Native American Legends
The Bird Tribes
A Cherokee Legend
Winged creatures of all kinds are classed under the generic term
of aninâ'hilidâ'hï (flyers). Birds are called,
alike in the singular and plural, tsi'skwa, the term being generally
held to exclude the domestic fowls introduced by the whites.
When it is necessary to make the distinction they are mentioned,
respectively, as inägëhï (living in the woods), and
uluñni'ta (tame). The robin is called tsiskwa'gwä, a
name which can not be analyzed, while the little sparrow is called
tsikwâ'yä (the real or principal bird), perhaps, in accord
with a principle in Indian nomenclature, on account of its wide
distribution.
As in other languages, many of the bird names are onomatopes, as
wa`huhu' (the screech owl), u'guku' (the hooting owl), wagulï'
(the whippoorwill), kâgû (the crow), gügwë'
(the quail), huhu (the yellow mocking-bird), tsï'kïlï'
(the chickadee), sa'sa' (the goose). The turtledove is called gulë'-diska`nihï'
(it cries for acorns), on account of the resemblance of' it cry
to the sound of the word for acorn. (gulë')
The meadowlark is called näkwïsï' (star), on account
of the appearance of its tail when spread out as it soars. The nuthatch
(Sitta carolinensis) is called tsulie'na (deaf), and is supposed
to be without bearing, possibly on account of its fearless disregard
for man's presence. Certain diseases are diagnosed by the doctors
as due to birds, either revengeful bird ghosts, bird feathers about
the house, or bird shadows falling upon the patient from overhead.
The eagle (awâ'hïlï) is the great sacred bird of
the Cherokee, as of nearly all our native tribes, and figures prominently
in their ceremonial ritual, especially in all things relating to
war. The particular species prized was the golden or war eagle (Aquila
chrsætus), called by the Cherokee the "pretty-feathered
eagle," on account of its beautiful tail feathers, white, tipped
with black, which were in such great demand for decorative and ceremonial
purposes that among the western tribes a single tail was often rated
as equal in value to a horse.
Among the Cherokee in the old times the killing of an eagle was
an event which concerned the whole settlement, and could be undertaken
only by the professional eagle killer, regularly chosen for the
purpose on account of his knowledge of the prescribed forms and
the prayers to be said afterwards in order to obtain pardon for
the necessary sacrilege, and thus ward off vengeance from the tribe.
It is told of one man upon the reservation that having deliberately
killed an eagle in defiance of the ordinances he was constantly
haunted by dreams of fierce eagles swooping down upon him, until
the nightmare was finally exercised after a long course of priestly
treatment. In 1890 there was but one eagle killer remaining among
the East Cherokee. It does not appear that the eagle was ever captured
alive as among the plains tribes.
The eagle must be killed only in the winter or late fall after
the crops were gathered and the snakes had retired to their dens.
If killed in the summertime a frost would come to destroy the corn,
while the songs of the Eagle dance, when the feathers were brought
home, would so anger the snakes that they would become doubly dangerous.
Consequently the Eagle songs were never sung until after the snakes
had gone to sleep for the winter.
When the people of a town had decided upon an Eagle dance the eagle
killer was called in, frequently from a distant settlement, to procure
the feathers for the occasion. He was paid for his services from
offerings made later at the dance, and as the few professionals
guarded their secrets carefully from outsiders their business was
a quite profitable one.
After some preliminary preparation the eagle killer sets out alone
for the mountains, taking with him his gun or bow and arrows. Having
reached the mountains, he goes through a vigil of prayer and fasting,
possibly lasting four days, after which he hunts until he succeeds
in killing a deer. Then, placing the body in a convenient exposed
situation upon one of the highest cliffs, he conceals himself near
by and begins to sing in a low undertone the songs to call down
the eagles from the sky.
When the eagle alights upon the carcass, which will be almost immediately
if the singer understands his business, he shoots it, and then standing
over the dead bird, he addresses to it a prayer in which he begs
it not to seek vengeance upon his tribe, because it is not a Cherokee,
but a Spaniard (Askwa'nï) that has done the deed. The selection
of such a vicarious victim of revenge is evidence at once of the
antiquity of the prayer in its present form and of the enduring
impression which the cruelties of the early Spanish adventurers
made upon the natives.
The prayer ended, he leaves the dead eagle where it fell and makes
all haste to the settlement, where the people are anxiously expecting
his return. On meeting the first warriors he says simply, "A
snowbird has died," and passes on at once to his own quarters,
his work being now finished. The announcement is made in this form
in order to insure against the vengeance of any eagles that might
overhear, the little snowbird being considered too insignificant
a creature to be dreaded.
Having waited four days to allow time for the insect parasites
to leave the body, the hunters delegated for the purpose go out
to bring in the feathers. On arriving at the place they strip the
body of the large tail and wing feathers, which they wrap in a fresh
deerskin brought with them, and then return to the settlement, leaving
the body of the dead eagle upon the ground, together with that of
the slain deer, the latter being intended as a sacrifice to the
eagle spirits.
On reaching the settlement, the feathers, still wrapped in the
deerskin, are hung up in a small, round hut built for this special
purpose near the edge of the dance ground (detsänûñ'lï)
and known as the place "where the feathers are kept,"
or feather house. Some settlements had two such feather houses,
one at each end of the dance ground.
The Eagle dance was held on the night of the same day on which
the feathers were brought in, all the necessary arrangements having
been made beforehand. In the meantime, as the feathers were supposed
to be hungry after their journey, a dish of venison and corn was
set upon the ground below them and they were invited to eat. The
body of a flax bird or scarlet tanager (Piranga rubra) was also
hung up with the feathers for the same purpose. The food thus given
to the feathers was disposed of after the dance, as described in
another place.
The eagle being regarded as a great ada'wehï, only the greatest
warriors and those versed in the sacred ordinances would dare to
wear the feathers or to carry them in the dance. Should any person
in the settlement dream of eagles or eagle feathers he must arrange
for an Eagle dance, with the usual vigil and fasting, at the first
opportunity; otherwise some one of his family will die. Should the
insect parasites which infest the feathers of the bird in life get
upon a man they will breed a skin disease which is sure to develop,
even though it may be latent for years. It is for this reason that
the body of the eagle is allowed to remain four days upon the ground
before being brought into the settlement.
The raven (kâ'länû) is occasionally seen in the
mountains, but is not prominent in folk belief, excepting in connection
with the gruesome tales of the Raven Mocker (q. v.). In former times
its name was sometimes assumed as a war title. The crow, so prominent
in other tribal mythologies, does not seem to appear in that of
the Cherokee.
Three varieties of owls are recognized, each under a different
name, viz: tskïlï', the dusky horned owl (Bubo virginianus
saturatus); u'guku', the barred or hooting owl (Syrnium nebulosum),
and wa`huhu', the screech owl (Megascops asio). The first of these
names signifies a witch, the others being onomatopes. Owls and other
night-crying birds are believed to be embodied ghosts or disguised
witches, and their cry is dreaded as a sound of evil omen. If the
eyes of a child be bathed with water in which one of the long wing
or tail feathers of an owl has been soaked, the child will be able
to keep awake all night.
The feather must be found by chance, and not procured intentionally
for the purpose. On the other hand, an application of water in which
the feather of a blue jay, procured in the same way, has been soaked
will make the child an early riser.
The buzzard (sulï') is said to have had a part in shaping
the Earth, as was narrated in the genesis myth. It is reputed to
be a doctor among birds, and is respected accordingly, although
its feathers are never worn by ball players, for fear of becoming
bald. Its own baldness is accounted for by a vulgar story. As it
thrives upon carrion and decay, it is held to be immune from sickness,
especially of a contagious character, and a small quantity of its
flesh eaten, or of the soup used as a wash, is believed to be a
sure preventive of smallpox, and was used for this purpose during
the smallpox epidemic among the East Cherokee in 1866.
According to the Wahnenauhi manuscript, it is said also that a
buzzard feather placed over the cabin door will keep out witches.
In treating gunshot wounds, the medicine is blown into the wound
through a tube cut from a buzzard quill and some of the buzzard's
down is afterwards laid over the spot.
There is very little concerning hawks, excepting as regards the
great mythic hawk, the Tlä'nuwä'. The tlä'nuwä'
usdi', or "little tlä'nuwä,") is described as
a bird about as large as a turkey and of a grayish blue color, which
used to follow the flocks of wild pigeons, flying overhead and darting
down occasionally upon a victim, which it struck and killed with
its sharp breast and ate upon the wing, without alighting. It is
probably the goshawk (Astur atricapillus).
The common swamp gallinule, locally known as mud hen or didapper
(Gallinula galeata), is called diga'gwanï' (lame or crippled),
on account of its habit of flying only for a very short distance
at a time. In the Diga'gwanï dance the performers sing the
name of the bird and endeavor to imitate its halting movements.
The dagûl`kû, or white-fronted goose (Anser albifrons)
appears in connection with the myth of the origin of tobacco. The
feathers of the tskwâyï, the great white heron or American
egret (Herodias egretta), are worn by ball players, and this bird
probably the "swan" whose white wing was used as a peace
emblem in ancient times.
A rare bird said to have been seen occasionally upon the reservation
many years ago was called by the curious name of nûñdä-dikanï',
"it looks at the sun," "sun-gazer." It is described
as resembling a blue crane, and may possibly have been the Floridus
cerulea, or little blue heron. Another infrequent visitor, which
sometimes passed over the mountain country in company with flocks
of wild geese, was the gu'wisguwï', so called from its cry.
It is described as resembling a large snipe, with yellow legs and
feet unwebbed, and is thought to visit Indian Territory at intervals.
It is chiefly notable from the fact that the celebrated chief John
Ross derives his Indian name, Gu'wisguwï', from this bird,
the name being perpetuated in Cooweescoowee district of the Cherokee
Nation in the West.
Another chance visitant, concerning which there is much curious
speculation among the older men of the East Cherokee, was called
tsun'digwûntsu'`gï or tsun'digwûn'tskï, "forked,"
referring to the tail. It appeared but once, for a short season,
about forty years ago, and has not been seen since. It is said to
have been pale blue, with red in places, and nearly the size of
a crow, and to have had a long forked tail like that of a fish.
It preyed upon hornets, which it took upon the wing, and also feasted
upon the larva in the nests. Appearing unexpectedly and as suddenly
disappearing, it was believed to be not a bird but a transformed
red-horse fish (Moxostoma, Cherokee âligä'), a theory
borne out by the red spots and the long, forked tail.
It is even maintained that about the time those birds first appeared
some hunters on Oconaluftee saw seven of them sitting on the limb
of a tree and they were still shaped like a red-horse, although
they already had wings and feathers. It was undoubtedly the scissor-tail
or swallow-tailed flycatcher (Milvulus forficatus), which belongs
properly in Texas and the adjacent region, but strays occasionally
into the eastern states.
On account of the red throat appendage of the turkey, somewhat
resembling the goitrous growth known in the South as "kernels"
(Cherokee, dule'tsï), the feathers of this bird are not worn
by ball players, neither is the neck allowed to be eaten by children
or sick persons, under the fear that a growth of "kernels"
would be the result. The meat of the ruffed grouse, locally known
as the pheasant (Bonasa umbellus), is taboo to a pregnant woman,
because this bird hatches a large brood, but loses most of them
before maturity. Under a stricter construction of the theory this
meat is forbidden to a woman until she is past child bearing.
The redbird, tatsu'hwä, is believed to have been originally
the daughter of the Sun (see the story). The huhu, or yellow mockingbird,
occurs in several stories. It is regarded as something supernatural,
possibly on account of its imitative powers, and its heart is given
to children to make them quick to learn.
The chickadee (Parus carolinensis), and the tufted titmouse, (Parus
bicolor), utsu'`gï, or u'stûtï, are both regarded
as news bringers, but the one is venerated as a truth teller while
the other is scoffed at as a lying messenger, for reasons which
appear in the story of Nûñyunu'wï (q. v.).
When the tsïkïlilï' perches on a branch near the
house and chirps its song it is taken as an omen that an absent
friend will soon be heard from or that a secret enemy is plotting
mischief. Many stories are told in confirmation of this belief,
among which may be instanced that of Tom Starr, a former noted outlaw
of the Cherokee Nation of the West, who, on one occasion, was about
to walk unwittingly into an ambush prepared for him along a narrow
trail, when he heard the warning note of the tsïkïlilï',
and, turning abruptly, ran up the side of the ridge and succeeded
in escaping with his life, although hotly pursued by his enemies.
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