Occoneechee - free ebook by Robert Frank Jarrett

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Occoneechee

Robert Frank Jarrett

45 chapters

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45 chapters

PREFACE.

PREFACE.

Realizing that the memory of a nation is best kept aglow by its songs and the writings of its poets, I have been inspired to write OCCONEECHEE, in order that the once powerful nation known as the Cherokee may be preserved in mind, and that their myths, their legends and their traditions may linger and be transmitted to the nations yet to come. Trusting that a generous people may hail with delight the advent of this new work, I now dedicate its pages to all lovers of music, poetry and fine art. W

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THE CHEROKEE. A brief history of the Cherokee Nation or tribe.

THE CHEROKEE. A brief history of the Cherokee Nation or tribe.

Among the more noted tribes were the Abnaki, Mohawk, Mohican, Huron, Iroquois, Munsi, Erie, Seneca, Susquehanna, Mamrahoac, Powhatan, Monacan, Nollaway, Tuscarora, Pamlico, Catawba, Santee, Uchee, Yamasee, Creek, Choctaw, Seminole, Showano and Cherokee, but of all of these it is left for us to speak alone of the valiant Cherokee, the most noble of all Red Men, who inhabited that picturesque country in the Appalachian chain of mountains in East Tennessee, Western North Carolina, Northern Georgia,

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PART II OCCONEECHEE

PART II OCCONEECHEE

by Robert Frank Jarrett. Far away beneath the shadows Of the towering Smoky range, In the Western North Carolina, Comes a story true, but strange; Of a maiden and her lover, Of the tribe of Cherokee, And she lived far up the mountain, Near the hills of Tennessee. Far above the habitation Of the white man, and the plain, Lived the dark-eyed Indian maiden, Of the Junaluska strain; Junaluska, chief, her father, Occoneechee was his pride, In the lonely little wigwam, High upon the mountain side. The

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I.

I.

There the stream Oconaluftee Hides its source far from the eye, Of the white man in his rovings, Far upon the mountain high; And the forest land primeval, Roamed by doe and wandering bear, And the hissing, coiling serpent, Was no stranger to them there. Catamount and mountain-boomer Sprang from cliff-side into trees, And the eagle, hawk and vulture Winged their course on every breeze. At the footfall of this maiden Sped the gobbler wild and free, From the maiden Occoneechee Flitted butterfly and

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II.

II.

Occoneechee sought her lover, Down Oconaluftee’s vale, Through the brush and tangled wildwood, Without compass, chart or trail, Where the river Tuckaseigee Dashes down its rocky bed, Near a trail long since deserted, Over which a tribe once sped. “I know not how the truth may be, I tell the tale as ’twas told me.” The myths related here are from the great story tellers like Ayunini, or “Swimmer,” who was the greatest of all, but while he ranked first and lived during the time that tried men’s he

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PART III MYTHS OF THE CHEROKEE

PART III MYTHS OF THE CHEROKEE

Next in rank of importance comes Itagunahi, better known among the English-speaking people as John Axe, who was born in the year 1800, saw the battle of Horseshoe Bend, witnessed the removal of the Cherokee tribe in 1838. He knew its history and almost all of the myths, legends and stories, transmitted many of them to the white man for record, and while he never spoke English, he was a very versatile and interesting man of the old type of Indians, and strong to the last days; he lived to near 10

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MYTH ONE. How the World Was Made.

MYTH ONE. How the World Was Made.

When the animals and the plants were first made—we do not know by whom—they were told to watch and keep awake for seven nights, just as young men now fast and keep awake when they pray to their medicine. They tried to do this, and nearly all were awake through the first night, but the next night several dropped off to sleep, and the third night others were asleep, and then others, until, on the seventh night, of all the animals, only the owl, the panther and one or two more were still awake. To

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MYTH TWO. The First Fire.

MYTH TWO. The First Fire.

Long ago, when the world was new, there were seven boys who used to spend all their time down by the town-house, playing the gatayusti game, rolling a stone wheel along the ground and sliding a curved stick after it to strike it. Their mothers scolded but it did no good, so one day they collected some gatayusti stones and boiled them in the pot with the corn for dinner. When the boys came home hungry their mothers dipped out the stones and said, “Since you like the gatayusti better than the corn

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MYTH THREE. Origin of the Pleiades and the Pine.

MYTH THREE. Origin of the Pleiades and the Pine.

Some people in the South had a corn mill, in which they pounded the corn into meal, and several mornings when they came to fill it they noticed that some of the meal had been stolen during the night. They examined the ground, and found the tracks of a dog; so the next night they watched, and when the dog came from the North, and began to eat the meal out of the bowl, they sprang out and whipped him. He ran off howling to his home in the North, with the meal dropping from his mouth as he ran, and

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MYTH FOUR. The Milky Way.

MYTH FOUR. The Milky Way.

A long time ago a man had a dog, which began to go down to the river every day and look at the water and howl. At last the man was very angry and scolded the dog, which then spoke to him and said: “Very soon there is going to be a great freshet and the water will come so high that everybody will be drowned; but if you will make a raft to get upon when the rain comes, you can be saved, but you must first throw me into the water.” The man did not believe it, and the dog said, “If you want a sign t

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MYTH FIVE. The Deluge.

MYTH FIVE. The Deluge.

The Rabbit was a great runner and a great boaster of what she could do. No one thought that a Terrapin was anything but a slow traveler, but he was a great warrior and very boastful, and the two were always disputing about their speed. At last they agreed to decide the matter by a race. Tuckaseigee River. “There the Tuckaseigee River Dashes down its rocky bed.” They fixed the day and the starting place, and arranged to run across four mountain ridges, and the one who came in first at the end of

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MYTH SIX. How the Terrapin Beat the Rabbit.

MYTH SIX. How the Terrapin Beat the Rabbit.

They fixed the day and the starting place, and arranged to run across four mountain ridges, and the one who came in first at the end of the race was to be the winner. The Rabbit felt so sure of it that he said to the Terrapin, “You know you can’t run. You know you can never win the race, so I’ll give you the first ridge and then you’ll have three to cross while I go over four.” The Terrapin said that would be all right, but that night when he went home to his family he sent for his Terrapin frie

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MYTH SEVEN. The Rabbit and the Tar Wolf.

MYTH SEVEN. The Rabbit and the Tar Wolf.

The Rabbit and the Possum each wanted a wife, but no one would marry either of them. They talked the matter over and the Rabbit said, “We can’t get wives here; let’s go to the next settlement. I’m the messenger for the council, and I’ll tell the people that I bring an order that everybody must take a mate at once, and then we’ll be sure to get wives.” The Possum thought this a fine plan, so they started off together to the next town. As the Rabbit traveled faster he got there first and waited ou

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MYTH EIGHT. The Rabbit and the Possum After a Wife.

MYTH EIGHT. The Rabbit and the Possum After a Wife.

When the Terrapin won the race from the Rabbit (see Myth Six) all the animals wondered and talked about it a great deal, because they had always thought the Terrapin slow, although they knew that he was a warrior and had many conjuring secrets besides. But the Turkey was not satisfied, and told the others that there must be some trick about it. Said he, “I know the Terrapin can’t run—he can hardly crawl—and I’m going to try him.” So one day the Turkey met the Terrapin coming home from war with a

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MYTH NINE. How the Turkey Got His Beard.

MYTH NINE. How the Turkey Got His Beard.

A long time ago the Grouse had a fine voice and a good halloo in the ball play. All the animals and birds used to play ball in those days and were just as proud of a loud halloo as the ball players of today. The Turkey had a poor voice, so he asked the Grouse to give him lessons. The Grouse agreed to teach him, but wanted pay for his trouble, and the Turkey promised to give him some feathers to make him a collar. This is how the Grouse got his collar of turkey feathers. They began the lessons, a

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MYTH TEN. Why the Turkey Gobbles.

MYTH TEN. Why the Turkey Gobbles.

Some old men tell us that the Kingfisher was meant in the beginning to be a water bird, but as he had not been given either web feet or a good bill he could not make a living. The animals held a council over it and decided to make him a bill like a long sharp awl for a fish-gig or spear. They made him a fish-gig and fastened it on in front of his mouth. Me flew to the top of a tree, sailed out and darted down into the water, and came up with a fish on his gig; and he has been the best gigger eve

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MYTH ELEVEN. How the Kingfisher Got His Bill.

MYTH ELEVEN. How the Kingfisher Got His Bill.

In the old days, when the world was new, the Terrapin had a fine whistle, but the Partridge had none. The Terrapin was constantly going about whistling and showing his whistle to the other animals, until the Partridge became jealous, so one day when they met, the Partridge asked leave of the Terrapin to try the whistle. The Terrapin was afraid to risk it at first, suspecting some trick, but the Partridge said, “I’ll give it back right away, and if you are afraid you can stay with me while I prac

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MYTH TWELVE. How the Partridge Got His Whistle.

MYTH TWELVE. How the Partridge Got His Whistle.

A Raccoon passing a Wolf one day made several insulting remarks, until at last the Wolf became angry and turned and chased him. The Raccoon ran his best, and managed to reach a tree by the river side before the Wolf came up. He climbed the tree and stretched out on a limb overhanging the water. When the Wolf arrived, he saw the reflection in the water, and, thinking it was the Raccoon, jumped at it and was nearly drowned before he could scramble out again, all wet and dripping. He lay down on th

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MYTH THIRTEEN. How the Red Bird Got His Color.

MYTH THIRTEEN. How the Red Bird Got His Color.

The Pheasant once saw a woman beating corn in a wooden mortar in front of the house. “I can do that, too,” said he, but the woman would not believe it, so the Pheasant went into the woods and got upon a hollow log and “drummed” with his wings, as a Pheasant does, until the people in the house heard him and thought he was really beating corn. In the Pheasant dance, a part of the Green-Corn dance, the instrument used is a drum, and the dancers beat the ground with their feet in imitation of the dr

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MYTH FOURTEEN. The Pheasant Beating Corn, the Origin of the Pheasant Dance.

MYTH FOURTEEN. The Pheasant Beating Corn, the Origin of the Pheasant Dance.

The Humming-Bird and the Crane were both in love with a pretty woman. She preferred the Humming-bird, who was as handsome as the Crane was awkward, but the Crane was so persistent that in order to get rid of him she finally told him he must challenge the other to a race and she would marry the winner. The Humming-bird was so swift—almost like a flash of lightning—and the Crane so slow and heavy, that she felt sure that the Humming-bird would win. She did not know that the Crane could fly all nig

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MYTH FIFTEEN. The Race Between the Crane and the Humming-Bird.

MYTH FIFTEEN. The Race Between the Crane and the Humming-Bird.

The generic name for snake is inadu. They are all regarded as inaduwehi, “supernaturals,” having an intimate connection with the rain and the thunder gods, and possessing a certain influence over the other animals and plant tribes. It is said that the snakes, the deer, and the ginseng act as allies, so that an injury to one is avenged by the others. The feeling toward snakes is one mingled with fear and reverence, and every precaution is taken to avoid the killing or offending one, especially th

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MYTH SIXTEEN. The Snake Tribe.

MYTH SIXTEEN. The Snake Tribe.

The rattlesnake is called utsanati, which may be rendered, “he has a bell,” alluding to the rattles. According to their myths the rattlesnake was once a man, and was transformed to his present shape that he might save the human race from extermination by the Sun, a mission which he accomplished successfully after others had failed. By the old men he is also spoken of as “The Thunder’s Necklace,” and to kill one is to destroy one of the most prized ornaments of the Thunder-god. In one of the form

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MYTH SEVENTEEN. The Uktena and the Ulunsuti.

MYTH SEVENTEEN. The Uktena and the Ulunsuti.

Whoever owns the Ulunsuti is sure of success in hunting, love, rain-making and every other business, but its great use is in life prophecy. When it is consulted for this purpose the future is seen mirrored in the clear crystal as a tree is reflected in the quiet stream below, and the conjurer knows whether the sick man will recover, whether the warrior will return from the battle, or whether the youth will live to be old. In one of their battles with the Showano, who are all magicians, the Chero

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MYTH EIGHTEEN. Agan-uni-tsi’s Search for the Uktena.

MYTH EIGHTEEN. Agan-uni-tsi’s Search for the Uktena.

The Uktena was still asleep, and, putting an arrow to his bow, Agan-uni-tsi shot and sent the arrow through its heart, which was under the seventh spot from the serpent’s head. The great snake raised his head, with the diamond in front flashing fire, and came straight at his enemy, but the magician, turning quickly, ran at full speed down the mountain, cleared the circle of fire and the trench at one bound, and lay down on the ground inside. The Uktena tried to follow, but the arrow was thru his

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MYTH NINETEEN. The Red Man and the Uktena.

MYTH NINETEEN. The Red Man and the Uktena.

A man living down in Georgia came to visit some relatives at Hickory-log. He was a great hunter, and after resting for some days, got ready to go into the mountains. His friends warned him not to go toward the north, as in that direction, near a certain large uprooted tree, there lived a dangerous monster Uksuhi snake. It kept constant watch, and whenever it could spring upon an unwary hunter it would coil about him and crush out his life in its folds, and then drag the dead body down the mounta

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MYTH TWENTY. The Hunter and the Uksuhi.

MYTH TWENTY. The Hunter and the Uksuhi.

There was once a great serpent, called the Ustutli, that made its haunt upon Cohutta mountain. It was called the Ustutli or “foot” snake, because it did not glide like other snakes, but had feet at each end of its body, and moved by strides or jerks, like a great measuring worm. These feet were three-cornered and flat and could hold to the ground like suckers. It had no legs, but would raise itself up on its hind feet, with its snaky head high in the air until it found a good place to take a fre

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MYTH TWENTY-ONE. The Ustutli.

MYTH TWENTY-ONE. The Ustutli.

He went down to the base of the mountain, opened his fire pouch, and set fire to the grass and leaves. Soon the fire ran all around the mountain and began to climb upward. When the great serpent smelled the smoke and saw the flames coming, it forgot all about the hunter and turned to make all speed for a high cliff near the summit. It reached the rock and got upon it, but the fire followed and caught the dead pines about the base of the cliff until the heat made the Ustutli’s scales crack. Takin

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MYTH TWENTY-TWO. The Uwtsunta.

MYTH TWENTY-TWO. The Uwtsunta.

There was a boy who used to go bird hunting every day, and all the birds he brought home to give to his grandmother, who was very fond of him. This made the rest of the family jealous, and they treated him in such fashion that at last one day he told his grandmother he would leave them all, but that she must not grieve for him. Next morning he refused to eat any breakfast, but went off hungry to the woods and was gone all day. In the evening he returned, bringing with him a pair of deer horns, a

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MYTH TWENTY-THREE. The Snake Boy.

MYTH TWENTY-THREE. The Snake Boy.

Two hunters, both for some reason under a tabu against the meat of a squirrel or turkey, had gone into the woods together. When evening came, they found a good camping place and lighted a fire to prepare their supper. One of them had killed several squirrels during the day, and now got ready to broil them over the fire. His companion warned him that if he broke the tabu and ate squirrel meat he would become a snake, but the other laughed and said that was only a conjurer’s story. He went on with

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MYTH TWENTY-FOUR. The Snake Man.

MYTH TWENTY-FOUR. The Snake Man.

One day in the olden times, when we could still talk with other creatures, while some children were playing about the house, their mother inside heard them scream. Running outside she found that a rattlesnake had crawled from the grass, and taking up a stick she killed it. The father was out hunting in the mountains, and that evening when coming home after dark thru the gap, he heard a strange wailing sound. Looking about he found that he had come into the midst of a whole company of rattlesnake

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MYTH TWENTY-FIVE. The Rattlesnake’s Revenge.

MYTH TWENTY-FIVE. The Rattlesnake’s Revenge.

On the north bank of Little Tennessee river, in a bend below the mouth of Citico creek, in Blount County, Tennessee, is a high cliff hanging over the water, and about half way up the face of the rock is a cave with two openings. The rock projects outward above the cave, so that the mouth cannot be seen from above, and it seems impossible to reach the cave either from above or below. There are white streaks in the rock from the cave down to the water. The Cherokee call it Tlanuwai (the place of t

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MYTH TWENTY-SIX. The Nest of the Tlanuwas.

MYTH TWENTY-SIX. The Nest of the Tlanuwas.

The Pools, Chimney Rock. “Still the stream flows fresh forever, Never resting, night or day.” In the nest he found four young ones, and on the floor of the cave were the bones of all sorts of animals and children that had been carried there by the hawks. He pulled the young ones out of the nest and threw them over the cliff into the deep water below, where a great Uktena serpent that lived there finished them. Just then he saw the two old ones coming, and had hardly time to climb up again to the

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MYTH TWENTY-SEVEN. The Hunter and the Tlanuwa.

MYTH TWENTY-SEVEN. The Hunter and the Tlanuwa.

Long, long ago, there lived in the mountains a terrible ogress, a woman monster, whose food was human livers. She could take on any shape that she pleased, or that suited her purpose, but in her right form she looked very much like an old woman, excepting that her whole body was covered with a skin as hard as a rock, that no weapon could wound or penetrate, and that on her right hand she had a long, stony finger of bone, like an awl or spear-head, with which she stabbed everyone to whom she coul

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MYTH TWENTY-EIGHT. Utlunta, the Spear Finger.

MYTH TWENTY-EIGHT. Utlunta, the Spear Finger.

The hunters rushed out from the thicket and surrounded the pit, but shoot as true and as often as they could, the arrows struck the stony mail of the witch only to be broken and fall useless at her feet, while she taunted them and tried to climb out of the pit to get at them. They kept out of her way, but were only wasting their arrows when a small bird, Utsugi, the titmous, perched on a tree overhead and began to sing, “un, un, un.” They thought it was saying unqhu, heart, meaning that they sho

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MYTH TWENTY-NINE. Nunyunuwi, the Stone Man.

MYTH TWENTY-NINE. Nunyunuwi, the Stone Man.

In the old days there was a great fish called the Dakwa, which lived in the Tennessee river where Toco creek comes in at Dakwai, the “Dakwa place,” above the mouth of Tellico, and which was so large that it could easily swallow a man. Once a canoe filled with warriors was crossing over from the town on the other side of the river, when the Dakwa suddenly rose up under the boat and threw them all into the air. As they came down it swallowed one with a single snap of its jaws and dived with him to

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MYTH THIRTY. The Hunter and Dakwa.

MYTH THIRTY. The Hunter and Dakwa.

(This is the scene of the myth upon which the story of Occoneechee is founded.) Westward from the headwaters of Oconaluftee river, in the wildest depths of the Great Smoky Mountains, which form the line between North Carolina and Tennessee, is the enchanted lake of Atagahi, “Gall place.” Although all of the Cherokee know that it is there, no one has ever seen it, for the way is so difficult that only the animals know how to reach it. Should a stray hunter come near the place he would know of it

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MYTH THIRTY-ONE. Atagahi, The Enchanted Lake.

MYTH THIRTY-ONE. Atagahi, The Enchanted Lake.

The North went traveling, and after going far and meeting many different tribes he finally fell in love with the daughter of the South and wanted to marry her. The girl was willing, but her parents objected and said, “Ever since you came the weather has been cold, and if you stay here we will all freeze to death.” The North pleaded hard, and said if they would let him have their daughter, he would take her back to his own country, so at last they consented. They were married and he took his brid

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MYTH THIRTY-TWO. The Bride from the South.

MYTH THIRTY-TWO. The Bride from the South.

Once when the people were burning the woods in the fall, and the blaze set fire to a poplar tree, which continued to burn until the fire went down into the roots and burned a great hole in the ground. It burned, and burned, and the hole grew constantly larger, until the people became frightened and were afraid that it would burn the whole world. They tried to put out the fire, but it had gone too deep, and they did not know what to do. At last some one said there was a man living in a house of i

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MYTH THIRTY-THREE. The Ice Man.

MYTH THIRTY-THREE. The Ice Man.

A hunter had been tramping over the mountains all day long without finding any game, and when the sun went down, he built a fire in a hollow stump, swallowed a few mouthfuls of corn gruel and lay down to sleep, tired out and completely discouraged. About the middle of the night he dreamed and seemed to hear the sound of beautiful singing, which continued until near daybreak, and then appeared to die away in the upper air. All the next day he hunted, with the same poor success, and at night made

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MYTH THIRTY-FOUR. The Hunter and Selu.

MYTH THIRTY-FOUR. The Hunter and Selu.

Broad River. “Sparkling, gleaming in the sunlight, Bursts the water, pure and free.” The plant spoke to him, and told him to cut off some of its roots and take them to his home in the settlement, and the next morning to chew them and “go to water” before anyone else was awake, and then to go out again into the woods, and he would kill many deer, and from that time on would always be successful in the hunt. The corn plant continued to talk, teaching him hunting secrets and telling him to be alway

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MYTH THIRTY-FIVE. The Nunnehi and Other Spirit Folks.

MYTH THIRTY-FIVE. The Nunnehi and Other Spirit Folks.

So the man went back to the house, and the boy went on along the trail, but when he had gone a little distance he looked back, and there was no cornfield or orchard or fence or house; nothing but trees on the mountainside. He thought it rather queer, but somehow he was not frightened, and went on until he came to the river trail in sight of his house. There were a great many people standing about talking, and when they saw him they ran toward him shouting, “Here he is! He is not drowned or kille

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MYTH THIRTY-FIVE. The Removed Town-house.

MYTH THIRTY-FIVE. The Removed Town-house.

Long ago a powerful unknown tribe invaded the country from the southeast, killing people and destroying settlements wherever they went. No leader could stand against them, and in a little while they had wasted all the lower settlements and advanced into the mountains. The warriors of the old town of Nikwasi, on the head of Little Tennessee, gathered their wives and their children into the town-house and kept scouts constantly on the lookout for the presence of danger. One morning, just before th

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MYTH THIRTY-SIX. The Spirit Defenders of Nikwasi.

MYTH THIRTY-SIX. The Spirit Defenders of Nikwasi.

Chimney Top Gap. All along the ridge they fell, until when they reached the head of Tuckaseigee not more than half a dozen were left alive, and in their despair they sat down and cried out for mercy. The Nunnehi chief told them that they deserved their punishment for attacking a peaceful tribe, and he spared their lives and told them to go home and tell their people. It was the custom of the Indians to spare some to carry the news of battle and defeat. Then the Nunnehi went back to the mound, an

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MYTH THIRTY-SEVEN. Kanasta, the Lost Settlement.

MYTH THIRTY-SEVEN. Kanasta, the Lost Settlement.

On the southern slope of the ridge, along the trail from Robbinsville to Valley river, in Cherokee County, North Carolina, are the remains of a number of stone cairns. The piles are level now, but fifty years ago the stones were still heaped up in pyramids, to which every Cherokee who passed added a stone. According to the tradition these piles marked the graves of a number of women and children of the tribe who were surprised and killed on the spot by a raiding party of Iroquois shortly before

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Corrections

Corrections

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