250 EXPEDITION TO THE 



of his dress, which from its showy appearance imparted to 

 him a character of foppishness. In his hair he wore two 

 or three soldiers' plumes ; his moccasins of stained buck- 

 skin were tastefully puckered at the toes, and his breech- 

 cloth was quite tawdry. The chief is about fifty years of 

 age, but appears older ; his prominent features are good 

 and indicative of great acuteness and of a prying disposition ; 

 his stature is low ; he has long been one of the most influen- 

 tial of the Dacota Indians, more perhaps from his talents in 

 the counsel than his achievements in the field. He is repre- 

 sented as being a wise and prudent man, a forcible and im- 

 pressive orator. His disposition to the Americans has ge- 

 nerally been a friendly one, and his course of policy is 

 well spoken of. The major's party having no other in- 

 terpreter than Wade, who proved less serviceable than had 

 been expected, could hold but a short conversation with 

 him, and therefore proceeded on their journey, and en- 

 camped two miles above the village. Near this place a num- 

 ber of mounds were seen, arranged in nearly a right line 

 along the margin of the river ; they were of inconsidera- 

 ble height, but covered a large surface. Indian remains 

 were observed, in great plenty, for the ensuing two days, 

 extending along the banks of the Mississippi, and espe- 

 cially near the shores of Lake Pepin, along which the land 

 party travelled on the 30th. These mounds and remains at- 

 test, of course, theformer existence of a very dense popula- 

 tion along the lake. It must have been a stationary one, for 

 these works could not have been executed in a short space 

 of time. We are, likewise, led to believe that they were 

 erected by the same nation that constructed the fortifi- 

 cations described by Carver as existing on the bank of 

 the Mississippi a little below Lake Pepin. The latitude of 

 the encampment, near the lower extremity of the lake, was 



