THE GEORGE CATLIN INDIAN GALLERY. 695 



While Tve were thus listeoiug to the uarrations of His Majesty, my kind aud faith- 

 fttl unrse was approaching from the other end of the room aud leading up my little 

 children (Plato 22), whom he immediately recognized as my little family, and in the 

 most kind and condescending mauner took them by their hands and chatted with 

 them in language aud sentences suited to their age. 



His next object was to designate the paintings he wished me to copy and somewhat 

 enlarge, and soon pointed out the number of fifteen, which I was commanded to paint 

 for the palace at Versailles. 



Me. Catlin leaves Paris with the Indians for Brussels. 



Mr. Catlin, in the spring of 184G, left his gallery in the Louvre, 

 (having an idea that it was to be purchased by the King of France), 

 and took the Indians to Brussels for exhibition. 



They were received by the American minister, Mr. Clemson, and had 

 an audience with the King at the palace, v/ho presented the Indians 

 with medals. While here the Ojibbeways were attacked with small- 

 pox, and three of them died. Mr. Catlin was necessarily under very 

 heavy expense during the two months that the Indians were isolated 

 from visitors. He sent the survivors to London and returned to Paris* 

 with a loss of about $1,700. Mr. Catlin relates a curious circumstance 

 connected with the death of each of two of the Indians. 



WILLS OF THE TWO BRAVES. 



With the poor fellows who died there seemed to be a presentiment with each, the 

 moment he was broken out with the disease, that he was to die, and a very curious 

 circumstance attended this conyietion in each case. 



The first one, when he found the disease was well identified on him, sat down ujjon 

 the floor with the next one, his faithful and confiding friend, and, having very de- 

 liberately told him he was going to die, unlocked his little trunk, and spreading all 

 his trinkets, money, &c., upon the floor, bequeathed them to his friends, making tlie 

 other the sole executor of his will, intrusting them all to him, directing him to take 

 them to his country and deliver them with his own hand. As he was intrusting these 

 lirecious gifts, with. his commands, to an Indian, he was certain, poor fellow! that 

 they would be sacredly preserved and delivered, and he then locked his little trunk, 

 and, having given to his friend the key, he turned to his bed, where ho seemed com- 

 l)osed and ready to die, because, he said, it was the will of the Great Spirit, and ho 

 didn't think that the Great Spirit would have selected him unless it was to better his 

 condition in some way. 



About the time of death of this young man his confiding and faithful friend was 

 discovered to be breaking out with the disease also, and, seeming to be under a 

 similar conviction, he called Say-say-gon (the Vv''ar-chief) to him, aud like the other, 

 unlocked his little trunk, and taking out his medal from the king, and other presents 

 aud money, ho designated a similar distribution of them amongst his relatives; and 

 trusting to the War-chief to execute his will, ho locked his trunk, having taken the 

 last look at his little hard-earned treasures, and unlocking that of his deceased com- 

 l)anion, and designating, as well as as ho could, the manner in which the verbal in- 

 structions had been leff with him, gave the key to the War-chief, aud begged of him 

 to take charge of the trunk and the presents, aud to see them bestowed according to 

 tho will of the testator. After this ho turned away from his little worldly treasures, 

 aud suddenly lost all knowledge of them in the distress of tho awful disease that soon 

 terminated his existence. 



