The Benton weekly record. [volume] (Benton, Mont.) 1880-1885, 1883-06-16
Omaha Legends asad Tent StUrtss.

In the current number of Wide A,sdke,
Bright Eyes" Mrs. T.. Ell. Tibbles, de-
scribes some legends told by the Omaha
tribe and which she gathered from the lips
of her father, mother and grandmother,
and translated into English: She says OF
them:
wish could have written the music of
the song>. | think they We're beautiful.
[ have heard some of your finest singers.
but nothing I ever heard from them has
touched me SO profoundly AS the singing
of the Indians. The tears fill my eyes as |
listen to their wild, weird singing, and
l can never seem to tell myself why.
Among the Omahas, and suppose in all
the tribes, there are men and women, who,
| though they are not professional story tel
lers, yet as they can tell stories and le-
are often invited by families TO come visit
ing for the sole purpose of story telling.
The best story teller that know of IN the
tribe is "Onidabi.'' Last Winter our fam
lily took four days journey, and with US
travelled this man. Evening after evening
we gathered round the fire to hear him
tell stories, the tent SO full that it could not
hold another person, and we laughed nn-
til the tears came as he told story after sto-
ry in rapid succession, with snch inimit-
able gestures and change of tone, that it
hauo hoau . Cor a,,y nf y.t, r
most accomplished elocutionists, and one
by which they might have prof ted. Any
one standing outside the tent and not know
ing what was going on within would have
declared that he hearda conversation car
ried on by several people, when in reality
it was only one person speaking, SO per-
fectly did he initiate the tones of old men.
women and children. He did not have to
say of his characters, ''the old man said
this, the young warrior this" or ''the lit
tie boy said this" but we knew at once by
the tone of his voice who was speaking.
When we wentto bed at night we would
be as tired from laughing as though we
had been hard at work all day.
Ny mother told me thai one Of the >to-
ries have written tut was told her by an
old mul when she was little child, a,ai
that it was her delight after coaxing her
mother to geta nice supper, to go to the
old mans tent and invite him to supper.
When he came shR would wait on him
herself, and when he had finished eating
she would say: Grandfather please tel
me story" The old man would pretend
to be very reluctant at first, for the pleas.
ure Of having her coax him, and then hs
would comply with story after story from
those strange legends. while she listened
with rapt attention. until my grandmoth.
er bade her get ready for bed,
Ineyer read any of your .'Mother Goose
Rymes," until was grown up. and usee
to be inclined to feel sorry sometimes tha
had missed them in my childhood; but i
I had known them, | should probably hav,
never known the nursery stories Of my owl
people, and so am satisfied.
! My grandmother tells exactly the sam,
old stories and sings the same queer littl'
songs to my SISTERS children that she uset
to singto rs when we were babies, AMI
only yesterday when | asked her to tel
me story, she laughed at me, and mad
up funny littiesong which she sang t.
her great grandson, aged six months, tsll
ing him about his big aHntie who wantel
to be told a story as though she were ba
by like him.
i How often have fallen asleep when
child, with my arms tight around M.
grandmother's neck, while she told me
story, only did not fall asleep until tn
!, story was finished. When | think o
those old days--so happy and free, whei
} we slept night after night in a tent OH th
! wide, traekless prairie, with nothing bu
skies above us and the earth beneath; witt
nothing to make us afraid; not cve1
knowing that we were not civalizrl. 4
; were ordered to be, by the Government,
not even knowing that there were sur
beings AS white men; happy IN our free
dom and love for each other--I often won
der If there Is anything in.yonr clYalizatio