[III-24] Full name of this Menomonee chief, as listed by Pike on his [tabular exhibit], where his native name is rendered Tomaw, and where the other Folle Avoine chief also appears by the above name, Shawanoe, not translated in F. or E.
[III-25] Possibly a clew here to the unidentified person whose name occurs as Greinyea or Grienway in Lewis and Clark, ed. of 1893, p. 1188, q. v. The person here meant is Louis Grignon: see Wis. Hist. Coll., VII. p. 247. A Mr. Grignon is mentioned in Wm. Morrison's letter (elsewhere cited) as one of the five persons besides himself who formed the party that came into the country from Fond du Lac in July, 1802. The name stands Greignon, text of 1807, p. 46.
[III-26] Pike's observation strikes me as much more "singular" than the Fox Indian's opinion. Many of us have been taught that the whole world was once drowned, excepting one favored family, and we have also been told how it was repeopled. That is one advantage which an enlightened Christian has over Lo, the poor benighted Indian. The savage simply accepts that one of the deluge-myths which his own ancestors elaborated to suit themselves. But the Christian has the Word of God himself, bound up in many different editions of various dates, for the truth of that particular deluge-myth which the Jews appropriated, with variations to suit their own tribal vanity, from the Chaldeans. They invented very little except their precious Jehovah, who was less polished and less agreeable a god than most of those who were elaborated by the more civilized tribes who surrounded and generally whipped the Jews. The Noachian narration, like the Genesis relation of both the Elohistic and the Jehovistic scribes, was borrowed from one of the myths that clustered about the legendary character known as Gisdhubar, Izdubar, etc., alleged descendant of the last antediluvian monarch Hasisadra, who became known to the Greeks through Berosus as Xisuthros. The original of this deluge-myth was recovered from the cuneiform characters by Geo. Smith of the British Museum in 1872, and may be read in English and various other modern languages, to the great edification of the faithful, no doubt: see it, e. g., in the charming and readily accessible book, The Story of Chaldea, by Zénaïde A. Ragozin, 2d ed., 8vo, N. Y., G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1888, p. 301 and p. 314. After the aqueous allegations had been reduced to writing in Hebrew characters, and generations of Jewish rabbis had tinkered the text to suit themselves with Masoretic points, and various anonymous scribes had turned it into Septuagint Greek and Vulgate Latin, some people in England who had never heard of the original, could not have read a word of it if they had handled the very bricks on which it was first stamped, and do not appear to have been informed on the subject by the Holy Ghost, gave us their English version of the words of God duly "authorized" by "the wisest fool in Europe," as the Duc de Sully called James I. The most credible items in this account are that the elephant took his trunk with him and stood behind it in the ark, but that the cock and the fox were worse off for baggage, having only a comb and a brush between them; yet I also believe just as firmly that the raven which Noah let fly was the original progenitor of the Petit Corbeau who lived in the village of Kapoja, near St. Paul, Minn.
[III-27] The phrase which Pike's interpreter applied to the woman was no doubt "La Bastonnaise." For a long period before and after the end of the last century, "Bostonian" in some form was the nickname of English-speaking whites, especially New Englanders—just as we now say "Yankee." The Indians picked up the word from the Canadian French, and it passed from mouth to mouth across the continent; e. g., it entered the vocabulary of the Chinook jargon spoken on the N. W. Coast. To cite a case: "On my remarking to Mr. Frobisher that I suspected the Bastonnais (Bostonians, or English colonists) had been doing some mischief in Canada, the Indians directly exclaimed, 'Yes; that is the name! Bastonnais.' They were lately from the Grand Portage," etc., Alex. Henry, Trav. of 1761-76, 8vo, N. Y., 1809, p. 329.
[III-28] See back, [note14], p. 99, Oct. 8th, 1805. Pike's getting down to Mr. Dickson's wintering-ground in one day from the stockade on Swan r. confirms the opinion expressed in that note that this place is marked too low on his map (below Clear Water r.). It also relieves us of the difficulty that seemed to arise when we were told that Pike did not pass Dickson's place till Oct. 10th, when we brought him up to St. Cloud. Evidently, then, our adjustment of mileages and camps of Oct. 8th-10th is right, and Dickson's place was at the foot of the Thousand Island cluster (Pike's Beaver isls.). The text of 1807, p. 21, speaks of "the place where Mr. Rienville and Monsr. Perlier wintered in 1797. Above it is a cluster of more than 20 islands in the course of four miles, which they named the Beaver islands." As to the name of the person who was with Mr. Dickson, we have choice of four: Paulier, as above; Perlier, text of Oct. 10th, of both 1807 and 1810 eds., but Paulire on p. 56 of the 1807 text; and Potier, on the map. One Antoine Pothier, a trader, is named among Laclede's "thirty associates" by Billon, Ann. St. Louis, 1764-1804, pub. 1886, p. 18; and it appears in St. Louis archives that one Isidor Peltier sold a slave to Louis Blouin, Oct. 7th, 1767. For one Pothier, 1812, see also Wis. His. Soc. Coll., XI. p. 272. But Pike's man is Jacques Porlier, b. 1765, Milwaukee in 1783, Green Bay in 1791, d. 1839: see Wis. His. Soc. Coll., III. p. 244, VII. p. 247, and Tassé, Les Canadiens de l'Ouest, 8vo, Montreal, 1878, I. pp. 137-141.
[III-29] This letter formed Doc. No. 10, p. 24, of App. to Pt. 1 of the orig. ed.; it is given [beyond]. It is dated Grand Isle (i. e., Grande Île), Apr. 9th; by which we may infer this to have been then the name of the place where Mr. Dickson wintered, and that this place was on a large island. All indications now are that the wintering-place in question was on the foot of the large island at whose head are Mosquito rapids, and only a mile or so above St. Augusta, as already surmised in [note16], p. 100. For "a Mr. Greignor," see [note25], p. 181. "A Mr. Veau" is Jacques Vieau or De Veau, b. 1757, d. 1852: see W. H. S. C., XI. p. 218. The October date above is provokingly blank for the day of the month. But I construe the passage to mean that the place where Pike now is, Apr. 9th, is also the place where Mr. Porlier's brother and Mr. Veau had wintered 1805-6. If so, we may query Oct. 4th as the missing date; for though Pike does not say that his camp that day was on an island, the position of Dimick's isl., to which we then brought him, is such that he can easily make Rum r. by 7 a. m. to-morrow, if he keeps on "some time" after leaving the island in question, as he says he does.
[III-30] Pike twice passed directly by Dayton bluff, in which this cave was situated—once Sept. 21st, 1805, and again to-day: see back, [note72], p. 75, for the locality, and add: The cave which Carver discovered in 1766 is thus described by him, pp. 39, 40, ed. of 1796: "About 30 [say 15] miles below the Falls of St. Anthony, at which I arrived the 10th day after I left Lake Pepin, is a remarkable cave of an amazing depth. The Indians term it Wakon-teebe, that is, the Dwelling of the Great Spirit. The entrance into it is about 10 feet wide, the height of it 5 feet. The arch within is near 15 feet high, and about 30 feet broad. The bottom of it consists of clear sand. About 20 feet from the entrance begins a lake, the water of which is transparent, and extends to an unsearchable distance; for the darkness of the cave prevents all attempts to acquire a knowledge of it. I threw a small pebble towards the interior parts of is [it], with my utmost strength: I could hear that it fell into the water, and notwithstanding it was of so small a size, it caused an astonishing and horrible noise, that reverberated through all those gloomy regions. I found in this cave many Indian hieroglyphics, which appeared very ancient, for time had nearly covered them with moss, so that it was with difficulty I could trace them. They were cut in a rude manner upon the inside of the walls, which were composed of a stone so extremely soft that it might easily be penetrated with a knife; a stone everywhere to be found near the Mississippi. The cave is only accessible by ascending a narrow, steep passage, that lies near the brink of the river." Now it is easy to criticise such an account, and those who wish to discredit this honest gentleman seize upon "amazing depth," "unsearchable distance," "horrible noise," etc. But that is unfair. These phrases are only Carver's façon de parler of his subjective sensations; the objective reality is truthfully and recognizably described. Besides, one should be sure he is in Carver's cave before he criticises the description—not get into another cave and then find fault with Carver because the wrong cave does not fit the right description, as our friend Schoolcraft did. The cave which Carver does not describe was not discovered till 1811. Long visited two in 1817; in 1823 Long's second party visited the New or Fountain cave, and Keating has left the matter in such clear light that the passage may be transcribed, I. p. 289, ed. of 1824: "Above this village [of Kapoja], there is a cave which is much visited by the voyagers; we stopped to examine it, although it presents, in fact, but little to admire; it is formed in the sandstone, and is of course destitute of those beautiful appearances, which characterize the caverns in calcareous rock. It is the same which is described by Mr. Schoolcraft, whose name, as well as those of several of Governor Cass' party we found carved in the rock. In his account of it, Mr. Schoolcraft states it to be the cavern that was visited by Carver, but adds that 'it appears to have undergone a considerable alteration since that period.' It appears from Major Long's MSS. of 1817, that there are two caves, both of which he visited; the lower one was Carver's; it was in 1817 very much reduced in size from the dimensions given by Carver; the opening into it was then so low, that the only way of entering it was by creeping in a prostrate position. Our interpreter, who had accompanied Major Long, told us that it was now closed up; it was probably near the cemetery which we have mentioned. The cavern which we visited, and which Mr. Schoolcraft describes, is situated five miles above; it was discovered in 1811, and is called the Fountain cave; there is a beautiful stream running through it," etc. I think very likely the cave Long visited in 1817, and thought to be Carver's, was really the smaller one alongside Carver's in Dayton bluff, of which I am informed by my friend Mr. A. J. Hill, seeing how "much reduced in size from the dimensions given by Carver" he found it. Beltrami, II. pp. 191-193, goes on about Carver's cave in a way which makes one think he entered no one of the three caves in this vicinity, but drew on his imagination for his description after reading up on the subject. He uses the phrase "cave of Trophonius," and says that "the Sioux call this cave Whakoon-Thiiby"—a decidedly original way of spelling it. Featherstonhaugh describes his visit of Sept. 12th, 1835, to what he calls Carver's cave, p. 257 of his Canoe Voyage, etc., pub. 1847. Nicollet, who is always to the point, speaks of two caves, one 4 and the other 8 m. below St. Peters, Rep. 1843, p. 72: "Both are in the sandstone, but at different elevations. The former is on a level with the river, and is reached through a short ravine along the limpid streamlet that issues from it. Many authors have thought this to be the cave described by Carver, but erroneously. It would, in fact, be only necessary to compare the locality with Carver's description, to be at once convinced. The cave now referred to is of recent formation. The aged Sioux say that it did not exist formerly. It has to them no ceremonial association. They scarcely ever visit it, and there are none of their hieroglyphics upon its sides or floor. It owes its formation to the dislocation and decomposition of the upland limestone, which have left sloughy places; the waters of which have penetrated into the sandstone, wearing it away, and giving origin to the streamlet which issues from it. The location of this cave is on my map designated as the new cave [New Cave]. The second, four miles below the former, is that described by Carver. Its entrance has been, for more than 30 years, closed by the disintegrated débris of the limestone capping the sandstone in which it is located. On the 3d day of July, 1837, with the assistance of Messrs. Campbell and Quinn—the former an interpreter for the Sioux, the latter for the Chippeways—I set about clearing this entrance; which, by-the-bye, was no easy work; for, on the 5th we were about abandoning the job, when, unexpectedly, we found that we had made an opening into it; and although we had not entirely disincumbered it of its rubbish, I saw enough to satisfy me of the accuracy of Carver's description. The lake mentioned by him is there; but I could only see a segment of the cave, a portion of its roof being too near the surface of the water to enable me to proceed any further. A Chippeway warrior made a long harangue on the occasion; throwing his knife into the lake as an offering to Wakan-tibi, the spirit of the grottoes. The ascent to the cave is by a rapid slope; and on the rocks that form a wall to the left, there are a number of ancient Sioux hieroglyphics, that mean nothing more than to indicate the names of Indians that have at various times visited this natural curiosity. On leaving the cave and reaching the river, a stroll of a few yards to the left, by keeping close to the rocks, brought us upon a sweet, limpid and copious spring which had remained for a long time unknown in consequence of the shingle and brush that conceal its outlet. This is evidently the issue of the waters of Grotto lake; and their abundance indicates that the lake is well fed, and doubtless occupies a considerable space within the mountain. On the high grounds above the cave there are some Indian mounds, to which the Indians belonging to the tribe of Mdewakantonwans formerly transported the bones of the deceased members of their families," as is stated by Carver, Pike, Long, and many others. I am led into this long note partly for the purpose of setting history straight, and partly from the intrinsic interest of these Stygian caverns, which Pike passes to-day without notice, as hundreds now do every day and will do until the places are improved off the earth. The cave that Nicollet opened is the veritable one that Carver discovered; it is right on the railroad that skirts Dayton bluff, about a mile in an air-line from Union depot. The New or Fountain cave is miles away, in Upper St. Paul, near the railroad bridge there, unless it has lately yielded to the triumph of art over nature and been effaced. Mr. Hill writes from St. Paul, Mar. 18th, 1894: "Before the shaving off of Carver's cave—or rather before our civil war—the serpent on the roof on the right hand as you stood on the brink of the waters was very plainly visible, and might have been traced by rubbing or otherwise; but this would have required scaffolding. It has been remarked that the serpent was the totem of Ottahtongoomlishcah, one of the Sioux chiefs of the 'Cave Treaty.' I found by actual measurement that the extreme length of the lake was 110 feet, before any alteration of the surface had occurred." See also the article by Mr. Hill on Mounds, Minn. Hist. Soc. Coll., VI. Pt. 2, 1891. J. Fletcher Williams, in Minn. Hist. Soc. Coll., I. 2d ed. 1872, p. 355, notes that there was little change in Carver's cave in the course of a century, for it was much the same May 1st, 1867, when the Historical Society celebrated the centennial of Carver's purported treaty with the Sioux. "Within the past two years, however, sad changes have taken place. The St. Paul & Chicago Railroad, having condemned for their use the strip of land along the river bank, including the bluff or cliff in which is the cave, have dug it down and nearly destroyed it. But a narrow cavity now remains to mark its site. The pool or lake is gone, and the limpid stream that flows through it now supplies a railroad tank." But now, says Mr. Hill, "sand heaped from railroad cutting has again backed up the water into a pool, the receptacle of all filth." Mr. T. H. Lewis' article, Cave-Drawings, Appleton's Annual Cyclop., 1889, p. 117 (reprint, p. 3), gives the exact position of both the Dayton bluff caves; the small one, 400 feet above Carver's, is 50 feet N. E. of Commercial St., midway between Plum and Cherry Sts., at the foot of the bluff; 35 feet long on the floor, as measured in 1889 to the edge of the water in the rear, 24 feet wide, 10 feet high—thus about one-third as large as Carver's. It had pictographs like those of Carver's cave. None of those Carver mentions were ever copied; his cave was in part demolished by grading when the railroad first came by, and in the course of time the walls were scribbled over by the ubiquitous army of idlers and tramps from whose vandalism no natural formation or artificial monument in the world is secure.
[III-31] Literally Raven's Nose. He is tabulated by Pike as Tatamane, Nez Corbeau, Raven Nose, and Wind that Walks (latter name a euphemism).
[III-32] "Dispunishable" is a good old word, though rare and now obsolete; but Pike uses it in the opposite of its meaning, which was simply "punishable"—for the prefix dis- is here intensive, not reversive or nugatory. C. D. marks it obs., and cites in support of def. a passage from the last will of Dean Swift, in a clause of which "dispunishable of waste" occurs.
[III-33] Joseph Rolette, Sr. There were various persons of this surname, whose spelling varies as usual. Billon gives one Michel Rolette as a French soldier who came from Fort Chartres to Laclede's village (St. Louis) in 1764. Pike's "Mr. Rollett" is the same man as Beltrami's "Mr. Roulet," said in Beltrami's book, II. p. 174, to have been at Prairie du Chien in 1823, in the S. W. Co. The Minn. Hist. Coll., II. Part 2, 1864, 2d ed. 1881, p. 107, mentions "the notorious Joseph Rolette, sen.," as at Prairie du Chien, in or about Feb., 1822. The memoir of Hercules M. Dousman, by General H. H. Sibley, Minn. Hist. Coll., III. 1870-80, p. 193, speaks of "the late Joseph Rolette, senior," as a partner of the American Fur Company, in 1826; again we read there, p. 194: "In 1834 ... I formed with him [Dousman] and the late Joseph Rolette, senior, a co-partnership with the American Fur Company of New York, which passed in that year under the direction of Ramsay Crooks as President"; and once more, ibid., p. 199: "In 1844, Col. Dousman was united in marriage to the widow of his former partner in business, Joseph Rolette, senior, who died some years previously."