BUSHNELL] NATIVE CEMETERIES AND FORMS OF BURIAL 31 



near the lower right corner of the picture are two small inclosiires, 

 two small cemeteries, the smaller belonging to the Indians, the 

 larger being reserved for the wdiites. 



Three years before McKenney visited Fond du Lac the expedi- 

 tion led by Maj. S. H. Long traversed the country of the Ojibway, 

 and when describing the burial customs of the tribe it was said : 



" The usual mode of disposing of their dead consists in interring 

 them. It has been observed that the Chippewa graves are always 

 dug very deep, at least 6 or 8 feet; whereas the Dacotas make but 

 shallow graves. Great respect is paid by the Chippewas to the 

 corpses of their distinguished men; they are wrapped up in cloths, 

 blankets, or bark, and raised on scaffolds. We heard of a very dis- 

 tinguished chief of theirs, who died upwards of 40 years since, and 

 was deposited on a scaffold near Fort Charlotte, the former grand 

 depot of the North-west Company. When the company were induced 

 to remove their depot to the mouth of the Kamanatekwoya, and con- 

 struct Fort William, the Indians imagined that it would be unbecom- 

 ing the dignity of their friend to rest anywhere but near a fort; 

 they therefore conveyed his remains to Fort William, erected a scaf- 

 fold near it, and upon it they placed the body of their revered chief ; 

 whenever there is occasion for it they renew its shroud. As a mark 

 of respect to the deceased, who w^as very friendly to white men, 

 the company have planted a British flag over his remains, which 

 attention was extremely gratifying to the Indians." (Keating, (1), 

 II, pp. 159-160.) This would have been about 175 miles northeast 

 of Fond du Lac, as Fort William stood on the mainland, north of 

 Isle Royale, in Lake Superior. Fort Charlotte was at the end of 

 Grand Portage, some 25 miles southwest of Fort William, and conse- 

 quently nearer Fond du Lac. 



Referring to the Ojibway belief in a future state after death, the 

 same writer remarked : 



" The Chippewas believe that there is in man an essence, entirely 

 distinct from the body; they call it O'chechag, and appear to 

 apply to it the qualities which we refer to the soul. They be- 

 lieve that it quits the body at the time of death, and repairs to 

 what they term Cheke Ch^kchekame. This region is supposed to be 

 situated to the south, and on the shores of the Great Ocean. Previous 

 to arriving there they meet with a stream, which they are obliged 

 to cross upon a large snake that answers the purpose of a bridge. 

 Those who die from drowning never succeed in crossing the stream; 

 they are thrown into it, and remain there forever. Some souls come 

 to the edge of the stream, but are prevented from passing by the 

 snake that threatens to devour them : these are the souls of persons 

 in a lethargy or trance. Being refused a passage, these souls re- 

 turn to their bodies and reanimate them. Thev believe that animals 



