Black Hawk and his relations with the Pale face
...f his land. Although with the broken promise and the plot against him, Black Hawk did not treat the Americans with any hatred. He states that if they would have “fulfilled their word to the Indians,” (67) that they would not have entered into this conflict against them. He praises the bravery of the U.S. men, and even stops other Indians from torturing captured soldiers (67). Eventually, Black Hawk loses interest in the campaign and returns home, dejected over what has come about and wanting to revisit a peaceful life. This would not be the first promise broken by the Americans, and gave Black Hawk all the more reason not to trust them and their treaties. Black Hawk was also later influenced heavily by those around him, in the Indian country. A Prophet from a neighboring village told him that the white men had no right to remove them from their land, and that they would not even attempt to disturb them. This sentiment was echoed by several other Indian chiefs, and gave Black Hawk a good feeling about the encroachment of the settlers. This was felt until it was discovered that the settlers had ploughed under their corn fields and taken the Indians homes for their own. Black Hawk did not understand why the Americans had taken over their land, and sought council with several Indian and American leaders. He was told, eventually by the government, to vacate the land because it was not his any longer. It had previously been signed over, through a deceptive tactic, to the U.S. government by several members of his tribe. Black Hawk did not recognize the sale of their land and continued to remain there, despite interjections from several leading Indians and governmental officials. He would look to the Prophet again, and was told that the “great War chief” (110) would do nothing about it, that they could remain on their land as long as they liked. The tribe only left after they realized that they would not have enough provisions to last them through the season (114), and that an Army was moving in; he wanted to keep peace and protect his tribe. Black Hawk would again listen to the Prophet and several chiefs who told him that the British and several Indian nations would help him return to his village. With this renewed confidence and with the support of his allies, Black Hawk would again, in vain, try to obtain the lands that he believed were his. As Donald Jackson states, “Black Hawk, deceived by chiefs and medicine men, thought he was leading his people to an alliance…that would help him rescue from the white settlers the site of his ancestral village and the cornfields that surrounded it. He could not know that he was leading his people to starvation and slaughter” (15). This attempt would lead to the Black Hawk War, and the massacre of his people, without the help of the British or any other Indian tribe. Black Hawk portrays himself in his autobiography as a peaceful individual, who only goes to war when necessary. When he hears that a Pottowatomie man has been slain by the white people, he gives “two horses and [his] rifle to [Wash-e-own’s] relations, not to break the peace” (77). He also refuses to kill the man who murdered his adopted son, and has another Indian do it (74). When the white people invade his village and take over their cornfields, he sought ways to coexist with them. He is also a spiritual person who look for signs from the Great Spirit. The Great Spirit directs all that happens, and he looks to commune with him, and seeks signs that he may leave. Black Hawk sees several signs from the Great Spirit throughout his life, showing that he is close to him, and in this regard, he is a great leader in the eyes of his people. Black Hawk’s decision making is based on what suits him best at that particular time. He prefers the British to others because of the gifts that are given, including medals and other assorted jewelry. When the British expel the French out of...