CHAPTER TWO
With the bright sun continuing its journey upward into the sky, the brilliant yellow ball shining down on them brought on a slight feeling of heat to the morning, gradually dispelling the mist as it was rising up from the warmth of the shoreline set against the cool river water.
As both Briella and Frederic paced around the hurricane deck, she pulled her light-green silky wrap down to her elbows since she no longer needed it around her shoulders.
"Are you enjoying your trip from New York back to the Indian Territory?" Frederic asked.
"I am," replied Briella. "I must admit the journey to New York was a terrible event, as you might remember. But, this trip is a little better. Come now, Brother, you mentioned there is a matter of some importance you wish to discuss with me?"
"Well, yes, there is." Frederic inhaled deeply, and, looking up at him, Briella saw a furrow between his eyebrows.
He cleared his throat once, then again, but at last he said, "Since you have made your intents well known to me, those being that, although you plan to marry as our father and I, too, wish you to do, you have also declared to me that you will never again return to New York City. Is this true?"
"It is," Briella answered simply.
"Well then, I can only assume that you wish to marry Maximillian, but then stay here where you most likely will never see him again?"
Briella merely nodded.
"I suppose you plan to live with this Indian you profess to love so much, and to live with him out of marriage?"
"If he be willing, and if he is not already married. I also plan to confess my sin to the nearest priest."
"Good. Good. But, because of your intentions, there is now a problem—"
"But—"
"Sh-h-h, let me speak."
When Briella didn't say another word, Frederic went on to say, "Now, as you know, there have been many, many confrontations between the American settlers and the Indians throughout the history of this new country.
In the East, almost all the Indians have either died or have fled to the West. In the South, the Choctaw and the Cherokee—who sided with the United States in several of these American wars, including even Tescumseh's War—were taken from their homes at gunpoint only a little over twenty years after they had helped the Americans to win Tescumseh's War.
But, did you know both of these tribes were forced from their homes and sent into the western frontier…
and, I fear, they were sent there in the worst way possible? "
"Not all fled," Briella added.
"Not all," Frederic conceded, "but most. Most lost their homes, their land, their possessions.
I fear their land was marked by this new government for eventual acquisition; it only needed a reason.
Soon, the justification to acquire what the new government desired came in the form of the settlers in the areas who began to complain about the Indians and their homes and land, which they claimed were little more than poorly built and dirty campsites.
It didn't help that gold was discovered in their homeland, either.
Their evacuation is known today as the Trail of Tears, because all was lost by those people and many died of hunger or from the harsh weather because they had little shelter.
They were starved by the soldiers, too, because the men were not allowed to hunt for their families.
Indeed, anyone who tried to hunt was severely dealt with by the American military, perhaps because it feared those men would flee instead of hunt.
Some of those soldiers even shot crying children because of the racket they made.
There was no empathy nor was there any sympathy shown to the Cherokee or Choctaw people, despite those people's support of the new government.
"And, so went many of the great Indian tribes.
The Iroquois, the Creek, the Shawnee, the Illini, the Chickasaw.
All either went west or hid from the newcomers, but never again did they know the freedom and the warmth of being part of a tribe of their own people.
Indeed, they became a scattered people and a poor people. "
"Yes," agreed Briella. "But, what has this to do with me and the Pikuni tribe?"
Frederic looked away from her, and as he did so, the wind whisked his top hat from his head.
However, he caught the hat and placed it more securely onto his head, then continued, "Although both my father and I explained this to you before we took you to New York, you should know the new government's eye is now on this northern Indian Territory. The Marias incident—"
"The Marias Massacre, you mean! It was not simply an incident, and there were no combatants. It was mostly sick, unarmed and innocent women and children or old men who were murdered in their sleep."
"There was a reason—"
"There was not a reason! The 'cause' the cavalry gave was to capture Owl Child. And, although Owl Child was guilty, it was a family affair—a terrible family affair, true—but it did not in any way justify what the cavalry did."
"Yes, yes, I agree, but…"
"I know what you're about to say, Frederic, but you are wrong, as wrong as the American cavalry.
I know the officer in charge vowed they were there only to punish Owl Child for killing his white brother-in-law, but Owl Child wasn't even in the camp the cavalry destroyed, there on the Marias.
And, according to Mr. Kipp, who was scouting for the cavalry, the officer in charge was drunk and was warned that Owl Child was not in the camp. "
"So it is said, but—"
"As you are well aware, Malcolm Clarke was killed by Owl Child, a relative of Clarke's Pikuni wife, Cocothima.
I will say again, why does this new government feel it needs to step in?
It was a family matter. But, simply because Malcolm Clarke was white, the government and all their henchmen felt they had to step in to defend all settlers, who were never in any danger.
The Marias incident, as you call it, was done to commit murder as far as I am concerned. And, a massacre it was.
"But, Frederic, there is only this incident…one,” said Briella, continuing, “Name for me, if you can, one other conflict that involves the southern Pikuni."
"There was the bull train fight."
"But, that had to do with the terrible things happening to the Pikuni people because of the alcohol the traders carry on those bull trains.
It was right and it was just. Even today, those trains illegally carry mostly alcohol to other tribes in Canada.
Everyone who attacked that train had relatives who had died or were dying because of the alcohol. "
"Still," countered Frederic, "it has caused the new government over this land to cast a stern and unsympathetic eye toward the Pikuni."
Briella leaned over the balcony to spit, and spit she did.
"Sister!"
"Well, that's what I think of it all."
"Sister, there is more I wish to tell you.
The newly formed government over these states has declared war on many other tribes who live only a little way south of the Blackfeet: the Sioux, the Cheyenne, the Arapahoe, the Comanche.
And, there are more happenings farther south and west with the Apache. "
"Frederic, how could you compare the Pikuni with their enemies—the Sioux, the Cheyenne, the Arapahoe and the Comanche. Why would the new government turn its eye to the Blackfeet?"
"Because of the train tracks that are planned to go through this land, that's why.
There is big money behind this idea of a train in this northern country.
There are men, known as robber barons back East, who have declared the rails will go through.
It is this, these plans for a train to connect the east and the west of this country, that sent the Sioux, the Cheyenne and the Arapahoe into fighting the new government.
The land, you see, was promised to be theirs by treaty.
But, the treaty apparently holds no weight, and it appears it has little value except as paper.
"There are battles being fought even now with the Sioux and the Cheyenne. Once those wars are over and the Indians have lost, the robber barons will turn their eye to the north…to the Blackfeet. Do you really wish this war—and it will happen—to be a part of your life?"
"What makes you think the tribes will lose this war?"
"Because the Americans have a ready supply of young men to fight for the country and because there is big money backing this."
"And so, you think the Americans might attack the Blackfeet even more than they already have?"
"Yes, I do," replied Frederic. "As you know, gold has been discovered in this northern territory, and this is another reason why the American government has turned its eye to the north. I know you still love and plan to live with this…this…"
"Red Fox is his name, Frederic."
"I know," replied Frederic. "Please, don't you realize that if you insist on taking up with this Red Fox fellow, you might yet come to discover all your possessions, and even parts of whatever family you might have made with him, could be taken from you? Loved ones killed? Is this your wish?"
"Of course it is not my wish. It is simply this: I love him.
I told this to you and my father two years ago when you were determined to take me away from here.
I meant it then, and I mean it now. I love Red Fox.
And, if he has to face this sort of future, then I wish to face it with him.
Why can you and our father not understand that I want to be at his side?
I am not afraid to face whatever might be.
My only fear is that he might not still love me.
If I were to discover he does not love me anymore, then I suppose I will become the first married old maid. "
Frederic smiled and shook his head. "With your beauty, do you really think this might come to be?"