THE GEORGE CATLIN INDIAN GALLERY. 729 



complaint of your conduct to mo— they tell me this is a worthless fellow — a man of 

 no account in the nation, and if you paint his picture you must instantly destroy 

 theirs; you have no alternative, my dear sir — and the quicker this chap is out of your 

 lodge the better." 



This same matter was explained to my sitter hy the interpreter, when he picked up 

 his robe, wrapped himself in it, plied his fan nimhly ahout his face, and walked out 

 of the lodge in silence, hut with quite a consequential smile, taking his old position 

 in front of the door for awhile, after which he drew himself quietly off without fur- 

 ther exhibition. So highly do Mandan braves and worthies value the honor of being 

 painted ; and so little do they value a man, however lavishly nature may have be- 

 stowed her master touches upon him, who has not the pride and noble bearing of a 

 warrior. — Pages 113, 114, vol. 1, Catlin's Eight Years. 



AN OMAHA BRAVE'S OBJECTION TO BEING PAINTED. 



In " Last Eambles n Mr. Catlin relates a painting adventure with an 

 Omaha Brave. 



While ascending the Missouri River * * * and stopping in the tribe of Omahas, 

 after having painted several of the chiefs and warriors, I painted the portrait of a 

 fine young man, who was not a warrior, but a brave. The portrait was recognized 

 and approved by all, but I had observed him for several days afterwards coming in 

 and sitting down, and looking at his portrait a while, and going off apparently in a 

 somewhat surly and melancholy mood. One day he brought in the interpreter, and 

 said : " He did not like his picture ; it was not good ; it looked ashamed, because it 

 was looking the other way." 



The portrait was a three-quarter face, and the eyes looking off. He said : " I had 

 painted all the others right, looking straight forward ; he had been always in the 

 habit of looking white men in the face, but here, they would all see him with his face 

 turned the other way, as if he was ashamed." 



He requested me to alter it and make his eyes look straight forward. The chiefs 

 were all pleased with it, and advised me not to do so. 



He had learned a few days afterwards that I was not going to change his eyes in 

 the portrait, and the interpreter came into my wigwam and said I had got to fight ; 

 that the young man was in front of my wigwam and ready, and he believed there was 

 no alternative. I went out with my palette on my hand, and, to be sure, there he 

 was, entirely naked, and ready. I explained to him that I was very much surprised, 

 and that I loved him too much to fight him, and also that I had not thought he was 

 so much offended with his portrait, which the chiefs all liked so much, and if to alter 

 the eyes of his picture was all that he wanted, I would do it with the greatest pleasure 

 the next day. This prevented all necessity of our meeting ; and the next day, with 

 some water-colors mixed on my palette with some dry white lead, and he sitting a 

 few minutes, I painted him a new set of eyes, staring in a prodigious manner across 

 the bridge of his nose, which pleased him exactly, as they were looking straight for- 

 ward. He shook hands with me, seeing what I had done, and made me a present of 

 a pair of leggings as an evidence of his satisfaction. 



On my return to Saint Louis a year afterwards a piece of sponge with some clean 

 water took off the new pair of eyes, and the portrait now stands as it was originally, 

 one of the most interesting in my collection. 



MR. CATLIN PAINTING IN SOUTH AMERICA IN 1852 TO 1857. 



In 1871 Mr. Catlin made the following memoranda of the difficulties 

 attending his art work in South America in 1852-1857 : 



This note will explain the vexatious difficulties about Indian names in South Amer- 

 ica, and also communicate some curious incidents of voyage worth being known 



