|
The Homeward Journey
On the homeward journey front the annual hunt,
when the tribe was within four days' march of the village, they halted, and
the great ceremony of thanksgiving for safety, food, and clothing took
place, lasting four days. When this was over, the people scattered and made
haste to reach their homes. Each family, on arriving at its dwelling, then
held the private ceremony of thanksgiving, a similar festival to that which takes place upon the completion of the building
and marks the consecration of the lodge.
. The annual hunt and its attendant ceremonies have been
abandoned since 1878, but the organization of the tribe by, gentes is not
affected by this change.
The Omaha have been fortunate in their head chiefs
during the present century. Um-pa-tun-ga recognized at an early date the
advantages of civilization, and, as far as his ability served, he used his
influence to prepare his people for the coming change. As a consequence of
this policy, in 1836, when, with other tribes, the Omaha joined in a treaty
extinguishing any title they might have claimed to lands lying east of the
Missouri River, their share of the compensation received from the United
States was taken in agricultural implements and the services of a resident
blacksmith.
In the twenty years which followed, the westward rush
of emigration brought much suffering to the border tribes, particularly to
those who were trying to take on civilized life. The stream of white
settlers pushed through the. Indian lands, destroying their fields of corn,
beans, &c., and mercilessly killing off the game, thus imperiling the
Indians' entire supply of food. At the same time, these tribes became
objects of distrust, being regarded as faithless to ancient tradition, and
consequently they were assailed by those Indian tribes who were determined
to resist innovations in imitation of the white people.
In 1845 the Indian Commissioner reported to the
Secretary of War: " The Omaha are a peaceable people and have ever been the
friends of the whites. From their exposed position and poverty, not being
able to procure fire-arms, they are rapidly being reduced by the frequent
attacks of war parties."
The double fire of Indian enemies and the depredations
of emigrants brought much suffering to the Omaha, which was endured with au
heroic patience. Determined to abide in the land of their fathers, resisting
all pressure and offers
to go to the Indian Territory, the tribe decided, in 1855, to sell their
vast hunting lands and reserve the site of their ancient home on the banks
of the Missouri and meet there as best they could the problem of their
future.
At this time the Omaha made their first separate treaty
with the United States, and ceded the territory lying between the Niobrara
on the north and the Platte on the south, some two hundred miles west from
the Missouri River.
The Indian Commissioner in 1861 states: " Much of the
progress observable in the condition of this tribe is attributable to their
intelligent and exemplary chief, La Flesche " (the adopted son and successor
of Um-pa-tun-ga), " and to the excellent school in their midst."
No. 8 in the Exhibit is a drawing of the reservation as
it appeared in 1862, about six years after the people, had left Bellevue, a
few miles south of Omaha City, whither, in 1848, they had fled for safety
and protection.
Previous | Index |
Next
Historic Sketches of the
Omaha Indian
Free
Genealogy |
Indian
Genealogy
|
Historic Sketches of the Omaha
Indian
|
|
