conferring upon young Morris his new name, was a religious observance,
when the whole sixteen hundred Indians present at the treaty, united in an
offering to the moon, then being at her full. It was a clear night, and
the moon shone with uncommon brilliancy. The host of Indians, and their
neophite, were all seated upon the ground in an extended circle, on one
side of which a large fire was kept burning. The aged Cayuga chieftain,
Fish Carrier, who was held in exalted veneration for his wisdom, and who
had been greatly distinguished for his bravery from his youth up,
officiated as the high priest of the occasion;--making a long speech to
the luminary, occasionally throwing tobacco into the fire, as incense. On
the conclusion of the address, the whole company prostrated themselves
upon the bosom of their parent earth, and a grunting sound of approbation
was uttered from mouth to mouth, around the entire circle.
"At a short distance from the fire a post had been planted in the earth,
intended to represent the stake of torture, to which captives are bound
for execution. After the ceremonies in favor of Madam Luna had been ended,
they commenced a war-dance around the post, and the spectacle must have
been as picturesque as it was animating and wild. The young braves engaged
in the dance were naked, excepting a breech-cloth about their loins. They
were painted frightfully, their backs being chalked white, with irregular
streaks of red, denoting the streaming of blood. Frequently would they
cease from dancing, while one of their number ran to the fire, snatching
thence a blazing stick, placed there for that purpose, which he would
thrust at the post, as though inflicting torture upon a prisoner. In the
course of the dance they sung their songs, and made the forests ring with
their wild screams and shouts, as they boasted of their deeds of war, and
told the number of scalps they had respectively taken, or which had been
taken by their nation. During the dance those engaged in it, as did others
also, partook freely of unmixed rum, and by consequence of the natural
excitement of the occasion, and the artificial excitement of the liquor
the festival had well nigh turned out a tragedy. It happened that among
the dancers was an Oneida warrior, who in striking the post, boasted of
the number of scalps taken by his nation during the war of the Revolution.
Now the Oneidas, it will be recollected, had sustained the cause of the
colonies in that contest, while the rest of the Iroquois confederacy, had
espoused that of the crown. The boasting of the Oneida warrior therefore,
was like striking a spark into a keg of powder. The ire of the Senecas was
kindled in an instant, and they in turn boasted of the number of scalps
taken from the Oneidas in that contest. They moreover taunted the Oneidas
as cowards. Quick as lightning the hands of the latter were upon their
weapons, and in turn the knives and tomahawks of the Senecas began to
glitter in the moon-beams, as they were hastily drawn forth. For an
instant it was a scene of anxious, almost breathless suspense, a death-
struggle seeming inevitable, when the storm was hushed by the
interposition of Old Fish Carrier, who rushed forward, and striking the
post with violence, exclaimed '_You are all a parcel of boys. When you
have attained my age, and performed the warlike deeds that I have
performed, you may boast of what you have done; but not till then._'
"Saying which he threw down the post, put an end to the dance, and caused
the assembly to retire. This scene in its reality must have been one of
absorbing and peculiar interest. An assembly of nearly two thousand
inhabitants of the forest, grotesquely clad in skins and strouds, with
shining ornaments of silver, and their coarse raven hair falling over
their shoulders, and playing wildly in the wind as it swept past, sighing
mournfully among the giant branches of the trees above, such a group
gathered in a broad circle of an opening in the wilderness, the starry
canopy of heaven glittering above them, the moon casting her silver mantle