The idea of
a "happy hunting-ground" is modern and probably borrowed, or
invented by the white man. The primitive Indian was content to
believe that the spirit which the "Great Mystery" breathed into man
returns to Him who gave it, and that after it is freed from the
body, it is everywhere and pervades all nature, yet often lingers
near the grave or "spirit bundle" for the consolation of friends,
and is able to hear prayers. So much of reverence was due the
disembodied spirit, that it was not customary with us even to name
the dead aloud.
It is well known that the American Indian had somehow developed
occult power, and although in the latter days there have been many
impostors, and, allowing for the vanity and weakness of human
nature, it is fair to assume that there must have been some even in
the old days, yet there are well-attested instances of remarkable
prophecies and other mystic practice.
A Sioux prophet predicted the coming of the white man fully
fifty years before the event, and even described accurately his
garments and weapons. Before the steamboat was invented, another
prophet of our race described the "Fire Boat" that would
swim upon their mighty river, the Mississippi, and the date of this
prophecy is attested by the term used, which is long since
obsolete. No doubt, many predictions have been colored to suit the
new age, and unquestionably false prophets, fakirs, and conjurers
have become the pest of the tribes during the transition period.
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