THE MUSEUM 



A Monthly Magazine Devoted to Research in Natural Science. 



Vol. III. 



ALBION, N. Y., SEPTEMBER 15, 1897. 



No. I r 



Wa-kan-da-pa-she Devil's Path.) 



Several miles north of Decatur, 

 Neb., among the stately hills that 

 guard the waters of the Old Muddy 

 (Missouri) lies what was known in In- 

 dian legends as the Wa-kan-da-pa-she 

 or Devil's Path. 



Here the visitors, lovers of nature's 

 wondrous productions or not, will find 

 themselves lost in the realms of silent 

 thought. Words have little power to 

 describe the scene. 



Here is a relic of what once was a 

 large hill now a large ravine, having 

 been worn down by rains. The state- 

 ly trees and "The Singing Gaily" re- 

 mind us of "Home Sweel Home " of 

 which Nature is the Home. High 

 walls composed of sandstone rise high 

 on either side of the recess filled with 

 ancient Indian writing. Some sup- 

 pose the Wa-kan-da-pa-she to be the 

 outlet of a river, but a plain geologi- 

 cal observation will easily contradict 

 the somewhat complicated theory. 



Quaint signs fill the rocks, being in- 

 teresting even to look at, also afford- 

 ing a few links in the general study of 

 Biology. Curious hieroglyphics dat- 

 ing back as far as a hundred years or 

 more. A picture of the Wa-kan-da- 

 pa-she himself is carved in bold relief 

 upon one of the high walls. There 

 also, crawling, is a huge serpent, while 

 behind him is a Medicine man waving 

 his hand. One of the most ancient 

 figures is the back part of a hand. 



A great many of the carvings are al- 

 most completely obliterated by moss 

 and it is next to impossible fo recog- 

 nize any trace of them. The tradit- 

 ional story as it is told is this: 



A long time ago an evil spirit in the 

 form of a huge serpent infested the 

 ravine. One of the eastern tribes 

 sent a Medicine man there to drive 



the monster away. The Wa-ka nu or 

 medicine man never returned and it is 

 said he was destroyed by the Evil God. 

 The Indians never went near since the 

 unfortunate day. 



Of the picture of the Wa-kan-da- 

 pa-she, the huge serpent and the med- 

 icine man waving his hand, it is said 

 the waving hand served to command 

 the intruder to leave the retreat. In 

 olden times this formed the strongest 

 and most formidable place in the 

 country in times of war. 



The ancient carving of the back 

 part of the hand served to signify in 

 time of war that it was safe to ad- 

 vance for the foe was behind them. 

 There is also a faint outline of the 

 front part of a hand, this signifying 

 that the enemy was ahead and it would 

 not be safe to venture in that direct- 

 ion. 



The "Handwriting on the wall" tells 

 the story just the same that here the 

 Indian lived in peace and war long be- 

 fore the advance guards of civilization 

 took up their march across the plains 

 that is now the land of prospeiity. 



Lewis and Clark mention the place 

 in, as it is now called, their American 

 Epos. These daring explorers land- 

 ed at the foot of the famous 

 Blackbird's grave sometime in July 

 1804, several years after Blackbird's 

 death. 



The creek which fiows through^ the 

 traditional gully was then called ^Wa- 

 kan-ka-pa-she, known now as the 

 Blackbird. "Bvzzard." 



Blackbird Hill. 



Along the banks of the "Big Muddy" 

 about ten miles north of f Decatur, 

 Neb., is a large mound known as 

 Blackbird Hill. Here the world-wide 

 famous Indian sachem Blackbird lies 



