﻿fletcher-la 
  flesche] 
  ENVIRONMENT; 
  RESULTANT 
  INFLUENCES 
  73 
  

  

  stones 
  were 
  left 
  where 
  they 
  had 
  been 
  used. 
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  men 
  said 
  

   that 
  they 
  had 
  seen 
  such 
  traces 
  of 
  deserted 
  village 
  sites 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  

   Missouri 
  in 
  the 
  region 
  where 
  the 
  tribe 
  is 
  said 
  once 
  to 
  have 
  lived. 
  

   Dakota 
  tradition 
  tells 
  of 
  their 
  meeting 
  the 
  Omaha 
  near 
  the 
  

   Blue 
  Earth 
  and 
  Minnesota 
  rivers. 
  That 
  the 
  Omaha 
  dwelt 
  

   for 
  a 
  considerable 
  time 
  in 
  the 
  forest 
  region 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  borne 
  out 
  

   by 
  both 
  legends 
  and 
  rites, 
  which 
  show 
  the 
  influence 
  of 
  tin 
  1 
  woods. 
  

   The 
  Sacred 
  Pole 
  was 
  cut 
  while 
  the 
  people 
  were 
  dwelling 
  in 
  the 
  

   wooded 
  country, 
  as 
  all 
  the 
  traditions 
  of 
  the 
  cutting 
  seem 
  to 
  indicate. 
  

   When 
  that 
  occurred 
  the 
  Ponca 
  were 
  still 
  with 
  the 
  Omaha, 
  and 
  their 
  

   legends 
  are 
  similar 
  to 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  latter 
  touching 
  the 
  finding 
  and 
  

   cutting 
  of 
  the 
  Pole. 
  The 
  tree 
  from 
  which 
  it 
  was 
  cut 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  

   stood 
  near 
  a 
  lake, 
  and 
  the 
  suggestion 
  has 
  been 
  made 
  that 
  the 
  place 
  

   was 
  Lake 
  Andes, 
  in 
  Choteau 
  county, 
  South 
  Dakota; 
  but 
  this 
  iden- 
  

   tification 
  has 
  not 
  been 
  accepted 
  by 
  the 
  best 
  tribal 
  authorities 
  and 
  

   traditions 
  do 
  not 
  favor 
  placing 
  the 
  act 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  this 
  lake. 
  

  

  It 
  was 
  prior 
  to 
  the 
  cutting 
  of 
  the 
  Sacred 
  Pole 
  that 
  the 
  Omaha 
  organ- 
  

   ized 
  themselves 
  into 
  their 
  present 
  order. 
  The 
  inauguration 
  of 
  the 
  

   rites 
  connected 
  with 
  the 
  Sacred 
  Pole 
  seems 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  for 
  the 
  

   purpose 
  of 
  conserving 
  that 
  order; 
  and 
  it 
  was 
  after 
  these 
  rites 
  had 
  

   been 
  instituted 
  that 
  the 
  Omaha 
  reached 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  the 
  Big 
  Sioux, 
  

   where 
  on 
  the 
  banks 
  of 
  a 
  small 
  stream 
  that 
  flows 
  in 
  from 
  the 
  north- 
  

   east 
  they 
  built 
  a 
  village. 
  It 
  was 
  while 
  they 
  were 
  living 
  here 
  that 
  a 
  

   disastrous 
  battle 
  took 
  place 
  (tradition 
  does 
  not 
  say 
  with 
  whom), 
  and 
  

   as 
  a 
  result 
  this 
  village 
  seems 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  abandoned, 
  after 
  the 
  dead 
  

   had 
  been 
  gathered 
  and 
  buried 
  in 
  a 
  great 
  mound, 
  around 
  which 
  a 
  stone 
  

   wall 
  was 
  built. 
  In 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  the 
  last 
  century 
  this 
  wall 
  was 
  still 
  to 
  

   be 
  seen. 
  Tradition 
  says, 
  " 
  In 
  this 
  battle 
  the 
  Sacred 
  Pole 
  came 
  near 
  

   being 
  captured." 
  

  

  It 
  was 
  while 
  the 
  Omaha 
  were 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  the 
  upper 
  Mississippi 
  

   that 
  they 
  came 
  into 
  contact 
  with 
  the 
  Cheyenne. 
  The 
  Legend 
  says, 
  

   "We 
  made 
  peace 
  with 
  the 
  Cheyenne. 
  At 
  that 
  time 
  the 
  Ponca 
  were 
  

   with 
  us, 
  and 
  the 
  Iowa 
  and 
  Oto 
  joined 
  in 
  the 
  peace." 
  The 
  old 
  narrator 
  

   added: 
  "The 
  Osage 
  say 
  they 
  were 
  withus, 
  too; 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  so 
  told 
  by 
  

   our 
  people." 
  Tins 
  overture 
  of 
  peace 
  may 
  have 
  been 
  made 
  in 
  conse- 
  

   quence 
  of 
  the 
  Omaha 
  having 
  invaded 
  the 
  Cheyenne 
  territory 
  in 
  the 
  

   northern 
  movement. 
  According 
  to 
  Dakota 
  traditions 
  the 
  Cheyenne 
  

   were 
  in 
  possession 
  of 
  the 
  upper 
  Mississippi 
  country 
  when 
  the 
  Dakota, 
  

   arrived 
  there. 
  It 
  may 
  be 
  difficult 
  to 
  determine 
  whether 
  or 
  not 
  at 
  this 
  

   time 
  the 
  Dakota 
  as 
  distinct 
  tribes 
  had 
  come 
  into 
  contact 
  with 
  the 
  

   Omaha 
  and 
  the 
  Ponca. 
  

  

  While 
  in 
  this 
  region 
  experiences 
  disruptive 
  in 
  character 
  must 
  have 
  

   visited 
  the 
  people 
  — 
  possibly 
  the 
  defection 
  of 
  the 
  Ponca 
  — 
  which 
  

   finally 
  resulted 
  in 
  their 
  complete 
  separation. 
  At 
  any 
  rate, 
  something 
  

  

  