With many of the Dakota and Chippewa tribes there existed a custom of placing upon the scaffolding a wand which was painted red, blue and white. They believed that the spirit of the Indian had to cross a river over which was a long log of wood. Upon reaching the opposite bank, the spirit met the spirits of his enemies. To one of them he would show the red, to another the blue, and finally he pointed to the white and then all enmities ceased.
The albatrosses in the Southern ocean which, like the pelicans, are birds of great size and weight (I have measured some which exceeded twelve feet across the wings) maintain for hours an equal height above the level of the sea.
In the high latitudes south of the Cape of Good Hope and the Crozet Islands there is always a strong gale blowing, and consequently by a very slight and imperceptible movement or inclination of the wings the albatrosses obtained the necessary pressure which enabled them to rise, descend, or maintain their hovering position.
In the case of pelicans moving rapidly in a perfect calm, the method by which they maintain their height in the air is not so easily understood.
The foreign residents living in Guatemala, included Mr. Corbett, our Chargé d’affaires; M. de Cabarrus, chief of the French legation; the Duke and Duchess de Licignano, Dr. Wynne, Mr. and Mrs. Hague, Mr. and Mrs. Hockmeyer, and M. Hardy: to all of whom I was indebted for much kindness and hospitality.
Author of “A New Survey of the West Indies,” published in 1648.