that the Cherokee of the last few hundred years didn't exercise the practice. The Cherokee's and whites lived together here for a few hundred years. Joyce Gaston Reece ======*====== List archives http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to CHEROKEE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message ======*====== List archives http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to CHEROKEE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

Each tribe of Native Americans would have had different resources for their food depending on the environment of where they lived. What she is telling about would pertain to her tribe and WHERE they lived. With the Cherokee here in the southeast that, naturally would have been different. The Appalachian Mountains are known for having more species of trees and plants than any other place in the world with the exception of a very similar region in China. That one fact would highly influence what they grew and what natural resources they tapped into. Desert and plains Indians would likely have had a completely different diet and plant/grow different kinds of crops. (These Native Americans of the south began seen white influence as early as the mid 1500's.) For instance, here they would have had, use of 30+ types of acorns, beech, hickory, pecan, chestnut and several other nut producing trees. Swamp potatoes, cattail roots, the usual corn, squash etc. They would have had several different types of berries. Meats included turkey, grouse, chicken (introduced in the 1300's via south and central America), bison, deer, elk and, of course, fish. I realize these aren't all 'crops' but there ya go. Joyce Gaston Reece -----Original Message----- From: Alli :) Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 11:47 AM To: cherokee@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Granddaddy's crops Never heard of that other Almanac. My original post was what the Cherokee's planted/grew before Columbus or the European Settlers had become an influence. Buffalo Bird Woman is a Hidatsa Indian & shared her family's & people's ways of what they had before the traders & soldiers came & afterwards. I found it fascinating & am interested in finding out what the Cherokee people had prior to the 100 yrs they were with the whites. :) She (Buffalo Bird Woman) was born around 1839 in an Earth Lodge along the Knife River which is in present day North Dakota. Her people moved upstream & built a new village in which they called it Like-a-fishhook village which they shared with the Mandan & Arikara. She became the expert gardener of the Hidatsa tribe. She used practices that were centuries old for her people. They grew corn, beans, squash, & sunflowers (which I became particularly interested in this) in the fertile bottomlands of the Missouri River. In the mid-1880's the US government for the villiage to break up & dispersed the families onto individual allotments on the For Berthold Reservation. He women continued to grow the veggies that provided the Midwestern Farmers some of their most important crops. She describes the field care, preparation, planting, harvesting, processing & storing of the veggies. Even gives some recipes & songs that they song. I don't know if the Cherokee people.....anyone has passed on such knowledge like this woman has made possible. But it'd be interesting to learn if they did. This village planted near a water source, they used natural fertilizer. They "dehydrated" their foods to preserve it & a few other things. I will go through it & list some of her ways...maybe they are similar to how others have done it too? -----Original Message----- From: cherokee-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:cherokee-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of jgreece55@gmail.com Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 7:15 AM To: cherokee@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Granddaddy's crops Fran, Almost everyone in this part of the country planted by the signs. I am in southeast Tennessee. I would venture to say that the practive likely began with the ancient astronomers of Europe or Great Britian. BUT that is not to say that the Cherokee of the last few hundred years didn't exercise the practice. The Cherokee's and whites lived together here for a few hundred years. Joyce Gaston Reece ======*====== List archives http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/index?list=cherokee ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to CHEROKEE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

Never heard of that other Almanac. My original post was what the Cherokee's planted/grew before Columbus or the European Settlers had become an influence. Buffalo Bird Woman is a Hidatsa Indian & shared her family's & people's ways of what they had before the traders & soldiers came & afterwards. I found it fascinating & am interested in finding out what the Cherokee people had prior to the 100 yrs they were with the whites. :) She (Buffalo Bird Woman) was born around 1839 in an Earth Lodge along the Knife River which is in present day North Dakota. Her people moved upstream & built a new village in which they called it Like-a-fishhook village which they shared with the Mandan & Arikara. She became the expert gardener of the Hidatsa tribe. She used practices that were centuries old for her people. They grew corn, beans, squash, & sunflowers (which I became particularly interested in this) in the fertile bottomlands of the Missouri River. In the mid-1880's the US government for the villiage to break up & dispersed the families onto individual allotments on the For Berthold Reservation. He women continued to grow the veggies that provided the Midwestern Farmers some of their most important crops. She describes the field care, preparation, planting, harvesting, processing & storing of the veggies. Even gives some recipes & songs that they song. I don't know if the Cherokee people.....anyone has passed on such knowledge like this woman has made possible. But it'd be interesting to learn if they did. This village planted near a water source, they used natural fertilizer. They "dehydrated" their foods to preserve it & a few other things. I will go through it & list some of her ways...maybe they are similar to how others have done it too? -----Original Message----- From: cherokee-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:cherokee-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of jgreece55@gmail.com Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 7:15 AM To: cherokee@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [Cherokee Circle] Granddaddy's crops Fran, Almost everyone in this part of the country planted by the signs. I am in southeast Tennessee. I would venture to say that the practive likely began with the ancient astronomers of Europe or Great Britian. BUT that is not to say that the Cherokee of the last few hundred years didn't exercise the practice. The Cherokee's and whites lived together here for a few hundred years. Joyce Gaston Reece