NO. 15 ROLL CALL OF IROQUOIS CHIEFS — FENTON 69 



is laid out in kernels of corn. The pictographs, with certain exceptions 

 which resemble early treaty signatures and some war records of the 

 seventeenth century, appear modern and give evidence of having been 

 worked over and embellished in later times. Certain of them represent 

 objects of recent historic introduction, a type of log house built 

 at Grand River formerly (13), the nineteenth-century claw hammer 

 (29). They are in character with the drawings of Chief Abram 

 Charles and could almost have been made under his direction. 



Chief Charles was an advocate for the position that there were 

 only 49 chiefs, that the Onondagas had 14 offices held by 13 persons. 

 So was Andrew Spragg. The cane appears to have been equipped 

 with 50 pegs, including 14 for the Onondagas. The last of these has 

 been cut off, which means that the specimen antedates this controversy, 

 for which we may take the year 1923, when it is first mentioned in 

 Hewitt's notes. 



Besides the alteration of the pegs, the cane shows the marks of 

 successive owners. The possibility has been indicated that the picto- 

 graphs were added to and altered or worked over by several persons 

 who must have had the specimen in their possession for some time, 

 probably as keepers. A. Spragg went so far as to inscribe his name, 

 and we know that he was its last custodian. John Smoke knew of 

 three holders — Ganawado who made it. Sheriff Billy Wage, and 

 Spragg. This takes it back to about 1850, with but one weak link 

 in the chain. Hale, who saw Billy Wage in action in the summer of 

 1883, does not say that he carried a cane, nor does he describe the 

 staff carried by Silversmith who took over the role inside the long- 

 house. Allowing 20 years apiece for each of the holders (and this 

 is generous) we reach the year i860 as the probable date of its manu- 

 facture. This would be in the second or third generation on Grand 

 River. 



Other evidence from related specimens shows that it combined 

 several ancient ideas. Counting with kernels of corn in diagrams 

 permeates Iroquois ceremonialism. The use of canes as symbols of 

 age status has also been remarked. And we have shown that similar 

 tallies and pictographs had earlier cultural beginnings. What we 

 have then in the present specimen is a synthesis of several cultural 

 traits which have long historic roots in the past. 



CONCLUSION 



In this study of the Condolence cane in the Cranbrook Institute we 

 have tried to show its provenience, to date it within reasonable 

 probability, to uncover its cultural roots, to explain its function 



