River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-10-02
INDIAN SUPERSTITIONS.
Curious Notions Concerning Thunder and
LIGHTNING

| oOI
Curious Notions Concerning Thunder and
Lightning.
At the Saratoga convention of social
scientists, DR.. j. G.. Henderson, in the
subsection of anthropology, gave some
interesting details of Indian notions con-
corning thunder and lightning In the
Illinois language the word for thunder is
Wa-kin-yan, the meaning of which en-
bodies the belief that thunder is caused
by the noise caused by the wings of
huge spirit bird. 1t was thus that these
Indians satisfied their curiosity in regard
to the philosophy of the phenomenon.
"An orthodox Dakota Indian, said Judge
Henderson, had the same reason tor be-
lieving in the thunder-bird that we have
for believing that the whale swallowed
J0nah!' The author analysed the abo-
rignal ideas and superstitions relative to
thunder and lightning, the central notion
OF all being that these manifestations are
the direct acts of spirits. Almost all the
tribes in the United States believed
the thunder to be produced by
the wings of great bird, and that
the lightning was the serpents that were
invariably connected with the thunder
bird. Among the ancient tribes of the
Mississippi valley the thunder therefore,
soon became thunder god, who could
be propitlated with sacrifices. The Ill
inois Indians offered up small dog when
child happened to be sick upon a day
when there was much thunder, supposing
the latter TO be the cause of the maladv
Many accidents, like contlagrations
were attributed to this angry god, and
some tribes did bloody penances in pro-
pitiation, often putting to death their
own children. Statements that the In
dians adored the thunder, however, the
speaker believed to be erroneous. 1t was
the cause of the thunder that they wor-
shipped, and before which they burned
tobacco and buffalo meat, or cut off the
JOINTS of their fingers, or threw their chill
dren into the fire, when they were over
come with fear. The Peruvians had as an
idol stone which had been split by the
lightning. They offered it gold and sill
yer. The natives of Honduras burned
cotton-seed when it Numbered. Other
Southern tribes made no sacrifices on the
approach of a storm, but abased them
selves in the most abject fear.
The grandest conception of all, the
author thought, was that Of IrOquois,
who said it was their great god Heno
who rode upon the clouds, split the forest
trees with thunder bolts, or hurled stones
at his enemies His hone was under the
roaring falls of the Niagara. He was
patron of husbandry, and in the spring
he was invoked to water and nourish the
growth of their productions, while at the
harvest festival they gave him thanks for
rain. He was also the avenger of evil
deeds, and the Iroquois trembled when
his deep shout was heard rolling along
the armament. In Brazil the thunder
and thunder-god occupied nearly the
same place, and the author dilated upon
the connection between this idea and no.
ton of the 'fire-stones" flint, ebert, etc.,
which runs through the whole Indian
mythology. Some tribes gave this god
sling with which to hurl the stones.
In this way he explained the process of
thought by which the thunder-splits came
to be the war-gods of the Dakotas
and other tribes, from whom were
received the tomahawk, spear-heads and
other weapons of flint, and those super
natural paints which should protect them
from the murderons shafts of their enc
mics. The wild rice beng aquatic and
looking like an arrow or spear, is also at
trlbuted to the thunder sglrit as to its orr
gin. In Mexico great temples were built
upon the sacred spots where lightning
had struck. A curious notion among the
Peruvians was that the preserved bodies
eff twin children who died in infancy
should be worshiped, supposing that one
IF tbap, uac fba con of tho thunder
the origin of the idea being the fact that
the thunder-god of that people was one
of the celestial twins of Apocatequil and
Piquerad This tradition was utilized
dy Pizarro's missionaries to teach the
Indians the doctrine of the trinity.
In the thunder some of our western
tribes recognized an admonition of the
Great Spirit of the four winds, that the
time of corn planting was at hand But
the main and ruling idea everywhere
was that the cause of the thunder was a
bird under various DISCUSSES. They de-
scribed its form and abode and food vari-
ously. Different shapes and habits were
compared and analogies pointed out.
Many professed to have seen it, or its fea-
theirs, or tracks, and some had found its
nest on plnnacles of the rockiest noun
tains Usually it was described as COM
pounded parts of man and parts of /.
bird and ii was the young birds which
were charged with the mischief when the
lightning did any harm. Judge Hender-
son thought if there is to be found any
resemblance to an earthly bird, the nigh
hawk was the species that had originated
the idea.
Notwithstanding the thunder was so
cared as god, there were warriors brave
enough to defy him, and the Sioux have
an association whose exclusive privilege
is to fight the thunder. Instead of pro-
pitiating, they resisted In mock battle
the advance of the storm-cloud. The
Southern Indians behaved similarly, &C
cording TO old writers. This introduced
very interesting account of ''rain doc
tors and the other charlatans who en-
gagged to produce fine weather. Passing
over many interesting details, the theo-
ries of the manner in which the nose OF
the thunder occurred next claimed atten-
ton. and were discussed infinitely Ia re-
spect to curious details. The paper was
closed with recapitulation and general
observations upon the Indian method of
reasoning correctly, but from fglse prem
| ises.
rs that an Alderny GOVT" the young
man from town asked old Mr.. Thistlepod
out on the agency road. The old man is
little near sighted in his hearing, and
he looked at the youth in amazement.
| wall, he replied, 1'she amt so ALFRED