Lean-Wolf, of the Hidatsa, who drew the picture of which Fig. [115] is a fac-simile, made a trip on foot from Fort Berthold to Fort Buford, Dakota, to steal a horse from the Dakotas encamped there. The returning horse-tracks show that he attained the object in view and that he rode home. The following explanation of characters was made to Dr. Hoffman, at Fort Berthold, in 1881:—
Fig. 115.—Lean-Wolf’s Map, Hidatsa; after Mallery.
- 1. Lean-Wolf, the head only of a man to which is attached the outline of a wolf.
- 2. Hidatsa earth lodges, circular in form, the spots representing the pillars supporting the roof. Indian village and Fort Berthold, Dakota.
- 3. Human footprints; the course taken by the recorder.
- 4. The Government buildings at Fort Buford (square).
- 5. Several Hidatsa lodges (round), the occupants of which had intermarried with the Dakotas.
- 6. Dakota lodges.
- 7. A small square—a white man’s house—with a cross marked upon it, to represent a Dakota lodge. This denotes that the owner, a white man, had married a Dakota woman who dwelt there.
- 8. Horse-tracks returning to Fort Berthold.
- 9. The Missouri River.
- 10-16. Tule Creek, Little Knife River, White Earth River, Muddy Creek, Yellowstone River, Little Missouri River, Dancing Beard Creek.
3. Designation.—This group embraces tribal, clan and personal names, marks, status of individual and signs of particular achievements.
The clan, or gentile, designations are totems; these are depicted in the funeral pictographs to the exclusion of the personal names; the latter are not indicative of an Indian’s totem.
In No. 1 of the last figure we have the usual signature of Lean-Wolf. During his boyhood he had another name.
4. Religious.—Comprising mythic personages, shamanism dances and ceremonies, mortuary practices, grave posts, charms, etc.
5. Customs, Daily Life and Habits.—The accompanying figure is from a carving made of a piece of walrus tusk and represents incidents in the life of an Alaskan native. The special purport of some of the characters and etchings is not apparent.