now to seek the great chief’s
acceptance so that we may dwell here and live in peace.” Natchitos
then pulled out a small leather pouch. St. Denis looked curiously
at it for it seemed familiar. Natchitos removed the clasps on the
pouch and opened it. Inside the pouch was the flintlock pistol that
was given to him by St. Denis. It had never been fired. The
ammunition and gunpowder remained inside the pouch. He lifted the
pistol and showed it to Red Hawk. He now had his attention. Red
Hawk and his men looked at the pistol with obvious curiosity and
interest. Natchitos handed the pistol to Red Hawk and let him
examine it.
LaRouche stood with a
crooked stare as he looked on. He looked over at St. Denis, then
back at Red Hawk holding the pistol. “So
that’s how he gets these savages to trust him,” he thought to himself. LaRouche was beside himself with anger
and jealousy. Such a pistol was rare even to an enlisted
man. “How dare he give it to one of these
Indians,” he thought to himself. “And now this damn Indian is giving it to
another!”
St. Denis felt a little
uneasy in seeing the gift he had given to Natchitos being used in
such a manner, but he thought, ‘It’s his
gift. He can do what he wants with it.” Furthermore, he could see that this was working better than
any of the offerings that he had brought. He quickly decided that
this was a very clever gesture.
Natchitos placed the pistol
back in the leather pouch and closed it. With the pouch in both
hands, he lifted it and offered it to Red Hawk. Red Hawk accepted
the pistol and said, “You and your people can live among us here.
We will smoke as brothers tonight at the fire.” St. Denis and
Pénicaut were relieved.
Pénicaut began to help the
Nashitosh build living quarters. The Indians used their skills from
the year before at their old village and helped him with the tree
cutting and construction. Pénicaut had done this with the
Acolapissa. The new village was situated about a half mile further
down the shore on Lake Pontchartrain from the Acolapissa. As the
weeks and months went by, the Nashitosh became more familiar with
the new landscape and ways of hunting and fishing in these
different waters. Soon, all the tribal families had a place to call
home. Natchitos was grateful to Pénicaut for his thankless and
ceaseless help that he gave the tribe. Tooantuh and Sitting Crow
took to the new wilderness easily and began to hunt the wildlife in
the area around the lake with renewed vigor. The two tribes worked
together in sowing the nearby fields and planting crops.
The French would send
patrols to the area to check on the Indians on a regular basis.
Many times, LaRouche lead these patrols as they came through to
each village. The Indians now had plenty of game to hunt and ample
fish to catch in the lake. When the troops came through, the tribal
women would cook meals for them in thanks for their
security.
Natchitos soon found a
quiet place along the lake to sit and reflect as the sun rose each
morning. It wasn’t quite the same as his old place up on the hill
overlooking the Cane River, but it was sufficient. He treasured his
quiet time immensely as the sun rose each morning and it helped him
gather the strength to face each coming day.
As the years went by,
Natchitos watched his children grow beside the lake. Anoki grew
into a strong young brave who became a master hunter and fisherman.
Nito and Talulah both started to grow up as well and Natchitos was
pleased to see them playing with the other children. And then there
was Nule, the last of his tribe to be born at their old village. He
started to take his first steps beside the light of the lake and
the setting sun. Natchitos was pleased with his tribe’s transition,
but he longed to be back in his homeland. There was so much more
activity around this area, much more than he had ever witnessed. He
saw that the white man truly was coming from many directions and it
didn’t seem like it was
acceptance so that we may dwell here and live in peace.” Natchitos
then pulled out a small leather pouch. St. Denis looked curiously
at it for it seemed familiar. Natchitos removed the clasps on the
pouch and opened it. Inside the pouch was the flintlock pistol that
was given to him by St. Denis. It had never been fired. The
ammunition and gunpowder remained inside the pouch. He lifted the
pistol and showed it to Red Hawk. He now had his attention. Red
Hawk and his men looked at the pistol with obvious curiosity and
interest. Natchitos handed the pistol to Red Hawk and let him
examine it.
LaRouche stood with a
crooked stare as he looked on. He looked over at St. Denis, then
back at Red Hawk holding the pistol. “So
that’s how he gets these savages to trust him,” he thought to himself. LaRouche was beside himself with anger
and jealousy. Such a pistol was rare even to an enlisted
man. “How dare he give it to one of these
Indians,” he thought to himself. “And now this damn Indian is giving it to
another!”
St. Denis felt a little
uneasy in seeing the gift he had given to Natchitos being used in
such a manner, but he thought, ‘It’s his
gift. He can do what he wants with it.” Furthermore, he could see that this was working better than
any of the offerings that he had brought. He quickly decided that
this was a very clever gesture.
Natchitos placed the pistol
back in the leather pouch and closed it. With the pouch in both
hands, he lifted it and offered it to Red Hawk. Red Hawk accepted
the pistol and said, “You and your people can live among us here.
We will smoke as brothers tonight at the fire.” St. Denis and
Pénicaut were relieved.
Pénicaut began to help the
Nashitosh build living quarters. The Indians used their skills from
the year before at their old village and helped him with the tree
cutting and construction. Pénicaut had done this with the
Acolapissa. The new village was situated about a half mile further
down the shore on Lake Pontchartrain from the Acolapissa. As the
weeks and months went by, the Nashitosh became more familiar with
the new landscape and ways of hunting and fishing in these
different waters. Soon, all the tribal families had a place to call
home. Natchitos was grateful to Pénicaut for his thankless and
ceaseless help that he gave the tribe. Tooantuh and Sitting Crow
took to the new wilderness easily and began to hunt the wildlife in
the area around the lake with renewed vigor. The two tribes worked
together in sowing the nearby fields and planting crops.
The French would send
patrols to the area to check on the Indians on a regular basis.
Many times, LaRouche lead these patrols as they came through to
each village. The Indians now had plenty of game to hunt and ample
fish to catch in the lake. When the troops came through, the tribal
women would cook meals for them in thanks for their
security.
Natchitos soon found a
quiet place along the lake to sit and reflect as the sun rose each
morning. It wasn’t quite the same as his old place up on the hill
overlooking the Cane River, but it was sufficient. He treasured his
quiet time immensely as the sun rose each morning and it helped him
gather the strength to face each coming day.
As the years went by,
Natchitos watched his children grow beside the lake. Anoki grew
into a strong young brave who became a master hunter and fisherman.
Nito and Talulah both started to grow up as well and Natchitos was
pleased to see them playing with the other children. And then there
was Nule, the last of his tribe to be born at their old village. He
started to take his first steps beside the light of the lake and
the setting sun. Natchitos was pleased with his tribe’s transition,
but he longed to be back in his homeland. There was so much more
activity around this area, much more than he had ever witnessed. He
saw that the white man truly was coming from many directions and it
didn’t seem like it was
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