1 | Page 2

[<< Previous]

Today I see myself only eating bread, that is all, when I cannot get anything else to eat. That was his promise; he even used the sun, which is sacred, to indicate the terms of his promises. So that is why it is very difficult today to try to make a living. The white man today is rich. He took the minerals with which we could have made money; he took that away from us. If that had not happened, for example, you would be driving a very fancy car today. It was stated: "In the future, whatever the white man makes will also be yours." Where is it? There is nothing; we have nothing. But he has everything; everything he has is nice. I should not have to be here telling you of all this misfortune. Today every Indian should be very well off, on every reserve.

Lightning: When the white man first came and asked for land for agriculture, some Indians say he asked for this much (open hand with extended thumb), some say one foot. How was it known how much land they were asking for?

Horse: When they first came to deal with the Indians, they wanted to buy three things: grass, timber, and land, nothing else. The surface of the land was half a foot. "If there is anything underground in the future, it will not be ours," is what they were told, "that will all be yours." My father said the same thing. Today, nothing that is underground belongs to us; they have taken that away from us. That is the reason the people are unhappy, today. People often say that, just half a foot of ground. That is how the commissioner indicated with his hand (open hand with extended thumb). "Half a foot, nothing more." The trees were for his shelter and his animals; the grass was to be used for feeding his animals; just those three things. Everything else the Indian uses for a living on this earth is his, on the ground, in the bush, anything that flies or is underwater. They did not buy these things from the Indians.

Lightning: Do the Cree people have a relationship with the earth? The Blackfoot relate to it as "Mother Earth." Does that apply to the Cree as well?

Horse: Yes, we refer to it as our mother. We were made from this earth, from the dirt; we were formed from some water and dirt by Manitou; that is why we refer to it as our mother.

Lightning: When the treaty was made, did the Indians know of money? When they were being paid, they borrowed children from each other. Why were they making up large families?

Horse: They did not know of money. My grandfather said that the first time they saw money was during treaty time. They really liked the looks of the money. During the payment, some men who were bachelors borrowed some children. They had handfuls of money, but they did not know about it. The children were playing with it, and they were also tearing it up. They did not know about it.

Lightning: Today some Indians have been charged with hunting violations. What promises were made to them regarding hunting and fishing?

Horse: As I said before, they only wanted three things. "Anything the Indian may use for a living is his; the white man has nothing to do with it. There will be somebody who will look after that for the Indian; so the white man will not steal anything from the Indian." If anything was stolen, these men were going to protect us; but they sure protect the white man. They were supposed to protect us; that is what my dad used to tell me. Today the police do not protect us.

Lightning: What about education for the children and medicine? What can you tell me about those things?

Horse: Yes, education was discussed. "There will be a school on your reserve; your children will go there to be educated" until they reach a high degree of education. But they are always going away from the reserve to school; that is not what was said. The same about a hospital-"You will have a hospital inside the reserve," but we do not have one on the reserve. "A doctor will take good care of you there with proper food. You will not leave until you are all better. You will not have to pay for any of it."

Lightning: When the treaty was made, was it just verbal or was anything written on paper regarding promises?

Horse: No, they did not write anything. They came to inform the people. After they had made all the promises, they said that it would be written on hide, and that it would be kept at three different places. They were to use some type of ink that would never come off. The chief would keep one, one would be kept in Ottawa, and one would be kept by the Queen herself. That is what was said.

Lightning: How did the Indian make his living before the treaty was made?

Horse: Before the white man came, the Indian made a very good living. He was also very durable, like an animal. He was very strong because he only ate meat; he never boiled it; he cooked it on an open fire; that is why he never suffered from sickness. Even the children were not sick, and they wore very little clothing, even bare legs.

Lightning: How did the buffalo disappear?

Horse: The buffalo was given to the Indian by Manitou, for him to make a living. The buffalo was placed here on earth with the Indian. He was to use it for food, clothing, shelter, and blankets. When the white man arrived, the buffalo gradually disappeared. My father told us that the buffalo just vanished. Grandfather said they were taken away; they entered some opening in the ground. Some people went after them when they realized they were disappearing. It is said they found a place where they entered an opening in the ground. So they disappeared from then on.

Lightning: After the buffalo disappeared, did the Indian change his life-style in any way? How did he make his living?

Horse: During the time when the buffalo disappeared, the white man came, and he brought with him food and the way of life that he knew. That is when the Indian started to change his way of life.

Lightning: Before Treaty Six was signed, there were about four treaties signed in Eastern Canada. Did the Indians in this part of the country know anything of the treaties coming to them?

Horse: No, they were not aware of a treaty that was to be signed. It was only when it was here they realized what was happening. It was not like today, with the reserves we have today. This happened much later. Take this river-that was a boundary. The reserves were not separated. Even the Province of Saskatchewan and towards the east was all Indian country. That was not the agreement to make separate reserves. Right there the promises were already broken.

Lightning: Did the elders or ancestors know of the treaties in the United States?

Horse: No, they did not know of them. They only knew of what was taking place with them.

Lightning: Did the Indians at the time want the treaty?

Horse: Well, it was brought to them and that is how they negotiated with the Queen's commissioners. That is how it was completed (Price 123-6).

We have not found a way to ignite the imagination of contemporary Canadians with the possibilities represented in Kaswentah, the "Two Row Wampum" belt recording 17th century treaties between the Iroquois and the colonists. The Kaswentah shows the wake of two vessels, a First Nations canoe and a European sailing ship, travelling together on the river of life. The peoples in each vessel retain their own identity and autonomy, but they are linked to one another by principles of truth, respect and friendship. The two-row wampum belt is often read as symbol of separateness. In fact it symbolizes a strong, ethical relationship between peoples. (George Erasmus, 2002)