swanton] EARLY HISTORY OF THE CREEK INDIANS 413 
the strip of Oklahoma later occupied by them, there were 27 "towns" 
or bands there which were in 1846 reduced to 25 by the death of two 
lenders, and the incorporation of their bands with others. The 
associations of the Creek elements in particular, in Florida, were so 
little sanctified by time and custom that they were easily destroyed, 
and progressively, with gradual losses in numbers, these 25 were 
still further cut down, until within the memory of the older people, 
only eight towns or neighborhoods supporting square grounds re- 
mained, and in 1912 these had been still further reduced to six. 
The Mikasuki preserve a ground near Seminole, Okla., and the 
Hitchiti had one near Keokuk Falls, which was given up many years 
ago. Of the remainder, one, located near Sasakwa, is called Liwa- 
hali, and, as I have stated above, contains, besides persons from the 
Upper Creek town of that name, the descendants of those who once 
occupied Kan-hatki and Fus-hatchee. Eufaula may be assumed to 
represent the descendants of that old Seminole colony planted at 
Tcuko tcati. According to the people now constituting it, the only 
Indians other than Eufaula living there are Chiaha. The other 
square grounds are called Okfuskee, Chiaha, Talahasutci, and Otcisi. 
Okfuskee and Chiaha bear names of former Creek towns, but I learn 
that the appellations are quite conventional, although no doubt some 
of the individuals going by the name are actually descended 
from people belonging to the town which the name indi- 
cates. Talahasutci is probably the " Talahasochte " of Bartram. 
There are now no old people belonging to it, but the chief told me 
he thought it had broken away from Tulsa. On the other hand, 
some Creek informants insisted that it came either from Abihka or 
from Abihka through Pakan talahasi. As I have pointed out else- 
whore, Pakan talahasi did not come from Abihka, and it is not likely 
that this town did either. If Hawkins is right in his description of 
the make-up of the Seminole population it would seem that 
originally it must have been either a Mikasuki town or a branch of 
Lower Eufaula. 1 Conclusive evidence is lacking. In Bartram's 
time the chief was known as the White King (Miko hatki). 2 Otcisi 
is a name not found among the regular town names of the Creeks 
proper. One of my oldest informants said that his mother explained 
it as derived from the custom of going out after hickory nuts (otci) 
with which to make oil. He thought the town was a branch of 
Eufaula hopai, but that into it had been gathered people from other 
places. Otcisi was, however, a name given by Hitchiti-speaking 
people to the Creeks, and in fact to any who used a language different 
from their own. Another informant, himself an Otcisi, said that 
1 See p. 400. 2 Bartram, Travels, p. 224 et seq. 
