And in long lines waving, bending In the thickets and the meadows And the people of the village He had seen, he said, a water From its mouth, he said, to greet him, Came Waywassimo, the lightning, Came the thunder, Annemeekee! And the warriors and the women Laughed aloud at poor Iagoo ; Do not think that we believe them!" I have seen it in a vision, From the regions of the morning, tell "Gitche Manito, the Mighty, The Great Spirit, the Creator, Sends them hither on his errand, Sends them to us with his message. Wheresoe'er they move, before them Swarms the stinging-fly, the Ahmo, Swarms the bee, the honey-maker; Wheresoe'er they tread, beneath them Springs a flower unknown among us, Springs the White Man's Foot in blossom. "Let us welcome, then, the strangers, Hail them as our friends and brothers, And the heart's right hand of friendship Give them when they come to see us. Gitche Manito, the Mighty, Said this to me in my vision. "I beheld, too, in that vision All the secrets of the future, Of the distant days that shall be. I beheld the westward marches Of the unknown, crowded nations. All the land was full of people, Restless, struggling, toiling, striving, Speaking many tongues, yet feeling But one heart-beat in their bosoms. In the woodlands rang their axes, Smoked their towns in all the valleys. 'Over all the lakes and rivers Rushed their great canoes of thunder. X "Then a darker, drearier vision Passed before me, vague and cloud. like. I beheld our nations scattered, Weakened, warring with each other; XXII. HIAWATHA'S DEPARTURE. By the shore of Gitche Gumee, All the air was full of freshness, Passed in golden swarms the Ahmo, Bright above him shone the heavens, Toward the sun his hands were lifted, Both the palms spread out against it, And between the parted fingers Fell the sunshine on his features, Flecked with light his naked shoulders As it falls and flecks an oak-tree Through the rifted leaves and branches. O'er the water floating, flying, Something in the hazy distance, Something in the mists of morning, Loomed and lifted from the water, Now seemed floating, now seemed flying, From the distant land of Wabun. Till the birch-canoe with paddles Then the joyous Hiawatha As to-day they shine and blossom, answer, chief made Stammered in his speech a little, Then the generous Hiawatha In a circle round the doorway, With their pipes they sat in silence, Waiting to behold the strangers, Waiting to receive their message; Till the Black-Robe chief, the Pale-face, From the wigwam came to greet them, Stammering in his speech a little, Speaking words yet unfamiliar: "It is well," they said, "O brother, That you come so far to see us!" Then the Black-Robe chief, the prophet, Told his message to the people, Told the purport of his mission, Told them of the Virgin Mary, And her blessed Son, the Saviour: How in distant lands and ages He had lived on earth as we do; How he fasted, prayed, and laboured; And the chiefs made answer, saying: Then they rose up and departed Each one homeward to his wigwam, To the young men and the women, Told the story of the strangers Whom the Master of Life had sent them From the shining land of Wabun. Heavy with the heat and silence Grew the afternoon of Summer; With a drowsy sound the forest Whispered round the sultry wigwam, With a sound of sleep the water Rippled on the beach below it; From the corn-fields shrill and ceaseless Sang the grasshopper, Pah-puk-keena; And the guests of Hiawatha, Weary with the heat of Summer, Slumbered in the sultry wigwam. Slowly o'er the simmering landscape Fell the evening's dusk and coolness, And the long and level sunbeams Shot their spears into the forest, Breaking through its shields of shadow, Rushed into each secret ambush, Searched each thicket, dingle, hollow; Still the guests of Hiawatha Slumbered in the silent wigwam. From his place rose Hiawatha, Bade farewell to old Nokomis, Spake in whispers, spake in this wise, Did not wake the guests that slumbered: "I am going, O Nokomis, On a long and distant journey, To the portals of the Sunset, To the regions of the home-wind, Of the Northwest wind, Keewaydin, But these guests I leave behind me, In your watch and ward I leave them; See that never harm comes near them, See that never fear molests them, Never danger nor suspicion, Never want of food or shelter, In the lodge of Hiawatha !" Forth into the village went he, Bade farewell to all the warriors, Bade farewell to all the young men, Spake persuading, spake in this wise: "I am going, O my people, On a long and distant journey; Many moons and many winters Will have come, and will have vanished, Ere I come again to see you. But my guests I leave behind me ; Listen to their words of wisdom, Listen to the truth they tell you, For the Master of Life has sent them From the land of light and morning!" On the shore stood Hiawatha, Turned and waved his hand at parting; On the clear and luminous water Launched his birch-canoe for sailing, From the pebbles of the margin Shoved it forth into the water; Whispered to it, "Westward! ward!" west And with speed it darted forward. Sighed, "Farewell, O Hiawatha!" In the glory of the sunset, Chibia'bos, a musician; friend of Hiawatha; Me'da, a medicine man. Meenah ga, the blueberry. Megissog'won, the Great Pearl-Feather, a magician, and the Manito of Wealth. Meshinau'wa, a pipe-bearer. Minjekah'wun, Hiawatha's mittens. Minnehaha, Laughing Water; a waterfall on a stream running into the Mississippi, between Fort Snelling and the Falls of St. Anthony. Minneha'ha, Laughing Water; wife of Hiawatha. Minne-wa'wa, a pleasant sound, as of the wind in the trees. Mishe-Mo'kwa, the Great Bear. Mishe-Nah'ma, the Great Sturgeon. Inin'ewug, men, or pawns in the Game of the Miskodeed', the Spring-Beauty, the Claytonia Keeway'din, the Northwest wind, the Home- Nah'-ma-wusk, the spearmint. roind. Kena beek, a serpent. Na'gow Wudjoo', the Sand Dunes of Lake Superior. |