Constitution Of The Five Nations
We now crown you with the sacred emblem of
the deer's antlers, the emblem of your Lordship. You shall now become
a mentor of the people of the Five Nations. The thickness of your
skin shall be seven spans - which is to say that you shall be filled
with peace and goodwill and your mind filled with a yearning for
the welfare of the people of the Confederacy.
With the endless patience you shall carry out your duty, and your
firmness shall be tempered with tenderness for your people. Neither
anger nor fury shall lodge in your mind, and all your words and
actions shall be marked with calm deliberation.
In all your deliberations in the Council, in your efforts at lawmaking,
in all your official acts, self-interest shall be cast into oblivion.
Cast not away the warnings of any others, if they should chide you
for any error or wrong you may do, but return to the way of the
Great Law, which is just and right.
Look and listen for the welfare of the whole people and have always
in view not only the present but also the coming generations, even
those whose faces are yet beneath the surface of the earth - the
unborn of the future Nation.
Constitution of the Five Nations
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Should any man of the Nation
assist with special ability or show great interest in the affairs
of the Nation, if he proves himself wise, honest, and worthy of
confidence, the Confederate Lords may elect him to a seat with them
and he may sit in the Confederate Council. He shall be proclaimed
a Pine Tree sprung up for the Nation and be installed as such at
the next assembly for the installation of Lords.
Should he ever do anything contrary to the rules of the Great Peace,
he may not be deposed from office - no one shall cut him down -
but thereafter everyone shall be deaf to his voice and his advice.
Should he resign his seat and title, no one shall prevent him. A
Pine Tree Chief has no authority to name a successor, nor is his
title hereditary.
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When an infant dies before its
fourth day of life, mourning shall continue only for five days.
Then shall you gather the little boys and girls at the house of
mourning, and at the funeral feast a speaker shall address the children
and bid them be happy once more, even though by a death, gloom has
been cast over them.
Then shall the black clouds roll away and the sky shall show blue
once more. Then shall the children be again in sunshine.
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Native American Legends A-B