﻿FU5TCHER-LAFLESCHE] 
  RECENT 
  HISTORY 
  631 
  

  

  they 
  found 
  pliant 
  and 
  government 
  officials 
  through 
  the 
  influence 
  of 
  

   traders 
  sometimes 
  made 
  "paper 
  chiefs" 
  by 
  giving 
  certificates 
  to 
  such 
  

   men. 
  Medals 
  were 
  hung 
  about 
  their 
  necks, 
  flags 
  were 
  presented 
  to 
  

   them, 
  and 
  efforts 
  were 
  made 
  to 
  keep 
  them 
  loyal 
  to 
  the 
  trading 
  com- 
  

   panies. 
  English 
  traders 
  succeeded 
  the 
  French 
  and 
  the 
  American 
  the 
  

   English, 
  consequently 
  the 
  medals, 
  flags, 
  and 
  certificates 
  of 
  one 
  

   nation 
  had 
  to 
  be 
  relinquished 
  when 
  another 
  nation 
  came 
  into 
  power; 
  

   finally 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  authorities 
  had 
  to 
  see 
  that 
  American 
  badges 
  

   were 
  substituted 
  for 
  foreign 
  gifts. 
  This 
  outside 
  pressure 
  on 
  tribal 
  

   affairs 
  complicated 
  the 
  life 
  and 
  thought 
  of 
  the 
  people 
  and 
  disturbed 
  

   the 
  ancient 
  forms 
  and 
  authority 
  of 
  the 
  chiefs. 
  The 
  people 
  could 
  no 
  

   longer 
  pursue 
  the 
  path 
  their 
  fathers 
  had 
  trod 
  — 
  changes 
  were 
  on 
  every 
  

   hand. 
  The 
  steady 
  stream 
  of 
  immigrants 
  brought 
  added 
  trouble 
  and 
  

   perplexity. 
  Indian 
  garden 
  patches 
  were 
  often 
  treated 
  as 
  though 
  

   maize 
  grew 
  wild 
  and 
  few 
  rights 
  of 
  the 
  natives 
  were 
  respected 
  in 
  the 
  

   onward 
  rush 
  of 
  white 
  men. 
  All 
  this 
  was 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  bewildering 
  to 
  

   the 
  mass 
  of 
  the 
  tribe. 
  Sometimes, 
  however, 
  a 
  man 
  was 
  able 
  to 
  lift 
  

   himself 
  above 
  the 
  turmoil 
  and 
  discern 
  the 
  trend 
  of 
  events. 
  Such 
  a 
  

   man 
  was 
  Big 
  Elk, 
  the 
  last 
  chief 
  of 
  his 
  name; 
  his 
  apprehension 
  of 
  

   coming 
  events 
  and 
  his 
  counsel, 
  embodied 
  in 
  a 
  sort 
  of 
  allegory, 
  have 
  been 
  

   given 
  on 
  page 
  84. 
  Big 
  Elk 
  impressed 
  his 
  own 
  outlook 
  on 
  the 
  change- 
  

   ful 
  future 
  on 
  a 
  half-breed 
  youth 
  toward 
  whom 
  he 
  was 
  drawn 
  in 
  friend- 
  

   ship 
  and 
  whom 
  he 
  afterward 
  adopted. 
  This 
  young 
  man, 
  Joseph 
  La 
  

   Flesche, 
  later 
  became 
  so 
  powerful 
  a 
  factor 
  in 
  the 
  welfare 
  of 
  the 
  tribe 
  

   that 
  it 
  is 
  proper 
  to 
  give 
  a 
  few 
  details 
  of 
  his 
  career. 
  The 
  facts 
  here 
  

   presented 
  were 
  obtained 
  from 
  Waje'pa 
  (Wa'thishnade, 
  pi. 
  29) 
  during 
  

   his 
  last 
  visit 
  to 
  the 
  writers 
  in 
  Washington, 
  shortly 
  before 
  his 
  death. 
  

  

  JOSEPH 
  LA 
  FLESCHE 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  early 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  last 
  century 
  an 
  Omaha 
  boy 
  was 
  taken 
  

   captive 
  by 
  the 
  Sioux. 
  He 
  grew 
  up 
  among 
  his 
  captors 
  and 
  became 
  

   a 
  man 
  of 
  influence 
  among 
  that 
  people. 
  One 
  of 
  his 
  sisters 
  became 
  

   the 
  wife 
  of 
  Joseph 
  La 
  Flesche, 
  a 
  French 
  trader 
  in 
  the 
  employ 
  of 
  

   one 
  of 
  the 
  fur 
  companies. 
  A 
  son 
  was 
  born 
  of 
  this 
  union, 
  probably 
  

   about 
  1818, 
  in 
  the 
  old 
  village 
  To 
  n 
  'wo 
  n 
  to 
  n 
  ga, 
  on 
  Omaha 
  creek. 
  

   The 
  long 
  absences 
  of 
  her 
  husband, 
  made 
  necessary 
  by 
  trading 
  

   business,, 
  were 
  irksome 
  to 
  the 
  young 
  Omaha 
  wife 
  and 
  she 
  finally 
  

   left 
  her 
  French 
  husband 
  and 
  married 
  one 
  of 
  her 
  own 
  tribe. 
  Little 
  

   Joseph 
  was 
  about 
  six 
  years 
  old 
  when 
  his 
  mother 
  married 
  again. 
  

   He 
  was 
  taken 
  by 
  his 
  aunt 
  to 
  visit 
  her 
  brother, 
  who 
  was 
  living 
  with 
  

   the 
  Sioux, 
  and 
  remained 
  three 
  years 
  or 
  more. 
  While 
  there 
  he 
  

   learned 
  to 
  speak 
  the 
  Dakota 
  language, 
  which 
  he 
  never 
  forgot. 
  At 
  

   the 
  time 
  he 
  returned 
  to 
  the 
  Omaha 
  with 
  his 
  aunt 
  his 
  father 
  was 
  

   there 
  trading 
  with 
  the 
  tribe. 
  He 
  pleaded 
  with 
  the 
  aunt 
  to 
  give 
  him 
  

  

  