Chapter 18
South to the Sea and the Second Hotcangara Campaign 6 K
(OK, TX, AR, LA, MO, IL, 1374)
While waiting for Adihanin to get ready, I wandered around the town with Isadowa. There seemed to be a lot of activity, but occasionally I’d see a leader wield a stick to urge on anyone he thought was being indolent. The Kadohadacho society seemed to be rather stratified. On the top was the Xinesi, the main chief; then each village had a Caddi or chief; then under these were the Canahas, who were elders or assistants; then there were other elites who didn’t govern. These latter were the announcer (Tanmas), the warriors (Amayxoya), the pages (Chaya), and the shaman (Conna). The Xinesi was also the high priest, and he had many ritualistic duties added to ruling. In fact, their religion was very much integrated into their governing, a rather unsettling combination from our Mongol point of view. I wondered what Kaidu would think about them. In any case, they were much less independent and uninhibited than the tribes we had previously encountered. I wondered if they would even fit in.
Talaswaima surprised me by telling me that his people had traded with the Kadohadacho. I asked him how that was possible, for from what Juchi told me it was a brutal journey. He said he didn’t know the route, but he knew the goods. His people got salt, shells, and bow wood from the Kadohadacho and traded cotton and turquoise in exchange. The latter was a cloudy blue or green stone with or without dark veins. It was highly prized in the old land—just below jade (a soft, pale green stone) among the Hanjen and above all in Tibet. He pointed out cotton and turquoise on some of our hosts. It was obvious that trade existed between the tribes, but one would not have expected it to cover such distances when everything had to be carried on people’s backs. The bow wood came from a medium-sized crooked tree covered with inch-long spines.
At length, Adihanin arrived with a fairly small bundle and an odd-looking club. The latter was made of wood and rather flat with obsidian embedded on each side. It was quite sharp, making it more like a sword than a club. I asked about it since it was new to me, and he said it was a gift from his father. It turned out that his father was something of a wandering merchant from a tribe far to the south. I asked how it was that his brother had become Xinesi with foreign parentage. He said that his brother had no foreign parentage. His mother had been a latter wife of the previous Xinesi, and he had given her to his father as a great privilege and mark of honor. In fact, he really wasn’t related to his brother at all, since the latter also had a different mother. Furthermore, his real name was Tezcatlipoca. His father gave him the name some years ago. It was from his father’s language (Nahual) and meant Smoking Mirror, their name for obsidian. He would prefer to be called Smoking Mirror in our language.
We spent a day getting Smoking Mirror used to riding a horse. He took to it quickly, and one could see a thrill in his face to be liberated from his ungraceful gait at last. I wanted to visit some of the other tribes in the area, but he thought it unwise to go east because the tribe there tended to ambush strangers unless they were carrying trade goods and gave a signal well in advance of their approach. We could visit the tribes to the south and west, if I liked. I really didn’t want to waste time making the pitch to the tribes of his confederacy, since they would only respond to his “brother’s” decision. He said that there were other tribes in the south beyond his people, along the shore of the Great Sea. So, I agreed to visit them. I was excited at finally reaching the sea, and adding it, or part of it, to my map.
We moved south for several days until we reached a river Smoking Mirror called the Red River (it was reddish, so I kept the name). We stayed in Kadohadacho villages each night along the way, for the area was quite populous. The terrain was prairie dotted with stands of oak trees. The bottoms along the Red River were rather different. They had forests that were mostly oak but also had a gum tree larger than the one in the old land, and an odd-looking tree that I thought was rather like a hemlock, but it was nothing like the trees in the old land. It thrived even when surrounded by water and although a conifer shed its leaves in the fall. Its wood was very resistant to water—making it popular for dugout boats. We followed the Red River downstream southeastward as it carved a broad valley through a range of hills. The valley had been fully exploited. We first skirted the eastern limits of the Hasinai, after whom the confederacy had been named, then those of the Hais. At some mysterious point, we left the river and, keeping the hills on our west, turned south. Two days later, we approached a mean-looking village nestled inconspicuously in a small clearing. There were perhaps a dozen “houses” that consisted of raised platforms covered with thatch roofs and open on the sides. The villagers were tattooed, but otherwise sparsely clad and ornamented, and they wore their hair long and loose. The men were armed with only spears and spear throwers. They seemed to know Smoking Mirror and greeted him profusely and enthusiastically. Their language was a complete mystery to me, but he had no trouble chatting with them.
At length, he turned to me and said that we were among the Ishak. They lived by fishing and raising a few crops. They were widely scattered between this village and the Great Sea and far to the west. Their most illustrious chief was currently at a village some distance to the southwest. The various bands were independent, but would likely follow his lead if I cared to recruit him. I got the impression I was being tested. Smoking Mirror had betrayed none of the arrogance one would expect a member of his tribe to have toward this pitiful group, but it was obvious he thought I would pass up any alliance with this tribe. To his surprise, I agreed to seek out the chief and expressed to him the hope that the man would join us.
We turned southwest and moved out of the trees into a steppe consisting of the bluish-looking grass and a tall cordlike grass. As we continued, the latter grass began to predominate and was sometimes so tall that we could barely see over it. We would occasionally come upon a village, and always the villagers seemed to know Smoking Mirror and were happy to see him. I finally asked how it was they all seemed to know him. He replied that he had visited them before with his father who had traded with them over the years. I asked if they would have received us as well without him along. He said that would depend on whether we looked threatening, whether they thought they could beat us, and whether the fishing was bad. He then told me that the people in the east refer to the Ishak as “man eaters.” It seemed that while most of the people, including his own, engaged in ritualistic cannibalism on brave captives, the Ishak also indulged when other sources of food failed. It was fortunate that I did not usually betray emotion because a wave of nausea engulfed me at that moment, but no one knew. I wondered what Kaidu would think about this piece of information. Why was it, I wondered, that such a repulsive practice started? I supposed one could understand cannibalism to avoid starvation, but ritualized? How could such an idea have arisen?
“Do not your people”—Smoking Mirror read my silence—“sacrifice captives?”
“No,” I answered matter-of-factly, “we only sacrifice animals, and that rarely.”
“Do not your priests demand it?” He seemed puzzled.
“We have no priests,” I answered. “We have shamans, and they only treat the sick and give advice, they make no demands.”
“Really?” he marveled. “How strange. And the tribes who have joined you?”
“They are the same.” I shrugged. “Or, at least, they seem to be. We’ve had no trouble with any of them so far.”
“You may find things a little different should you succeed in recruiting among the southern tribes,” he said.
He was right, of course. The Mongols in general and Kaidu in particular would not tolerate human sacrifice or cannibalism or any sort of a powerful priest class. I wondered what Kaidu would do about it. To change the subject I asked if Smoking Mirror’s father was still alive. He was and off on a trading expedition in the south. Might we run into him? I asked. He replied that his father was in the far south in the land of his people, the Tolteca. With some more prodding, it turned out that his father’s people were the descendants of a great civilization whose city fell to some wild desert tribes who scattered them into a high valley in the mountains, where they were greatly esteemed for their skills and even ruled a few of the cities. Since I thought the Great Sea was in the south, I asked if this land of his father’s was across the sea. But it turned out that while the sea was south of our current position, the coastline eventually turned south for some distance, then turned east, north, east, south, and east again. But he had no idea how far the coast continued.
In due course, we came to a large lake and a fair-sized, but still mean-looking village. The chief’s house was on a somewhat raised platform and larger that the others, but of the same design and material. As usual, Smoking Mirror was enthusiastically greeted and ushered right to the chief, who also welcomed him warmly. The chief was heavily tattooed and wore a shell gorget and a feathered headdress. We were motioned to sit on woven reed mats. Some nawak’osis was produced, and we passed it around until it was burned up. Then Smoking Mirror told the chief about my offer. The chief had a few questions, but in the end decided to send his oldest son along with me to see if all was as I said. Since I didn’t understand the language, I wondered if that was at Smoking Mirror’s suggestion, but actually it was the most prudent course for them to follow. We spent the night, and the next day, Smoking Mirror asked if I wanted to see the sea. He said it was at the southern end of the lake and recommended that we go by boat, for the land was quite marshy. We set out in two boats very ably handled by our hosts. The lake was quite large, perhaps forty-five li long, from north to south, but much less from east to west, except at the southern end where it widened. It took us much of the day to reach the southern shore of the lake, and then we followed it to the river, which drained it into the sea. We beached the boats and climbed over some dunes to reach the shore. It had been some three years since I had seen the ocean and smelled the salt air. The surf was gentle, the waves almost imperceptible. The coast stretched out from east to west as far as I could see. We joined the others on the beach for a meal of shellfish they had collected and prepared, then spent the night on the dunes above the beach.
We spent the next day returning to the village, and so we had to accept their hospitality for another day. It was still only midsummer so I wanted to visit the next tribe to the west. Smoking Mirror explained that to the south and west of the Ishak, there were only similar widely scattered tribes with vaguely related languages and absolutely no central organization or authority. Unless I wanted to visit each band, I would be wasting my time. I asked if there were any celebrated chiefs, like the one we had just visited, who might sway the others. He said there was one such chief, but his village was some distance away. He asked if I was sure I wanted to try. I replied that I was. He seemed to be studying me for a moment, but finally agreed to take me.
We crossed the river at the northern apex of the lake with the aid of the boats, then moved due west crossing a few good-sized rivers and gradually turning southwest. We came upon a huge bay, fed by two major rivers, and finally some twelve days after starting, reached a second smaller bay and the village we were seeking. We had come upon fewer settlements except around the large bay, since most of the villages were nearer to the sea. We did encounter an occasional hunting party and always everyone knew and liked Smoking Mirror. Again, we were ushered into the chief’s presence. He was virtually indistinguishable from the Ishak chief, except that he was of taller stature. His only adornment was a necklace consisting of a lump of the turquoise surrounded by shells. He wanted to ride out and hunt the plains oxen with us to see if indeed the horses were all that valuable. The next day, we set out and, finding a herd, culled enough to greatly impress him. He decided to send a small contingent with us to report back to him.
These people did not have a specific name for themselves, but used the name of their village as their name, and that would often change. Smoking Mirror told me that there was a similar group to the south, and there was among them also a noted chief if I wished to visit him. I did. This journey was much like the previous one except that it was mostly due south. After ten days, we entered the village. The chief had just returned from a raid in the west, where he had apparently covered himself in glory, and was a bit puffed up. Even so, he also warmly welcomed Smoking Mirror, heard us out, and decided to send his younger son with us. I knew we had to start back if I wanted to return by fall, but I asked if there was a tribe farther inland in the north, and indeed there was, again much like the others, but this time possessing two esteemed chiefs. Both would be on our way back.
On our way north, I suggested we follow the coastline for a while at least, so that I could map it. Smoking Mirror looked on my mapping efforts as a bizarre hobby or ritual, but finally as he saw the coastline appear on my map, he understood what I was doing. So he began helping by telling me things about the terrain. He said that the river we had crossed to reach the last chief’s village would lead one to Talaswaima’s people. It was flowing from the west when we crossed it, but apparently it originated far to the northwest in some mountains. Talaswaima was excited that he had crossed that river, but he said it was not the one his particular band lived on, but a very “sacred” river nevertheless.
There were narrow barrier islands all along the shore, and Smoking Mirror knew how long and wide they were, so I could draw them in. We came to a large bay, and some of the locals ferried us across the narrow mouth. Smoking Mirror was able to fill in the details of the bay. The next bay was much larger, but he felt it would be better not to cross it since the river at its head would lead us to the first chief of the inland tribe. It seemed the people of this tribe called themselves the Titskan watitch and were very widely scattered all over the plain inland, living mainly on the plains ox and whatever they gathered. The river at the head of the bay was a large one, so I named it the Titskan for our target people. The river led us at first northwest, then mostly north, then a little west, where we found the village some ten days after leaving the last chief. By this time, the river was little more than a sluggish stream bordered with mud.
The village was all of the conical hide tents, much like those of the Siksika, except that they were smaller and not decorated. The village was not as clean either, for there was refuse and snarling dogs all around. They were shorter than the Siksika and were armed mostly with spears, but also with bows. Some had leather armor and shields; some had leather helmets adorned with ox horns or feathers. They looked quite fierce, and their welcome was friendly but wary. They were very interested in the horses. The chief was named Sanukh. He was fairly young and expressionless enough to be a Han. He was wearing a gaudy feather headdress. He produced a rude pipe and looked at us expectantly. Fortunately Smoking Mirror carried some of the nawak’osis with him and produced a pouch with which he filled the pipe. After we passed it around, he made my pitch to the chief in still another incomprehensible language. Sanukh wanted to try out the horses on the oxen, so we staged a demonstration for him on a nearby herd. He was very impressed. He also wanted to try out one of our bows and arrows. He was again very impressed, but only the glint in his eyes gave it away. He told us he would join his worst enemies to get his hands on these things. He announced that he would pack up the whole band and follow us back.
Indeed, the next day as we left, the whole village was dismantled, and they set out after us. Smoking Mirror told me that it was most likely the second chief, Kwesh, would also join up. The rest of the tribe would likely follow the next year. He went on to say that his confederated tribes were in contact and friendly with the Titskan watitch, and would not impede their joining us. This leg of the journey took eleven days. During the course of it, the dry shrub land gave way to rather dry grassland, frequently cut by very low rivers and dry streambeds. Some of the latter would spring into life on rare occasions when a rainstorm passed upstream. Kwesh’s village was on a fairly respectable, although easily fordable, river (which I named after him). The village was somewhat larger than Sanukh’s, but otherwise identical. Kwesh was more animated than the other and smiled at Smoking Mirror in greeting. The interview went as before with Smoking Mirror again providing the weed and doing all the talking. The result was also the same. Kwesh wanted a demonstration and afterward was ready to follow us north.
Smoking Mirror congratulated me on my recruiting success, but I pointed out that it was he who had done all the talking. He smiled, but rejoined that it was I who had made all the promises. I asked him if the Titskan watitch were also cannibals. He said they were only if the oxen gave out. That was a relief; we would have to find a way to get them to permanently eschew that particular practice. He continued to help with my mapping pointing out which rivers we crossed corresponded to the ones I had marked near the coast. Some eight days later, we finally came to a river with a forested bottom that he insisted was the Red River. He told me it was the path his father would follow to get from Talaswaima’s people to the Hasinai. It was still quite a river, but we were able to swim across without incident. The prairie began to be dotted with copses of oaks, and we began to run into villages of the Kitchai (another of the Hasinai confederacy) at first and then, the Kadohadacho. We advised all we met of the two bands in our wake, and they promised to speed them on their way.
Five days later, we reached the Kadohadacho River, well above the town where I had spoken to the Xinesi. The river was much easier to cross at this time of year. We continued on, passing through the lands of first the Yatasi (another member of the Hasinai), and then the Kitikiti’sh. Ten days later, we arrived at the Owl River, which we had followed away from the Mongol River in the spring. We followed it downstream and reached our outpost at the mouth of the river a few days later. I advised the commander of the coming bands and suggested that he send a group to meet them. We crossed over to the Owl Ordu on the Numakiki boats, and I reported to Kuyuk. He relieved me of my recruits and observers and turned them over for training. He promised to make sure the approaching Titskan watitch were guided into camp. He asked if anyone could speak their language, and Smoking Mirror, who insisted on staying with me, found one of the Chahiksichahiks volunteers who could speak the language. He was sent with a group to meet the Titskan watitch. I went on to meet Kaidu who was already in route south. We ran into him a day’s journey north and turned to join him. I sent Talaswaima on to the Eagle Camp to tell Paula I was back and well. Smoking Mirror had been rather quiet in the Owl Camp, just looking around at everything. At the sight of the Ordu on the march, he was awed. They were quite a sight, four of the plains tumen in full battle array on the march. When we camped that evening, I reported to Kaidu. I couldn’t find Juchi.
Kaidu was pleased that I finally made it back and listened intently to my report. He decided that he wouldn’t worry about the overly organized religion of the Hasinai Confederation unless they joined us outright. If they only confederated with us, we would not interfere with their rituals, but we would also not adopt them. The more primitive tribes I had recruited would likely give up their cannibalism since there was always plenty of food. Besides, the more primitive tribes tended to slavishly imitate the Mongols, making them easy to assimilate. He wanted to meet Smoking Mirror and thank him for his assistance, but first he wanted to bring me up to date. It turned out that Juchi had returned from his expedition several days earlier. He had spent a long time visiting and recruiting among the central and eastern Kensistenoug and then went on to their eastern neighbors, widely scattered nomadic bands that were apparently related to the Kensistenoug and spoke a similar language. These did not have a specific name for themselves, but called themselves after their chiefs. He wandered among these bands until he reached the sea. At this point I had to see the maps Shingabaossin had made. It seemed there was a long narrow bay cutting deeply into the northeastern shore of the land. This bay was likely part of the northern sea, but how was it connected to the sea I had found in the south?
In any case, Juchi had crossed the bay and found more, similar bands of natives on the other side. He continued south again encountering the sea. At this point he turned back west, through more of the same sort of bands until he finally arrived among a more organized tribe. They also spoke a language similar to the others and called themselves by the name of their village, but they had permanent villages, and the villages had a central meeting area. He had recruited them at a general meeting, and they had insisted that he first speak to their “grandfather” tribe, the Leni lenape. This proved to be a large tribe to the south along a river he named after them. This tribe was split into three or four subgroups. He met with the chiefs of the northernmost subgroup. It seemed they had a tradition that they had come from the far west across the sea and then over a mountain range and many great rivers until they reached their present location. The scattered and more organized tribes all around were split off from them in antiquity. The Kensistenoug and Anishinabe who were with Juchi were not amused by the contention, but prudently did not create a scene. The Leni lenape had agreed to send a group of observers with Juchi to check us out. They very much approved of the idea of uniting the tribes. Upon leaving them, Juchi’s group had been ambushed by a strange tribe in supposed neutral territory. The Leni lenape called the attackers Mingue, but that just meant stealthy or treacherous, a euphemism for enemies. The attack was beaten off but not without cost. Several of the party were badly wounded and a few subsequently died.
They were later attacked again while camped by another group related to the Mingue, with more losses. Juchi had also received a minor wound. There were a few more scattered attacks but with less effect over the next several days until they finally got out of the hostile territory. They found themselves on the southern shore of a large lake among a tribe vaguely related to the Anishinabe called the Twanhtwanh. They were hated enemies of the Mingue, whom they called Notowega (snakes), so they willingly guided them to the nearest village of the Potawatamink, the allies of the Anishinabe. Needless to say, Kaidu wanted to annihilate the Mingue and sent Juchi to train with the forest tumen that had now grown to four. He decided that a punitive expedition would be mounted the following fall, after forming a few more forest tumen. Also the Potawatamink and the Ottawa had agreed to confederate. The Twanhtwanh and a related tribe, the Kiwigapawa, had sent along observers and definitely wanted to be part of any attack on the hated Notowega. Kaidu wanted me to also train with the forest Ordu rather than go on any expedition the following spring.
With his dark mood, I found myself feeling sorry for any Hotcangara who might cross him this fall. He had me bring in Smoking Mirror. The two measured each other quietly for a while, and then to my surprise, Kaidu asked him if he had lost his foot in battle. Smoking Mirror admitted that he had, but had taken a head in exchange. Kaidu grunted and nodded, then invited him to join us for the fall campaign. He thanked him, but asked if I would be on the campaign, for he wanted to stay with me. Kaidu was puzzled (as was I) but replied that, of course, I would also be along. When we left, I asked him why he wanted to be in my company, and he said because he felt he had measured me sufficiently that he could trust me, but was unsure of the others. Indeed, he stayed with me throughout the campaign and rest of the year.
We picked up the Owls, and they and the Falcons and Cranes crossed the Mongol to sweep the southern side, while the Eagles and the Hawks swept the northern side. Each village received us in peace and humility. No resistance was to be found all the way to the Missi Sipi. At that point, a few of the Hotcangara were sent across to the city to see what the rest had decided. They returned with an older chief, Munche Khanche, who identified himself as the “Peace Chief.” The people of the city had elected to have peace and wanted us to spare them. Kaidu explained that they must surrender and join us or be wiped out; there was no longer room for compromise. He asked if they would be considered slaves. Kaidu said they would not, but they also would not be trusted with either horses or our weapons, until they had proven themselves worthy of that trust. They would have to feed us while we were among them. Also, he would appoint a governor to rule over them until they could be trusted. And if they proved not to be worthy of trust, they would cease to burden the earth with their existence. The old man nodded and returned to the city.
We could just barely see him conferring with the other leaders for a while. There seemed to be a lot of discussion. Meanwhile, the men had already begun setting up the pontoon bridge to cross the river. The next day, the old man returned again to announce that those in the city had accepted all our demands. Unfortunately, the war chief had refused to capitulate and had left the city with some of his supporters and gone north to rally some of their related bands. When the bridge was finished, the Eagle and Hawk Tumen crossed over. Meanwhile, the Falcon Tumen crossed to the north side of the Mongol. The Hawks were deployed on the north side of the large city complex, and the Eagles were deployed along the east side. A strong force went with Kaidu to look over the city. Smoking Mirror and I were in the force.
The “city” was more like a huge cleared bottom with scattered ceremonial centers surrounded with villages of varying sizes, which in turn were surrounded with fields. The main center was in the south central part of the bottom. As we went along, large groups of the Hotcangara stood silently and unarmed watching us. I asked Smoking Mirror if he expected any treachery, but he said he didn’t, since the Hotcangara were usually faithful to their word, unlike some of the tribes in the south. I stored that piece of information for future use, but continued to study the Hotcangara for any sign of defiance. We entered the palisaded ceremonial center from the north across the stream. There were smaller mounds on either side of the huge one and a very large open area in front of it. There was an earthen ramp leading up to the mound from the square. There was a platform at the top of the ramp, and another ramp lead farther up the mound to a sort of temple. There were more mounds around the large open space. There were also some strange round flat stones which I noticed but was too preoccupied to ask about. I found out about them later when I encountered them again. To the west of the palisade, there was a circle of about fifty erect logs over four hundred feet in diameter with a taller log near the center of the circle. It seemed that the circle was used for marking the solstices and star paths. The elite of the city stood silently in the square to meet us. Their main distinguishing characteristic was their adornments. They wore capes made of shell beads and wore copper and mica accoutrements. Kaidu did not speak to them, but we just looked everything over and then returned to the Ordu and camped in the northeast corner of the bottom. We set up a strong guard just in case, but nothing happened in the night.
The next morning, Kaidu appointed Tatanka Ska Koda, the Ocheti shakowin chief who had joined us, to be his governor. He detailed a large force to ensure his orders were carried out. Meanwhile, the Falcon Tumen set up its headquarters on the north side of the Mongol while the Crane Tumen set up on the south both right across from the “city.” The Hawks recrossed the Missi Sipi and started back home. The Owls crossed over to replace them. Finally, I found out what we were waiting for. Out of the woods to our north came shouts and cries of battle. We backed up to leave a large open space in front of us and before long, groups of Hotcangara warriors began to emerge from the forest and head in our direction. We waited calmly for them to get into bow range, then began cutting them down. More and more emerged, and it became obvious that they were being driven toward us by another force. Finally, the main force emerged, and seeing us, charged. We fired into them until they got close, then rode back a little, turned, and fired into them again. They stopped and looked for cover, and we moved back toward them and fired high into the air showering them with arrows even in their shallow cover. In confusion and panic some broke for the river, but were cut off and cut down.
At last from the woods there emerged the forest tumen. Advancing from tree to tree, they poured a flanking fire into the remnants of the enemy. No quarter was given, or, to their credit, requested. When no more stood, the men moved methodically among them dispatching the wounded and recovering our arrows. Among the dead was the Hotcangara war chief, the same Tayhah nea whom we had encountered the year before. Among the forest tumen was Juchi. He had been leading one of the two new ones, the Foxes. In overall command was Donduk. Expecting trouble, Kaidu had sent them south from the Anishinabe lands to make sure the northern Hotcangara surrendered. Along a broad front, they had visited all the villages until they ran into Tayhah nea and his contingent. The latter never had much of a chance and tried to retreat to the east only to run into another tumen closing from that direction. Between them they funneled him right back into Kaidu’s trap. The forest tumen would continue visiting the remaining Hotcangara settlements in the east to make sure there was no more resistance. Kaidu ordered me to join Donduk for the rest of the campaign. I had the feeling there was a reason for this. Smoking Mirror stayed with me.