BtTLL. 301 ALGONQTTINS OF PORTAGE DE PRAIRTE ALIBAMU. 



43 



stone sla))s. The Nanticoke, and some of 

 the western tribes, after temporary burial 

 in the ground or exposure on scaffolds, 

 removed the flesh and reinterred the 

 skeletons. 



The eastern Algonquian tribes probably 

 equaled the Iroquois in bravery, intelli^ 

 gence, and physical powers, but lacked 

 their constancy, solidity of character, 

 and capability of organization, and do 

 not appear to have appreciated the power 

 and influence they might have wielded 

 l)y combination. The alliances between 

 tribes were generally temporary and 

 without real cohesion. There seems, in- 

 deed, to have been some element in their 

 character which rendered tliem incapa- 

 ble of combining in large bodies, even 

 against a common enemy. Some of their 

 great chieftains, as Philip, Pontiac, and 

 Tecumseh, attempted at different periods 

 to unite the kindred tribes in an effort 

 to resist the advance of the white race; 

 ])ut each in turn found that a single great 

 defeat disheartened his followers and . 

 rendered all his efforts fruitless, and the 

 former two fell by the hands of deserters 

 from their own ranks. The Virginia 

 tribes, under the able guidance of Pow- 

 hatan and Opechancanough, formed an 

 exception to the general rule. They 

 presented a united front to the whites, 

 and resisted for years every step of their 

 advance until the Indians were practically 

 exterminated. From the close of the 

 Revolution to the treaty of (jreenville 

 (1795) the tribes of the Ohio valley also 

 made a desperate stand against the Amer- 

 icans, but in this they had the encour- 

 agement, if not the more active support, 

 of the British inCanada as well as of other 

 Indians. In individual character many 

 of the Algonquian chiefs rank high, and 

 Tecumseh stands out prominently as one 

 of the noblest figures in Indian history. 



The present number of the Algonquian 

 family is about 90,000, of whom about 

 40,000 are in the United States and 50,000 

 in Canada. The largest tribes are the 

 Chippe.wa and the Cree. (j. m. c. t. ) 

 >Algonkin-Lenape,— Gallatin in Trans. Am. 

 Antiq. Soc, ll, 23, 305, 1836. Berghaus (1845), 

 Phvsik. Atlas, map 17,1848. Ibid., 1852. >Algon- 

 qui'n. -Bancroft, Hist. U. S.,.III, 237, 1840. Prich- 

 ard, Phys. Hist. Mankind, v, 381, 1S47 (follows 

 GallatinK >Algonkins.— Gallatin in Trans. Am. 

 Ethnol. Soc, II. pt. 1, xcix, 77, 1848. Gallatin in 

 Schoolcraft, Ind. Tribes, in, 401, 18.53. >Algon- 

 kin.— Turner in Pac. R. R. Rep., in, pt. 3, 55, 

 l.s5t;. Hayden, Kthnog. and Philol. .Mo. Val., 232, 

 Isi'i'J (treats only of Crees, Blackfeet, Shyennes). 

 Hyle in Am. Anti(|., 112, April, ]s,s;5 (treated with 

 reference to ini{,'nitinn). <Algonkin. — Latham 

 in Trans. Philol. Soc. Lund., is.'n; (adds to Galla- 

 tin's list of 183Gthe Bethuck, Shyenne, Blackfoot, 

 and Arrapaho). Latham, Opuscula, 327, 18t)0 (as 

 in preceding). Latham, Elem. Oomp. Philol., 

 447, 1862. <Algonquin. — Keane in Stanford, 

 Compend., Cent, and S. Am., 4(i0, 4(i5, 1S7S (list in- 

 clndes the Maqnas, an Iroiiuois tribe). >Saskat- 

 sohwainer. — Berghaus, Physik. Atlas, map 17, 1848 

 (probably designates the Arapaho). >Arapa- 

 hoes. — Berghaus, Physik. Atlas, map 17, 1852. 



• AlgonkinundBeothuk. — Berghaus. I'hysik. Atlas, 

 maji 72, l.s,s7. 



Algonquins of Portage de Prairie. A 

 Chipi)ewa band formerly living near L. 

 of the Woods and e. of it in Manitoba. 

 They removed before 1804 to the Red r. 

 country through jjersuasions of the trad- 

 ers. — Lewis and Clark, Disc, 55. 1806. 



Alibamu (said to be from the Choctaw 

 alba ayanmle, 'I open or clear the thick- 

 et'). A Muskhogean tribe of the Creek 

 confederacy that formerly dwelt in s. Ala- 

 bama. It is clear that the Alibamu and 

 Koasati were closely related, the language 

 of the two being practically identical. 

 When first found by the whites the 

 home of the tribe was on Alabama r. a 

 short distance below the junction of the 

 Coosa and Tallapoosa. Their early his- 

 tory, owing to confusion in the use of the 

 name, is uncertain, but according to tra- 

 dition they had migrated from a westerly 

 locality. In the Creek legend, as given 

 by Gatschet, they are mentioned, under 

 the name Atilamas, as one of 4 tribes con- 

 tending for the honor of being considered 

 the most ancient and valorous. The 

 chroniclers of De Soto's expedition in 

 1541 locate the "province" or "town" 

 of Alibamo a short distance n. w. of the 

 Chica.sa, in n. w. or central Mississippi. 

 According to the Gentleman of Elvas they 

 found a strongly fortified town, named 

 UUibahal), on Alabama or lower Coosa r. 

 Coxe (French, Hist. Coll. La., ii, 235, 

 1850) says that below the Coza, or Coussa, 

 on the same river, are the Ullibalies, 

 or Olibahalies, according to the French 

 the Allibamons. The identification with 

 the ITllibahali would be complete if this 

 statement could l)e accepted, but Gatschet 

 is inclined to doubt its correctness. The 

 history of the trilje recommences with the 

 appearance of the French in JNIobile bay in 

 1701-02. Bienville found "on the banks 

 and many adjacent islands, places aban- 

 doned by the savages on account of war 

 with the Conchaques [Conshac] and Ali- 

 bamons" (Hamilton, Colon. Mobile, 41, 

 1897 ) . The French soon became involved 

 in war with the tribe, who, joining the 

 Cherokee, Abihka, and Catawba in 1708, 

 descended Alabama r. to attack Ft Louis 

 and the Mol)ile Indians in that vicinity, 

 but retireil after burning some villages. 

 In 1713 the French established Ft Tou- 

 louse in their country to hold them in 

 check and to protect French traders. 

 The site of the fort was occupied in 1812 by 

 Ft Jackson. After the cession in 1763 by 

 France to Great Britain the fort was 

 abandoned, and at that time a part of the 

 trilje removed to the banks of the Mis- 

 sissippi and established a village 60 m. 

 above New Orleans. This band num- 

 bered about 120, including 30 warriors. 

 Subsequently the tribe removed to w. 

 Louisiana, and in 1890 some were still 



