﻿HISTORY 
  OF 
  THE 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  IROQUOIS 
  155 
  

  

  have 
  the 
  fewest 
  of 
  all, 
  the 
  attendance 
  at 
  first 
  being 
  determined 
  by 
  

   distance 
  and 
  interest, 
  and 
  the 
  Senecas 
  being 
  the 
  last 
  to 
  favor 
  the 
  

   league. 
  In 
  representation 
  this 
  made 
  no 
  difference, 
  each 
  nation 
  

   having 
  but 
  one 
  vote, 
  and 
  its 
  chiefs 
  agreeing 
  what 
  that 
  should 
  be. 
  

   Though 
  there 
  were 
  these 
  principal 
  chiefs 
  succeeding 
  to 
  the 
  old 
  

   titles, 
  it 
  is 
  historically 
  true 
  that 
  there 
  were 
  often 
  more, 
  increasing 
  

   or 
  diminishing 
  as 
  might 
  be 
  expedient. 
  There 
  are 
  many 
  cases 
  

   where 
  more 
  than 
  the 
  regular 
  number 
  are 
  mentioned, 
  and 
  prin- 
  

   cipal 
  chiefs 
  were 
  deposed 
  or 
  restored 
  when 
  desired. 
  War 
  chiefs 
  

   were 
  often 
  leaders 
  in 
  war 
  and 
  assistants 
  to 
  the 
  principal 
  chiefs 
  

   in 
  peace, 
  as 
  they 
  are 
  now. 
  There 
  are 
  impressive 
  ceremonies 
  for 
  

   the 
  raising 
  of 
  each, 
  and 
  they 
  are 
  usually 
  nominated 
  by 
  the 
  women, 
  

   who 
  have 
  great 
  power, 
  but 
  do 
  not 
  speak 
  in 
  council. 
  Another 
  

   class 
  is 
  of 
  the 
  pinetree 
  chiefs, 
  having 
  their 
  roots 
  in 
  the 
  sky 
  and 
  

   their 
  power 
  from 
  their 
  goodness, 
  but 
  rules 
  varied 
  much. 
  

  

  The 
  Hi-a-wat-ha 
  legends 
  are 
  many 
  and 
  different. 
  He 
  was 
  the 
  

   reputed 
  founder 
  of 
  the 
  league 
  in 
  the 
  way 
  of 
  suggestion 
  and 
  work, 
  

   and 
  the 
  inventor 
  of 
  wampum 
  with 
  some, 
  this 
  being 
  new 
  to 
  the 
  

   Iroquois 
  at 
  the 
  beginning 
  of 
  the 
  17th 
  century. 
  In 
  most 
  tales 
  he 
  

   travels 
  through 
  the 
  nations, 
  explaining 
  his 
  views 
  and 
  giving 
  the 
  

   national 
  and 
  council 
  names 
  by 
  which 
  they 
  have 
  since 
  been 
  known. 
  

   Though 
  slightly 
  known 
  before, 
  Mr 
  J. 
  V. 
  H. 
  Clark 
  first 
  gave 
  wide 
  

   circulation 
  to 
  the 
  story 
  in 
  its 
  most 
  fanciful 
  and 
  popular 
  form, 
  too 
  

   well 
  known 
  to 
  require 
  repetition 
  in 
  detail. 
  He 
  had 
  this 
  from 
  

   Onondaga 
  chiefs. 
  Ta-oun-ya-wat-ha 
  comes 
  to 
  earth 
  and 
  delivers 
  

   it 
  from 
  many 
  evils, 
  becomes 
  a 
  man 
  indeed 
  as 
  Hiawatha, 
  con- 
  

   venes 
  a 
  council, 
  forms 
  the 
  league, 
  and 
  ascends 
  to 
  heaven 
  again 
  

   in 
  his 
  white 
  canoe. 
  Mr 
  Clark 
  said 
  that 
  Hiawatha's 
  often 
  quoted 
  

   speech 
  was 
  a 
  pure 
  invention 
  of 
  his 
  own. 
  In 
  all 
  these 
  tales 
  the 
  

   council 
  ground 
  is 
  at 
  Onondaga 
  lake, 
  though 
  the 
  Onondagas 
  then 
  

   lived 
  a 
  score 
  of 
  miles 
  away. 
  Schoolcraft 
  had 
  the 
  story 
  from 
  

   Clark, 
  and 
  at 
  last 
  it 
  took 
  a 
  western 
  form. 
  

  

  The 
  earliest 
  of 
  these 
  tales 
  was 
  published 
  by 
  William 
  Dunlap 
  

   in 
  1839, 
  in 
  his 
  History 
  of 
  the 
  New 
  Netherlands. 
  He 
  had 
  it 
  from 
  

   the 
  Onondaga 
  interpreter, 
  E-phraim 
  Webster, 
  and, 
  not 
  remem- 
  

   bering 
  the 
  chief's 
  name, 
  he 
  called 
  him 
  Oweneko. 
  He 
  was 
  an 
  

  

  