The Oskaloosa herald., 1909-06-03
A STORY OF MAHASKA
As Told In Colonel Swalm's Unique
and Interesting Way.

| The celebration of Mahaska Day
has brought out many things of in
terest concerning the great Indian
chief and the early days in this COM
munity. John Arnold, of Cedar, who
has penchant for preserving hIstori-
cal items has sent us the following
| clipping taken from the Herald of
January 9Th, 1887, and written in Col
Swalm's inimical and interesting way:
cat one time, back in the '30's, Iowa
was the hunting ground, with others,
of the Sac, Fox and Iowa tribes Of
Indians. The latter, at one time, was
a very powerful tribe; brave and reso-
lutte in their many undertakings OF
warfare against the Sioux and Osages.
They early made good reputation,
and are mentioned with praise by Lew
is the Clark, the early explorers.
That they were of migratory char
acter more than common to the
aborignes of that day is shown by
the fact that about sixteen removals
were made by them. They first came
down the Mississippi river to Des
Moines, and their many villages were
found in what now constitutes the
counties of Van Buren,, Davis and
Wapello. Thence they went to Da'
kota, then back to Nebraska, and had
their final camp in Iowa in the Grand
river country--in Wayne, Clarke and
Lucas counties. The Iowas were di'
vided into eight leading clans, each
bearing the badge of some animal or
bird, and each clan had its own pecu.
liar manner of cutting the hair. Thus,
the eagle clan wore two locks of hair
on the front part OF the head, and a
long tail behind. A caucus of the clans
must have shown many of the fashions
that have been seen on the heads OF
white women since that day. Some OF
the jealous Indians called them Dusty
Noses" becaused them camped on
sand bars and often scrubbed their
bodies clearly with the sand. At an
early day the Iowas were once invited
to dog feast by wandering band
of the Sioux. Man-hawgaw was the
leading Iowa chief, and between the
pow-wow the Sioux killed HIM. Ever
after it was bloody time when an
Iowa could get at the Sioux. The
Osages joined with the Sioux and
they had to take their wallopine
whenever it was handy. These alb
original cocks-of-the-walk were the
tribe which gave birth, home and
room to fight to the great family OF
Mahaskas! Man-haw-gaw was the
paternal ancestor of Mahaska the
Elder. The name, properly spelled, is
Ma-has-kah, and means, Whites lCoud
Thanks to Catlin, the painter, we
have the opportunity Of presenting
Il very fair, engraving of this celebrated
chief, after whom the county was
named:
IL this rather late biographical obit
uary of the deceased chieftain we fee
perfectly safe in presenting the above
He Is dead, and his near relatives
are dead, and hence there is no one
to take dangling scalp for the crime
so common these days! That Ma
has-ka was a brave man is shown
from the fact that ne had seven wives!
He never applied for a divorce from
any of them, but II was the gossip
about camp that occasionally one
would go down to the Des Moines
river to battle, and would be found
dead next morning. This necessitated
the chief to bring in another one to
hold his number up to the golden
seven. That he lived with seven
wives shows him to have been a
master hand at management. Nc
man today could do that. One Is
about all that the wisest and best OF
our statesmen can manage, as we All
know from observation. His bravery
was not confined alone to living with
seven wives. He was always at the
head of the Iowa war parties, and at
his belt dangled very many scalps OF
the Sioux and Osages. In 1924 he
went to Washington and visited
I. President Monroe, and upon his return
he took himself to the ways of peace,
built double log cabin and lived in
comfort In 1888 some of his men
were connected with a killing scrape,
and General Clark ordered that they
be arrested Ma-has-ka, having adop-
ted peaceful ways, said that IL should
be done, and assisted in the arrest
of the men, and sent them to Fort
Leavenworth. There one OF them
threatened to kill him when he got
out. This Indian made his escape, anu
during the fall of 1884 he found Ma.
has-ka, camped on the Nodaway, in
the southern corner of Cass county,
and there murdered him in a very
cowardly manner. At about fifty years
of age this great chief, the winner OF
eighteen battles, ended his career.
His death caused a great mourning
in his village. His seven wives went
into mourning and poverty, and one
of them--who bore the name of Fe-
male -deer-that-bounds-ov prair-
ies-refused ever afterward to be
comforted. The assassin of Ma-has-ka
took refuge with the Otoes, but as
they did not want to mix in the COM
ing war they killed him and sent his
scalp to the Iowas.N An accomplice
| wac also executad nv the IOwas IN