52 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. IIO 



Fearing that the Agency Indians might join their old allies, Ronan 

 prepared to remove his wife and children from danger. Michelle went 

 to the Agent and pledged that his warriors would protect Ronan's 

 family from harm. The Pend d'Oreille remained friendly. (Clark, 

 1885, p. 301.) 



A few years earlier, Michelle's friendship for the whites had been 

 put to a severe test. His son had been accused of the murder of 

 a white miner. Although the son swore his innocence, Michelle 

 told him he could not be saved, or his death avenged, except by war 

 with the whites, and asked the young man to sacrifice his life for the 

 good of his people. The youth was hung by enraged whites. (Ibid.) 



Michelle helped to set an example for his people in agriculture. 

 In 1885 he had 160 acres under fence, producing 250 bushels of wheat 

 and oats. In the spring of 1887 he purchased young fruit trees for 

 his land 16 miles north of the Mission. (Ann. Rep. Comm. Ind. Aff., 

 i885,p. I27;i887,p. 138.) 



Michelle died at his home, near the present town of Ronan, about 

 1890. He is said to have been buried in the cemetery at St. Ignatius 

 Mission. 



Although he possessed admirable personal qualities, as a leader of 

 his people Michelle proved a rather ineffective successor to the active 

 and aggressive Alexander. 



Big Canoe, Second Chief of the Upper Pend D'Oreille (Plate 18, Left) 



In-er-cult-say 



Known as the "Big Canoe." 



Full-blooded Pend d'Oreille, second chief — Rather a dark Indian, about 55 or 

 60 years old. 



Big Canoe is said to have been born in 1799. (Handbook of Amer- 

 ican Indians, etc., 1910, pt. i, p. 146.) At the Flathead Treaty Council, 

 he made a point of the fact that his aunt told him he was "pure 

 Pend d' Oreille." (Partoll, 1938a, p. 293.) Pierre Pichette translates 

 his Indian name, "Rotted Under the Belt," which probably refers 

 to a rotten scalp carried under the belt as a trophy. 



Peter Ronan stated that Big Canoe "was considered by the Indians 

 to be one of the greatest war chiefs the tribe of the Pend d'Orielle 

 ever had," and that "stories of battles led by him against Indian foes 

 would fill a volume." (Ronan, 1890, p. y^,-) Unfortunately, none of 

 those deeds have been recorded in the literature. 



At the Flathead Treaty Council in 1855 Big Canoe delivered a 

 lengthy speech. He could not understand why discussion at the 

 Council involved the problem of Indian land. To his mind no real 



