Lutheran mission work among the American Indians

IT

Huntington Free Library

Native American
Collection

CORNELL UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY

HUNTINGTON FREE LIBRARY
AND READING ROOM

MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN
HEVE FOUNDATION

CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

3 1924 097 626 257

Cornell University
Library

The original of tliis book is in
tine Cornell University Library.

There are no known copyright restrictions in
the United States on the use of the text.

http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924097626257

LUTHERAN MISSION WORK

AMONG THE AMERICAN

INDIANS

By
Rev. Albert Keiser, Ph. D.

Professor of English at Augustana College
Sioux Falls, S. D.

With Illustrations

1922

AUGSBURG PUBLISHING HOUSE

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Copyright. 1922, bv

Augsburg Publishing House

Minneapolis. Minn.

To those noble men and pious women

Whose heroic work and labor of love

For the Red Man

The following pages describe.

This book is affectionately dedicated

PREFACE

THESE unpretentious pages are sent forth In the
hope that the friends of missions may be in-
formed as to what the Lutheran Church has done
and is doing in bringing the Gospel to the Red Man.
The author has collected and put into convenient
form the facts of this half-forgotten work, of which
no complete treatment has ever appeared, but which
is worthy of an adequate presentation. As natural
in a book of this kind, his indebtedness to others is
large. This refers especially to chapters III and IV.
In other parts the author has not hesitated now and
then to adapt or to take over an adequate rendering.
The Bibliographical Notes at the end of the book
will give a more detailed account of the sources.
However, every effort has been made to verify facts
and statements, and to render the account as clear as
possible. For the work being done at present the
missionaries themselves have been constant and will-
ing helpers. Sincere thanks are due them for their
ungrudging co-operation. The manuscript dealing
with their particular mission was submitted to them,
tho the author alone must be held responsible for
mistakes and shortcomings that may occur.

If the little book, the result of a labor of love in
leisure hours, should acquaint the reader somewhat
with the Lutheran contribution to the Christlanlza-
tlon of the Red Man, and instil In him true love for
the noble task, the efforts of the undersigned will
have been more than rewarded.

Albert Keiser.

Sioux Falls, S. D., April 18, 1921.

CONTENTS

Preface 5

Contents 6

List of Illustrations 7

Introduction 9

I. The Swedes on the Delaware 18

II. Pious Wishes 43

III. The Work Among the Chippewas in

Michigan and Minnesota 55

IV. The Mission of the Iowa Synod in the

Northwest 95

V. The Danish Cherokee Mission in Okla-
homa 115

VI. The Apache Mission of the Wisconsin

Synod in Arizona 121

VII. The Work of the Missouri Synod Among

the Stockbridges 152

VIII. The Bethany Indian Mission of the Nor-
wegian Church 169

IX. The Eielsen Synod Mission among the

Pottawatomies 183

Bibliographical Notes 187

^"Jex 190

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

A Page from Campanius' Catechism 36

Hartwick Seminary, Otsego Co., N. Y 54

Wilhelm Loehe 58

Friedrich August Craemer 61

Bethany Indian Church 79

Bethany 80

Mission Station on the Powder River 103

Missionary Krebs and Three Christian Indians .111

Before the Boarding School 118

Apache Women 123

Station Peridot 130

Rev. Mayerhoff and the First Dwelling near
Fort Apache 136

Station East Fork 138

Rev. G. Harders 143

Buildings at the Cibecue 148

The Mission Station at Red Springs 159

View from the Lake 162

Indians and Their Dwelling 176

Missionary Workers with Their Charges. ... 177

Scenes from Indian Life 179

INTRODUCTION

WITHOUT fear of contradiction it may safely be
said that no other race has made such a strong
appeal to the human imagination as the Indian.
Countless descriptions have appeared since Columbus
first laid his eyes upon him, and in his belief to have
reached India applied to the natives the name which
has clung to them ever since. And that interest in
the Red Man, so called from the ornamental war
paint, has never ceased, tho of course it has assumed
different forms. Besides other characteristics, his
acumen and intelligence, in respect to which he is
now generally conceded to be inferior to the white
man, have always been a source of fascination and
even now remain his chief claim to fame.

It is eminently proper and fitting that we should
take a benevolent interest in the natives of this coun-
try, who are the real Americans. For we whites
have trodden under foot this race, we have taken his
rolling prairies and cut down his forests without
granting adequate compensation, whatever one may
think of the laws governing progress and civilization.
And the treatment which the Indian received at the
hands of the Government until recent times forms a
series of broken promises, violated treaties, and
scraps of paper, a chapter in our history so dark and
shocking as to make every upright person blush with
shame. Many forces have tended to make real the
sentiment of colonial times that the only good Indian

10 Lutheran Mission Jf'ork

is a dead Indian. And tho of recent years the Gov-
ernment has tried to atone for the injustice of the
past, the fact remains that we witness today the van-
ishing of a race which once called these regions his
own, whose only hope of preservation in some form
seems to be assimilation with the whites and ab-
sorption by them.

There naturally appears a great diversity In the
description of the Indian. First we have that noble
figure of romance with his admirable characteristics,
largely a creation of the imagination. The other
extreme we meet in the opinion of the colonial
pioneer, who wished for his opponent a resting place
under the sod. And descriptions have made known
in late years the Reservation Indian, dirty, lazy, and
shiftless. As a matter of fact, all these characteri-
zations are generalizations which ignore the marked
differences which exist between the various tribes and
under changing circumstances. However, It must
be admitted that the Indian was a savage, with the
virtues and the vices of the same. Under the degen-
erating influence of the whites his many admirable
traits were overshadowed by the development of the
baser instincts. In time not only his outward condi-
tion, but also his character underwent a marked
change by force of circumstances.

For our particular purposes the religion of the
native American is of special Interest. In a general
way it may be classified as nature worship, with Its
belief that most objects are animated by spirits, the
so-called manitoes. But one cannot be too cautious
m defining the religious ideas of the Indian, for we

Among the American Indians 1 1

must remember that in the presence of intruding
strangers he naturally would be taciturn as to his
most sacred emotions. And then the investigations
belong to the period when his religious beliefs were
in a state of transition, it being, for instance, doubt-
ful whether the Idea of the great over-ruling spirit
had been conceived before the advent of the white
man. But he unquestionably believed that those
spirits had a magical influence not only over his ex-
ternal acts, but also internal states, which showed it-
self in dreams, in sickness, and In death. It there-
fore became an important matter to retain the good
will of the friendly power and to gain control over
the hostile forces. Thus a way was opened for the
powerful Influence of the medicine men, as charms,
prayers, and sacrifices were believed to be very po-
tent. Contrary to popular opinion. It seems that
many of the tribes paid little attention to the future
state, tho later the idea of the 'ampler hunting
grounds beyond the night,' perhaps a product of
Christian association, becomes more prominent.

The Indian, like so many other primitive peoples,
had of course no real conception of innate depravity
and personal guilt. Sorrow and repentance are Ideas
foreign to his mind, as also happiness in the regions
beyond does not depend upon an upright life here on
earth. As a rule, the religion of his fathers is good
enough for the Indian, and he views the alien doc-
trines of Christianity with Indifference and contempt.
Dogmatic statements leave him cold, as he must be
shown by concrete examples the superiority of the
white man's religion over his own. In the words of

12 Lutheran Mission Work

Francis E. Leupp, formerly Commissioner of Indian
Affairs: "If you approach the Indian with the bare
abstract proposition that you are bringing him a reh-
gion better than that of his fathers, you must prepare
for either resentment or indifference ; but if you show
him new ways of appeasing his hunger, or mend his
broken leg, or save the life of a fever-stricken child,
you have given him something which locks into his
environment, as it were. When he sees you doing
this for him not once or twice but continuously,
wonder begins to stir in his mind as to what It all
means. Then comes your opportunity for telling
him that your religion is a religion of love: that it is
founded on the idea that all human beings, of every
name and race, are brothers; that you are trying to
do him good because he is your brother and you love
him. And so your chain of instruction can go on,
one link being forged into another as fast as his
understanding will open to admit It."

One difficulty In the Christlanlzation of the
Indian is of course denominational rivalry, as the
naive creature is puzzled by the "hydra-headed"
faith, as Ch. A. Eastman calls It. The hostile atti-
tude sometimes assumed by the different denomina-
tions makes him wary. Assurances to the effect that
all worship the same diety, and that the differences
are non-essential, are of little avail. To quote Leupp
again : "Doctrinal subtleties are of course beyond the
reach of the ordinary Indian's mind, but in matters
of discipline he discovers what seem to him serious
incongruities. An old chief once expressed to me
his deep concern because a missionary had warned

Among the American Indians 13

his children that they would be punished after death
if they broke the Sabbath with their accustomed
games, yet he had seen with his own eyes a mission-
ary playing tennis on Sunday. Another raised in my
presence,, with a sly suggestion of satire in his tone,
the question of marriage. One missionary, he told
us — referring to a visit from a Mormon apostle sev-
eral years before — had four wives, and said it was
good in the sight of the white man's God; the mis-
sionary who preached at the agency school had only
one wife, and said that that was all right, but it
would be wicked for him to marry any more ; but the
priest who came once in a while to bless the children
had no wife at all, and said that the white man's
God would be displeased with him if he took even
one."

The nature of the Indian language also has been
a factor retarding rapid missionary progress. Close
to a hundred linguistic families with many dialects
are represented in the United States, a fact which
makes difficult the language situation as viewed from
the missionary standpoint. And the excessive com-
pounding of Indian words has always been a fruitful
source of difficulty. For instance, Eliot, the gifted
Indian missionary, worked fifteen years before he had
mastered the native tongue sufficiently. Confining
ourselves to the Lutherans, a number of testimonies
as to the difficulty to be overcome are forthcoming.
In October, 1848, Baierlein declares that he is unable
to bring his thoughts close to the hearts of the child-
ren, and even in 1850 he complains: "No little effort
must be expended upon the composition of an Indian

14 Lutheran Mission JVork

order of worship, a liturgy for the services, and the
formulae for baptisms, marriages, and funerals, be-
cause everything must be adapted to our circumstan-
ces and be translated into a language which has no
word for Heaven or hell, for conscience, pain, and
wound — for each of the many names for injuries ex-
presses at the same time whether the wounded has
been hit, stabbed, shot, etc. — and for hundreds of
other things, it being almost impossible to express
Christian thoughts however one may try to para-
phrase them Until now, for instance, we

have been unable to find a term for church and con-
gregation. Equally difficult is also the translation of
the Catechism. Often, when with the help of the
interpreter I had succeeded during many hours' work
in translating a few words or even a single one, I
have found after he was gone, or in copying, new mis-
takes, because heathen concepts cling to all terms.
The most laborious work is the translation of Ger-
man hymns into Indian, because often a single word
is too long for a whole line of the oi:iginal." Miess-
ler, who had begun his study of the Chippewa lan-
guage in 1851, at the end of 1858 writes: "At last I
have risked, and thank God, could risk to notify the
interpreter of his discharge. The composition of the
sermons in the clumsy and inadequate Indian lan-
guage still gives me great trouble, and no few mis-
takes creep in, as I have no other helps than a sim-
ple dictionary. But I shall spare no pains, especially
since I notice that the Indians are much more atten-
tive w'hen they receive the word of life directly from
my lips." And later on wc find that the inability of

Among the American Indians 15

Auch to speak the Chippewa language was mainly
responsible for the loss of the Indian congregation
at Sheboyank.

The inadequacy of the Indian language for ex-
pressing spiritual conceptions may also be noted.
Rev. Harders illustrates this point in regard to the
Apache speech: "Good, holy, honorable, upright,
equitable, honest, just, magnificent, splendid, perfect,
correct, right, etc., for us words of different coloring
and of different shades of meaning, are all the same
to the Apache, who uses only one word which covers
all the conceptions, the word Nojo. It is the same
with the opposite. He has not even a distinctive
word for it. It is simply Do-nojo-da. The do and
the da at the beginning and the end are the negation,
which change the nojo into its opposite. Donojoda
means bad, wicked, sinful, wrong, not right, unholy,
imperfect, unjust, dishonest, etc."

But the most formidable enemy of missionary
success has been modern civilization with its vices.
Even the approach of the paleface would involve
the pushing 'back of the Indian to more remote
regions. This of course played havoc with many an
established mission. To this fact must at least
partly be attributed the failure of Loehe's pet idea
to plant colonies and to make settlers of the converts.
For the love of the wild forests and the native haunts
always proved stronger than the well ordered life
of civilization with its comforts. As Baierlein puts
it: "One fact only had been overlooked, namely, that
a people of hunters could not possibly live in the
neighborhood of a colony, and, on the other hand, a

16 Lutheran Mission JFork

colony cannot be located in the primeval forests with
its scattered camps. For a colony needs above all
roads and a location not too fdr from older settle-
ments. On the other hand, the Indians need no
roads and do not desire any, in order that the whites
may remain away. Wherever a deer is able to go,
an Indian may, and that is for him road enough, the
one most dear to his heart." Even more damaging
than the mere approach of civilization were the in-
difference and the vices of so-called Christians, which
could not but bring contempt upon that religion itself.
And hand in hand with it went the diabolical scheme
of systematically corrupting the Indian by means of
fire-water. The reservations have of course re-
moved some of these handicaps, and as a rule the
Government agents render every facihty to further
missionary endeavor as a stabilizing and uplifting
force.

That the Christian mission work, even aside
from its purely religious considerations, has been a
tremendous factor in the uplift of the Indian, there
can be no doubt. The evidences of it are too patent
and readily admitted even by skeptical Government
officials. No true Christian will doubt that the
words of the missionary command also apply to the
Red Man. It is a fine thought with which Loehe is
said to have closed his appeal for the Indian when
the Central Missionary Society of Bavaria contem-
plated withdrawing further support from the Indian
mission because of its meager results: "Weill If the
Indians should become extinct, and if they refuse to
be converted, then let us illuminate their passing with
the torch of the Gospel."

Among the American Indians 17

And tho there be no hope for the Indian as a
people, there is still room for him as an integral part
of Caucasian civilization, and Christianity may fit
him to become a useful member of modern society,
while the spiritual regeneration with its happiness
beyond has a value incalculable.

Chapti K I
THE SWEDES ON THE DELAWARE

THE discovery of a new world by Columbus in
1492 was far-reaching in its effects upon the
nations of Europe. As the wonderful reports came
back, the mental horizon of millions suddenly
widened, and their imagination was powerfully stimu-
lated. Soon the spirit of foreign adventure per-
vaded every class of society and made possible many
a hazardous undertaking. The success of Spain in
acquiring large territories and immense riches
naturally aroused the jealousy of other nations and
induced them to make similar efforts. Especially
England, France, Holland, as also Sweden strove
to advance their own interests by establishing trade
companies engaged in colonial enterprises.

Altho the motives behind the work of coloniza-
tion were largely economic, from the very beginning
the idea of missionary labors among the heathen was
not absent. Some of the early efforts of coloniza-
tion were in fact largely conceived in a missionary
spirit. In not a few instances missionaries even pre-
ceded the traders and settlers, actually opening a way
for them. But granted that some genuine and dis-
interested efforts to enlighten and to uplift the Red
Man were made, only too often the missionary enter-
prise was looked upon as a means of furthering com-
merce with the natives, and not seldom served to hide
base exploitation. To put the case concretely: as a

Among the American Indians 19

rule the so-called Christian nations were interested
more in the gold and the furs the Indian could furnish
than in his immortal soul. Time and again profit
and the greed for gold thwarted noble and conse-
. crated men in their efforts to carry the Gospel to the
benighted heathen.

However, not always did sordid motives lurii be-
hind the missionary enterprise, for a number of
notable exceptions occur. Viewed from the mission-
ary and humanitarian standpoint, the settlement of
the Swedes on the banits of the Delaware river fur-
nishes a bright page in the history of American colon-
ization. Added interest is supplied by the fact that
the idea was conceived in the reign of Gustavus Adol-
phus, whose exertions in behalf of Protestantism at
a critical time are well and favorably known.

A prominent merchant of Stockholm, W. Usse-
linx by name, was the first to propose to the Swedish
government the planting of a colony in the New
World. A native of Holland, which at that time
took high rank among sea-faring nations, he had been
very zealous in promoting the mercantile interests of
his country by his trade activities. As early as 1590
the energetic merchant and man of affairs had pro-
posed the formation of a West India Company.
Altho at that time the dangers and uncertainties of
such an undertaking were considered too great, he
later succeeded in forming the Dutch West India
Company. But failing to receive "what he thought
his just dues," he left Holland in order to find a more
propitious field for the furtherance of his plans.
It was in 1624 that Usselinx approached King

20 Lutheran Mission JTork

Gustav-us Adolphus with a plan for the organization
of a trading company whose business interests were
to include America. The success of similar Dutch
and English companies formed some years before
undoubtedly helped to give his schemes more than a
hearing. The young and ambitious king was natur-
ally eager to discuss means whereby Sweden would
be enabled to share in the profitable trade with newly
discovered countries. Usselinx persuaded the king
that such an undertaking was likely to lead to the
Christianization of the heathen, besides promising
large financial returns^-in short, "it would greatly
tend to the honor of God, to man's eternal welfare,
to his majesty's service, and to the good of the king-
dom." As the king and his advisers looked with
favor upon the plan, steps towards its realization
were accordingly undertaken. In 1626 Usselinx
was allowed to issue a lengthy appeal, in which he
enumerated the advantages which the formation of
such a company would bring to the nation. When
delay in perfecting the organization and consequent
lack of funds made the outlook dubious, the king
himself issued a proclamation, encouraging men of
all ranks to take part in the new enterprise. A char-
ter was granted to the company, in which the king,
members of the nobility, and prominent merchants
were among the stockholders.

Elaborate preparations were now made, and the
work was ripe for execution when Sweden became
involved in the Thirty Years' War, which necessi-
tated a delay in carrying out the plans. But the
king kept the project, which a short time before his

Among the American Indians 21

death (1632) he called "the jewel of his kingdom,"
constantly in mind, and even invited the German
Protestants to participate in its privileges. His
d«ath on the field of Luetzen, however, seemed to
sound the death-knell to the undertaking. But the
project was not abandoned entirely. Already in the
next year the celebrated chancellor of Sweden, Axel
Oxenstierna, renewed the charter and also invited
the co-operation of the German Protestants. The
former plan of organizing a trading company was
dropped, the society limiting its activities to the
establishment of a colony In the New World. With
ntw vigor the preparations for planting a small col-
ony were continued, due largely to the energetic work
of a man who was to become the head of the new
settlement on the eastern coast of America.

Peter Minuit had been the first governor of the
New Netherlands, but thru factional strife among
the stockholders of the Dutch West India Company
and the displeasure of the colonists with the feudal
system he had to enforce, he was compelled to resign,
and in 1632 returned to Holland. About 1635 he
offered his services to one of his countrymen con-
rtected with the Swedish company, and soon became
interested in the colonial and mercantile plans of
Sweden. It was he who laid before the chancellor
the first practical plan for the colonization of the
land bordering on the Delaware, and also proposed
the name New Sweden. His energy soon revived
the sinking spirits and re-united the scattered mem-
bers of the trading society. Here was a man who
inspired confidence, as he was thoroly familiar with

22 Lutheran Mission JFork

all the problems to be solved in making a settlement
in the New World, and therefore offered the best
possible guaranty for a successful and auspicious
start. No wonder that his proposals were carefully
considered and followed.

At last the preparations were complete, and in
the autumn of 1637 two ships, the "Key of Calmar"
and the "Bird Griffin," sailed for the New World.
As far as the Indian was concerned, Sweden's policy
was to be entirely pacific, tho at that time the nation
was at the height of its power, being one of the fore-
most military countries in Europe. This policy of
friendship with the natives was deliberately adopted
and always carried out. It is significant that among
the provisions aboard the ships there were also pres-
ents for the Indians. In addition, the governor re-
ceived intructions looking toward the Christianiza-
tion of the Red Man.

Minuit held that under the circumstances the
region of the Delaware was best suited for the settle-
ment, and accordingly the colonists occupied land
now included within the states of Delaware, Pennsyl-
vania, and New Jersey, the first settlement being
made on the present site of Wilmington, Delaware.
As the Dutch West India Company regarded them
as intruders, and as the numerous Indian tribes
might be opposed to the settlement of the Swedes,
the historic fort Christina, named in honor of the
queen, was built immediately after the landing. And
well might it be, for only eight years before a com-
pany of Dutchmen had been exterminated by the
Indians at the very place which the Swedes occupied

Among the American Indians 23

The natives of that region were known among
the Europeans as Delawares, in their own language
being called Lenne Lennape. They belonged to the
great Algonquin family, whose territory stretched
from the mouth of the St. Lawrence river north to
Hudson Bay, and west to the Rocky Mountains;
southward it extended down the Atlantic coast to the
neighborhood of Florida, being bounded by the Mis-
sissippi in the west. Within a small circle of the
Swedes, there were ten separate tribes, each having
its own sachem or chief. Farther away lived the
Minckus or Minques, renowned for their warlike
character, tho small in numbers. These belonged
to the Mohawk branch of the powerful and perfid-
ious Iroquois nation, an intrusive race, since their
territory was originally farther north. But they
always remained on excellent terms with the Swedes,
speaking of them as their "own people."

We need not enter here into a detailed descrip-
tion of the character, manners, and customs of the
tribes. The reports about them are various and
sometimes also contradictory. The Indians are
described as "big and strong, well built men." It is
also claimed, "when they are not offended, they are
an honest, goodhearted people, and will even expose
themselves to death for those whom they profess
friendship. In general, they show themselves
friendly and upright in their intercourse with
strangers who treat them in the same manner; but
sometimes they can be very cunning and even
roguish." Other accounts, however, are less favor-
able.

24 Lutheran Mission IVork

The Swedes immediately inaugurated their peace-
ful policy toward the Indians by making a purchase
of land. Deeds were drawn up and signed by both
parties, the Indian chiefs tracing their totem marks
on the documents. Some of the papers were subse-
quently sent to Sweden and preserved in the royal ar-
chives. In the course of time the Swedes came in
possession of considerable tracts of land.

This just treatment of the natives was partly dic-
tated by prudence and made advisable by the attitude
of the Dutch, who regarded the Swedes as intruders.
The Dutch had been on the ground first, and the
they had withdrawn some years before, under inter-
national law had the best claim to the lands of the
Delawares. The Swedes, knowing this, maintained
that purchase from the Indians alone gave one a
clear title. So in a document "the wild inhabitants
of the country" are spoken of as "its rightful Lords."
The Dutch, on the other hand, also tried to strength-
en their title, and therefore sought to buy the ab-
original right to the country. Naturally there was
a disposition on both sides to remain on good terms
with the natives. Never once was this peace broken,
and no Indian blood was shed on the Delaware river
by either party during the Swedish occupation. The
impression made upon the Indians was extremely
favorable, and more than a hundred years after-
wards, when Swedish rule had long since ceased, the
Indians continued to speak of the Swedes with the
greatest affection. This peaceful policy later made
possible the success of Penn's attitude towards the

Among the American Indians 25

Indians, a fact often overlooked by historians and
others.

The first religious services were conducted at the
fort, churches being erected afterwards. These,
however, were amply protected. For instance, we
are told about a blockhouse at the strand at Wicacoa,
now Philadelphia, which was altered so as to serve
for church purposes. Such a blockhouse would be
considered as answering the purpose very well, for
at first the churches were of the same material. The
colonists did not immediately learn to trust the In-
dians and therefore properly prepared against a sud-
den attack. According to Rudman, a later mission-
ary, the churches were so built that "after a suitable
elevation, like any other house, a projection was
made some courses higher, out of which they could
shoot, so that if the heathen fell upon them, which
could not be done without their coming up to the
house, then the Swedes could shoot down upon them
continually, and the heathen, who used only bows
and arrows, could do them little or no injury." For-
tunately, the existing friendly relations made such
protection unnecessary.

During the first years of Swedish occupation no
energetic efforts to convert the Indians were made,
the only minister of the colony. Rev. Torkillus, being
too much taken up with work among his own flock.
To be sure, the Indians were invited to the church
services, but naturally profited little or nothing, as
Torkillus was unable to speak their language. After
a few years' service he became ill, dying In 1643.

As his successor, John Campanlus was chosen.

26 Lutheran Mission fFork

who arrived in New Sweden in 1643. He was born
in 1601, was highly gifted, and had received an ex-
cellent education. Besides being a scholar, he seems
to have been an able preacher and a man who per-
formed his duties with faithfulness. At the same
time a new governor was appointed, the energetic,
tho not always prudent John Printz. He received
elaborate and detailed instructions regarding his
rule in the colony. The passage relating to the In-
dians is of special interest to us: "The wild nations,
bordering upon all other sides, the Governor shall
understand how to treat with all humanity and
respect, that no violence or wrong be done to them
by Her Royal Majesty or subjects aforesaid; but he
shall rather, at every opportunity, exert himself, that
the same wild people may gradually be instructed in
the truths and worship of the Christian religion, and
in other ways be brought to civilization and good
government, and in this manner properly guided.
Especially shall he seek to gain their confidence, and
impress upon their minds that neither he, the Gov-
ernor, nor his people and subordinates are come in
those parts to do them any wrong and injury, but
much more for the purpose of furnishing them with
such things as they may need for the ordinary wants
of life, and so also for such things as are found
among them which they themselves cannot make for
their own use, or buy or exchange." Oxenstierna
and the members of the Council of Sweden, by whom
the instructions are signed, enjoined the governor to
keep a watchful eye on the pelt trade, to prevent all
fraud and deception, and to enter into profitable

Among the American Indians 27

relationship with the Indians by underselling the
English and the Dutch.

As Governor Printz distrusted the Indians, he
was not In entire accord with the wishes of the home
government. Later he even proposed militant
means looking to their conversion. All who would
not accept Christianity should be exterminated, and
in order to carry out his plans, he asked for sufficient
soldiers, which fortunately were not furnished by the
government. However, for the time being expe-
diency caused him to avoid all friction by using peace-
ful measures in his relationship with them. Council-
lor Brahe of the privy council advised Printz to teach
the Indians like children and especially to work on
their imagination thru the ceremonies of the
Lutheran service, for "outward ceremonies greatly
affect such savage people." The governor followed
the advice and reports that they kept some of the
Indians, especially children, at the settlement, but
that invariably the savages would take to the woods
again.

When, in 1643, Rev. John Campanius arrived, he
at once energetically took hold of affairs. From the
outset he was greatly interested In the Indians.
Some graphic touches of his relations with them are
told in a book entitled A Short Description of the
Province of New Sweden, which his grandson
Thomas Campanius published In 1702. He relates
the following :"The Indians were frequent visitors
at my grandfather's house. When, for the first
time, he performed divine services in the Swedish
congregation, they came to hear him, and greatly

28 Lutheran Mission Jl'ork

wondered that he had so much to say, and that he
stood alone, and talked so long, while all the rest
were listening in silence. This excited in them
strange suspicions; they thought everything was not
right, and that some conspiracy was going forward
among us; in consequence of which my grandfather's
life and that of the other priests were, for some
time, in considerable danger from the Indians who
daily came to him and asked him many questions.
In those conversations, however, he gradually suc-
ceeded in making them understand that there was one
Lord God ; that He was self-existing, one and in three
persons; how the same God had made the world
from nothing, and created a man and placed him on
earth, and called him Adam, from whom all other
men have sprung; how the same Adam, afterwards,
by his disobedience had sinned against his Creator,
and by that sin had involved all his descendants;
how God sent from heaven upon this earth His only
Son, Jesus Christ, who was born of the Virgin Mary,
for the redemption and salvation of all mankind;
how He died upon the cross, and was raised again
the third day; and lastly, how after forty days He
ascended to heaven, whence He will return at a
future day to judge the quick and the dead," etc.

It must not be assumed, however, that these In-
dians were without religious ideas. Campanius even
believed them to be of Jewish origin, the remnants
of the ten lost tribes of Israel. In order to establish
his point, he wrote a long treatise in Latin, where he
tries, by a comparison of words, to establish an affin-
ity existing between the Hebrew and the Indian Ian-

Among the American Indians 29

guages, in which, however, he signally fails. The
younger Campanius gives us some details about the
religious beliefs of the savage tribes. "Altho the
Indians, being deprived of the Revelation, are unac-
quainted with the true worship of God, they never-
theless acknowledge a Supreme Being, a Great Spirit,
who made the heavens and the earth. They say of
him in their language, as has been related to me:
'Opom Saccheman mah matit, mah nijr noton,
mahorite mah nijr pentor,' which means: 'The great
Sachem in heaven is not bad; he does us neither good
nor harm, and therefore, we cannot worship him.'
Of the evil spirit, they say: 'Manetto matitte . . .,'
meaning: 'The evil spirit above is bad; if we don't
do something to please him, he will hurt or kill us;
therefore, we must worship him'." On that account
they offered sacrifices to him at definite places in the
forest. We are also informed that according to
Landstr^m, a military engineer who had come to
New Sweden in 1654, the Indians seemed to have
some notions of Christ. For they told remarkable
stories, which they claimed to have received by tradi-
tion from their ancestors. One of them is as fol-
lows : "Once upon a time (they say), one of your
women came among us, and she became pregnant, in
consequence of drinking out of a creek; an Indian
had connexion with her, and he also became pregnant,
and brought forth a son; who, when he came to a
certain size, was so sensible and clever, that there
never was one who could be compared with him, so
much and so well he spoke, which excited great
wonder; he also performed many miracles. When

30 Lutheran Mission Work

he was quite grown up, he left us, and went up into
heaven, and promised to come again, but he never
returned."

The Indians were by no means Indifferent to the
religious instruction given them by Campanius, for
"they had great pleasure in hearing these things, at
which they greatly wondered, and began to think
quite differently from what they had done before,
so that he (Campanius) gradually gained their af-
fection, and they visited and sent to him very fre-
quently."

The attitude assumed by the heathen greatly
moved Campanius, and he resolutely set to work to
bring the Gospel to them. To this end he earnestly
strove to learn their language, in which he seems to
have been fairly successful. Between the years
1643-48 he prepared the first knoVvn vocabulary of
any importance of the Indian tribes on the Delaware,
with phrases, numerals, and dialogues, being a con-
venient summary for barnlng the language. He
went even further. Believing that the heathen
would hear and read the Word of God if they could
become acquainted with it, and be converted, he
translated Luther's Small Catechism, "that store-
house of true principles of faith," as he styles it, in
order to make it possible for them to "be partakers
of the holy truths." Several men better acquainted
than he with the language on account of longer resi-
dence in the colony undoubtedly had a share in the
translation, which in its first draft was probably
ready in 1648, about the time Eliot, "the morning
star of missionary enterprise" and the "Apostle of

Among the American Indians 31

the Indians," began his labors at Roxberry, Massa-
chusetts. Eliot's New Testament did not appear un-
til 1661, the Old Testament being issued three years
later. Campanius was thus perhaps the first mis-
sionary among the Indians in this country, and Lu-
ther's Small Catechism probably the first Protestant
book translated into the language of the Indians,
altho it did not appear in print until about half a
century later. However, even in the region of the
Delaware, the Roman Catholics had begun their
labors among the savage tribes before this time.
But their methods may be inferred from the speech
of an Indian chief, reported by one of their own mis-
sionaries, who had this to say about certain co-work-
ers of his : "As long as we have beaver and other
skins, the missionaries stay with us and show us
great friendship; they teach our children their cate-
chism and how to say their prayers; they constantly
stay with us, and even do us the honor to partake
of our feasts; but as soon as we have no more skins,
then those gentlemen begin to think that their pres-
ence is no longer necessary."

We are told that Campanius was very successful
in his work among the savage tribes, so that "many
of those barbarians were converted to the Christian
faith, or, at least, acquired so much knowledge of
it that they were ready to exclaim, as Captain John
Smith relates of the Virginia Indians, that so far as
the cannons and guns of the Christians exceeded the
bow and arrow of the Indians in shooting, so far
was their God superior to that of the Indians." Al-
lowing this to be a roseate view, it was certainly un-

32 Lutheran Mission ITork

fortunate for the missionary work, that after only
a few years of labor Campanius became weary of
his extensive charge, and in 1647 requested his recall
in accordance with the promises given at his sailing.
He proposed that younger men carry on the arduous
work. The request was granted, and in the follow-
ing year he returned to Sweden, where he was re-
warded with the grant of a good charge. The trans-
lation he carried with him, revised it in Sweden, and
in 1656 sent it to the king for publication, accom-
panied by a memorial. But nothing was done about
it for a long time, altho Campanius lived till 1683,
dying at the ripe age of eighty-two.

It does not seem that the missionary work so
nobly begun, but abandoned by Campanius, was car-
ried on by the ministers immediately following him.
However, the friendly relations between the Swedes
and the Indians continued. This must not be inter-
preted to mean that the Indians never harbored any
evil intents. Already at the beginning of the
Swedish occupation temporarily strained relations,
leading almost to an outbreak, existed. But trouble
was averted, and "since that time," the younger
Campanius continues, "the Swedes and Indians have
lived together in amity and friendship and carried
on a friendly intercourse with each other." Under
Rising, the successor of Printz, the old relationship
was renewed, for at a conference with the Indians
in 1654 they were reminded of the former friend-
ship, and were assured that it would be for their
mutual benefit to renew the old compact. Any sus-
picions the Indians might entertain as to the inten-

Among the American Indians 33

tlons of the Swedes were groundless. If the tribes
would agree to draw up and to observe the terms of
a new contract, the Swedes on their side would keep
it irrevocably. The natives complained that the
newcomers had brought much sickness among them.
After a consultation of the chiefs with their men It
was finally agreed that the purchase of land should
remain intact. A defensive league was also made,
the Indians promising that they would regard the
enemies of the Swedes as their own and report any
approaching danger to the best of their ability.
Then followed a general distribution of presents,
after which the Indians left well satisfied and in the
best of humor.

But Swedish rule In the New World was des-
tined to be short-lived. In 1655 the Dutch under
the energetic Stuyvesant took possession of the
colony, which at that time numbered about seven
hundred souls. Under the articles of surrender the
Swedes were allowed to retain their faith, but the
ministers with the exception of one had to return to
Sweden. However, Lars Lock, tho after 1677 as-
sisted by Fabritlus, who became blind in 1682, did
not find time for missionary work, as serving his
own countrymen more than taxed his strength.
After his death, in 1688, the Swedes found them-
selves entirely dependent upon lay readers and the
blind and ailing Fabritlus, tho his death did not oc-
cur till 1696.

However, help was to come from the mother-
land to the spiritually destitute kinsmen. In 1690
a nephew of former governor Printz visited the

34 Lutheran Mission Work

New World and took note of their condition.
After his return to Sweden he discussed the subject
with J. TheUn, postmaster at Goeteborg, who in-
formed the king. At royal request Thelm now
wrote to his countrymen in order to get further de-
tails. This letter was answered in 1693 by
Springer, one of the lay readers, who asked his kins-
men for books and ministers. A fair salary for the
pastors was promised, the Swedes on the Delaware
having prospered in worldly affairs. The appeal
was placed by the king into the hands of Jesper
Svedberg, the father of the well known and eccentric
Emanuel Swedenborg. Svedberg, a former court
preacher and now professor of theology and provost
of the Cathedral at Upsala, was very much inter-
ested in the state of affairs that existed in what had
formerly been New Sweden. Sympathy for the
heathen moved him no less strongly than that for
the people of his own blood. And the energetic
and resourceful man soon found means to relieve
the spiritual want. When the matter had been sub-
mitted to him, "that great light of the church,"
Acrelius, the historian of the Swedish settlement,
tells us, "immediately called to his mind the conver-
sation which, during his travels, he had had with
the licentiate of theology, Ezardi, in Hamburg. In
one of their discussions dealing with the conversion
of the Jews, Dr. Ezardi had stated how the early
Christians in that place had in their wills devised
considerable property for the conversion of the
heathen; that a large part of this had at the present
tiriie come into the hands of the Swedish crown,

Among the American Indians 35

among the property held by Sweden at Stade, Brem-
en; that the income of this property had been con-
verted into stipends to pay the travelling expenses
of the nobility; as, also, that some who enjoyed the
benefit of this abused the trust, of which a dissolute
nobleman, who was then in Hamburg, traveling up-
on this stipend, was an undeniable example ; that thus
they who had the benefit of it converted no heathen,
and so the property was expended in direct contra-:
riety to the contents of the will. It would therefore
be much more becoming, as there was no heathen in
the neighborhood, to apply it to the conversion of
the Jews." Svedberg suggested to the king that the
money could be used to good advantage in the New
World, as there was "now a good opportunity to
convert the heathen, yea, to see to it that the chil-
dren of Sweden do not become heathen as they dwell
among them."

The appeal of his countrymen, re-enforced by
Svedberg's suggestions, moved the heart of Charles
XI. Accordingly three men were sent to look after
the spiritual needs of the Swedish brethren, who
should also take up the work among the Indians.
In his will Rev. John Campanius had expressed the
wish, that his translation of Luther's Catechism be
sent to America for the benefit of the heathen.
Moved by this prayer, the king accordingly caused
the translation, which was still in manuscript, to be
printed at royal expense, and five hundred copies of
it were among the other religious books that the
ministers John Auren, Eric Bj0rck, and Andrew
Rudman in 1697 brought with them to America.

( 2. )

|)uru man md m^t jm
enfalbeligenforeedlla

Tffaenn Hacquacsfung Sactheemans.chis-
bo SiMACKAN.

kt^ctforftrt ^ntec()ifmt ftijcfct om

I. Chiutte
Chisbo Simockan.

^j)et Sorfta i^ubct

Chiji" marra pyri Hocqusesfungz Sacchec-
man cahortamen.

bar ()aftDa f6r mig*

C/j^^o pxnror chijr juni ? Rue.
Ni)i- fiihwijvanRenappi , hatte Nisfiaa-
nus h^s!'l^as^e , mocluj.nijr quinkijnamen
jiuni mochijnck Saccheeman , Hocquis-
fungz \\uinxx. MANETTO, tahoctamen,
pyn, cheko Hocqussfung ock Hacking
hacte , ock ni;r pactOn (iihv^ijvan nijre
Noocon ock cheko nijr pacnror , thaan
I'lnnar mxu)<n\ Vinckan MANETTO h«a.

<?)uni forfiar tut^uta ? ©ag.

ver/To. Q2jt (\Ua mmniftiev j ffole f;afnja
I en

Reproduction of a page from Campaiiius

Translated from Luther's Catechism into the Language of the

Uelaivare Indiana.

LUTH.&

Verfio.

Among the American Indians 37

Several copies of the edition of 1696 have come
down to us, there being for instance one in the libra-
ry of Augustana College and Seminary, Rock Island,
111., one in the University of Pennsylvania, etc. A
brief description of the book will be of interest. It
is a small volume 4x6^ inches, bound in stout calf-
skin. The cover bears the impression of a double
C, the royal initials, surmounted by the Swedish
crown. The title page, in addition to the royal
arms of Sweden, has the following inscription :
Lutheri Catechismus, "(Z>fwersatt pa American-Vir-
ginske' Spraket." Stockholm, Trykt vthi thet af
Kongl. Maytt privileg. Burch'ardi Tryckeri, af
J. J. Genath f. Anno MDCXCVL, which Is in
English : Luther's Catechism, translated into the
American-Virginian language. Stockholm, printed
with permission of his Royal Majesty by J. J. Gen-
ath, Jr., at Burchard's press. A. D. 1696. A
quaint map of New Sweden, dated 1654, is folded
in after the title page. It shows Delaware bay and
river, gives names of settlements, and indicates by
small pictures what animals inhabit the woods,
where the plantations are, and where the Indian
settlements are located. This is followed by an
introduction of fourteen pages. It takes the place
of the original preface of Campanius, portions of
which are quoted. The introduction gives a brief
history of the translation and discusses the evangel-
ization of the heathen in general and of the Indians
in particular, a description of the colonists and the
land being included. Passages of the Sagas are
quoted in order to prove the discovery of America

38 Lutheran Mission Work

in the 10th century by Norsemen. Then comes the
Catechism proper. The Indian translation, which is
often a paraphrase accompanied by explanatory
questions and answers, comes first, followed, para-
graph by paragraph, by a Swedish version. Where-
ever there are marked differences in the Indian and
the Swedish statements, the Swedish version of Lu-
ther's Small Catechism follows. The Catechism
begins thus: "The Catechism which contains the

sum and substance of the Holy Scriptures

Thus shall your children, sons and daughters, man
servants and maid servants, together with all other
persons, give all diligence to learn the Ten Com-
mandments of the Lord, our God." The first com-
mandment is thus explained : "We and all men must
have a childlike fear, yea, it must be our pleasure to
love this powerful God more than anything con-
tained in heaven or upon earth, and we must place
all our trust and confidence upon this our merciful
God alone." All the other parts of the Catechism
are explained with the same simplicity, showing that
Campanius knew how to condescend to the under-
standing of the Indian. In all 126 pages are occu-
pied by the Catechism. This is followed by a
vocabulary of the Delaware language (Vocabular-
ium Barbaro-Virginiorum) of 30 pages, including a
very brief vocabulary of the tribes of the Minques,
who were on especially good terms with the Swedes.
On the whole, the task was creditably performed.
It is true, Mr. Peter S. Du Ponceau, on the author-
ity of Mr. Heckewelder, in his Notes and Observa-
tions on Eliot's Indian Grammar, charges Campan-

Among the American Indians 39

lus with many blunders, probably due to the ignor-
ance of traders who were his helpers." "He trans-
lates the words 'Gracious God' by Sweet Manitto;
but the word vinckan, (it should have been wingan)
by which he attempts to express sweet, is one which
in the Delaware language is only applied to eat-
ables; so that the sense which he conveys to an
Indian, is that of O sweet tasted Manitto ! Yet no
language is richer in suitable appellations for the
Deity. In the same manner, when he means to ex-
press the verb 'to love' in a divine sense, he uses the
word tahottamen, applicable only to the liking which
men have for perishable things, when he had eholan,
from the substantive ahol-lowagan (love), which it
is most probable he was not acquainted with." That
Campanius' translation is not absolutely accurate,
and that he misunderstood and misconstrued the
Indian language in several particulars, may readily
be admitted. But one should remember that he
was a pioneer and did not have at. his disposal such
expert assistance as Eliot. And as the book was
printed after the translator's death, by men who
very likely knew absolutely nothing about the lan-
guage, it was inevitable that quite a number of mis-
takes should creep in. But this does not materially
detract from the great value of Campanius' work.
That the newly sent missionaries had not for-
gotten their duty towards the natives will be seen
from a letter written by Rev. Bjjzirck October 29,
1697. Interesting as showing the relations between
the Swedes and the Indians, we quote : "The Indians
and we are as one people; we live in much greater

40 Lutheran Mission fVork

friendship with them than with the English: they
call the Swedes, in their language, their own people;
they were very glad when we came, as they now see
that Sweden does not abandon them." From a mis-
sionary standpoint even more illuminatmg is the
following passage: "They are also very fond of
learning the catechism, which has been printed in
their language; they like to have it read to them,
and they have engaged Mr. Charles Springer to
teach their children to read it. Who knows what
God has yet in store for them, if our lives should be
spared, when we shall have acquired their idiom?
We shall spare no labor to attain that object."

Efforts to penetrate into the interior and to
preach the Gospel to the Indians were also made.
In 1699 Auren, who had meanwhile become a Sab-
batarian, undertook the task, in which he was aided
by an interpreter. His experiences are related in a
booklet entitled Dissertatio Gradualis De Planta-
tione Ecclesiae Svecanae in America, which Tobias
Bj0rk, son of Eric, published in 1731 at Upsala.
Auren attended a meeting of Indians at Canistowa
(Conestoga region in Lancaster Co., Pa.) twenty-
five years before white men settled there, and pre-
vailed upon them to forsake their heathen religion
and to embrace Christianity. Thru an interpreter,
an Indian skillfully answered his appeal and argu-
ments. The substance of that speech we have re-
corded in Latin on pages 30-34 of the booklet, as
Auren impressed it upon his memory and soon after-
wards committed it to writing, transmitting it under
date of Jan. 13, 1699-1700, to Eric Bj0rck. In

Among the American Indians 41

speaking of revelation, the Indian claimed that God
doubtless exercised sufficient care to illuminate the
Indians and make possible their salvation. If Auren
affirmed their opinion regarding this and other
points, his proposition would be unnecessary; if he
contradicted it, that would be absurd, and they
would not listen to him. Should he propose addi-
tional facts, which were unknown to them, but prov-
ed acceptable, they would gladly entertain them.

No results followed from this sporadic effort and
the pious wishes of the other ministers. The rea-
son given by Acrelius, himself one of the Swedish
ministers on the Delaware and the historian of the
settlements, will furnish a sufficient explanation :
"But yet the object was never obtained, partly be-
cause the ministers had always so much to do among
their widely scattered congregations that they had
no time for anything else." The other reason given
by him carries little weight. He claims that the
letter R, r, which the book uses, is not found in the
language of the Indians, but L, 1, in the place of R,
r, ascribing the mistake to the editor of the cate-
chism, who mistook the letter 1 for r in the manu-
script. But it is more probable that some of the
Delaware tribes made use of the sound r where
others employed 1, which was not uncommon among
different tribes of the same Indian nation.

Only a few isolated references to missionary
work among the Indians follow the letter of Bj0rck
and the preaching of Auren in the interior. We are
told, for instance, that A. Hesselius, a nephew of
Svedberg and successor to Bj0rck, during his service

42 Lutheran Mission Work

between 1713-23, expended a great deal of labor
in the conversion of the heathen, who, at that time,
were frequently seen among the Swedes. But little
was accomplished. At one time a young boy was
induced to live at the minister's house, where Hes-
selius instructed him thru the medium of English
in the principal doctrines of Christianity, and finally
baptized him. The son of the forest, however,
soon returned to his kin, preferring the charms of
nature to the refinements of civilization.

Thus came to an end what might have developed
Into a successful mission among the Indians, had en-
ergetic and methodical efforts been made, or the
promising beginning of Campanius been followed up.
The political change that lost Sweden the newly
acquired colony doubtless had some effect upon the
missionary activities, but even if the political factor
be excluded. It seems hardly probable that a thriving
mission would have been established, since the cus-
tom of recalling the Swedish ministers after a num-
ber of years and often rewarding them with opulent
parishes was not favorable to an enterprise that de-
manded constant and unwearied labor and sacrifices
extending over many years. Fruits there were,
but these in accordance with the effort expended. In
proportion to and in keeping with the sporadic and
unsustained activities put forth.

Chapter II

PIOUS WISHES

T^OR a time it seemed as if missionary work might
-*- be undertaken in the South by the Lutheran Salz-
burgers, whom Catholic persecution had forced to
leave their country. Salzburg, bordering on Ba-
varia, is a German speaking district of Austria.
Tho Austria as a whole remained firmly Catholic
, at the time of the Reformation, the new doctrines
found a fertile soil among the miners and farmers of
Salzburg. The peace of Westphalia after the Thir-
ty Years' War nominally guaranteed also to them
liberty of conscience and their own form of worship.
However, when in time large numbers of Lutherans
were discovered among the supposedly Catholic
people, the spirit of intolerance made Its presence
felt. Affairs reached a crisis under Archbishop
Count Firmian, who was determined to extirpate the
Lutheran heresy. He placed all Protestants before
the alternative of becoming Roman Catholics or of
leaving the country. In the latter case the minor
children would remain in Salzburg and be brought
up as Roman Catholics. Thus in the winter of 1731
began the expulsion of these pious Christians
who for the sake of their belief were willing to suf-
fer untold hardships. The Lutherans of Germany
received them with open arms, and the king of Prus-
sia settled about 20,000 of these exiles in his eastern
provinces, where they became loyal citizens and pros-
pered in material and spiritual affairs.

A few of these Salzburg emigrants found their

44 Lutheran Mission Work

way into other countries, such as Holland and Amer-
ica. Dr. Samuel Urlsperger of Augsburg, who as
former court preacher at London had close relations
with the Lutheran reigning house of England, was
instrumental in securing for a small number homes
in Georgia. The Society for the Propagation of
the Gospel bore a large part of the expense inci-
dental to their removal there, and Governor James
Oglethorpe took, a personal interest in these brave
Lutheran exiles. Under the leadership of John
Boltzius and Israel Gronau, their two ministers fur-
nished by Halle, the emigrants set out and in 1734
established a colony twenty-five miles from Savan-
nah, which in gratitude to God they named Ebenezer.
There these men of sterling quality, guided by their
efficient leaders, greatly prospered in a material as
well as a spiritual sense. They were loyal subjects
of the colony and later firm defenders of American
freedom, for which not a few made the supreme
sacrifice.

The conversion of the native heathen had been
contemplated from the first, Boltzius and Gronau
receiving specific instruction to that effect. A splen-
did opportunity to engage in missionary work also
offered itself, for in the neighborhood of the colony
there lived about 8,000 Cherokees, a tribe which
we shall have occasion to meet later in the state of
Oklahoma. It was the intention of the leaders to
carry out their instructions as soon as feasible, and
only a short time after their landing Governor Ogle-
thorpe refers to the desire expressed by the min-
isters to erect a stone memorial of God's deliverance

Among the American Indians 45

and of His having brought them to the end of the
earth, where they might praise God in perfect free-
dom and become a light unto the heathen.

In the diary of Boltzius and the letters of both
ministers many occasional references to the Indians
are found. Thus we read in a letter of Boltzius to
Prof. Francke in Halle, dated Savannah, March 23,
1734, only a few days after their arrival: "At pres-
ent we are with our followers in the newly built city
of Savannah in Georgia, and do not yet know def-
initely how many or what Indians we shall have as
our next neighbors. But this much we have been
told by Mr. Oglethorpe that there are very many
Indians in the colony, and that many of them might
be benefited. May God help and guide us! Our
congregation is very small and, thank God, in a
splendid condition. And thus the Father gives
us, as it were, an indication how we may best utilize
our spare time, namely, to increase this white Euro-
pean flock with a few dark Indians cleansed in the
blood of Christ, and to prepare ourselves both
bodily and spiritually for this very important work.
It seems impossible to acquire the Indian language
from the natives. But we have been informed that
a few white Christians have married Indian women,
and have acquired the language thru such associa-
tion. Such men might be the means of reaching the
desired object."

However, soon these pious wishes began to fade
away, as the following quotation from the diary of
Boltzius under date of July 9, 1735, shows: "A
few Indians arrived from Savannah, where they had
received presents, and tomorrow they intend to con-

46 Lutheran Mission IFork

tlnue the journey to their mountain home. Six or
them paid me a visit, and they not only made a very
favorable outward impression, but were also very
friendly and respectable. Whenever I see such
poor heathens here, a strong desire is re-awakened
in me for an opportunity to learn their language.
However, anyone acquainted with our present sit-
uation and duties will readily see the almost insuper-
able obstacles. If one would accomplish something
for the benefit of the heathen, he must needs have a
special call, so as not to be hindered in the acquisi-
tion of the language and the association with them
by other pastoral work."

The same thoughts, plainly indicating that no en-
ergetic efforts will be undertaken, re-occur in a letter
of Boltzius and Gronau to Prof. Francke, dated
Ebenezer, January 8, 1736: "In regard to the
heathen we can at present do nothing more than to
pray for them fervently, to give them a good ex-
ample, and to show them true love whenever they
pay us one of their rare visits. If in accordance with
God's will and that of our benefactors one of us were
to learn the Indian language, he would have to be
relieved of the ordinary pastoral duties at Eben-
ezer, in order that he might be enabled not only to
learn the language, but also to visit the Indian vil-
lages. Altho the men absent themselves for weeks
and even months on hunting trips, their wives and
children are said to remain at home, so that schools
and other benevolent institutions could be main-
tained. Here men, women, and children roam in
the woods, in a similar miserable condition as the

Among the American Indians 47

Gipsies in Germany. They also indulge very much
in the drinking of whiskey and lead an immoral life,
the opportunity being furnished by the Christians.
If one had a special call for the heathen farther re-
moved, and could secure a pious school teacher,
with God's help he might possibly accomplish some-
thing in time."

Thus the relations with the Indians were cordial
at first. The natives were willing to be instructed
in the knowledge of the Supreme Being and to send
their children to the Christian school at Ebenezer.
But nothing definite was undertaken and no results
followed. In 1799 one of the ministers of the col-
ony in viewing the former ambitious plans com-
plains : "The purpose in founding Ebenezer was
really to establish in time a mission among the
neighboring tribes. And with God's help the hopes
would have been realized, if they had not turned
their attention to so many other things." The
colonists became indifferent toward the Indians, and
even treated them discourteously and unjustly.
Thus the basic qualities for doing missionary work
were wholly lacking, as the Salzburgers themselves
degenerated spiritually, so that the afore-mentioned
minister at the close of the century could write :
"The Lutheran Church is here in America, at least
in the South, to all outward appearances the most
corrupt. It is not in a position to reprove the
Catholics, who in spite of all their superstitious
ceremonies maintain at least outward discipline."

In the North no systematic efforts at conversion
were made at this particular time, altho Indians

48 Lutheran Mission IFork

now and then attended Lutheran services. Ex-
ceedingly close relations, however, existed in a num-
ber ot instances. The lite of Conrad Weiser, jr.,
is of special interest in this respect. At the age of
seventeen he was adopted by an Indian chief and
for eight months lived among the tribe. He won
the complete confidence of the Indians, and from
1732-60 was at the head of the Indian Bureau of
the colonial government of Pennsylvania. Abso-
lutely trusted by both parties, this man of sterhng
worth, who was a convinced Lutheran most of his
life, tho for a time led astray by the Sabbatarians,
rendered many a service to his fellow Christians.
He doubtless exerted also some religious influence
upon the Indians. The great Patriarch of the Ameri-
can Lutheran Church, Henry Melchior Muehlen-
berg, married his daughter Anna, and became very
much interested in the natives. However, the great
and pressing work of gathering thousands of un-
churched Lutherans into congregations and of or-
ganizing the Church left him no time for mission-
ary labors among the Indians.

Only toward the end of the century some feeble
attempts at bringing the Gospel to the heathen were
made. In 1790 the Rev. A. T. Braun of Treves,
who had worked as Roman Catholic missionary a-
mong the Indians, embraced the Lutheran faith,
and later offered all his linguistic knowledge toward
the Christianization of the natives. Dr. Kunze,
one of the leading ministers, communicated with
Halle and also asked President Washington for fed-
eral support. Washington answered that the

Among the American Indians 49

granting of an appropriation was solely in the hands
of congress. Kunze now drew up an elaborate plan
tor a mission, placing the budget at one thousand
bpanish dollars, but nothing came of the matter, as
no federal aid was obtained.

Another effort of a more substantial character
centering around one man might have borne fruit.
It was an ambitious plan conceived by an eccentric,
but devout Lutheran minister, the Rev. John
Christopher Hartwig. Tho his pious designs for
the conversion of the heathen were not carried out,
the efforts resulted in the estabhshment of Hartwick
Seminary, the oldest Lutheran theological school in
America. The salient features of the noble en-
deavor merit closer attention.

Mr. Hartwig was born January 6, 1714, in Saxe
Gotha, Germany. Of his childhood, youth, and edu-
cation no authentic record remains. But he un-
doubtedly received a very thoro classical training,
as his extant Latin compositions prove. After the
completion of his university studies he was connected
for a short time with the institution of Dr. Callen-
berg in Hamburg for the conversion of the Jews.
Having received a call as pastor of St. Peter's
Lutheran Church at Rhinebeck, New York, he was
ordained by the two pastors af the Savoy Church
and the pastor of the Swedish Lutheran Church in
London. In 1746 we find him in his parish at
Rhinebeck. In a codicil to his will he himself says
that he was "sent hither a missionary preacher of
the Gospel upon the petition and call of some Pala-
tine congregations in the Counties of Albany and

50 Lutheran Mission fFork

Dutchess." During the French and Indian War
he seems to have been the chaplain of a German regi-
ment.

Rev. Hartwig remained twelve years at Rhine-
beck, which was probably his only settled pastorate.
Later he visited widely separated churches, preach-
ing here and there and giving important counsel
not only in spiritual, but also in temporal affairs.
Rev. Hartwig was never married, and therefore un-
fettered in the important work as itinerant minister
and healer of dissensions. "Many instances of his
traditional eccentricities grew out of his celibate
state. Dr. Jacobs recites a tradition that his visits
were dreaded by domestics because of his excessively
long prayers at family worship, and local tradition
charges him with being a regular woman-hater. It
it said that once on a visit to this neighborhood he
was shown to his lodgings in a chamber which con-
tained some articles of female wearing apparel.
On discovering this fact he is said to have fled thru
a window and sought more safe and congenial quar-
ters."

However, this eccentric man was devout, de-
voted to his duty, and filled with holy zeal for the
preaching of the Gospel. His character is ex-
hibited by the fact that he was on intimate terms
with the Patriarch Muehlenberg, whom he occasion-
ally visited, and whose visits he received in return.
At one time Muehlenberg travelled 210 miles on
horseback in order to pay his friend a visit and
stayed with him a full month, clear evidence of the
esteem in which he held him.

Among the American Indians 51

Hartwig's great love of people also included
the Indian, and not long after his arrival in America
he conceived an ambitious plan for the conversion
of the natives. As early as 1753, while still located
at Rhinebeck, he secured, for a consideration named
as one hundred pounds, an Indian deed, executed
at "Canajoharie, 1753, May 23." The grant calls
for a "certain tract of vacant land, Scituate, lying
and being, on the South Side of the Mohawks river,
between Schoharrie and Cherry Valley, along a cer-
tain small Creek: containing nine miles in length and
four miles in breadth." However, as Hartwig had
not obtained royal consent thru Governor Clinton,
the grant came to nought. A royal license was now
obtained, and a second deed drawn up under date
of May 29, 1754, the consideration named being
again one hundred pounds. "This latter tract was
not the same as the first, but is described as being
'on the west side of the Susquehanna and running
along said river six miles and extending in breadth
from the said river into the woods six miles.' It
was supposed that this tract cornered on Otsego
Lake where the river issues therefrom, but that
was afterwards found to be a mistake. The tract
was substantially the present town of Hartwick.
The petition was for :i;4,000 acres, the deed called
for 23,040, but a survey made later accounts for 21,-
500."

During Rev. Hartwig's lifetime no direct efforts
for the conversion of the heathen were undertaken.
At his death at the ripe age of over eighty-two
years, on July 17, 1796, he left his estate for the

i2 Lutheran Mission fVork

erection of a "Gymnasium Evangeitcum Minister-
tale pro propagatione Evangelico Christianae Reli-
gionis inter Gentiles." In his eccentric will he says:
"Having been hindered by unfavorable times and
circumstances to put Thy will (i. e. the Savior's)

and my design sooner in execution I must

transfer this my trust to others," etc., his plan in-
cluding the education "of the ignorant, ungospel-
ized part of mankind of whatsover state, color or
complexion in the Christian religion, ac-
cording to a plan and method to be annexed to this
instrument" (i. e. the will). "I there ordain," says
he, "that it is chiefly the enabling, preparing, and
qualifying proper persons in respect to their age,
constitution of their bodies and minds, and attain-
ments in learning, or knowledge of the instrumental
literature such as generally are taught in American
colleges," etc. "Whenever," he continues, "there
shall be no more occasion for missionaries to red
or black heathens, or the revenue of my estate will
bear it, the compass of instruction may be enlarged
to catechetical instruction, and If after that Provi-
dence should provide sufficient means also to classi-
cal learning, but no heathen authors shall ever be
allowed to be taught in this institution to stain the
mind of youths," etc.

Thus there seemed to be a large endowment for
specifically missionary purposes. But events
proved that the estate was much smaller than one
had leason to believe. At one time Hartwig owned
about 21,000 acres of land, but this had dwindled
down considerably. When Hartwig was an old

Among the American Indians 53

man, he employed as his agent Judge William
Cooper, father of James Fenimore Cooper, the
novelist of Leatherstocking fame. Contrary to
the manifest intention of Hartwig, the agent sold
the land at about $1.75 per acre, so that in 1796 no
land of the original patent was left. Of Hartwig's
whole estate less than 3,000 acres remained. "But
what had become of the proceeds of the previous
sales? This seems to be an illustration of the anec-
dote which runs somewhat after this fashion: 'Two
men, A and B, entered into partnership. A put in
all the capital, and B put in his experience. At the
end of the year B had the capital and A the exper-
ience.' Mr. Hartwick no doubt had some exper-
ience,''^ tho it is charitable to believe that he never
knew in what condition his affairs were. The fact
remains that thru the mismanagement or fraud of
the agent the greater portion of the property dis-
appeared. Some may be inclined to find in the
trouble over the right of the public to use part of
the Cooper estate fronting Otsego Lake as a picnic
ground, which darkened the later years of the great
novelist, the evidence of a just retribution and poetic
justice !

It seems that afterwards practically half of the
estate was lost thru the activities of one of the ad-
ministrators, so that the proceeds from the sale of
land amounted to not more than $15,612.95. To
administer the estate according to the will of the
eccentric Hartwig proved well nigh impossible.
Aided by a special act of the legislature, the execu-
tors tried to carry out the spirit of the will. At this
time, the Indians had left that section of the country.

54

Lutheran Mission ff'ork

and the thousands of unchurched Lutherans claimed
the attention of the ecclesiastical leaders. So when
the executioners and others met in New York City
on September 15, 1797, it was decided to found a
theological and missionary seminary. Of the

Hartwick Seminary, Otsego Co., N. Y.

elected faculty, Rev. J. F. Ernst was to move to
Cooperstown, there to train the younger pupils;
Rev. A. T. Braun at Albany had the classical depart-
ment under his charge; while Dr. J. C. Kunze was
the theological professor at New York. Under
this arrangement a number of ministers were
trained. After some ineffectual attempts to locate
the proposed institution, Hartwick Seminary was
finally opened in 1815 in its own building in Otsego
Co. Founded by Rev. Hartwig's endowment, bear-
ing his name, and standing on the ground once owned
by the pioneer Lutheran minister, the institution
has a history of no mean achievement, tho it has not
become a school for missionaries in the narrower
sense.

Chapter III

THE WORK AMONG THE CHIPPEWAS IN

MICHIGAN AND MINNESOTA

THE beginning of the Indian mission among tiie
Chippewas in Michigan goes back to Rev. F.
Schmid, the founder and first president of the Michi-
gan Synod. Born in 1807 at Walddorf, Wuerttem-
berg, he had received his theological training in the
Protestant mission school at Basel, Switzerland.
In response to an urgent call of former Wuerttem-
bergers he was sent to Michigan in 1833, and as first
Lutheran pastor of that state worked with great
zeal and success in Ann Arbor and vicinity.

While Rev. Schmid's main efforts were directed
toward preaching the Gospel to the unchurched
Germans and the organization of congregations, he
took a deep interest in the heathen Indians. And
soon steps for their Christianization were taken.
Tangible evidence of this is found in the minutes of
the Minis terium of Pennsylvania for the year 1840,
where reference is made to "a letter from Brother
Frederick Schmidt in Ann Arbor in the state of
Michigan, in which he expresses his joy concerning
our labors in the missionary field, and makes many
proposals which may be calculated to promote the
missionary work, and to awaken the missionary
spirit."

Partly as a result of these suggestions a mission-
ary society was founded in 1842, which had as one

56 Lutheran Mission Work

of its objects the support of the Indian mission be-
gun by Rev. Schmid. In the minutes of 1844, in
the transactions of this missionary society, there is
"a letter from Rev. F. Schmidt, Ann Arbor, Michi-
gan, in which he states that by reason of the energy
of the Missionary Society in the said state, the mis-
sionary has been sent to labor among the Indians.
He requests the co-operation of our Society in the
evangelizing of the Indians." This letter was read,
and it was "resolved that the Executive Committee
be authorized to transmit to the Missionary Society
of Michigan the sum of $50 for Indian Missions
provided the state of the treasury will bear it." In
the next year the missionary society decided that the
Indian mission be recommended also for the present
year if the necessary means are at hand.

Meanwhile a mission had been established at
Sebewaing, Huron Co., which held out promises of
great success. In the biography of Rev. Schm'J,
written by his son, we read the following: "In the
spring of 1845 three missionaries, Auch, Dumser,
and Sinke were sent to the Indians at Sebewaing.
Early in the morning three wagons halted before the
parsonage, the neighbors appeared, and loaded the
wagons with provisions, furniture, clothing, etc.,
which the congregation had contributed. When
that work was finished, the cause of the mission was
entrusted to God with song and prayer. As the
party began its journey, we accompanied it with our

eyes until it disappeared from view It was

no easy matter to travel the 125 miles leading thru
the primeval forest and the swamps."

Among the American Indians 57

For a number of years the Pennsylvania society
continued its support of the mission, in 1847 a letter
being read from Rev. F. Schmid, "in which he ex-
presses his obligations to our society for appropriat-
ing the sum of $100 to the mission among the Indi-
ans." In 1848 the Missionary Society reported
that it had sent $125 to Brother Schmidt "who is
laboring faithfully in the vineyard of the Lord,
and who was much encouraged by this gift. The
Committee hears that deep and abiding impressions
have been made upon the neighboring Indian tribes
by the mission. Rev. Schmidt writes, 'These heath-
en are beginning to receive the Word in humility
and the salvation of their souls is being cared for.
Many have already united with our Church, and we
have reason to believe that they will remain stead-
fast in their faith. Our mission school is in a flour-
ishing condition. Eighteen scholars are now In the
mission house, which has made encouraging prog-
ress in the various branches of learning, but particu-
larly in the knowledge of the doctrine of Jesus.
Six of these scholars, after previous Instruction, and
according to their own desire, have been received
into the fellowship of the Church thru Holy Bap-
tism. It is indeed encouraging to note that these
scholars leave heathenism in their early youth and
return to the Shepherd and Bishop of their souls.
Yes, dear brethren, our prayers and labors for the
Indians are not in vain. Jesus Christ hears our
supplication and to Him alone be the glory." Fur-
ther remarks about the mission, its decline and fail-
ure, will be made in connection with the Bethany

5i

Lutheran Mission JVork

Indian Mission of Loehe and the Missouri Synod,
to which we now turn our attention.

Rev. Wilhelm Loehe of Neuendettelsau -in
Bavaria, noted for his efforts in building up the
Lutheran Church in America and for his inner mis-

Wilhelm Loehe

sion work, was very much interested in the Indians
and one of the best friends the Red Man has ever
had. He urged the "emergency men" sent out by
him to obtain information about the feasibility of

Among the American Indians 59

a mission among the heathen natives. We cite
from the instruction given to W. Hattstaedt, who
emigrated in 1843 and brought the work of the
Michigan Synod to the attention of Loehe. In par-
agragh 16 he is requested to communicate during
his proposed trip to the West with the "Saxons" in
Missouri, and among other things we have men-
tioned that he "receive their suggestions in regard
to the American heathen tribes." Paragraph 19
reads: "In particular endeavor to find out what
Lutheran, respectively German-Lutheran, congre-
gations have been organized among or in the neigh-
borhood of heathen Indian tribes, and consult with
the brethren named in paragraph 16 regarding our
desire to have pastors and missionaries in one per-
son." Paragraph 20 : "You are requested to gain
detailed information concerning the missionaries of
different denominations who are laboring among
the heathen Indians, and to investigate what our
brethren of the household of faith have done for
those tribes, and how we ourselves might co-operate
with already established Indian missions. One
might perhaps learn considerably from the Mor-
avian missions, to which you will kindly direct your
attention."

The proposed trip to the West was not made,
for Hattstaedt settled as pastor in Monroe, Michi-
gan, where Rev. Schmid had laid the foundation.
Thus he became acquainted with the missionary
labors of the Michigan Synod and sent detailed in-
formation about the promising work to Loehe, at
the same time suggesting that his own efforts might

60 I.Hlheran Mission fVork

be more successful if joined with those of the Lu-
therans already settled there.

Rev. Loehe, always willing to co-operate with
other Lutherans, e\idently was satisfied that such an
arrangement with the Michigan Synod would pro-
vide an excellent opportunity to begin energetic
work looking toward the Christianlzation of the
Indians. At first it was planned to open a seminary
for the training of missionaries, but this was speed-
ily abandoned and the planting of a colony among
the Indians substituted. It was thought that the
testimony of a Christian life would greatly aid in
the conversion of the Indians, who would thus view
Christianity in its application, and the converted
might be induced to try settled life. A result of
these plans was the establishment of Frankenmuth
(Courage of the Franks, or Bavarians) on the Sag-
inaw river in 1845. The colonists who were will-
ing to make such an experiment were mainly young
peasants and mechanics from the neighborhood of
Neuendettelsau.

The choice of the leader of the missionary settle-
ment was a happy one. Friedrich August Craemer
had passed his thirty-second year when in 1844 he
offered his services to Loehe. After completing
his university education he had been for a time tutor
In Saxony and England, where at the University of
Oxford he held a professorship, until the opposition
of this man of strong character and Iron will to the
Puseyites made his position untenable. His "per-
fect knowledge" of English also would prove very
valuable In approaching the Indians. When in the

Among the American Indians

61

spring of 1845 the organization of the colonists had
been perfected by the adoption of an elaborate con-
stitution governing their congregational affairs,
Craemer was elected as their pastor and leader.

On May 20, 1845, the colonists sailed from
Bremerhaven and landed fifty days later at New

Friedrich August Craemer

York. On July 17th they reached Monroe, Michi-
gan, where Rev. Hattstaedt and his congregation
welcomed them heartily. Rev. Schmid and mis-
sionary Auch also proved to be of great assistance
in making the settlement. The place selected was
135 miles from Monroe to the north in the neigh-
borhood of Saginaw City. The colonists went to
Saginaw just as soon as possible and made it their
headquarters until the purchase of a tract of 680
acres for $1,700 had been concluded. The begin

62 Lutheran Mission ff'ork

ning of Frankenmuth is interestingly told by Prof.
Th. Graebner in his pamphlet entitled The Bavarian
Settlements of the Saginaw Valley, from which we
quote.

"Soon after their arrival in Saginaw, Pastor
Craemer, accompanied by some of his men and a
surveyor, struck out for the primeval forest to in-
spect the land which had been recommended to them,
and to have it surveyed. They travelled sixteen
miles cross-country from Saginaw, partly over
marshy ground. Dense woods covered the entire
countryside. There stood the ancient giants of the
forests, among them a thick underbrush which had
been visited by no human foot except when the red
huntsman had penetrated these fastnesses in order
to track the wolf, the bear, and the deer.

"Where now is situated the old cemetery of the
Frankenmuth congregation, the first blows of the ax
were heard. This was probably in the month of
August (1845). While the women remained in
Saginaw, the men would set forth on Monday morn-
ings with their tools, in order, first of all, to clear a
piece of ground on which it was the intention to
build two log-houses. After the unaccustomed
labor the men would rest their weary members on
rude bedding spread under a temporary shelter of
boughs and branches. The pastor regularly led
morning and evening devotions. Finally the huts
were ready for occupancy. The 'Company Hut'
was thirty feet In length, and was to strve as a shel-
ter for the five couples and the two single men.
The other log-house was Intended for the pastor's

Among the American Indians 63

family and also for the conduct of divine services.
There were doors in it, but no windows. The roof
was not rain-proof, and during the frequent down-
pours tables and umbrellas had to be employed to
keep the bedding dry. Nevertheless it was a shel-
ter sufficient for the most urgent needs. Now the
women, the baggage, and all household goods were
loaded on ox-carts, and the trip from Saginaw to
Frankenmuth was successfully accomplished."

The real purpose in planting the colony was not
forgotten. Seventy acres of land was set apart for
the benefit of the mission. Already in Saginaw the
colonists had made the acquaintance of Chippewa
Indians, and as soon as the colony was established
and Craemer's health permitted, the missionary
took energetic steps to bring the Gospel to the Indi-
an village twenty miles away. He was fortunate
in securing the services of Jim Gruet, a half-blood
of French-Canadian extraction, who acted as his
interpreter. Beginning with the spring of 1846,
regular visits were also made to the Kakawlin,
Swan, Chippewa, Pine, and Bell rivers. Some of
these places were from fifty to seventy miles from
Frankenmuth, and the trips generally had to be
made on foot. In time three main preaching places
were visited once a month. The hardships endured
during all kinds of weather in the trackless forest
and the wigwams may easily be imagined, and sev-
eral times the missionary nearly lost his life in cross-
ing Saginaw Bay. Craemer also tried to induce the
Indians to settle at Frankenmuth, but only one man

64 Lutheran Mission Work

with his children and grandchildren, the medicine
man Old Jim, accepted the invitation.

Naturally Rev. Craemer paid special attention
to the children, for if the Indians could be induced
to entrust them to his care, the adults would in turn
be influenced. In this he was successful. The in-
fluential chief Bemasslkeh was the first to comply
with the missionary's request and turned his two
sons over to him. When some time later he hon-
ored his "friend" with a visit of ten days, the num-
ber of pupils increased to five. Later five addition-
al children were secured thru the co-operation of
Sauaban, another chief. The ice being once
broken, others followed, so that in 1846, one year
after the establishment of Frankenmuth, the mis-
sionary had thirty children under his care.

What labor the instruction and supervision of
these children of nature involved, may readily be
imagined! The sympathetic help of Mrs. Craemer
was here of Inestimable value. She herself has told
us of her experiences with these savages. A thoro
cleaning was the first number on the program.
Then a suitable dress had to be provided. This
was followed by an elementary course dealing with
the essentials of civilized customs and table man-
ners, a course which sometimes extended over a
long period. And even then success did not always
crown the efforts, for sometimes the innate love of
the woods and a life without restraint proved too
strong, and the Indian boy would seek the native
camp in spite of parental displeasure. Crowded
quarters made the situation still more difficult; the

Among the American Indians 65

parsonage had to serve at the same time for church
and school purposes, besides sheltering the family of
the interpreter. But the unselfish work bore fruit,
and the missionary and his wife were re-paid by the
love of the children, who clung to Mrs. Craemer as
to a mother. When the new church, necessitated thru
a large increase in the colony during 1846, was dedi-
cated at Christmas, three Indian children could be
baptized, receiving the names of Abraham, Magda-
lene, and Anna.

Rev. Craemer and his helpmeet looked upon the
arduous task as a labor of love. This is especially
seen from a letter which he wrote in 1848 to the
"Lutheraner," a church paper published in St. Louis.
In this report he speaks with delight about the trans-
formation which civilization worked with his
charges, of which already nineteen had been bap-
tized. Interestingly he contrasts their life in the
woods and the camp with that of civilization. The
dirt and squalor had given way to cleanliness, so
that the ruddy faces in their new setting were a
pleasing sight. Regular instruction also began.
The children were taught to spell, to read, and to
write both English and German. Special empha-
sis was laid upon singing and instruction in religion,
where Luther's Small Catechism served as a manual-
On Sundays the children would first voluntarily at-
tend the German service, reverently joining in the
recitation of the Lord's Prayer and the Apostles'
Creed. In their own service, which followed, they
sang hymns in their native language, devoutly re-
cited the prayers, and listened attentively to the

66 Lutheran Mission Jf'ork

lessons from Genesis and the Gospels. Manual
training was not wholly neglected, special emphasis
being laid upon the sewing and the fancy work of
the girls.

Until 1846 the Frankenmuth colony as also the
Indian mission was under the supervision of the
Michigan Synod, to which Craemer with Hattstaedt
and others belonged. But in this year all connec-
tion with the synod was severed on account of its
lax confessional standpoint. Other ties, however,
were soon knit. For in the following year Craemer
became one of the founders of the Synod of Mis-
souri, Ohio, and Other States, which made him sec-
retary of its mission board. As such he was
directed to ask Loehe to have the Central Mission
Society of Bavaria transfer the mission to the synod,
which was finally done two years later.

The Indians had shown great confidence in
Craemer by sending their children more than sixty
miles to school. It is true, the Methodists tried
to hinder the good work, but they received no en-
couragement from chief Bemassikeh, who time and
again sought advice at the Lutheran colony. To
further their plans, they spread all kinds of rumors.
If the natives would not adhere to their party, they
were in danger of being murdered by the soldiers.
It was also claimed that all who were baptized by
the Lutherans were to be sent to England and there
sold as slaves. But one of the Indians made a trip
to England as a member of a theatrical troupe and
on his return testified that that country was inhab-
ited by great numbers of people and even allowed

Among the American Indians 67

thousands to leave the island. However, these
slanders were not without effect, which showed itself
In the marked decrease of the number of Indian
children attending the school. But when the Indi-
aa agent vouched for the character of the missionary
and made it clear that the Indians might adhere
to any mission, a great change took place, and the
number of children increased.

Soon the work grew beyond the strength of one
man. The trip to the Pine river always consumed
a full week, and to look after the steadily growing
congregation at Frankenmuth kept Craemer fully
occupied. When an assistant had become absolute-
ly necessary, an appeal was sent to Loehe, who en-
dorsed the request and communicated it to the Mis-
sion Society at Dresden. That body sent Rev. E.
R. Balerlein, who had been designated as missionary
for India, sickness, however, preventing his sailing
at the appointed time. The new missionary arrived
In 1847. He took over part of Craemer's work
and bent all efforts on learning the Chippewa lan-
guage. A log-house was built, one-half being util-
ized by Baierlein's family, while the other part
served as a school room. Much attention was also
given to the Indians on the Pine river, to which
Balerlein made several trips.

And soon the relations were to become still
closer. The persistent efforts of the Methodists
to gain entrance evidently hastened the develop-
ment. At his visit to Frankenmuth during July,
1847, chief Bemassikeh complained bitterly about
their conduct. But he had given the following

68 Lutheran Mission If'ork

characteristic answer to the endeavors of the
slanderers: "The German blackcoat visited me first;
we are friends and wish to remain such. But you
I do not like. You howl early and late, and leap
and move hands and legs as if you would jump into
Heaven. When a short time ago my son died, I
also lamented, for he was my son. But you howl
without cause, until God shall give you a cause;
then indeed you may howl." When in the fall of
the same year Baierlein returned the visit, the chief
proposed that his white friend settle among the tribe
and instruct old and young alike. However, as the
men were on a hunting expedition, definite arrange-
ments were somewhat delayed, for such an impor-
tant matter could be decided only by a council of the
whole tribe.

According to agreement Baierlein returned to
the Indian village in May, 1848, accompanied by
a half-blood as guide and interpreter. The whole
tribe was in camp, but he found them almost starved
on account of the food shortage, which caused Baier-
lein to call the place Bethany, which means house
of misery. In the morning after his arrival a
council was held, which the missionary later de-
scribed in his book Im Urwalde. Bei den roten In-
diiinern [In the Primeval Forest. Anions the Red
Men). About nine o'clock the men appeared in their
best, while women were also present. The proceed-
ings were in accord with Indian custom. The chief
presided and addressed the audience at some length,
his speech making a distinctly favorable impression-
Its main points the interpreter reproduced in Eng-

Among the American Indians 69

llsh. The chief pointed out the degeneration of
the tribe, which had caused him to invite the pale-
face to settle among them and to give them aid.
But before making a decision, he wanted to hear
the opinion of all the men, which would determine
his action. The. chief was followed by Baierlein,
who spoke in English, using short sentences, which
the interpreter immediately translated. Being un-
certain whether he would be allowed to settle
among the tribe, he took this opportunity to outline
in some detail the road leading to salvation. On
his own part he made two promises : he would point
out to them the way to eternal life, in order that
they might be happy after death. He also prom-
ised to teach their children to read, to write, and to
figure, which would enable them to read God's
Word, and to keep their accounts, thereby removing
the constant worry due to the dishonest dealings of
the traders. In turn he made two requests: the In-
dians were to send their children to school daily and
regularly, and they themselves should attend the
divine services on Sundays. In closing he asked
them to consider the matter and to give him a defi-
nite answer.

A long silence followed. Tho the speech had
had the desired effect, the men were awaiting the
initiative of their leader. When he had given his
assent, one after another the men rose and spoke
in similar terms. Once more the chief addressed
the warriors, exhorting them in his impressive man-
ner. Then he approached the missionary and with
a hearty and prolonged handshake received him into

70 Luthcnin Mission Jf'ork

the tribe. The braves followed his example. The
chief's son called him father, and "my father" be-
came Baierlein's name among the Indians. He was
to dwell among a savage heathen tribe, far from
the nearest white settlement, swallowed up, as it
were, by the primeval forest. But as a member of the
tribe he was protected against insult, injury, and in-
terference with his work, as no one would dare to
commit an act which constituted an offense against
the whole tribe. Soon Baierlein moved his house-
hold effects to Bethany and made his permanent
home there.

As the Indian village had thus become the center
of the missionary work, Frankenmuth lost its origi-
nal importance. Most of the Indian children were
transferred to the mission school taught by Baier-
lein. And when, in 1850, Craemer was called as
professor to the Practical Seminary at Ft. Wayne,
missionary work at Frankenmuth was abandoned
entirely. Altogether Craemer had baptized thirty-
one Indians.

At Bethany a wigwam, furnished thru the gen-
erosity of the chief, served as temporary quarters
for Baierlein and his wife. The inconveniences,
however, described by the missionary in detail, made
an early change advisable, to say the least. It
would have been folly to brave the rigors of the
northern winter thus unprepared- The erection of
a log-house was therefore decided upon. As no
help could be expected from the Indians, six colo-
nists from Frankenmuth traveled the seventy miles
to Bethany in order to assist the missionary. Soon

Among the American Indians 71

a typical log-house, built of oak and fir, made its
appearance, the the dimensions, 30x20, were some-
what larger than usual, and the roof of shingles. It
was divided into two parts, the smaller serving as
study and bedroom, the larger being at the same
time pantry, kitchen, dining room, and parlor.
During the week the children were instructed here,
and on Sundays divine services held. The furniture
was primitive, most of it having been fashioned by
the missionary himself. The log cabin was con-
sidered the wonder of the village. On inspection
the Indians especially admired the fire place, which
afforded an easy exit for the smoke, which thus did
not fill the house and trouble the eyes of the people.
Later this log-house was torn down and enlarged.

Manual labor soon changed the surroundings.
The immediate neighborhood was cleared of the
majestic forest trees, and a garden laid out. Corn,
beets, carrots, potatoes, pumpkins, etc. repaid
bountifully the care bestowed upon them, while
fruit trees and flowers added an esthetic touch to
the whole. Year by year the clearing was enlarged,
at last comprising eight acres, and hogs, cows, and
chickens were added to the possessions of the mis-
sionary. Thus the block house with its surround-
ings appeared as the scene of a busy, yet happy and
contented life.

But the missionary was unable to enjoy home
hfe for any length of time. His spiritual duties
often took him from Bethany, and the necessities of
Hfe had to be brought from Saginaw, more than
sixty miles distant. Trips for procuring provisions

72 Lutheran Mission IVork

were generally made during the winter when the
frozen streams served as a convenient road. The
trusty horse with the small sleigh could generally be
counted upon to complete the journey without a
mishap. The situation, however, became danger-
ous when it began to thaw suddenly and the ice on
the rapids became thin and brittle. Baierlein re-
lates some narrow escapes from the cold waters
when the horse with the loaded sleigh had broken
thru the ice. Almost equally great the danger be-
came when deep snow covered the rivers and blocked
the roads. Under such conditions the destination
could not always be reached before evening, and
Baierlein was forced to camp in the open. Little
discomfort resulted when he was accompanied by an
Indian, who could be depended upon to select the
proper place for a camp and cut the firewood.
Wrapped in a buffalo robe and warmed by a bright
fire which kept the howling wolves at a distance, he
slept undisturbed. But in the absence of the ex-
perienced Indian the story was an entirely different
one. For the missionary was generally unable to
select the proper camping place and to find enough
trees of the white ash, so necessary for a bright
burning fire in the open. Then day-break was
awaited with the greatest anxiety.

Rev. Baierlein was not satisfied with looking
after the Indian tribe among which he had settled,
but also interested himself in the welfare of others.
These trips were generally made In the spring and
summer, at first in company with an interpreter.
The dangers and hardships encountered are interest-

Among the American Indians 73

ingly told by the undaunted pioneer missionary him-
self. The crossing of streams and getting lost in
the forest were especially feared when the mission-
ary was alone. Once Baierlein strayed into a
morass, narrowly escaping with his life. His deli-
cate constitution was also unequal to the hardships
of long rides and the inclement weather. As a
natural consequence he was often ill. At one time
sickness forced him to stay two weeks with a settler,
and even then he reached his home only with the
greatest difficulty. To all this must be added the
danger due to hostile Indians. At one time, for in-
stance, a tribe had been located after an exhausting
search, and then was found to be intoxicated to a
man. As the fire water had aroused the passions
to full fury, a hurried retreat had to be beaten.
The neighboring tribe at the instigation of the chief
refused them hospitality, and having once camped
in the open without any provisions, they reached all
but worn out and exhausted a hospitable roof only
at the end of the second day. The hostile whiskey
dealers would spread rumors that the Indians were
plotting against his life, probably being only too
glad if the savage had taken the cue.

Naturally the main missionary work centered
in Bethany at the log house of Baierlein. Here
also the Sunday services were held, and according
to the agreement reached at the council, were fairly
well attended by the Indians. The resemblance to
regular divine worship, however, was at first slight.
The audience would sit on benches or dispose itself
on the floor. The sermon could not be preached

74 l.iillwniH Mission tFork

without many annoyances and Interruptions. The
children were accustomed to play, and some of their
piercing cries drew forth words of reproach which
added to the noise. The women in turn gossiped
and attracted the attention of the audience. Mean-
while the men smoked and listened to what the mis-
sionary told them with the help of an interpreter.
But they gave him by no means their undivided at-
tention. Sometimes one would ask. in a loud voice
for fire or step up to the fire place and light his pipe.
It also happened that one of the braves approached
the speaker, shook his hand, and dryly remarked
that he did not hate him on account of his residence
in Bethany, but his words he did not intend to fol-
low. If Baierlein asked if they had understood him,
one might answer indifferently, "Oh, yes, 1 have
understood it; for I have heard it more than once."
If he asked the audience to ask questions, an ex-
planation of the aurora borealis might be desired,
all very discouraging for the missionary, especially at
first when he could communicate with the Indians
only thru an interpreter. Some of the natives
missed the services altogether, sometimes occasioned
by their inability to reckon time. Such persons
were advifed to provide themselves with a stick on
which they cut a sign each day, and to come on the
seventh.

The school, which was opened in August, 1848,
with an initial attendance of eight, showed greater
promise. Chief Bemassikeh was especially inter-
ested in it, for at first he came every day and
watched the transformation of the unruly children

Among the American Indians IS

into well behaved pupils. As some orphans were
intrusted to Baierlein's care and greater interest
shown in the school, the attendance increased to
nineteen during the latter part of the year. The
first Christmas at Bethany could be celebrated ac-
cording to German fashion. There were presents,
and for the festival occasion the missionary with the
help of the interpreter had translated Luther's hymn
"Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her" (Good news
from heaven the angels bring), the first two lines of
which read in the Chippewa language as follows :

'Widi gishigong ishpiming

Kidonjibiotisinim,

Nimpidon tibajimowin

Wenishishing keget 'nawon.
The children were very anxious to learn the
words and rejoiced to sing them, especially when the
brilliant Christmas tree shed radiance and happiness
everywhere.

It might be well to point out here what Baierlein
in course of time did for the sound instruction of
the pupils. The study of the Chippewa language
had of course been diligently continued all this
while. In order to facilitate the instruction and to
make it more beneficial, the missionary wrote a
primer. It consisted of two parts with an appendix.
The first part served as an aid in spelling, the Chip-
pewa words being rendered into English. The
second part was a reader, the lessons being taken
from the Bible, while the unknown Chippewa words
were explained. The appendix contained a few
prayers and hymns. Baierlein himself made a trip

76 Lutheran Mission Work

to Detroit, which was about 150 miles from Beth-
any, and in the winter of 1852 saw the books thru
the press. They proved to be of great help In the
school. The children became fond of the reader,
being especially delighted with the stories from the
Bible, which they would read to their parents and
friends. The hymns were eagerly memorized and
the German tunes correctly rendered.

The school also furnished the first candidate for
Baptism. When the fourth part of Luther's Cate-
chism was explained, four boys and one girl ex-
pressed a desire to be baptized. The parents
made no objection, and in the early part of 1849 the
children together with the infant daughter of the
missionary and some relatives of the chief were
baptized by Rev. Craemer of Franltenmuth, in all
ten Indians. On this occasion was sung the Indian
rendering of "Blessed Jesus, we are here," the first
stanza reading as follows:

Oma sa nindaiamin,

O Tebeningeion Jesus,

Chidodamang eshiang

Ima kitilcitowining,

Mab' abinoji k'dodisig,

lu chiwiawangomod.
During the latter part of the same year three
others received Baptism, among them as the first
adult the widowed daughter of the old chief.
Others followed in rapid succession, there being at
Baierlein's departure for India, in 1853, a congre-
gation of sixty members. Some of the conversions
were rather remarkable. Blind Sarah, counting a

Among the American Indians 11

hundred summers, had steadily refused to accept
Christ until at the first Christian funeral at Bethany,
that of her niece, she broke down and entered the
list of the catechumens. Ever after she attended
divine services faithfully, even when this involved
great physical exertion. Baierlein's neighbor at
Bethany was Pemagojin, who proved a great source
of help to Mrs. Baierlein during her husband's ab-
sence. Almost daily he would visit his friend, who
showed him Bible pictures and sought to gain reli-
gious influence over him. For three years he re-
mained unreceptlve, all this time comparing the life
of the missionary with his teaching. When he
found that they agreed, he gladly embraced Chris-
tianity. The old chief Bemassikeh remained the
steadfast friend of the mission, but was never bap-
tized, postponing the rite from one spring to the
next. He was suffering from tuberculosis, and had
an eager desire to regain his health. The mission-
ary could only give him relief, but no promise of
complete restoration. Then he sought the help of
the medicine men of his tribe and also sent for
famous doctors elsewhere. His lung trouble be-
came worse in time, and during a trip of the mission-
ary he suddenly died. However, on his deathbed
he warned his relatives and people against the
traders and the Methodists, exhorting them not to
forsake the "German black coat." He also urged
them to become Christians, a step he himself would
have taken if his life had been prolonged.

The mission had made rapid strides during the

78 Lutheran Mission tVork

few years of Baierlein's work, and the meeting place
proved too small. Sometimes there was not even
standing room for the growing congregation and
the visiting heathen. 1 herefore the missionary
decided to build a log church abutting his house, a
door from his study leading into it. It was planned
by the missionary himself and finished with the help
of others, only the tower giving no little trouble to
the unskilled workers. On the whole it made a very
respectable appearance. The tower was adorned
by a cross, and a bell cast at Chicago served to in-
dicate the time of worship. The inside was very
dignified. It contained benches, altar, and pulpit.
The altar and pulpit decorations were presented by
pious women of Dresden, the Count of Einsiedeln
giving a crucifix and candelabrum, and the Leipzig
student society "Philadelphia" a communion set.
These gifts Miessler, a student designated as Baier-
lein's assistant, brought over with him in 1851.
The whole structure including the bell had neces-
sitated an outlay of 230 dollars. Tho a small sum
in the light of modern expenditures, the missionary
lacked the necessary funds. An American mer-
chant at Saginaw was so kind as to lend one hundred
dollars, demanding neither note nor interest Sub-
sequently friends of the mission enabled Baierlein to
discharge the debt.

The church now became the center of the spir-
itual work in the village. There were two services
each Sunday, one on Wednesday and one on Friday,
while the bell would call the members of the mission

Among the American Indians

79

80

Liitlu'ruii Misfioii Jf'ork

Among the American Indians 81

congregation to a short prayer meeting every morn-
ing and evening. The services were now less in-
formal than at first. On the basis of Loehe's order
of service Baierlein prepared a liturgy in the lan-
guage of the Indians. The congregation eagerly
sang the hymns he translated and which his assistant
taught them. The conduct of the Indians during
the services also showed a decided improvement.
The place was kept cleaner, the men no longer
smoked, while the women no longer gossiped, and
the children no longer played. This decorum pre-
vailing in the house of God naturally impressed also
the heathen. Here the marriages were solemnized
and the funeral services held, the corpses of the .
Christians finding a resting place at the neighboring
cemetery according to Christian custom.

The healthy spiritual life also showed itself in
the improvement of material matters. The station
became a real rallying point for the Indians, and
their roving habits more and more subsided. Civil-
ization had become a force. The influence of the
medicine men waned, and the drinking bouts became
less frequent. Much of this was due to the influence
of the missionary. After the death of the chief,
he was invited to take part in the deliberations of the
council, which now met in the school house. But
Baierlein in his prudent manner spoke only when
asked his opinion. He advised the Indians to clear
more land and thus make themselves more inde-
pendent of hunting. The advice was followed, and
from that time on the women raised more corn,
beans, potatoes, pumpkins, and other vegetables.

82 Lutheran Mission fVork

so that such famines as Baierlein had experienced at
Bethany in the first years were a thing of the past.
The missionary also tried to persuade them to sub-
stitute substantial log-houses for their frail bark
wigwams. But for a long time none would make
such a daring innovation. The widowed daughter
of the chief was the first to build such a log-house,
Baierlein contributing the windows and the nails
for the roof. When others followed her example,
he continued his generous attitude. Thus the con-
gregation had taken long strides toward becoming
an organized Christian community.

But this had not been achieved without ob-
stacles and opposition of various kinds. Before we
pointed out the indifferent attitude of the adults,
which at first caused Baierlein many a gloomy hour.
Only gradually did the Word of God exert its
power in the hard hearts of the heathen. The deal-
ers in fire-water were naturally violently opposed to
the work and the restraining influence of the mission-
ary. Besides openly threatening violence, they
spread rumors to the effect that the Indians plotted
the murder of the missionary, probably being only
too glad to use them as dupes to effect his removal.
With two dealers residing in Bethany, the Indians
lacked no opportunity to obtain the poisonous fire-
water. Not satisfied that the men and women en-
gaged in frequent drinking bouts, they bent their
efforts upon seducing the recently baptized youths
and maidens, in which they were not seldom success-
ful. Even of Baierlein's interpreter they made a
trader and drunkard.

Avio)ig the American Indians 83

They found valuable allies in the Methodists,
who from the beginning had tried to oust the Lu-
therans and to take possession of the field. This had
been one reason why Baierlein settled in Bethany.
These unscrupulous men, mostly Indians without
adequate training for the ministry, were not above
any tricks if that would serve to gain an entrance.
In disorderly revivals strong pressure was brought
to bear upon the Indians. Being unsuccessful in
gaining converts thru emotionalism, other tactics
were employed. Alluring promises and material
advanta.ges served as the bait to lead the souls
astray. Their chief endeavor, as in the case of
Craemer, was to discredit Baierlein among the In-
dians. Ridiculous lies, that children would be sent
to Europe, that the old men would be forced into
war and all his adherents compelled to move west
of the Mississippi, were no longer believed even by
the credulous natives. Charges of fraud also made
no impression. Then a ntw story was concocted
by them. The Indians were gravely told that the
missionary had been exiled from Germany because
his father had participated in the crucifixion of
Christ. Only simple and childlike people like the
Indians, who lived wholly in the present, not pos-
sessing so much as a term for the past and future,
could be expected to be duped by such statements.

At first these degenerate Methodists had little
success, but proved a very disturbing factor for the
growth and tranquillity of the congregation.
Those lies called for denials and a defense of the
own position. In the course of the wrangle the In-

84 Lutheran Mission IFork

dians naturally began to look upon the preaching
of the Gospel as a business transaction, where each
man as a good trader discredited the wares of his
competitor while recommending his own merchan-
dise. And the ceaseless attacks severely tried the
patience and courage of the missionary, who some-
times was almost at the point of giving up. But
after such experiences the outlook would brighten
again.

However, Baierlein's work among the Red Men
was now rapidly drawing to a close. Delicate
health alone had prevented his sailing to India in
1846. When his help was urgently needed there,
the mission board recalled him from America in
1853. It certainly was no easy decision to leave
such a promising field and the only recently gathered
congregation. The absence of a strong community
spirit at Bethany and the regrettable lack of vision
and initiative on the part of Miessler might have
caused him to hesitate. But he consoled himself
with the thought that God had called him to the new
work, and that Miessler as his assistant for one year
and a half was not altogether without experience.
The mission board at home doubtless had the first
claim upon his services.

The announcement of his leaving, which he com-
municated to his congregation at the end of a fare-
well sermon based upon the passage of Paul's de-
parture from Miletus, caused profound grief.
While the men with bent heads tried to maintain
their boasted composure, the women and children
covered their faces and wept bitterly. The assur-

Among the American Indians 85

ance that they would not be abandoned, hardly made
an impression at first. "The father intends to
leave his children, and we shall be scattered again,"
was the universal lament. The mission board of
the synod had asked Rev. Sievers of Frankentrost
to be present at the farewell in order to lessen the
grief of the Indians. In a congregational meeting
which he convened, he pledged them the further sup-
port of the synod. Then the men, one after the
other, arose, and in a dignified manner gave ex-
pression to their regret over Baierlein's leaving and
their fears for the future. Not only Christians,
but also heathen were present, and one of the latter,
Misquaamaquod (Red Cloud), gave utterance to
what all felt: "Even if every one of us should rise
and stretch out his hands in order to hold back our
father, we could not hold him back. He has been
called and he will go. However, if we could only
get a man in his place who would be like him, we
might be well served. But if not, then I fear that
we shall be as a pile of dry leaves when the wind
blows upon them."

The last days before Baierlein's departure his
house was thronged with visitors. The old blind
Sarah came twice a day in order to see "her father."
Pemagojin also made his appearance, but steadfast-
ly declared that he would not witness Baierlein's de-
parture. He kept his word. The day previous
he came for the last time. When the missionary
tried to console him, he suddenly rose, embraced and
kissed his friend, then disappeared in the forest.
This was the last Baierlein saw of him. The scene

86 Lutheran Mission Jl'ork

on the day of departure, May 19th, the missionary
has described in a touching manner. Leave was
taken from the members of the congregation. F"or
the last time Baierlein saw his school room and knelt
at the altar of the church, scenes that for six years
had witnessed a labor of love. Then he tore him-
self away, and while Rev. Sievers and the Indian
congregation sang the hymn "All Glory be to God
on High," the boat bearing the missionary and his
family floated down the river. It ended Baierlein's
activities among the .American Indians, and from
now on he was engaged for thirty-three years as
missionary in East India. After his retirement he
wrote interestingly about his work on the two conti-
nents, dying at the ripe age of eighty-one years, in
1901.

When Rev. Baierlein left Bethany, heathenism
had received its deathblow there. He reports that
only one family still lived according to the old
heathen tradition, tho a few had not yet joined the
congregation. These also were convinced of the
truth of Christianity, but lacked the moral courage
to take the last decisive step. Those indifferent to
Christianity also showed no interest in heathendom.
The process of civilizing the Indians was acceler-
ated, and their material affairs had vastly improved.
As the attractixe log-houses became their real home,
there was less roaming in the woods. Their dress
looked neater and cleaner, and the home life im-
proved. Attendance at divine services was now
more regular, and many a genuine attempt to apply
God's Word to every-day affairs could be observed.

Among the American Indians 87

Under the charge of Rev. Miessler the progress
made at first was distinctly gratifying, and augured
well for the future. Several people who until then
had been indifferent were won over. Dangers
threatening from the Methodists were also success-
fully warded off. These, optimistic after Baier-
lein's departure, made another attempt to destroy
the congregation. But wholly unsuccessful in gain-
ing a foothold at Bethany, they were also unable to
persuade the Indians to leave their camp and to
move to a place where every family was promised
three acres of land. Their efforts even reacted up-
on them. The widow of the deceased chief Bemas-
sikeh had apostatized already during Baierlein's
time; now, probably as a result of the unfair meth-
ods used by the Methodists, she penitently returned
to the Lutheran Church. The congregation was
furthermore mcreased thru the conversion of Miess-
ler's interpreter and the addition of an American
family.

The school was in a flourishing condition, an as-
sistant having been found in the person of a certain
Mr. Roeder. He had been conducting a mission
school at the former station at Sebewaing, which had
to be abandoned in 1853, as the Indians did not
show the necessary interest. In Bethany the situ-
ation was different. There the parents sent their
children regularly, while these in turn showed com-
mendable zeal. Some of the older children had ac-
quired a fair facility in reading the New Testament,
a second class had mastered spelling, and a third
had just taken It up.

88 Liitherati Mission JJ'ork

One of the happiest experiences of Miessler at
Bethany, tho it also proved the last, was the first
Communion service, during Christmas of 1853.
This called for careful preparation on the part of
the missionary. Several weeks previous Miessler
announced the event, and in two sermons explained
the nature of the Sacrament. In order to render
less difficult the self-examination, he translated,
with the help of an interpreter, Luther's questions
on the Lord's Supper. Visits to the different mem-
bers gave an opportunity for further discussion. But
as the Methodists had conducted themselves unseem-
ly and had gone into hysterics at the celebration of
the Lord's Supper, the majority showed a natural
reserve, tho nearly all took part in the instruction.
Only four signified their willingness to partake of
the body and blood of Christ, but these were atten-
tive and serious, rejoicing in the fact that they were
privileged to enter into such close communion with
their Lord.

But the flourishing state of the mission did not
last long. Soon a gradual decay of the spiritual
and congregational life set in. This was hastened
by the fate which overtook the missions in the neigh-
borhood. The station at Sebewaing, founded by
Rev. Schmid and for a number of years supported
by the missionary society of the Pennsylvania Synod,
had been abandoned by this time. Rev. Auch had
worked here for some time with gratifying results.
On account of its lax standards he left the Michigan
Synod and in 1849 became a member of the newly
organized Missouri Synod, which also took over the

Among the American Indians 89

mission. From now on dissensions hindered the
work, which more and more proved to be fruitless,
and had to be abandoned in 1851. At the request
of some Indians a school was opened later with Mr.
Roeder as teacher, but as no results were obtained,
Its brief existence came to an end in 1853. At the
abandonment of the mission station at Sebewaing,
Rev. Auch moved to Sheboyank, where another mis-
sion was conducted. Here Rev. Maier, at first con-
nected with the Michigan Synod, but since 1849 a
member of the Missouri Synod, had worked with
great energy and enthusiasm until his death, in 18^0.
Rev. Auch labored for several years in Sheboyank,
but as he could not speak the Indian language and
an Interpreter could not always be secured, a radical
change seemed advisable. As the Indians gave
their consent, it was thought best to combine the
members of Sheboyank and Bethany at the latter
place, the consolidation to take place in 1855.

But the plan proved the undoing of the work at
Sheboyank. When all seemed ready for the re-
moval, a trader who was interested in the continued
residence of the Indians at Sheboyank succeeded in
undermining the trust of the natives in Auch. He
ridiculed their belief in Christianity and claimed
that they were cheated of their lands by the mission-
ary. This was all the more effective since the
traders as a rule were halfbloods who spoke the In-
dian and the English language equally well, while
Auch was unable to counteract this influence.
These Indians had only recently been converted, and
not being sufficiently grounded in the doctrines of

90 Lutheran Mission Work

Christianity, proved easy victims to the determined
propaganda of brazen lies under the semblance of
truth. When their influential chief was once won
over, Auch's pleadings proved futile. In the name
of his tribe the chief declared that they would no
longer be cheated by the preachers of the Bible, the
source of all evil and vices in the world. As the
whites, they would enjoy all the benefits of this life.
With that they fell back into heathenism, Rev. Auch
finally accepting a call to a white congregation.

Soon the congregation at Bethany also degener-
ated, tho a few events like the studying of an Indian
boy for the ministry gladdened the heart of the
missionary. The fire-water exerted its far-reaching
influence. The application of church discipline in
aggravated cases also weakened the congregation,
the suspended members being received with open
arms by the lax Methodists. The notorious life
led by the traders and nominal Christians not only
reduced the church membership, but often also
served as a bar to further additions. Thus a num-
ber of those expected to join the congregation never
took the decisive step. Finally, when a part of the
congregation lost faith in the integrity of the mis-
sionary, the decline became more rapid. Forced by
the miserable conditions existing among the Indians,
the mission board at first had distributed provisions.
This the Indians wished to have continued indefinite-
ly, altho their material situation had improved
decidedly. Naturally the mission board desired to
make the Indians self-supporting as soon as possible.
This event seemingly supported the Methodists in

Among the American Indians 91

their claim that the conduct of the Lutheran mission-
aries had changed, and that now they showed their
true colors. All admonitions not to identify Chris-
tianity with a religion feeding the belly proved in
vain. These remonstrances resulted, on the other
hand, in accusations against Miessler, and the mission
board was petitioned to remove him and his assis-
tant. The indifference of the adults toward the ser-
vices and of the children toward the school plainly
showed the effect of the slanders. Several lapses,
drunkenness, disorderly conduct, and open defiance
of the missionary also proved that the degeneration
was taking its course. Tho not a few families re-
mained faithful, and conditions became better tem-
porarily, no permanent improvement could be noted-
As often, the encroachment of civilization
brought danger to the mission station, for its ten-
dency has always been toward the removal of the
Indians. As that part of Michigan gradually be-
came settled, the Government, under pressure from
the whites, decided to effect the removal of all In-
dians in Michigan to Isabella Co., which was about
twenty-five miles from Bethany. There each family
was promised eighty acres of land, while schools,
mills, and good roads should also be built at Gov-
ernment expense. In 1855 the Indians were prevailed
upon to sign the new treaty, and soon afterwards the
removal from Bethany began in spite of all that
Miessler and the mission board could do. Four years
later most of the members had left the station,
of the rest some lived scattered thru the forest,
others joined the Methodists or returned to

92 Lutheran Mission JVork

their former idolatry. According to Miessler's
statement, only four widows showed a longing for
the Word of God, and the work became very dis-
couraging. In these years the missionary often
sought consolation at the cemetery, where the
graves of Christian Indians helped him to forget
the keen disappointment caused by the hardhearted-
ness of the living.

The end was to come soon. In 1860 most of
the Indians had removed to Isabella Co., and the
synod requested MIessler to follow his charges, the
possibility of returning to Bethany to be left open.
The farm there was rented, while the old log church,
out of repair and tottering, was pulled down.
Later the land belonging to the mission was sold,
with the exception of the cemetery in which the
bodies of twenty Lutheran Indians were resting.
At Mt. Pleasant, Isabella Co., a new mission was
organized, which for a time looked very promising.
The bell from Bethany did service in the newly
erected log church. While at first divine services
and the school were well attended, gradually the
conditions prevailing at Bethany returned, only a
few members remaining loyal. The exhortations
of Miessler proved to be in vain. As the indiffer-
ence of the Indians increased, they broke all pledges
and promises. F'inally, in 1869, the synod recalled
Rev. Miessler, who accepted a call from a white con-
gregation. The promising work among the Chip-
pewas had been destroyed by the same causes that
time and again have proved the downfall of Indian
missions. Denominational rivalry and the fire-

Among the American Indians 93

water of the whites had a large share in accompHsh-
ing the result; but the decisive factor proved to be
civilization with its vices, the life of men and women
who in words and deeds bring reproach upon the
name Christian.

The same year also witnessed the abandonment
of the last mission station among the Chippewas
by the Missouri Synod. It was located on the upper
Mississippi, close to Gull Lake, the poatoffice being
Crow Wing, in Minnesota. In the spring of 1857
Rev. Cloeter began the work, for a time assisted
by Henry Craemer, son of Prof. Craemer, who serv-
ed as interpreter. After 1859 Cloeter had sole
charge of the extensive field. At first the missionary
made long tours thru the wild country in order to
come in contact with the Indian tribes. The Rabbit
Lake Indians were at first successfully approached,
while later many others felt his influence. The confi-
dence of many heathen was soon won by his evident
sincerity. The Chippewa language was diligently
studied, and after five years of severe application
Cloeter was able to work without an interpreter. It
seemed as if all circumstances were favorable for
effective and successful work.

But these hopes were blasted in the summer of
1862, when the Indian insurrection drew within its
circle nearly all the tribes of the great Northwest.
The Chippewas were also affected. Many persons,
caught unawares, were killed, and Cloeter was also
in great danger. He narrowly escaped with his
family thru the friendship of the chief of the Rab-
bit Lake Indians, who warned the missionary of the

94 Lutheran Mission IVork

approaching danger and held the Indians back till
Cloeter was safe. The mission station was de-
stroyed and the work hard hit. Tho the missionary
had saved his life, his hooks and translations were
lost. Undaunted by these misfortunes, Cloeter
resolutely set to work again. But as after a number
of years no tangible results could be shown, the last
mission station among the Chippewa Indians was
closed in 1869.

Chapter IV

THE MISSION OF THE IOWA SYNOD IN

THE NORTHWEST

"P^OCTRINAL differences that had arisen be-
-L' tween Loehe and the Missouri Synod finally
•led to an open break in 1853, with the resultant
withdrawal of Loehe's co-operation at the request
of the synod. Henceforth he was also no longer
contributing toward the Chippewa Mission, for
which the Missouri Synod in 1849 had assumed full
responsibility. But instead of abandoning his activ-
ities in America, as had been suggested to him,
Loehe transferred them to a new field, namely, to
the state of Iowa, praying that the work there might
be continued unhindered by intra-denominational
strife. Tho this proved to be a forlorn hope, the
labors there were not without important results.
For already in the next year, in 1854, they led to
the organization of a body sometimes spoken of as
the German Iowa Synod, In so far a misnomer, as
the language designation has long since been
dropped and the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of
Iowa and Other States Is represented In more than
twenty states of the Union.

However, Loehe's love for the Red Man was as
strong as ever, and almost immediately steps were
taken looking toward missionary work among the
Indians. When, in 1854, M. Schueller arrived, he
was considered a suitable man to start a mission in
Minnesota, but as no favorable opportunity offered

96 Lutheran Mission JTork

itself, the plan had to be abandoned. In this and
the following year Loehe succeeded in arousing in-
terest for a mission among the Indians, with numer-
ous pledges of financial support as the concrete evi-
dence. Thus J- J. Schmidt, who had received his
training at Neuendettelsau, Bavaria and who ar-
ri\ed in 1856, could be designated as missionary.
He was fired with holy zeal for the undertaking,
when at its meeting in 1856 the young and strugg-
ling synod boldly decided to begin a mission in con-
junction with the Buffalo Synod and friends in Ger-
many. As the Indians in the Great West were on
the warpath, work among them in the immediate
future was out of the question. Therefore Rev.
Schmidt, accompanied by Rev. S. Fritschel, made a
tour of investigation to Canada. They visited mis-
sionary \'ogler of Hernhut, who was stationed at
Moraviantown on the Canadian bank of the St.
Clair river. From him the two men not only re-
ceived advice, but also letters of introduction to the
officials of the Canadian department of Indian Af-
fairs. These, however, told them that there was
no room for a mission among the Indians under
their jurisdiction, adding that farther north the
shores of Lake Superior and the region under con-
trol of the Hudson Bay Company might offer an
opportunity. The approaching winter made any
further investigation inadvisable, and so they re-
turned to Detroit, where Rev. Fritschel was station-
ed, while Schmidt supplied during the winter the
congregation at Dubuque and taught at the semi-
nary, Rev. Grossman being on a trip to Germany.

Among the American Indians 97

The reghon recommended by the Canadian Indi-
an officials was accordingly singled out for further
investigation. In the early spring of 1857 Rev.
Schmidt, accompanied by the student Sussner, set
out from Detroit. Their journey, almost wholly
by water, brought many hardships. When they
arrived at Superior City, only recently founded on
the western shore of Lake Superior, they were told
to proceed farther north to Grand Portage, on the
Canadian side of the lake. Their guide soon
deserted, compelling them to row about 125 miles
during unfavorable weather. Finally in the early
part of July the missionaries reached the bay of
Grand Portage and with it their destination.

The field was soon explored. But as inquiries
among the different tribes met with no encourage-
ment, the obstacles to a mission seemed insurmount-
able. Two of them were especially formidable.
The Roman Catholics had already preempted the
field, and each year a Jesuit priest came for a few
months to Grand Portage. Furthermore, a Chris-
tian agent informed the missionaries that the Hud-
son Bay Company, in possession of the trade monop-
oly, did all in its power to prevent the establishment
of Protestant missions, as it evidently feared that
the outside world might gain information about the
corrupt methods of the trading company. In spite
of this unfavorable news, Schmidt and Sussner made
an attempt to gain a footing among the Bois-forte
Indians, first asking their permission to begin work.
But the answer, evidently inspired by the Jesuit
missionary who had only recently arrived at the

98 Lutheran Mission fVork

camp of the tribe, was anything but hopeful: "We
like your person and figure, and would desire your
services; but you are ignorant of our speech, and we
want a teacher or missionary who speaks our lan-
guage." All promises to acquire their speech availed
nothing. As the approaching winter and lack of
means made further investigations westward im-
possible, the disappointed missionaries finally left
in September for Detroit, taking the same route they
had used before. At the pastoral conference held
at St. Sebald in November, Rev. Schmidt made his
report. As a letter from Germany indicated that
the friends of the mission there began to lose hope,
it was deemed wise to re\ive the sunken spirits by
sending a letter which outlined the main facts of the
situation and implored the German friends to con-
tinue their support, especially as the missionary
maintained an undismayed attitude.

Thus two efforts looking toward missionary
work had utterly failed, and for a time the outlook
was anything but encouraging. But as soon as the
Indian war blew over, the prospects began to
brighten. In Detroit Rev. Schmidt had become
acquainted with a certain Mr. Redfield, a Govern-
ment agent for the Crow Indians, whose territory
extended along the Yellowstone and the Big Horn
rivers in the present state of Montana. And in
distinction to the warlike Sioux and other tribes, the
Crows were peaceful and always had maintained a
friendly attitude toward the whites, tho their repu-
tation in other respects was anything but enviable.
An early account mentions not only their physical

Among the American Indians 99

strength and beauty, but also their moral depravity,
and to outlie a Crow was considered no mean
achievement among the traders.

Mr. Redfield readily gave his consent when it
was proposed that missionaries accompany his party
to Crowland in the following spring. Such a favor-
able opportunity was eagerly embraced, and the nec-
essary preparations were immediately made. As
Schmidt's companion for the arduous undertaking,
Moritz Braeuninger of the Wartburg Seminary at
St. Sebald was selected. During the latter part of
May, 1858, a steamer carried the party upstream
from St. Louis, and it was fully a month later when
it reached Fort Union, a trading station at the
mouth of the Yellowstone river. Within that time
the territory of seven different tribes had been trav-
ersed and more than 2,350 miles had been covered.
According to treaty stipulations the Crows were to
receive their "presents" at Fort Union, but the
Mountain Crows insisted that they be brought to
their own territory. As on account of shallow
water the steamer could not proceed, two river flat
boats were used instead. The trip became hazard-
ous at times, for the boats had to be dragged over
the rapids with ropes. Thus thirty-seven days were
consumed to cover the comparatively short distance
to Fort Sarpy, a station about fifty miles below the
mouth of the Big Horn river.

A.t that time Fort Sarpy consisted of seven small,
but strongly fortified houses, and as a typical fron-
tier post it boasted of all the vices of civilization.
The missionaries found life there intolerable. Al-

100 I.ulheran Mission Work

ready on the boats they had received much less con-
sideration from the "Christian" fur traders than
from two chiefs of the Crow Indians who accompan-
ied the party from Fort Union on. Life among the
heathen Indians, who to the number of 1,500 dwelt
in 160 tents near the post, seemed decidedly prefer-
able to a stay in a rude and degenerate community.
Without a thoro acquaintance of the Indian lan-
guage and customs the missionaries ventured among
the tribe, where their reception was cordial. The
chief Dachbizaschuch (head of a bear) entertained
them in his own tent, and also provided horses for
their convenience. Sharing the hardships of tribal
life, and travelling from place to place, two months
were profitably spent, eagerly employed by the mis-
sionaries in learning the language of their new
friends. When toward autumn part of the Crows
visited Deer Creek, a branch of the North Platte
river, in order to make peace with a hostile tribe,
Schmidt and Braeuninger accompanied them.
Early in October the fort was reached, from which
the missionaries continued their journey homeward,
arriving at St. Sebald, Iowa, on the 2Sth of Novem-
ber.

The report which they submitted was distinctly
encouraging. Not only had the Indians accorded
them a warm welcome, but also requested them to
stay. Since the two men, however, had been sent
on a tour of investigation only, they were neither
authorized nor prepared to take up the work im-
mediately. But before they left, the Indians ob-
tained the promise of their return the following

Among the American Indians 101

spring. "Only reluctantly did they let us depart,
for they would rather have persuaded us to stay.
A thousand times they asked us if we would really
return when the winter had passed and the grass
grew again. Some even offered to accompany us to
Iowa, which we had to decline."

Under such favorable circumstances energetic
steps looking toward a mission among the Crows
were immediately taken. It was decided to estab-
lish a colony in Crowland, a pet idea of Loehe, who
had tried a similar experiment in Michigan. The
object here was two-fold. It was thought that it
would solve the problem of provisions, which at that
time commanded a prohibitive price in the North-
west. At the same time it was to serve as an in-
ducement to converted Indians to try settled life, for
the roving habit made difficult regular public wor-
ship and the much needed supplementary instruction,
and also had an unfavorable effect on the new spirit-
ual life. A plea for financial support was submitted
to the Government, but the petition was not granted.
However, the report of the missionaries brought
substantial contributions from within the synods of
Iowa and Buffalo, while the main share of the ex-
penses was borne by friends in Germany, where the
Central Mission Society of Bavaria, as the result
of Loehe's untiring work, remained a stanch friend
and supporter until the end. The Mission Society
at Luebeck, under the direction of Dr. Lindenberg,
also sent considerable- sums.

Unforeseen events delayed the departure of the
party until July 5, 1859. For various reasons, the

102 Lutheran Mission Work

money consideration playing the chief part, the land
route was decided upon. Even then lack of means
prevented Kessler, Krebs, and a farmer from join-
ing the party, which consisted of Schmidt, Braeun-
inger, Doederlein, and the student Seyler as mission-
aries, with Beck and Bunge as colonists. Their
destination was Deer Creek, where they expected to
meet the Indians. The start had been late, and on
account of sickness and other delays the overland
journey consumed more time than had been antici-
pated. Another disappointment awaited the party
when it reached Deer Cree'k in the fall. No Crow
Indians had made their appearance at the fort dur-
ing the summer, compelling the missionaries to go
into winter quarters 150 miles from the territory of
their Indian friends- There they experienced a
hard winter. Altho a Captain Reynolds showed
them much kindness, the Indian agent at the station
seems to have made the most of his opportunity.
In order to supply the party with provisions in the
spring, Schmidt and Doederlein had been sent back
to Iowa.

The synod, however, was unable to grant the
urgent request, the means being barely sufficient to
support the missionaries during the winter and to
finance the journey into Crowland. Under the lead-
ership of Braeuninger the party resumed the
journey in the early spring of 1860, and at
the advice of Captain Reynolds a mission station
was built on the Powder river, a branch of the Yel-
lowstone. It was erroneously thought that the lo-
cation was within the territory of the Crows, and

Among the American Indians

103

at the same time not more than 150 miles from the
nearest postoffice. A log-house was erected, and a
piece of land fenced in and cultivated. Soon the
Indians began to frequent the mission station, and
as Braeuninger had acquired a fair command of

Mission Station on the Powder River

their speech and was especially proficient in the use
of the Indian sign language, the interviews proved
to be of benefit. During June Braeuninger made a
visit to Deer Creek, and the encouraging report he
could send to Iowa was accompanied by a pencil
drawing of the station reproduced by us.

The work seemed to have a promising future,
when like a thunderbolt out of the clear sky the
news reached Iowa that Braeuninger was missing,
probably having been murdered by the Indians.
The circumstances surrounding his disappearance

104 Lutheran Mission fVork

were as follows: On the 21st of July six Indians
belonging to the Ogalala tribe of the Sioux nation
visited the log cabin of the missionaries. They
were hospitably received, ate supper, and remained
until noon on the following day. One of the Indi-
ans offered moccasins in exchange for a woolen
blanket, but Braeuninger's policy not to trade with
the Indians was adhered to. The Indians seemed
to be satisfied, and after dinner made ready to leave.
But before starting out, one of them, who had been
most friendly toward the hosts, removed the bullet
from his gun, and instead loaded it with three balls.
To Seyler this seemed peculiar, but in answer to a
question Braeuninger, not suspecting that the gun
might be loaded for himself, remarked: "That is
the practice among the Indians when they expect an
attack of their enemies. If they hunt game, they
generally remove the balls."

During the afternoon Braeuninger decided to
take a walk, which at Beck's suggestion should in-
clude the bringing home of the cattle. Going along
the stream they encountered behind a thicket half
a mile from the station the very Indians who had
left them several hours before, but had gone in the
opposite direction. The equally surprised Indians
told Braeuninger that they had heard a shot and
feared that their enemies, the Blackfeet, were in
the neighborhood. They asked him whether he
would conceal them in case their enemies should
appear. This Braeuninger promised to do, ex-
plaining that the cellar would afford protection, at
which remark the Indians indulged in roaring laugh-

Among the American Indians 105

ter. While Beck took care of the stock, the mis-
sionary started with the Indians toward the station.

When Beck reached the house, to his surprise
Braeuninger and the Indians had not yet arrived,
and all waiting proved to be in vain. Fearing an
accident. Beck and Seyler went over the ground
carefully, but the most diligent search on this and
the following day proved fruitless. Later friendly
Indians related that one of the Ogalalas had treach-
erously shot Braeuninger in the back, and as the
fatally wounded man rose, his enemies had killed
him with blows, cut his face, and thrown the body
into the swollen river. Displeasure at a settlement
of whites on the Powder river had moved them to
this act. Some have supposed this to be a piece of
fiction invented by the Indians for the purpose of
frightening the missionaries. According to their
supposition the Indians and Braeuninger separated,
the missionary started for home, and was attacked
by one of the numerous bears of this region.

The first account is much more plausible. The
Indians evidently were determined not to tolerate
a settlement within their territory, and correctly
reasoned that the murder of the leader would drive
away the others. Almost stunned by the blow, and
having met no Crow Indians on the Powder river,
the missionaries retreated to safe ground on Deer
Creek, there to await further instructions. The
leader of the undertaking, an exceptionally capable
man, had died a martyr to the cause, and his pre-
sentiment which caused him in leaving Neuendettels-
au to wind about his photograph a crown of thorns

106 Lutheran Mission fVork

had been a correct Indication of his end for the
glory of the Lord.

Before the report of the tragedy reached Iowa,
the committee in charge had sent as reenforcements
Krebs and Flachenecker, additional money having
been received from Bavaria. When the new men
joined the other missionaries on Deer Creek, the
situation was carefully gone over. Lack of avail-
able means prevented the founding of a colony in the
territory of the Crows, but it was decided that the
old friends should be taken care of just as soon as
circumstances permitted. With the consent of the
Indian mission board the missionaries now turned
their attention to the Cheyenne or Zista Indians.
A station was located about one hundred miles west
of Fort Laramie, in the present state of Wyoming.
It consisted of log buildings a few miles south of
the North Platte river, close to a post route and a
trading station. An effort to farm was also made,
but met with little success, as the light rainfall made
irrigation necessary.

In the spring of 1861 Rev. Ch. Kessler arrived
from Iowa and became the head of the mission,
while Krebs and Flachenecker were ordained. The
work was carried on energetically, and the Arapa-
hoes, who at that time maintained friendly relations
with the Cheyennes, were included as objects of the
missionary endeavors. The Crows had not been
forgotten. But efforts of two of the missionaries
to get in touch with them proved in vain; on their
trip they passed the abandoned station on the Pow-
der river, which they found in ashes. The labor

Among the American Indians 107

among the Arapahoes bore no fruit. Much more
promising was the work among the Cheyennes. A
few of the missionaries constantly accompanied
them on their wanderings and shared their mode of
living. Thus they not only acquired a fair knowl-
edge of the Indian language, but also gained the con-
fidence of the tribe in a high degree, which showed
itself by kind and courteous treatment.

Whenever possible, preaching services were
conducted regularly. Rev. Krebs has described
them in an interesting manner. "To such an Indian
camp near the station I went regularly on Sundays

and Wednesdays and called out : ^Winaasz

nistochiz namhaiohniwh, nata eesz he zistas wues-
tanio,^ which means : 'All of you are invited to my
house, I wish to speak to the Zista people.' Regu-
larly men, women, and children responded in such
numbers as to fill the room, while some were unable
to get inside. The service began with the recitation
of the Lord's Prayer in the language of the Zistas,
followed by a sermon. Then came long discussions
with the answering of questions. The audience was
very quiet and attentive, except that occasionally
the remark Hbawa,^ 'good,' or the expression of joy
'haho' was heard.

"One who never came was the chief Hotuamo
(male elk). Generally he made his appearance at
a different time, namely, just before supper. In the
New Testament story of feeding the five thousand,
Christ preaches before he feeds the hungry multi-
tude. I intended to follow his example. The chief
was fond of sitting on a home-made bedstead. So

108 Lutheran Mission Jt'ork

one day 1 joined him there and talked to him about
God, sin, and forgiveness- During my discourse he
was very quiet, fixing his eyes on the floor. As on
previous occasions, he waited while supper was being
prepared in his presence. But before I had finished
talking, he suddenly rose and left. During the
following days he did not appear, instead sending
me an invitation to visit him. Three of us went.
Seldom or never does one find such perfect order as
prevailed in his tent on this occasion. The chief
was alone. He asked us to be seated, then passed
the peace pipe, which made the round according to
custom. Up to this time he had been silent. Now
he addressed us in the following manner: 'I am
very glad to have my best friends with me. Today
my heart experienced great joy. I am acquainted
with many people, but among them all you are most
dear to me.' Then he told about the Indian tribes
he had visited, the Europeans he had known, as also
about his extensive travels. 'I also noted,' he con-
tinued, 'the various religious ceremonies of the Indi-
ans and the whites, as also yours; but I never inter-
fered. If I saw something peculiar in the ceremon-
ies of others, I always kept silent, and never spoke
against them. Everything was satisfactory to me.'
With this speech he wanted to impress upon us that
we should not interfere with their religion and say
nothing against their idolatry. To inform us of
this had been the sole purpose of the invitation.

"That same afternoon he visited me. As on
other occasions, our friend waited for supper, while
I sat at his side and talked to him as before. I

Among the American Indians 109

asked him not to scorn or to reject my words, since
they were of God. He listened In silence, then rose,
and left before supper. It proved to be his last
visit. Within a short time the Indians broke camp;
but while In passing the others nodded and waved
at us in a friendly manner, our former friend turned
his face In the opposite direction and scorned to look
at us. Not long after this we were informed that
he with another who had shown his hostility against
us even more frankly, had been the first of the Chey-
enne tribe to be hanged by the troops."

For In the spring of 1862 the Indians of the
Northwest rose against the Government. The
Cheyennes were drawn into the trouble, and the
missionaries, after concealing their valuables near
the station, fled to Fort Laramie. Seyler and Kess-
ler returned to Iowa for provisions, which at that
time had a prohibitive price in the Northwest, a
sack of flour, for Instance, costing thirty dollars.
The Insurrection was put down within a short time,
and already during the same summer the missionar-
ies could return to the station, which they found only
slightly damaged. As formerly, they received per-
mission to accompany the Cheyennes on their wan-
derings, and Krebs even won the confidence of the
Arapahoes.

However, the men sent to Iowa were not able
to return during the same year, sufficient means not
being available. Not until April, 1863, could Kess-
ler and the new missionary. Matter, start for Deer
Creek, where they arrived at the end of July. As
on account of the war practically everything had

1 10 Lutheran Mission fFork

advanced in price, the two wagon loads of food and
other necessaries represented an outlay of fully
$2,000. Rev. Kessler had become married, and as
a bride for Beck accompanied the party, there were
now two women at the station, undoubtedly a bless-
ing for all.

Meanwhile a very gratifying event had oc-
curred. Three Indian children, named Muchsianoe
(brown moccasin), Ekois (little bone), and Mis-
tahemik (owl's head) had been entrusted to the care
of Krebs, who instructed them. This relieved
somewhat the monotonous life of Krebs and Flach-
enecker which the theft of their horses had forced
upon them. When Kessler arrived, active mission-
ary work could again be taken up. As soon as pos-
sible Flachenecker and Matter set out for the camp
of the Cheyennes, but found all fighting men on the
warpath against the Crows, their old enemies.
Flachenecker utilized the time by preaching to the
women and old men, and when the warriors re-
turned, testified against their cruel mode of warfare.
The Christmas festival of 1863 found him again at
their camp, while at the mission station on Deer
Creek the oldest of the Indian boys, Frederick, re-
ceived the Sacrament of Baptism. The second,
named Paul, was baptized the following Easter.

However promising this success might seem, the
events soon to follow disclosed a different situation.
The adult Indians showed little or no permanent in-
terest in the preaching of the Gospel. It was found
also that the unrest among the Sioux was likely to
spread to the Cheyennes and make further mission

Among the American Indians

111

work Impossible. This fear was only too well
founded. Enraged by dishonest dealings, the Indi-
ans awaited only a favorable opportunity to strike.
The Civil War had denuded the Northwest of
troops, making possible the great Indian uprising

Missionary Krebs and Three Christian Indians

in the summer of 1864. The few companies of
Federal troops proved no match for the concen-
trated forces of the Indians, being compelled to re-
treat while the Indian hordes under the leadership
of the powerful and warlike Sioux ravaged the
country. The missionaries sought protection at
the military post a few miles away. But as the
garrison of forty men was utterly Inadequate, two
months were spent in daily fear of a massacre, the

1 1 2 Lutheran Mission JVork

enemy meanwhile ransacking the mission station.
When finally the Sioux threatened the region of
Deer Creek, friendly Cheyennes notified the mis-
sionaries of the approaching danger and requested
them to leave within four days. They should re-
move also the three Indian boys to a place of safety.
This friendly advice was followed, and toward the
close of the year the missionaries arrived with their
charges in Iowa.

With this the mission really came to an end.
The missionaries entered congregational work with
the exception of Rev. Krebs, who took up quarters
in Wartburg Seminary with the three Indian boys
whose love and confidence he possessed. There
they were further instructed with the hope that ul-
timately they might be sent as missionaries to their
own people. Alas, a forlorn hope! The ways of
civilization once more proved fatal to the children
of the plains, as two of them were attacked with
tuberculosis. The youngest, who had been the last
to receive Baptism, was the first to succumb. With
true Christian fortitude he resigned himself to his
fate, showing by his conversation during the last
days a deep understanding of the essentials of the
Christian religion. On August 2, 1865, he died,
and already in December the second followed him,
who also showed toward the end the results of the
Gospel teaching.

During 1866, when an early peace with the In-
dians was confidently expected, the hope of mission-
ary work once more flared up. Krebs and Matter,
accompanied by the convert Frederick, were sent to

Among the American Indians 1 13

the Northwest; but as hostilities, in which the
Cheyennes took a prominent part, broke out again,
they did not even reach the Indian territory. At
the meeting of the synod in 1867 the missionary
work among the Indians was declared temporarily
at an end, tho Rev. Krebs should watch for an op-
portunity to resume work among the Cheyennes.
But it did not present itself. Finally, in 1885, the
funds were transferred to the Neuendettelsau Mis-
sionary Society, to be used in the foreign field among
the Papuas.

But what had become of Frederick, the first of
the Indian boys to be baptized? The story is soon
told. As long as he remained under the supervision
of his spiritual father Krebs, all went well. But his
natural gifts or rather the absence of them precluded
a career as missionary or minister, so finally he had
to shift for himself. The temptation of the world
proved too much for him, and a life of sin followed.
Only when after a number of years God's hand laid
him • low in sickness, could a change be noticed.
The disease resulted in his death, and it is charitable
to believe that God's grace was not in vain.

And the visible result of a mission extending
over a period of ten years, with the heavy sacrifices
of money and effort, even life! The cemetery of
St. Sebald, Iowa, contains a double grave, marked
until recently by a wooden cross with the inscription :
"Two Indians." According to plans, a simple but
fitting memorial will soon commemorate the resting
place of two Christians from among the Red Men,
and serve as a reminder of an undertaking which,

1 14 Lutheran Mission JP'ork

tho the results be entirely disproportionate to the
effort, shows the endeavor of noble and consecrated
men to pay the Christian debt of gratitude under
discouraging circumstances.

Chapter V

THE DANISH CHEROKEE MISSION IN

OKLAHOMA

FOR singleness of purpose and unremittent labor
by one man, no Lutheran undertaking looking
toward the Christianization of the Red Man can
compare with the Danish work among the Chero-
kees at Oaks, Oklahoma. In our chapter entitled
Pious Wishes we met the tribe in Georgia, the Salz-
burgers of Ebenezer planning at one time to be a
light to the benighted heathen. For at the time
of the discovery of America and for fully three
hundred years later the Cherokees held the whole
mountain region of the Southern Alleghenies, tho
evidence is not lacking that as a member of the Iro-
quoian family they had originated in the north.

The Cherokee Indians are highly intelligent,
and about 1820 adopted a form of government
modelled on that of the United States. Only a few
years later a halfblood invented an alphabet, which
at once raised the tribe to the rank of a literary
people. But they were not allowed to remain very
long in their accustomed hunting grounds. When
In the second decade of the last century gold was
found on their territory in Georgia, a powerful agi-
tation for their removal west of the Mississippi at
once set in. In spite of their splendid struggle under
their great chief John Ross, the trickery and injus-
tice of the state and federal governments forced

116 Lutheran Mission ff'ork

them to sell their entire remaining territory in 1835.
The removal to the assigned region in the Indian
Territory took place in the hard winter of 1838-9,
involving terrible hardships and causing many
deaths.

At the new location the tribe suffered severely
during the Civil War, when on account of a division
of sentiment its members fought for both the Con-
federate and the Union cause- The outcome of
the struggle compelled them to liberate their negro
slaves and to grant them equal citizenship. Since
then the tribe has made great strides toward civiliza-
tion. By an agreement with the United States Gov-
ernment, the tribal form of government came to an
end in 1906, the Indians acquiring citizenship.
During the last decades the Cherokees have in-
creased considerably, the western branch of the tribe
numbering close to 30,000 persons. When the
partly forced removal took place, in 1838-9, quite
a number escaped to the mountains, who later were
allowed to settle on lands set apart for them in
North Carolina, where they number at present about
2,000 souls.

The mission of the Danish Ev. Luth. Church in
America, now the United Danish Ev. Luth. Church,
takes us back to the year 1888, when a young man,
-N. L. Nielsen, emigrated from Denmark with no
other motive than to find an Indian tribe among
which he could settle, preach the Gospel, and by
his life's work be of eternal benefit to the people.
Many things combined to discourage the young man
in his plans, among them the claim that the Red

Among the American Indians 117

Man could not be won for the Kingdom of God.
But courageously he kept his purpose before him,
being influenced more by Christ's command and
promise, Matthew 28:19-20, than by the dire pre-
dictions of friends and acquaintances.

A few years were spent in preparation for the
work at Trinity Seminary, Blair, Nebraska. Then
God opened a door among the Cherokee tribe in
Oklahoma. With a firm trust in God's help and
guidance the young missionary began his labors on
June 11, 1892. He immediately secured the ser-
vices of an interpreter and with his help began to
preach the Gospel to the heathen. Soon after a
Sunday school was started, and a little later also a
day school organized. Thus in time the confidence
of the Cherokee people was won and the foundation
for successful work laid.

After a stay of more than twelve months among
the tribe, the missionary felt the need for an help-
meet, having experienced the truth of God's Word
to Adam : It is not good that the man should be
alone. A Danish bride arrived from across the
waters in 1893, the couple being married on Septem-
ber 7th. In their prayerful attitude the two worked
unceasingly for six long years, with no visible fruits
and no converts. Then one day an old full-blood
came and told them that his daughter, a pupil in the
mission school, was sick, and desired to see the mis-
sionary. When he arrived, she told him of her wish
to be baptized. The consent of the father was
readily secured, and a few weeks later, on Easter
Sunday, 1898, the Baptism took place. That was

118

Lutheran Mission Work

a great event in the life of the missionary and his
wife. The ice was now broken. In the fol-
lowing year fourteen persons were baptized. Since
then the flock has steadily increased, until at present
there is an organized congregation of over two hun-
dred souls.

Before the Boarding School

In time a fine little church was erected, to which
were added later a commodious two-story school
building and a boarding house. Trained teachers
are employed in the school, in which the Bible,
Luther's Small Catechism, and Vogt's Bible History
are the favorite textbooks. This school is the nur-
sery for the church and the congregation. Out of
it have come most of the converts. The missionary
believes that at present there are about one hundred
pupils who have the secret desire to be baptized, but
are held back by shyness or opposition at home.

Among the American Indians 1 19

Like other Indians, the Cherokees are not fond
of work. However, according to the testimony of
the missionary, they are gradually improving, rais-
ing more grain and vegetables from year to year.
There is a good deal of superstition and immorality
left, but the Gospel lifts the people gradually to a
higher plane.

The missionary correctly holds that the converts
should be taught to become self-supporting as soon
as possible and also to make some sacrifices for
others. The annual Thanksgiving and mission sales
yield $50-$75 for the cause of foreign missions.
The women and children bring their fancy work, and
the men and boys contribute small sums from their
field earning. In 1917 a collection for the suffering
Armenians yielded over $30, while $25 was contrib-
uted to the Y. M. C. A. The Indians also made
their contributions toward the Lutheran Soldiers'
and Sailors' Aid Fund.

Since the war ended and the influenza epidemic
subsided, some regrettable features have become
more prominent. Among the young people es-
pecially there is a hankering after worldly pleasures.
There seems to be less sincerity, and a falling off in
church attendance has also been noticed. Lately
the white element in the neighborhood has mani-
fested a strong opposition to religious teaching in
the school. But at the same time, there is a grow-
ing desire for more knowledge -and a better educa-
tion. A number of children could Jately be added
to the congregation, and the outlook for the future
is distinctly encouraging.

120 Lutheran Mission Work

Thus the work among the Cherokees has en-
joyed a healthy and steady growth, showing what
with the help of God prayerful and conscientious
work may accomplish. "The dear Lord has done
more than I or we ever expected to see here. His
name be praised." These are the closing senti-
ments in a report of missionary Nielsen.

Chapter VI
THE APACHE MISSION OF THE WISCON-
SIN SYNOD IN ARIZONA

AT its convention in 1883 the Wisconsin Synod
created a permanent committee of five pastors
charged with the duty of selecting a missionary so-
ciety both orthodox and successful which was to re-
ceive the synod's contributions for foreign missions.
In the following year the committee reported that
"in spite of its efforts it had been unable to find a mis-
sion society to which it could conscientiously entrust
the money, as with none of them they were in com-
plete agreement regarding faith and doctrine." In
view of this extraordinary situation the synod recom-
mended that young men willing to become mission-
aries among the heathen should be trained in the
theological seminary, and the available funds used
for this purpose. Several years later, in 1891, the
committee was able to report that three such stu-
dents, J. Plocher, G. Adascheck, and P. Mayerhoff,
had been- received into the seminary, and in all
probability would finish the course within two years.
The question of selecting a field for the mission-
aries soon presented itself. For a time Japan re-
ceived considerable attention, and tentative plans
to begin a mission there were drawn up. However,
when Indian agents from the great Southwest of our
own country pleaded for help, it was decided to in-
vestigate the possibilities of a mission among the
Red Man. Accordingly, in 1892 two ministers were

122 Lutheran Mission Work

sent to Arizona and New Mexico, one of them Rev.
O. H. Koch, who was a member of the Wis-
consin Synod Indian Mission Board till 1920. Af-
ter a thoro investigation the two men recommended
that a mission be begun among the Apaches on the
San Carlos Reser\ation in Arizona. This seemed
especially appropriate in view of the fact that no
Christian missionaries were working among that
numerous heathen tribe. Whether the Wisconsin
Synod alone would ha\e felt itself strong enough
for the undertaking, is problematical; but just at this
time the larger organization including the synods of
Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, and Nebraska,
was formed, and the plans with a statement of pre-
liminary work done submitted to this body. After
due deliberation it was decided to accept the pro-
posed plans, the immediate supervision of mission
work being entrusted to a board of seven members.
Since the Wisconsin Synod was by far the most im-
portant member of the old joint body and the main
support of the mission, and since the different synods
have recently been re-organized as The Evangelical
Lutheran Joint Synod of Wisconsin and Other
States, we may conveniently refer to the mission
under that name.

The Apaches, who were singled out as the object
of evangelization, form the most southern group of
the Athapascan family. Formerly their field of op-
eration covered extensive regions in the Southwest.
Up to very recent times, they were noted for their
warlike disposition, white as well as Indian settle-
ments feeling the ruthlessness of their raids. At
last General Miles, in 1886, compelled their surren-

Among the American Indians

123

der, and since then the majority of the tribe has
been confined to the San Carlos and Fort Apache
Reservations, where they are looked upon as prison-
ers of war. These reservatio.is comprise 10,990
square miles of land, partly mountainous and cover-
ed with splendid forests. The soil is very fertile,

Apache Women

but for the raising of crops irrigation is necessary
as the rainfall in Arizona is extremely light. While
formerly the tribe practised agriculture to a very
limited extent, now quite a number have settled
down as farmers, tho many continue to move from
place to place. Their shelters consist of brush huts,
easily erected, which are well suited to the dry and
mild climate of Arizona and their roving inclina-
tions. Filth and dirt does not seem to inconvenience
them very much.

Most of the five thousand members of the tribe

124 Lutheran Mission ff'ork

are living on the two reservations, tho quite a tew
go beyond the confines in quest of temporary work.
The Apache clings very tenaciously to the customs
and traditions of his people. In fact, he does
everything possible to remain an Indian, scorning
the attempts toward civilization put forth by the
white man. The native language is also carefully
adhered to. It is very rich in terms dealing with
material things, and according to our notion could
spare some of its expressions. However, on the
other hand, religious terms are practically absent,
a fact explained by the poverty of religious ideas.

Some competent observers claim that the Apache
has no religion at all, at least not now, whatever
may have been the situation in the past. He has
two words for the deity, it is true, one for his own,
and the other for the God of the whites, whom he
utterly despises. His own god he regards as the
creator of the world, who takes little further
interest In man. At times it seems as if he believes
him personified in the sun, but the tribe as such can-
not be classed in any way as sun worshippers. There
is no desire on his part to communicate with his god,
for he neither prays to him nor does he offer sacri-
fices in his honor.

However, there is a strong belief in the exis-
tence of evil spirits, to which the Apache ascribes all
his troubles and misfortunes. In order to drive
away the evil influence, special rites and ceremonies
are necessary, the knowledge of which is jealously
guarded by the medicine men, who claim to be in
direct communication with the Great Spirit. The
influence of these medicine men is still very power-

Among the American Indians 125

ful, and therefore some of the Carlisle Indian
school graduates turn to this lucrative employment.
In order to negative the influence of the mission-
aries, the medicine men appropriate those parts of
Christian teachings which appeal to the Indian mind
and tell the missionaries that the Indian does not
need their services, since the native doctor is offer-
ing the same things. There is no belief in a iuture
life, and no happy hunting ground awaits the braves.
Death is the end of existence.

Like so many primitive peoples, the Apache has
no idea of moral depravity and Innate guilt. Re-
morse, if shown at all, is confined to sorrow over
unguarded conduct which has brought down punish-
ment upon his head. Arrest and confinement make
very little impression upon him, as it is not consider-
ed a disgrace to have been in jail. Private blood
feuds are still common among the Apaches. The
home life, if one can dignify the family existence by
such a term, is grossly immoral, the sexual relations
even among children being very lax. Deformed and
weak offspring are left to their fate, tho the Apache
desires numerous strong and healthy children. It
is considered the duty of the old and feeble to die,
because their usefulness is ended.

The attitude of the Apache toward the whites Is
partly determined by his belief, strongly fostered
by the medicine men, that according to the will of
the Great Spirit the palefaces must serve the Indian.
The white man finally will pass away, and every-
thing he has built up will be left as a heritage to the
Indian. Therefore every kindness shown him is
accepted as a matter of course arid without any

126 Lutheran Mission fVork

show of gratitude, except where intercourse with the
powerful officials of the Government dictates an
outwardly grateful attitude. The following ex-
perience is typical of his viewpoint: One day an
Indian came to a white man with an ax, the handle
of which was broken. He asked for a new handle,
which was given him. The white man even fastened
it to the ax, since the Indian showed no inclination
to do so. He also told him that the ax must be
sharpened before it could be of much use. Accord-
ingly, both went to the grindstone, the Indian turn-
ing it while his white friend was sharpening the ax.
This finished, the white man went into his house.
When after about an hour he stepped into his yard,
he found the Indian still there. Upon inquiring
what he wished, the Indian answered naively: "I
turned the grindstone for you; you have not yet
paid me. I want twenty-five cents for it."

The natural intelligence of the Apache is great,
and upon proper application he proves to be an apt
scholar. But as yet very few have received ade-
quate education. This is partly due to their unwill-
ingness to acquire the culture of the whites. The
children are not easily kept in school, and even those
who have become acquainted with the learning and
the conveniences of the whites as a rule return to
the ways of their fathers. For this reason the in-
tellectual and moral development of the tribe has
not made very great progress.

Among these benighted people the Wisconsin
Svnod decided to begin missionary work. In the
fall of 1893 two of the three missionary students,
J. Plocher and G. Adascheck, having been duly or-

Among the American Indians 127

dained, reached the San Carlos Reservation. The
Fort Apache Reservation to the north was at that
time still under the supervision of the Indian agent
at San Carlos, later being raised to an independent
agency. A military garrison was then maintained at
San Carlos, where the Indian agent also had his
residence. Communication with the outside world
was by courier and stage coach, until, in 1896, a
railroad brought greater transportation facilities.

The first and most important task was the
selection of a proper location for the station. On
account of the demoralizing influences of modern
civilization, it was not deemed advisable to choose
a site very close to a white settlement. On the other
hand, however, it had to be in the vicinity of large
Indian camps, in order that a sufficient number of
children might be secured for the school. After due
investigation, a spot nine miles from San Carlos
seemed to be the ideal location. Negotiations with
the Government were begun, and with the consent
of the Indian chief ten acres were secured on the
San Carlos river, on account of the dry climate ir-
rigation being necessary. Good drinking water was
also obtained. Here a tent and later the more
permanent buildings of the first mission station
among the Apaches were erected.

With the coming of the railroad and a stop in
the neighborhood later the station became known as
Peridot, the history of which we shall trace to the
present before we discuss in detail the work at other
places. Rev. Plocher at once took a firm hold of the
undertaking, among other things teaching the chil-
dren in the Government school at San Carlos. The

128 Lutheran Mission Work

labors of Rev. Adascheck, however, were of short
duration, for he resigned after about a year, unable,
as he believed, to learn the Apache language, even
English causing him considerable difficulty. The
vacancy was not filled at this time, since Plocher felt
himself equal to the task at least for a while. He
even found time to investigate the situation at
Camp Apache, ninety miles distant, where later the
second station came to be located. In order to
facilitate the acquisition of the native language, an
Indian boy, who in addition to his mother tongue
had also a fair command of English, was engaged,
and made himself very useful in the school and the
garden. On the land belonging to the mission a well
was dug, and the fenced portion cultivated. A
modest dwelling for the missionary and a school
house were also built. About twenty children at-
tended the mission school, where the Catechism and
Bible History formed the chief course of study. At
first the missionary preached to the Indians with the
help of an interpreter, while later he composed
short sermons and delivered them wherever oppor-
tunity offered.

However, the constant and trying work finally
forced Rev. Plocher to take a much needed rest in
the summer of 1897, after which he resumed the
labor with new vigor. Meanwhile a railroad had
been built, which cut the mission property in two.
But as the Government willingly gave another piece
of land in exchange, no material loss was sustained.
The missionary work also went steadily on. The
time was amply filled with the teaching of the young
and the preaching to the adults, excellent relations

Among the American Indians 129

being maintained at all times. And finally, as th^
first fruit of long and conscientious work, four chil-
dren were baptized at San Carlos in April, 1899.
The Indian agent was very much impressed with the
efficient instruction given in the schools, and he urg-
ed that two missionaries be stationed at each of the
missions maintained by the synod. If the Lutheran
Church should be unwilling to expand the work,
another denomination would be called in. Material
help was promised in case the suggestions of the
agent were followed. But at this time the health of
the missionary who had labored six years among
the Indians, as also that of his faithful wife, broke
down and forced them to leave, the mission board
accepting the resignation with genuine regret.

Since conditions at Peridot demanded the
presence of a man, Rev. Mayerhoff, then stationed
at Fort Apache, the second mission, consented to
move to Peridot until the vacancy was filled. Five
futile calls were sent out, until at last the board se-
cured the services of Cai-1 Guenther, a student of
theology. He arrived at Peridot in February, 1900,
and for a few weeks shared the work with Rev.
Mayerhoff, who at the end of that time returned to
Fort Apache. Rev. Guenther soon found his bear-
ings and proved to be a successful missionary. The
work of Rev. Plocher was continued, while a collec-
tion of Indian words and phrases left by him was of
considerable aid in acquiring the language. It now
became increasingly evident that a second missionary
should be stationed at Peridot. The numerous calls
sent out, however, were all declined. Therefore a
plan formerly recommended by Rev. Plocher was

130

Lutheran Mission Jf'ork

now carried out. As a theologically trained man
could not be secured, a school teacher was called in
the person of Mr. K. Jens, who accepted the call.
Rev. Guenther welcomed him heartily, especially as
his efforts in the school proved to be very successful.
More and more the result of faithful and con-

Sialion Peridot

scientious work began to appear. At the beginning
of 1901 a boy, pupil of the Government school at
San Carlos, desired Baptism, which he received on
March 4th. During the following month ten girls,
between ten and sixteen years of age, also announc-
ed themselves and were baptized in May. If it
should strike one as extraordinary that these cate-
chumens were baptized so soon after their request
had been made, he must remember that they had
been instructed in the fundamentals of Christianity
by Rev. Plocher for several years, so that a shnrt

Amottg the American Indians 131

review sufficed. At this time a young man who had
made application years before but was unwilling to
renounce the devil, was also added to the number of
the baptized. Since his young wife had received
Baptism before, there was now one Christian family
among the Indians. As the baptisms increased, the
number of Christians reached twenty-five within a
few months.

The work among the children also had prosper-
ed. The school building, 18 x 24, built of adobes, a
sun-burnt brick, now proved too small. It was,
therefore, decided to build a more modern struc-
ture, costing in the neighborhood of $2,500, the
Government donating not a little of the material.
A great deal of the manual labor was done by Rev.
Guenther and Mr. Jens, who with the consent of
the mission board bought a team and wagon for this
particular purpose. The building, which was to be
used both as a school and a place of worship, could
be dedicated in May, 1903. The necessary equip-
ment was generously furnished by voluntary gifts
from the congregations of the synod. After the
dedication sermon ten children were baptized, while
one confirmation took place. The number of baptiz-
ed had now reached fifty-eight.

In the summer the work received a serious set-
back thru an accident to Mr. Jens, which proved
fatal. A newly secured teacher remained only a
comparatively short time, ill health forcing his
resignation. On account of other work,. Rev.
Guenther was unable to teach In the mission school
himself, which consequently was abandoned. It
seemed also better to concentrate all strength upon

132 Lutheran Mission ff'ork

instruction in the Government schools, until now all
the baptized having been won there. The efforts
expended at the school at San Carlos had proved
especially successful. In the year ending June, 1904,
forty children of that school were baptized, making
since 1899 seventy-two in all. The Rice Boarding
School was also regularly visited by the missionary,
whose schedule on Sundays was especially heavy,
since he preached not only at the mission, but also
at the two Government schools. No second mission-
ary could be secured, but an interpreter made the
task of a lone man a little less difficult than it would
have been otherwise.

In 1905 unexpected assistance was furnished by
the Rev. J. F. G. Harders, a gifted pastor at Mil-
waukee, whom throat trouble had compelled to seek
a more favorable climate. After one year's fruitful
work at San Carlos, he indeed returned to Milwau-
kee, but in 1907 was prevailed upon to accept the
superintendency of the whole mission field in Ari-
zona. Stationed at Globe, he discharged the duties
of that important office with great success, as we
shall find when the history of the Globe mission is
presented in detail. F'or a time Rev. Haase assisted
in the work at Peridot, until he was sent to the field
at Globe. His labors there were shortlived, since
the obstacles placed in his way by so-called white
Christians seemed to him insurmountable, and in a
despondent mood he soon resigned. At San Carlos
the Government had built a chapel for missionary
purposes, which later passed entirely into the hands
of the mission. The work at Peridot and vicinity
proved to be too arduous for one missionary, who

Among the American Indians 133

served in all nineteen different preaching places.
However, all efforts to secure an additional man for
this important post proved unavailing.

Finally, in 1911, ill health forced Rev. Guenther
and his wife to leave the field. A pastor who tem-
porarily filled the position did not give satisfaction,
and student Karl Toepel was then called, arriving in
Arizona in 1912. Even before this time a school
according to the plan of Rev. Harders, furnishing
the pupils with a dinner at noon, had been opened
and proved increasingly successful. However, in
1915 Rev. Toepel became very ill and was unequal
to the arduous task. Therefore he handed in his
resignation and left the field in the spring of 1916.
Till the end of that school year the children were
under the supervision of Miss Kieckbusch, a young
lady from Wisconsin. During the summer Rev. A.
Zuberbier, who was stationed at Cibecue, the fourth
mission of the synod in Arizona, had charge of the
station, an arrangement all the more welcome since
hay fever rendered his life miserable at Cibecue-
But In the fall of the same year circumstances made
it advisable that he should remove again to his
former station. Since no missionary could be secur-
ed before the opening of the school, student Nitz,
who had filled a similar position at Globe with some
success, was sent to Peridot. Soon a new mission-
ary in the person of Rev. G. Fischer was secured,
who labored there till the spring of 1918, when the
Government requested his withdrawal. Missionary
Rosin, then stationed at Globe, was asked to move
to Peridot and to take charge of the work. This he
did in April, devoting quite a bit of time to the

134 Lutheran Mission Work

Government school at Rice. Since November,
1919, he has had the assistance of Rev. F. Uplegger,
So that for a time two missionaries were stationed
there. Later, Rev. Uplegger was transferred to
Rice. The number of baptized is about thirty and
that of the communicants the same. The mission
school is attended by thirty, while thirteen are in-
structed in the Government school. In all, about
four hundred persons are reached by preaching, and
seventeen are being prepared for Baptism. The
value of the property is estimated at $8,000. At
Rice, where the Catholics have erected a beautiful
chapel, an $11,000 chapel and house are in the
course of construction.

We noted before that at San Carlos, the seat of
the Indian agent, an Indian school had from the
first received the attention of the missionaries. The
Government built here a beautiful chapel of white
sandstone, and generously allowed the missionaries
to use it for preaching purposes. In 1911 it became
the property of the mission, when a bell and an or-
gan could be added thru the generous contributions
of mission friends in the synod.

Until 1918 San Carlos had been served from the
Peridot station. When there was danger that the
Catholics would invade the field. Rev. A. Uplegger
of Globe was asked to go there. The missionary
pitched his tent beside the chapel and did efliicient
work, expending his main efforts at San Carlos and
Bylas. At both places fruit has appeared. At San
Carlos there are now seventeen baptized members,
and forty persons are being made ready for Bap-
tism. In the Governnment school thirty-five children

Among the American Indians 135

are instructed, while in all eight hundred persons are
reached by preaching. The value of the property
is $3,500. A splendid showing has also been made
at Bylas, established as a station in October, 1920.
There the congregation has ten members, forty-five
children are instructed in the Government school,
and in all five hundred persons are reached by
preaching. Rev. G. Schlegel is the missionary.

The second mission station of the Wisconsin
Synod in Arizona is located at East Fork on the Fort
Apache Indian Reservation. Already in 1894 Rev.
Plocher, accompanied by an Indian, had made a
tour of investigation. He found conditions so
favorable that he recommended that a mission be
begun on the East Fork river, close to Fort Apache.
In the following year the synod decided to send a
missionary to the extremely promising field. Rev.
P. Mayerhoff, one of the three men especially edu-
cated for the mission work, accepted the call. He
arrived in Arizona in 1896 and for a few weeks en-
joyed a profitable stay at Peridot with Rev. Plocher.
The latter also accompanied him on the interesting
trip to Fort Apache, about ninety miles distant.

At a suitable place three miles from Fort
Apache, on the East Fork river, the station was lo-
cated. For six months a tent had to serve as shelter
for the missionary. Then a modest dwelling,
12xl2,was erected, which in 1898 made way for a
more substantial building. Rev. Mayerhoff imme-
diately began to give religious Instruction to about
sixty children in the Fort Apache Government
school. He also spent no little time In becoming
acquainted with the Apache language, even then

^^^

m

t

M

'^.

1| ; %.,. I

c
c
'^

k.

1*.

a
1-
c

tao

•H

1

f, '-iiat*

mm^Bm^^M

lid -•".::-

m

^^^ -^

.3

iS^

iMMMMaa '

C

lw_

1

■1

>«^ r5^^ ., " ■ !

o

SF"-i

1" -^^

I :.^-'

Among the American Indians 137

trying to translate portions of Luther's Small Cate-
chism. Not only the numerous Indians living in the
valley of the East Fork close to the mission received
spiritual care, but also bands farther removed were
visited from time to time. Since the missionary was
forced to raise his own vegetables, manual labor
varied with the intellectual work.

After some negotiations, the Government read-
ily granted sufficient land for the mission. The
plank hut, 12x12, could now be utilized for
school purposes, since in 1898 a house costing about
$1,100 was erected. The outlook for a school seem-
ed especially bright, as the missionary had won the
perfect confidence of the Indians.

When, in 1899, sickness compelled Rev. Plocher
to leave Peridot, Rev. Mayerhoff for a time dis-
charged the duties there. His absence from East
Fork was keenly felt and very much regretted. Not
only the Indians, but also the whites desired his
presence. In addition to other duties, he even for
a time preached every Sunday at Fort Apache to
the garrison composed of about two hundred sol-
diers, mostly colored. Much' to his regret, the
promises in regard to a mission school were not ful-
filled, as the Indians moved too much from place to
place. Only occasional visits could be made to the
more distant bands. Until 1902 the work of this
extensive charge rested solely upon the shoulders of
Rev. Mayerhoff, since all efforts to secure an addi-
tional missionary were futile. Finally Mr. O.
Schoenberg was called as a teacher, and with the
help of two Indians a frame building, 20 x 40, to be
used for both school and church purposes, was erect-

ShRJ^I

-a

S

ti-
ll

sat'

91

e
•2
1

t/5

'st

^% '

. ^iHl^v'j. lSB

img^f^^mm.mt. t^amm

Among the American Indians 139

ed by the two men. The attendance increased, and
the twenty children were instructed by Schoenberg
with a great deal of enthusiasm.

As the heavy work had ruined Rev. Mayerhoff's
health, he was forced to leave in the summer of
1903, having spent seven years in the Christianiza-
tion of the Apaches. As his successor Cand. H.
Haase was called, who took, up his duties in 1904.
He showed himself to be a very energetic worker,
making long trips to preach to the Indians in theix"
camps. The school attendance gradually became
less, as the Government enlarged its boarding school
and offered many more attractions than the mission
day school. Finally it was decided to abandon the
school and to concentrate all strength upon the in-
struction in the Government school. Mr. Schoen-
berg was now ordained, and for the first time the
station had two missionaries, who worked harmo-
niously and not unsuccessfully.

Meanwhile, in 1905, Rev. Harders had explored
the situation at Globe, a growing mining town just
outside of the reservation, and it was deemed best
to station a man there. Accordingly, in 1906, Rev.
Haase was sent to the third mission station of the
synod in Arizona, while Schoenberg remained in
charge of the extensive field, where he preached at
nine different places. Fruit began at last to appear
in the request of some for instruction preparatory
to Baptism. Now the missionary was also able to
use the native language with some degree of facility,
which showed itself in the translation of the Lord's
Prayer. Unfortunately, about 1910 he became dis-

140 Lutheran Mission ff'ork

couraged and indififerent to the work, and for a time
was in the employ of the Government as a forester,
tho he soon returned to his former occupation.

Shortly after his return Rev. Schoenberg was re-
quested by the board to move to Cibecue and to be-
gin mission work there, as this promising field had
been visited by him before. As his successor at
East Fork Cand. Edgar Guenther was called in
1910. By this time the mission school had been re-
established according to the suggestion of Rev.
Harders, the children being furnished a meal at
noon time. The work of the missionary has been
very successful, the relations maintained with the
Indians being very close, who are loved by him as
brothers. When at one time pneumonia carried
away many of the people, he cared for the survivors
in both a material and spiritual way according. to
the best of his ability.

After the death of Rev. Harders, in the spring
of 1917, Rev. Guenther was appointed superinten-
dent of the whole field. For some time Mr. G.
Gleiter assisted in the school, and when, in 1918, he
was drafted into the army, Cand. M. Wehausen
was called as second missionary. With combined
efforts the two men erected a dining room for the
Indian children of the mission school and a parson-
age for Rev. Wehausen. The number of preaching
places now also increased. The report of April,
1920, mentions that there are seven baptized and
three communicant members. The latest report,
April, 1921, mentions fifteen baptisms. The mission
school is attended by forty-two pupils, while thirty-

Among the American Indians 141

four are also instructed in the Government school.
In all, three hundred seventy-five persons are reach-
ed by preaching, of which seven will soon be baptiz-
ed. The value of the property, including a chapel,
is given at $4,500.

Among the preaching places was also JVhke-
river, four miles north of Fort Apache, where the
work in the Government day school became very in-
fluential. In October, 1919, Rev. Guenther moved
to White-river, where a mission house was com-
pleted in April, 1921. The work there looks very
promising. Until 1920, four baptized and three
communicant members formed the congregation,
but thirty-three persons were recently added by
Baptism. The number of children instructed in the
Government school is sixty-eight, while In all one
thousand persons are reached from this station.
Unfortunately Rev. Guenther became sick In Febru-
ary, 1920, and after several months was only far
enough recovered to go on a much needed vacation.
Rev. E. A. Sitz, in charge of Globe-Miami, a white
mission, was temporarily discharging the duties of
the station. Supt. Guenther has now recovered, but
is still assisted by Rev. Sitz. The latter Is also serv-
ing Carrixo Canyon, a station established December
IS, 1920, but as yet with no permanent buildings.

The third mission was organized at Globe, a
mining town of about 8,000 inhabitants, just to the
west of the San Carlos Reservation. In 1905, while
Rev. G. Harders was assisting in the work at Peri-
dot, floods destroyed many of the Indian farms near
Peridot and San Carlos. In consequence of this,

142 Lutheran Mission Work

great numbers of Indians who depended upon work
tor a subsistence moved to Globe, where the rich
copper mines promised lucrative employment. Rev.
Harders considered it his duty to follow these
Indians and to preach to them in their new environ-
ment. Consequently he moved to Globe and labor-
ed among them for some time. However, with the
improvement of his health he returned to his congre-
gation at Milwaukee, while Rev. Haase of East
Fork was asked to take up the work there. Making
his headquarters in Globe, he visited the different
mining camps in the neighborhood. But the degen-
erating influence of white civilization placed many
difficulties in his way, and at last he abandoned his
efforts as hopeless and accepted a call tendered by a
congregation in the North, leaving a vacancy hard to
fill.

Rev. G. Harders of Milwaukee, who had shown
himself during his year's stay in Arizona as a suc-
cessful missionary, was selected to assume charge of
the difficult field. After some negotiations his con-
gregation released him, and he was now free to em-
ploy his great gifts in the cause of Indian mission
work. He reached the field of labor in September,
1907, and immediately took energetic steps for the
enlightenment of the heathen. As house rent was
prohibitively high, he bought a house at a fair price,
and at his own expense erected a small chapel, which
was later acquired by the synod. Thus Globe be-
came the center of intense missionary activities.
Counting its neighborhood, about seven hundred
Indians could be reached. The necessary assistance

Among the American Indians 143

was also soon found. On his travels Rev. Harders
had become acquainted with Mr. E. Reclcnagel, a
theological student at St. Louis, who in his great love

Rev. G. Harders

for the Indian and his admiration for Rev. Harders
offered his help. This arrangement being satisfac-
tory to the board, he was accordingly ordained and
installed, and for several years served acceptably.
At this time the administration of the whole mis'-

144 Lutheran Mission JVork

sion field was reorganized along new lines. Until
then each missionary had been responible only to
the mission board, which exercised its supervision
from a base thousands of miles away, tho once it
had been found necessary to send one of the mem-
bers on a tour of inspection. Now a superinten-
dency was created and filled by the selection of Rev.
Harders. The missionaries submit their reports to
the superintendent, who scrutinizes them and trans-
mits them to the board, at the same time filing a
general report and making recommendations. Pe-
riodically he also visits the different fields and con-
sults with the workers. However, the missionaries
are also in direct touch with the board thru corre-
spondence with the different members. The whole
arrangement has worked very satisfactorily.

In order that the benefits resulting from consul-
tation and closer co-operation might be obtained,
regular conferences were established. To give an
insight into the very practical transactions, we note
some items from the program of the first. A paper
dealing with missionary preaching in the Bible was
read by Rev. Harders. Each member of the con-
ference presented a short sermon on the resurrec-
tion of the Widow's Son at Nain as he would de-
liver it before Indians- Rev. Guenther then read a
paper dealing with the history of the Apaches. An
alphabet of the Apache language was drawn up and
accepted. It was furthermore decided that each
man should write a paper in the language of the
tribe once a month; this was to circulate among the
missionaries in order to give each an opportunity

Among the American Indians 145

to offer criticisms and to make improvements. At
the second conference, among other manuscripts a
prayer book for children was submitted, accepted,
ordered printed, and distributed. A children's pa-
per, partly in the Apache language, was also to be
published. It may easily be seen that such activities
are not only of great value in determining policies
and deciding difficult cases, but they also improve the
missionaries' knowledge of the native language and
tend to maintain a spirit of enthusiasm for the
work. In order to give the reader some idea of
the language of the Apaches, we append here the
Lord's Prayer:

Nochta yakayo sindtahn.
Nijji nojogo holae.
Ni banantahi gidawa.
Nogustzan bika ni nihi agutaele yakayo agudzahi

gaechgu.
Didjin nochlidan dadjibigahi nochanne.
Nochanlchahi nochanagodena nochi gaechgu hadn

nochahahadenhahi banagodenta.
NaguntluggI bijiji do adidnthlossguda.
Ndi donjodahi bitzaji nochhidschonde.
Ni nantahi eige hadzllli eige itisgo nojoni hibiga.
Dahaje, dahaje.

Dolechtgo atae.

Soon after taking charge of the mission, Rev.
Harders began a day school on a plan which proved
so successful that it was adopted at all other sta-
tions. The small and irregular attendance had been
the cause of the abandonment of the mission
schools in 1905. In order to assure a good attend-
dance, the pupils received a meal at the noon hour.

146 Lutheran Mission IFork

which naturally possessed great attraction. Food
remnants were collected from the hotels, coffee and
sugar either bought or sometimes donated. In ad-
dition to religious subjects and the common
branches, manual training was also given. On the
whole the arrangement worked with mariced suc-
cess, for the attendance was excellent considering
the fact that some of the pupils had to walk from
two to ten miles every morning. A great improve-
ment was also noted in their behavior, while rapid
progress was made in the different subjects. The
school, successively taught by the Misses Irmgard
Harders, Hilda Harders, Klara Hinderer, Mary
Kiekbusch, Mr. Gurgel, and Mr. NItz, furnished
quite a number of catechumens, who in course of
time were baptized.

The preaching of the Gospel to the adults was
not neglected. At twenty different places the mis-
sionary and his assistant gathered the Indians. In
June, 1909, there were already forty baptized per-
sons, the children included. Now the first Apache
congregation with a membership of ten could be or-
ganized in Globe. And fifty baptized persons were
also visited from this place. Thus gratifying prog-
ress had been made in a number of ways.

In the beginning of 1917, Rev. Harders received
an assistant in the person of Cand. A. Uplegger,
since ill health made the task too arduous for him.
But hardly had the new missionary taken over part
of the duties when, on April 13th, Rev. Harders
passed to his reward. This was a severe blow not
only to the work at Globe, but for the whole field.
Rev. Harders was an exceptionally able missionary

Among the American Indians 147

who maintained the necessary enthusiasm and per-
sistence in the midst of the greatest difficulties. And
as superintendent of the whole field for ten years he
had won the respect and admiration of his co-labor-
ers. Greatly beloved by the Indians and enjoying
their confidence to a remarkable degree, he on his
part loved them as brothers. Among them he was
happy, among them he intended to be buried, a wish
which was granted. In order to create interest in
the Indians and the mission work among them, he
had appealed to a larger audience thru a number of
writings. "Jaalahn" and "La Paloma," two stories
dealing with Indian life, have received wide recog-
nition..

As assistant to Rev. Uplegger at Globe, the mis-
sion board called Cand. H. Rosin, who accepted
the call. Now for a short time Globe had two
workers, but when, in the spring of 1918, Rev.
Fischer had to leave Peridot, Rev. Rosin was trans-
ferred to that place. Thus only Rev. Uplegger re-
mained in Globe, but as the Catholics threatened to
begin work in San Carlos, he was transferred there.
Thus Globe was for a time without a missionary.
Since October, 1919, the field has been in charge of
Rev. H. C. Nitz. The station has twenty baptized
members, the number of communicants being the
same. Three hundred and fifty persons are reached
by preaching, and four or five probably will be
baptized soon. The property value is estimated at
$2,500.

The fourth mission station established by the
synod in Arizona is at Cibecue, about fifty miles
from Ft, Apache and Globe. It has a delightful.

148

Lutheran Mission Work

romantic location, with plenty of wild game. This
station on the Cibecue river for a time seemed to
be the most promising of all the missions. There
a great number of Indians have settled and work
their farms, the chief occupation being the raising
of horses. Rev. Schoenberg had made a number of

Buildings at the Cibecue

visits there and preached the Gospel to the Indians.
In 1911 it was decided to make a more determined
effort, and he was asked to move there with his fam-
ily. Rev. Schoenberg secured a piece of land and
immediately began the building of a dwelling, mean-
while living in a tent. In the spring of 1912 a school
was opened. As only one room was available for
school purposes, not more than twenty-three pupils

Among the American Indians 149

could be received, altho several others were ready
to come. To remedy the situation, a building for
school and church purposes was erected at a cost of
about $500. Its walls were constructed of adobes
and the roof was covered with tin. Thruout the
week Rev. Schoenberg taught school and on Sundays
preached in the language of the Apache without the
help of an interpreter. Thus the work there had an
auspicious start.

But in November of the same year Rev. Schoen-
berg handed in his resignation, which was accepted
by the board. Rev. Harders and Rev. Guenther
supplied there until the summer of 1913, when
Cand. A. Zuberbier was called. The work of the
new missionary at first seemed very successful, as he
won the complete confidence of the Indians. The
school began to flourish, and many improvements
were made in regard to the property. When, in the
summer of 1916, Peridot had become vacant. Rev.
Zuberbier temporarily moved to that place, hay
fever making his life miserable at the station on
the Cibecue. But when no missionary could be se-
cured for the latter post, he was willing to be sta-
tioned there again. During the school year 1917-
18 Miss Kiekbusch was assisting the missionary in
the school.

However, in May, 1919, Rev. Zuberbier resigned
and left for the North, the station being temporar-
ily without a man. Since October, 1919, A.
Albrecht supplied for some time. Later he returned
to the North, Rev. Weindorf taking his place Sep-
tember, 1920. There are only a few baptized mem-

ISO Lutheran Mission fVork

bers, but more intensive working of the field is be-
lieved to bring results. The mission school is attend-
ed by twenty pupils, and in all two hundred people
are reached by preaching. The property belonging
to the station, including a chapel and mission house,
is valued at $3,500-

On the whole, the mission work of the Wiscon-
sin Synod in Arizona has made gratifying progress
during the last years. And provided the necessary
men can be secured, several new fields will be open-
ed this year. However, it is extremely hard to in-
duce men with the necessary qualifications to serve
among the Indians. In our discussion it was not
seldom mentioned that a number of calls had to be
sent out before one was accepted. Many of the men
secured are recent graduates of the theological semi-
nary. Not a few break down in the arduous work
with its many privations. In late years, however,
quite an improvement has been made in transporta-
tion facilities, a number of automobiles now insuring
more rapid transit. In addition to the white mis-
sionaries, there are several native workers, best
known among whom is Jack Keyes.

The cost involved in supporting such a mission
is of course considerable. We give a few figures
which will show the average outlay. From May 1,
1902, to April 30, 1903, the expenses, including the
building of a church and some miscellaneous costs,
amounted to $7,918.19. The budget between May
1, 1906, and May 1, 1907, was $3,298-93. For
the period May 1, 1911, to May 1, 1912, including
building operations, the sum was $9,966.14. With

Among the American Indians 151

no major improvements included, the expenses be-
tween May 1, 1915, and May 1, 1916, were
$7,802.18, amounting to about the same sum the
following year. The expansion during the last years
and the high cost of living have of course greatly in-
creased the budget.

At first prejudice and indifference among the
clergy and laity at home sometimes had a depress-
ing effect on the men in the field, especially when
only meager results were obtained. But this has
been overcome, for as the whole undertaking assum-
ed an aspect of success and permanency, the attitude
underwent a complete change. If the efforts ex-
pended in men and money be great, they are amply
repaid from a Christian standpoint by the gain of
immortal souls, won for the Kingdom of Christ.

Chapter VII

THE WORK OF THE MISSOURI SYNOD
AMONG THE STOCKBRIDGES

THE Stockbrldge Indians, among which the
Missouri Synod is laboring with gratifying re-
sults, have an interesting history. They are of New
England stock, and were originally called Housa-
tonic, their principal village being Westenhuck,
Massachusetts, which was for a long time the capi-
tal of the Mahican confederacy. In 1734 the Pres-
byterian minister John Sergeant began missionary
work among them, and two years later succeeded in
gathering the converts into a regular mission town
named Stockbridge, from which the tribe received
the name that has clung to it ever since.

However, here as elsewhere, the encroachment
of the whites had a demoralizing influence, and
participation in two wars, the French and Indian as
well as the Revolutionary War, still further dimin-
ished the numbers of the small tribe. In 1785 the
remnant accepted an invitation of the Oneidas, and
under the leadership of Samson Occom, an educat-
ed native minister, settled in Oneida and Madison
counties. New York, where the village of New
Stockbridge sprang up. There the missionary work
was continued. Under the protecting care of the
Oneidas the tribe also increased again, numbering
three hundred souls in 1796.

Among the American Indians 153

In 1833 another move was made, when in con-
junction with the Oneida and the Munsee tribe they
settled temporarily on a tract of land near Green
Bay, Wisconsin. But already in 1839 the now united
tribe of Stockbridges and Munsees agreed to move
to lands assigned to them west of the Mississippi,
while those who desired to become citizens were per-
mitted to settle on the east shore of Winnebago
Lake^ on the unsold half of the former reservation.
However, both arrangements proved unsatisfactory.
Thus once more the members were brought together
and their tribal government restored. Finally, in
1856, the united tribe made their last move when
they settled on a reservation west of Shawano, Sha-
wano Co., Wis. Here they have increased some-
what, at the present time numbering about six hun-
dred souls. Their reservation Is located in Red
Springs Township. The land has within late years
been patented to them, while they themselves have
become full fledged American citizens. Some are
fairly successful under the new circumstances, while
others have fallen into poverty and squalor of their
own choosing.

Among this tribe Presbyterian ministers con-
tinued to do missionary work. The most notable
was Rev. Jeremiah Slingerland, an educated mem-
ber of the tribe. He began his labors in 1849, re-
moved with his charges to Shawano in 1856, and
continued as pastor and teacher of the Government
school until his death, in 1884. Tho he was a
Presbyterian, that denomination did not contribute
toward his support, the Government paying the sal-

154 Lutheran Mission JVork

ary for the double office of pastor and teacher. Af-
ter his death the Government for some years con-
tinued to support a pastor and Government teacher
from available tribal funds. When this arrange-
ment ceased, no regular Protestant church work
was done for a number of years.

It was in 1898 that a delegation of Stockbridge
Indians came to Rev. Th. Nickel, at that time pas-
tor in Shawano, and requested that he begin church
work among them. With alacrity Rev. Nickel ac-
cepted the invitation, all the more so since these
Indians understood the English language. In that
language he preached to them, a considerable num-
ber attending the services. In addition, several
showed a willingness to take instruction and be
baptized. The whole undertaking thus had an
auspicious start.

In the following year the Missouri Synod de-
cided to take over the mission, the work to be under
the direction of an Indian mission board. Mr. J.
D. Larsen, of Springfield Theological Seminary, was
called as the first missionary. On September 3,
1899, he was ordained and installed among his fu-
ture charges. For the purposes of the mission
twenty acres were bought, and a parsonage was
erected at once, one room of which was to serve as a
place for religious meetings. However, only nine
short months was Rev. Larsen permitted to work
among the Indians, his falling health demanding the
discontinuation of the highly successful labors. Since
it was not possible to secure a new missionary im-
mediately, a student named E. Blegener supplied the

Among the American Indians 155

mission for one year. The services were well attend-
ed. Soon the meeting room became too small, and
in 1901 a church had to be built, an addition to
which served for school purposes. The mission sta-
tion is known as Red Springs, while the mail is re-
ceived at Gresham.

The same year a new missionary was secured In
the person of Rev. R. Kretzmann, who was install-
ed on July 14, 1901, at the same time the newly
built church and school being dedicated. Rev.
Kretzmann began his work with great enthusiasm.
Already in 1901 he extended his field to the town
of Keshena, and succeeded In establishing a preach-
ing place there. The same result was obtained at
Morgan. And in time Gresham was also visited,
where he ministered to a number of Indian families.
It has always been realized that a successful
mission Is largely dependent upon a school where
the children may be imbued with the spirit of Christ
and thus won over. Rev. Kretzmann as well as the
board had no doubt on this point. What else could
one expect of members of the Missouri Synod, whose
parochial school system has been unapproached by
any other Lutheran body in America ! Mr. O. W.
Volkert was accordingly engaged as teacher for the
mission school. In August, 1902, he began his work,
but already In 1903 God called His faithful servant
to his eternal rest. Tho the position remained va-
cant for some time, the work was continued never-
theless. Rev. Kretzmann himself instructed in re-
ligion, while the other subjects were taught for a
time by an educated Christian Indian woman. Later,

156 Lutheran Mission JFork

tormer Rev. Kraft and a student named Gleffe serv-
ed in the same capacity. It was not till 1905 that a
regular teacher was secured in the person of J. r.
Luebke, a graduate of the Teachers' Seminary at
Addison. Under his careful guidance the school in
Red Springs began to flourish. Children whose
parents lived too far from the school were now ad-
mitted into the homes of Christian Indians, and this
increased the attendance of the school considerably.

Rev. Kretzmann worked with great zeal and en-
thusiasm, and soon added another place to his al-
ready extensive parish. Twenty miles from Red
Springs, almost buried in the primeval forest, is the
so-called Wiaskesit Settlement of the Menominee
Reservation. The missionary in his tour of investi-
gation was informed that a number of children
probably could be secured if a school were opened.
Acting upon this information, the mission board had
a school built, later also a house, and thus the sta-
tion Zoar came into being. The Indians of that
vicinity were still heathen, and sanitary conditions
among them were unknown. As teacher of the school
a certain Barneko was called, whose references
seemed to indicate that he would be the proper per-
son for the trying position. But unequal to the
chaotic conditions, he left after a few weeks. In
order that the work might go on. Rev. Kretzmann
secured the services of educated Christian Indian
women. But as a rule no one was willing to perform
the dreary task long, and the teachers passed in
rapid succession.

It was imperative that a regular teacher be se-

Among the American Indians 157

cured, and finally the board was successful in calling
Mr. A. Krenke. In September, 1904, he began his
duties, but already in March, 1905, the illness of his
wife compelled him to relinquish the position. Af-
ter his resignation, educated Indian girls taught for
a time, while later the school was abandoned tem-
porarily. However, soon a great change for the
better took place. The former missionary, J. D.
Larsen, accepted a call to Zoar, arriving in January,
1906. His wife taught school, while he himself did
missionary work, besides teaching wherever an op-
portunity offered itself. But the position of the
missionary was anything but pleasant. The Indians
were very much addicted to rum, and when their Gov-
ernment allowances were paid, their indulgence
knew no bounds. Under such conditions life among
them became at times dangerous, tho no real harm
was ever done to the missionaries. But in spite of
all efforts no visible fruit was seen, for not a single
Indian became a Christian. However, Rev- Larsen
and his heroic wife worked on till conditions in Red
Springs necessitated their removal thither.

The work in Red Springs, the chief station, did
not always progress according to the expectations of
Rev. Kretzmann. The vices of the Indians especial-
ly caused the missionary many a gloomy hour. But
in spite of it he worked on courageously, fearlessly
denouncing the sins. In time the Indians grew im-
patient of the continued admonition and became
hostile. Mr. Luebke, the faithful teacher of the
school, did not escape. And soon the hostile In-
dians requested the Presbyterians to serve them, an

158 Lutheran Mission PFork

invitation which was accepted. By this time the
severe labor had told on the missionary, and in 1908
ill health compelled him to accept a call from a white
congregation. Soon after, the teacher, Mr. Luebke,
also left, since the school had almost gone out of
existence. For a time the board tried unsuccessful-
ly to fill the vacancy, tho an early appointment had
become imperative, as the minister of the Presby-
terians was expected within a short time.

In order to save the field. Rev. Larsen of Zoar
had to be transferred to Red Springs, where he be-
gan his work in April, 1908, one week after the
representative of the Presbyterians, a halfblood
Sioux Indian, had arrived there. However, Rev.
Larsen had this advantage over his rival that he had
been stationed in Red Springs before and enjoyed
the confidence of the Indians. Under these circum-
stances the halfblood Sioux soon found it advisable
to abandon the field. The incursion of the Presby-
terians had had few ill effects. Soon large audiences
again greeted the missionary, and the Indians also
requested that a school be opened.

Within a short time their request was granted.
For in the same year the synod at its general con-
vention decided to erect an administration building
and dormitory at Red Springs. In the fall of 1908
the plans were carried out, the building with its
equipment costing in the neighborhood of $5,000.
Soon seventy-nine children attended the school.
Mrs. Larsen had charge of the school, while Rev.
Larsen himself taught Catechism and Bible History.
Thus the work prospered, a strong impression also
being made upon the adults.

^

160 Lutheran Mission JVork

Some of the conversions were truly remarkable.
One in particular may be mentioned here. Durmg
Kretzmann's residence in Red Springs an old heath-
en Indian, a former soldier, had exposed himself
to the cold while intoxicated, with the result that
he became very sick. Rev. Kretzmann visited him
and spoke to him about his sins. The Indian ap-
peared to be repentant, was baptized, and promised
that he would take further instruction and be con-
firmed just as soon as his state of health permitted.
But with the return of health he continued the for-
mer sinful life. Again his intoxication threw him
upon the sickbed which became his deathbed. Rev.
Larsen, who was then in charge of the mission sta-
tion at Red Springs, visited him and reproved him
sharply on account of his sins. The Indian replied:
"You are right. Reverend. I have lived a bad life.
You cannot enumerate all the bad things I have
done. But now I'll change." When the missionary
voiced his doubt about the sincerity of the repent-
ance, the Indian answered: "What you say is all
true. They have often called me and I would not
come. But now I feel that I must go. My end is
coming, and I want to be saved." He desired
instruction and the consolation of God's Word.
The missionary gave both. When the Catholic
priest heard of the sickness of the man, he went
to him. Seeing the poverty, he promised to pro-
vide all the necessities of life if the man only would
turn Catholic. But his offer was met with the reply:
"You cannot bait me with a soup bone." Rev. Lar-
sen was rejoiced to see how gladly his instruction

Among the American Indians 161

was received. Even when the sick man became
weaker and weaker, he would rise in bed, raise the
folded hands and his face toward Heaven, and ex-
claim: "Take me. Lord Jesus, Son of God, take me!
I come, I come !" With these sentiments he departed
this life.

Not much need be said of Rev. Larsen's activi-
ties during his later years, as he became more and
more indifferent toward the mission and
went into farming and stockraising for himself.
Finally, in 1914, the board ended the intolerable
condition by accepting the resignation of the mis-
sionary.

As successor Rev. Carl Guenther was now called,
who formerly had worked for twelve years
among the Apaches in Arizona, ill health at last
forcing his resignation. He entered upon the duties
of his new office on December 6, 1914. As a true
missionary he accounted it a privilege to supervise
the boarding school and to serve the Indian con-
gregation. The children, to the number of sixty,
ranging from six to sixteen years, found a true fa-
ther in Rev. Guenther, who worked unceasingly for
the moral and spiritual uplift of his charges. They
were instructed in religion during school hours and
had their regular devotional services in connection
with their meals. In addition the missionary as-
sembled them at other times, talking to them and
praying and singing with them. Miss Koehler in
the school did her best to transmit some knowledge
to the minds entrusted to her care. Soon the cheer-
ful Christian spirit spread from the children to the

Among the American Indians 163

parents. Stricter measures In regard to the congre-
gation, insistence upon order, etc, brought only tem-
porary opposition. And the mission board gave its
hearty co-operation for the advancement of the sta-
tion.

But the, work of the missionary was destined to
be short. Some time after Easter he found his
strength failing, but instead of enjoying a much
needed rest, he was forced to carry the additional
burden of six weeks' instruction in the school. The
board, notified of his condition, urged him to hold
out till the end of June. When this seemed inad-
visable. Rev. Guenther handed in his resignation,
which was, however, not accepted, a second attempt
sharing the same fate. At the end of the school
year he was forced to leave. When the rest brought
no improvement, the resignation was finally ac-
cepted, as another man was now ready to take up
the work.

After the resignation of Rev. Guenther a new
missionary was secured in the person of Otis L.
Lang, a graduate of the theological seminary at St.
Louis, Missouri. He arrived in August, 1915, and
Immediately took charge. His task was principally
to superintend the boarding school of the mission,
to do general mission work, and perform the duties
as pastor of the Indian congregation, then number-
ing twelve voting members. As the schobl was
without an instructor at that time, he opened It per-
sonally the followinng September with an initial at-
tendance of fifty children. Within a short time Mr.
E. Hassold, a student from the seminary at St.

164 Lutheran Mission fVork

Louis, was secured, who ably conducted the school
during the year. In the fall Mr. E. A. Peetzke took
charge, but the increase in the attendance to almost
eighty made a division into two sections necessary.
Miss Ina Kempf was in charge of the lower class
till the summer of 1917, when Irene Brehmer was
secured, who remained at her post until health con-
ditions forced her to resign. In the meantime the
school had increased to almost one hundred chil-
dren.

The missionary took great delight in the re-
ligious and secular training of the Indian children
as they progressed in faith and knowledge. "To
hear them answer the questions of the catechism
and give account of their faith in religious instruc-
tion, to hear them cheerfully singing praise to their
Maker, Redeemer, and Comforter in their Chris-
tian hymns, to see them kneeling about their little
beds at retiring, saying their evening prayers, is
an experience that thrills the heart and melts the
eyes in tears of joy of anyone who is familiar with
the blind heathendom and savagery that mark the
history of their forefathers; it shows by strikirtg ex-
amples the Gospel's power in the heart of children
when brought under its influence. And to prove the
strength of the faith of these little ones, I shall re-
late an instance. One of them fell victim to the
disease so prevalent among the Indians, tuberculosis,
and failed very rapidly. She was removed from the
school and placed in the care of a relative. Shortly
before her death, a Roman Catholic priest, in whose
denomination she had been baptized, came to see her

Among the American Indians 165

and tried with persuasion, threats, and even force
to induce her to return to his church. But she mar-
velously held her ground, refuting his arguments
with passages of Scripture. When finally he told
her that her only salvation would be by imploring
the Virgin Mary to intercede for her, she pointed
to a little prayer book. I had left with her and said:
'I pray directly to my Lord Jesus. He has redeemed
me and He loves me. He is almighty to save and
my only comfort and hope. I need none other to
intercede for me.' Thereupon she bade him go.
She is seeing now what she faithfully believed."

The mission work in general was also successful.
Besides Red Springs with the mission school and
congregation, two preaching stations were also
served. Until he left, in the early part of 1918,
the missionary had baptized three adults and fif-
teen children, confirming ten in all. He also had
the blessed experience of witnessing on deathbeds
the triumph of faith in the last bitter hour, the
greatest satisfaction and recompense mission work
can offer. The Red Springs congregation had al-
most doubled when in the early part of 1918 ill
health forced Rev. Lang to hand in his resignation.
But he has not lost his interest in his former charg-
es, which is evident from the following passage:
"To behold a Christian congregation of Indians is
a remarkable and, indeed, cheering sight, if one re-
flects upon the history of these people. While for-
merly the women were treated like despicable beasts
by the haughty warriors, they now come arm in
arm to sing their Maker's praise. How often did I
think of that when glancing over the eager copper-

166 Lutheran Mission Work

faced audience before me. God bless our Indian
Mission I"

When Rev. Lang was forced to leave, a call was
tendered to and accepted by H. M. Tjernagel, a
former missionary among the Eskimos in Alaska,
who arrived on the field April 5, 1918, receiving a
royal welcome from a committee of five Indian wo-
men who had prepared a splendid supper in the par-
sonage. Since that time the work has steadily pro-
gressed. However, in late years the boarding school
had outgrown its quarters, the building provided in
1908 being entirely too small. The school rooms
were overcrowded, and the equipment, including
playground, entirely inadequate. The same could
be said in regard to dormitory conditions. For
some time the synod had been aware of the press-
ing needs of the mission, and in 1917 made an ap-
propriation of $26,000 for a modern building and
equipment. But at first lack of funds, and then
the war and the high cost of construction made the
mission board hesitate to go ahead. 'However, at
last necessity compelled action, and during the sum-
mer of 1920 the erection of a dormitory accommo-
dating about one hundred pupils and the employees
was begun. The estimated cost of the building
is $37,000, and it Is hoped that it will be fully equip-
ped and ready for occupancy at the opening of the
new school year in September, 1921. The old dor-
mitory is being remodelled and will be used as a
school building.

During the last two years on the average a few
more than one hundred pupils were enrolled in the
boarding school. All the eight grades are taught

Among the American Indians 167

by the two teachers, the missionary himself giving
instruction in religion. When Mr. Peetzke lett
in 1918, being drafted into the army,women teach-
ers and students were employed in the school. As
these assistants under the supervision of the mission-
ary have given satisfaction, and as there is a scarcity
of the regular parochial teachers, no change is con-
templated for the present.

At the present time, the missionary work is car-
ried on at three different places. Red Springs with
its church and boarding school forms the center.
At Morgan Siding, four miles from Red Springs,
preaching services are conducted every second Sun-
day. Since there seems to be considerable interest,
the synod in 1920 appropriated $1,000 for the erec-
tion of a chapel. Semi-monthly services are also held
at Neopit, twelve miles from Red Springs, where a
number of Lutheran Stockbridges work in the mill.
Besides giving spiritual food to these people, the
services are instrumental in winning annually a num-
ber of children for the boarding school at Red
Springs. At the three stations there are eighteen
voting members, forty communicants, and two hun-
dred forty-four souls, while in all about four hun-
dred persons are reached thru instruction and
preaching. Some of the adult Indians are well vers-
ed in Lutheran theology, and are good church mem-
bers.

Thus the work is bearing fruit and showing
gratifying results. As an appropriate working mot-
to the missionary has chosen Isaiah 55:10-11: "For
as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heav-
en, and returneth not thither, but watereth the

168 Lutheran Mission JFork

earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it
may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my
mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it
shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall
prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." On the
strength of this he not only hopes but knows that
the expenditures in labor and money are not in vain.

Chapter VIII

THE BETHANY INDIAN MISSION OF THE

NORWEGIAN CHURCH

IT was in 1883 that the Norwegian Synod, now
merged in the Norwegian Lutheran Church, act-
ing on the appeal of Rev. Tobias Larsen, decided
to begin missionary work among the Indians of
Northern Wisconsin. In order to obtain concrete
results it was proposed to establish a school for
Indian children near Wittenberg in Shawano Co.
.However, more than a year passed before the mis-
sion board was able to extend a call to Eric O.
Moerstad, who arrived on the field September 30,
1884. He was directed to a certain George De
Cora, an Indian who might aid him in acquiring the
language. "This Indian had discarded his red
blanket, was dressed like a white man, and lived in
a small log house. He spoke fluent English. The
missionary was welcomed by him, and the two were
soon busily engaged in preparing a list of words
and expressions in the Winnebago language. Mrs.
DeCora — let us say — made dinner for them. An
old oilcloth was laid on the floor, as there was no
table. Nor were there any chairs, and dinner had
to be eaten as conveniently as possible seated on
the floor. The meal consisted of pork, potatoes,
bread and butter, and tea with sugar. It was relish-
ed by the partakers, and showed marked improve-
ments in civilization."

170 Lutheran Mission Work

Three and a half miles west of Wittenberg,
where several families of the Winnebago tribe resid-
ed, forty acres of land was secured, and a mission
station, receiving the name Bethany, was soon in
course of construction. Into this modest building,
18x26, four little Indian boys were received and
made comfortable. In spite of this, the temptation
for these boys to return to their kin was great. At
the same time, Indians as well as unscrupulous
whites tried to hinder the work in every conceivable
way. As usual in such cases, the missionary was
represented as a dangerous man. Among other
things, it was claimed that every family from which
children attended the mission school would lose fifty
dollars of its annual Government allowance. Here '
also, as in the case of the Bethany Mission in Mich-
igan, the story was circulated that children would
be sent across the ocean and never return. But
these slanderous statements had little effect.

In September, 1885, the Indian mission board
held a session at Wittenberg and naturally also
visited the mission station. There they were receiv-
ed by Mr. Midtbo and family, which seems to in-
dicate that Rev. Moerstad no longer had to attend
to household duties. After due deliberation it
was decided to make further Improvements In or-
der to accommodate the Indian boys who presum-
ably would attend the school during the coming
winter. Already before, the building had been en-
larged by a frame addition, and now the roof on
the part built of logs was to be raised in order that
the attic might serve as sleeping quarters for the
boys. It was furthermore decided to build at Wit-

Among the American Indians 171

tenberg and to expand the work, the report stating
that, "we must do something for the Indians, so
much the more as we now have the consent of the
Government to receive children also from other
parts, especially the Stockbridge and Oneida res-
ervations, as well as to carry on the work in gen-
eral."

For a consideration of eight hundred dollars
eighty acres of land was bought for the new station
during the winter of 1886. In the spring and sum-
mer this land was cleared of boulders, timber, and
underbrush. A well, which provided excellent water,
was also dug. However, in the fall of the same
year. Rev. Moerstad, who previously had asked
for his release, and whom we shall meet again as a
missionary to the Pottawatomies, left the station.
It was now deemed best to discontinue the work at
the old location, the six remaining Indian children
being temporarily cared for at the Homme Or-
phans' Home at Wittenberg. The building and the
forty acres of land, now partly cleared and cultivat-
ed, were bought by Mr. MIdtbo, the steward.

Building operations on the new site progressed
rapidly, the first structure with the respectable dimen-
sions of 28x72 and 28x60, having basement, two
stories, and an attic, being finished during the first
half of 1887. On July 4th this Bethany Indian
Mission and Industrial School was solemnly dedi-
cated. Thus the mission had found a second and
more commodious home for its work among the In-
dian children. Including the land, the property
represented a value of six thousand dollars. A new
superintendent was secured in the person of Rev.

172 Lutheran Mission fVork

T. Larsen, who with two teachers and other em-
ployees entered upon his new duties on the day of
the dedication of the mission. This force was aug-
mented in the following year by the appointment of
Axel Jacobson as teacher and assistant superin-
tendent-

At the beginning eight children were in attend-
dance, but in August this number was increased by
twelve from the Oneida tribe, while in November
an additional twelve swelled the total to thirty-two.
Soon an important event made possible another in-
crease. For on January 1, 1888, a contract was
entered into with the United States Government
for the support of twenty-five children. This con-
tract was renewed from time to time, the number
of Government supported children being gradually
increased. Thus in 1894, for instance, it provided
for one hundred and fifty children. These were
generally drawn from different tribes, in 1894 be-
ing divided as follows : Oneida ninety-nine. Stock-
bridge thirty-two, Brothertown ten, Winnebago five,
Chippewas ten, Mohawks three. By securing chil-
dren from different tribes, the work of education
and civilization was greatly aided, as the children
were thus forced to desist from using their native
dialect in play and conversation. The financial sup-
port granted by the Government, however, was in-
adequate, as the Government schools received for
their children about twice the amount of that of the
contract schools.

This partial control by the Government did not
affect the religious life in any marked way. Prac-
tically the only restriction was in the use of denom-

Among the American Indians 173

inational text books, but this could be made good
thru verbal instruction. Each day the children
were taught the fundamentals of the Christian re-
ligion, they had their morning and evening devotion-
al exercises, and on Sundays attended the regular
service.

Besides the usual subjects, work of a vocational
nature was also taken up. "Since the Allotment
Bill of 1887 entitles the Oneidas and Chippewas to
a piece of land individually on their respective
reservations, some time is spent in giving the boys
instruction and practice in farming and clearing
land. The work progresses slowly, but at times it
is interesting to listen to the young fellows' plans
and devices as to their future home, on which Uncle
Sam in time awards them a deed. There is also
an opportunity for those who wish to learn carpen-
»try, painting, smithery, etc."

On account of failing health Rev. Larsen had
relinquished the superintendency in 1893, being suc-
ceeded by Axel Jacobson, who occupied that posi-
tion till 1895. In that year congressional action
made a radical change necessary. A bill was passed
which reduced the contracts 20 per cent each year,
so that in 1900 all support would be withdrawn, tho
Indian treaty and trust funds could still be used.
As in 1895 the attendance had reached the number
of one hundred and forty, the synod was unable to
operate the Bethany Mission on such a large scale.
So it was finally agreed to sell the entire property
to the United States Government, which was to con-
tinue the school. The superintendency of the Gov-
ernment institution was offered to Axel Jacobson

174 Lutheran Mission fFork

with the understanding that the old teaching force
be retained. Mr. Jacobson accepted and held the
position as superintendent of the school and agent
for the Winnebago tribe from 1895-1905, when
he resigned to take a long deserved rest after eight-
een years of continuous work among the Indians.

The Norwegian Synod decided to continue the
mission on a smaller scale at a suitable location,
where, it was thought, the children would be af-
forded better opportunity to receive industrial train-
ing of the kind they needed. The IngersoU farm, lo-
cated seven miles from Wittenberg, was bought,
and in July, 1900, the Indian Mission moved into
its new home and was continued independently ot
the United States Government.

As a superintendent of the mission Rev. B.
Hovde was appointed, being succeeded after his
retirement a few years later by Mr- O. C. Tostrud^
an experienced teacher, who with the help of his
devoted wife achieved considerable success. The
number of children during this period was of course
far smaller than at Wittenberg, ranging from
twenty-five to fifty, mostly of the Winnebago tribe.
They did not remain during the whole year, as
had been expected, but arrived late in the fall and
left during May. Thus the plan of having the
Indian children work on the farm during the sum-
mer could not be realized. Neither was the op-
eration of a large farm in connection with the mis-
sion a very paying proposition. One can imagine
the trying time of the superintendent, who had to
manage both the farm and the mission. He was
forced to do the greater part of the teaching and

Among the American Indians 175

assist in the farm work, while all the other duties
of the double position rested upon his shoulders.
Among these were marketing, trips to secure chil-
dren and to bring them back when they ran away,
which not seldom happened.

However, the location was not a very good one.
The nearest railroad stations were Eland Junction,
four miles, and Wittenberg, seven miles distant.
This involved considerable labor and much incon-
venience. The spiritual needs were looked after by
Rev. M. C Waller, who conducted divine services
at the mission every third Sunday during the school
year. All baptisms, confirmations, and communion
services also took place at IngersoU instead of at
the church in Wittenberg.

The handicaps of the location were found in-
creasingly embarrassing, so finally, in 1912, a com-
mittee was appointed charged with the duty to visit
IngersoU together with the Indian mission board.
It was to report back to the synod the results of
its investigation, especially In regard to the advisa-
bility of moving the mission to some other place.
On the strength of the report made by this com-
mittee, the general convention was petitioned to sell
the IngersoU farm and to move the mission to some
city, preferably Wittenberg. The recommendations
of the board were adopted, and in the fall of 1913
the mission was back once more In Wittenberg,
where the entire property of the Wittenberg Acade-
my Association had been bought for Indian mission
purposes.

Prof. Axel Jacobson was now called to the
superlntendency, and under his able administration

176

Lutheran Mission Work

the Bethany Indian Mission has enjoyed a healthy
growth. The whole movement received a great im-
petus when the newly formed Nortvegian Lutheran
Church authorized the repurchase of the original
Bethany Indian Mission site, so that the school is

Indians and Tlieir Dwelling

now located at its old quarters. A number of val-
uable improvements had been made during the Gov-
ernment ownership. The deal, involving property
estimated at $65,000, was concluded in January,
1919.

At the well appointed quarters at Wittenberg,
the attendance has steadily increased. For some
years it ranged from fifty to seventy, but lately the
one hundred mark has been passed. During the
latter part of 1919 there were 120 children in the
school, with an additional one hundred applications
on file. This year, 1920-21, has seen the largest

178 Lutheran Mission Jf'ork

attendance in the history of the school, 140 being
enrolled. These are mostly from the Winnebago
and Oneida tribes. There are eighteen members in
the confirmation class, and twelve children are like-
ly to be baptized. Since the beginning of the Betha-
ny Indian Mission there have been 363 adult and
infant baptisms, 142 have been confirmed, and
425 have communed. In the school the common
branches are taught; in addition religious instruc-
tion is given,, the children being divided into con-
venient groups for that purpose. But not only
does the mission furnish instruction, but also food
and lodging, and to a considerable extent also cloth-
ing.

Among the older Indians in the settlement con-
siderable progress has been made. Services are
held every Sunday afternoon, and the attendance
is fair. A number of adult baptisms have also tak-
en place of late. Furthermore, the work has been
extended to the Indian settlements near Wittenberg,
services being held at the Bethany Indian Church
at Embarrass River. The children and others are
also somewhat assisted as to clothing, especially
during the coldest part of the winter. Rev. T- M.
Rykken, of the 1920 class from Luther Theological
Seminary, devotes his time exclusively to Indian
missionary work.

When more than thirty years ago the mission-
aries began work among the Winnebagoes in the
forests of Wisconsin, the Red Man paid only slight
attention to them. Xo material want existed then,
for there was an abundance of deer in those days,
deer hunting being the main source of sustenance

180 Lutheran Mission IVork

for the Indians. Every one was then dressed in
buckskin, and quite often the wigwams were also
covered with the same material. In winter it was
a common sight to see one or more carcasses of
frozen deer hanging outside of the wigwam. Be-
fore the first fall hunt a dance lasting one or two
days was held, when by speeches and supplications
they implored divine blessing for the first hunt.

These Indians, happy and contented, were en-
tirely deaf and indifferent to the pleadings of the
missionaries to send their children to school. As
hunting became poorer and want made its presence
felt, a gradual change took place. A few children
began attending school, and reading and writing
came to be looked upon as a good thing. But when
it became known that the children received instruc-
tion about the Triune God, there was violent ob-
jection from the medicine men, of which the tribe
of fourteen hundred had about seventy-five.

In course of time, however, a great change also
appeared in this respect, and very gratifying results
in the Christianization of the Indians were secured.
Superintendent Jacobson narrates one instance which
tends to destroy the fallacy that one cannot civilizi
or Christianize a heathen in the first generation.
"I have in mind a Winnebago boy, a relative of
Bighawk the chief. I tried and tried for a couple
of years back in 1888 or 9 to get the father to send
him to school. He was a bright looking lad about
eight years old, clad in buskskin from top to toe, al-
so wearing the long cue down the back of his head.
One day I succeeded in getting him into school. I
took him below to the laundry building, clipped

Among the American Indians 181

his hair, and dressed him up in white man's clothing.
The next day the father appeared, looked at the
boy in a surly manner, and eyed me in no more
lovable style. At last he pointed to where the cue
had been and also made signs as to the buckskin
clothing. I walked along down to where I had
clipped the hair, and the old man carefully hunted
until he found the cue of hair, and after carefully
wrapping this up in the buckskin clothing, he left
satisfied. The unexpected happened. The boy
stayed right here at the mission, learned to play
the E-flat bass horn in our Indian brass band better
than any white boy, was baptized and confirmed.
He was a real Christian spirited boy. We sent him
to the Carlisle Indian School for further training.
While there the Spanish American War came on,
and Thomas Bear and another boy, Albert Thun-
der, left for the Philippines as United States sol-
diers, Thomas as leader of the regimental band.
After serving two years he was honorably dis-
charged and came back here to take up a course in
our Lutheran Academy. Thomas was taken sick of
a spinal disease and died at the academy a true
Christian. The principal of the school gave him the
testimony of being the neatest, best behaved, and
Christian spirited boy at the academy, where he
was the only Indian."

How different and in many respects easier is not
the work now than it was thirty years ago ! Then
the workers had to scour the country for weeks,
mostly on foot, and how they rejoiced if only one
child was entrusted to their care. Now the par-
ents bring them to the mission without any solicita-

182 Lutheran Mission fVork

tion and beg the superintendent to teach them about
the true God and Christ the Savior. When the
medicine men still held perfect sway, the parents
on hearing that their children were taught religion
at the mission school rebelled. The teaching of
such useful things as reading and writing they per-
mitted, but considered themselves and their medi-
cine men alone competent persons to give instruc-
tion concerning the Great Spirit. At the present
time the situation is entirely changed. Only about
three to four hundred are still clinging to the old
beliefs, while the others believe with varying
strength in the Triune God, who speaks to men
thru His inspired Word. The influence of the
few remaining medicine men is fast waning. Thus
Bethany Indian Mission under the guidance of its
enthusiastic superintendent is permitted to perform
its great woric without let or hindrance.

Chapter IX

THE EIELSEN SYNOD MISSION AMONG

THE POTTAW ATOMIES

IN the fall of the year 1884 the undersigned was
sent by the Norwegian Lutheran Synod to start
mission work among the Indians in the vicinity of
Wittenberg, Shawano Co., Wisconsin. For rea-
sons not to be given in this very short sketch", but
which, at that time at least, seemed sufficiently im-
portant, I resigned and left said position in the fall
of 1886. I did, however, get much interested in
the poor, neglected Indians, and never could rid
myself of the feeling of the urgent responsibility
that we, who profess to be Christians, have in bring-
ing them the Word of God, the Gospel of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ (Matt. 28: 19-20). I am
glad that the mission work among the Indians in
that vicinity has been continued ever since I left,
and, as I verily believe, by much more efficient
workers than the then young and inexperienced in-
dividual who was to try to make a start, and that
a large and prosperous mission school is still car-
ried on at Wittenberg by the Norwegian Lutheran
Church.

While the largest part of the Indians around
Wittenberg were Winnebagoes, there were also
quite a number of the so-called Pottawatomie tribe.
The last named, being, at that time at least, by far
the more industrious and thrifty of the two, partic-

184 Lutheran Mission fVork

ularly attracted my attention and interest. Several
of these attended the mission school I had there at
that time.

After vicissitudes and experiences gone thru for
several years, I felt about the year 1893 a strong
inclination to do something for my Pottawatomie
friends. In that year I made written application for
aid at the annual conference at Clear Lake, Iowa, of
the Eielsen Synod, to which body I then belonged.
The dear Christian friends assembled there gave a
very hearty response to my appeal, and decided to
take up and support the proposed mission work
among these poor, benighted, and so long neglected
people. I began teaching both young and old at
their village some four to five miles from Witten-
berg. However, in that neighborhood all the land
had been bought up long before and only a few of the
Indian families possessed title to forty acre tracts
of cleared and cultivated land. Most of them were
looking for more land and new homes, which they
found in the timbered parts of Marinette, Forest,
and Oconto counties, Wis. Most of these families
and others of the northeastern part of Wisconsin
moved to this region during the following years.
As they had no money to buy land, however, they
could take up only such pieces of homestead land as
was left scattered thruout these wholly unsettled
and thickly timbered regions. In consequence of this
the Indians became badly scattered, being placed
quite a number of miles apart in the dense forest.

It can easily be imagined that this made it very
difficult to carry on mission work among these peo-

Among the American Indians 185

pie. But I have tried to do what I could, learning
their language, a variation of the Otchipwe, entire-
ly distinct from the Winnebago which 1 had been
trying to acquire years before, teaching and instruct-
ing such as I could gather. And then for many
years, eventually together with attorneys at Wash-
ington, I endeavored to obtain for them the benefits
promised them in treaties. Thus finally we recovered
about $450,000 justly found due them by our Gov-
ernment. This took many years, but at last a super-
intendency was provided for them, at first at Carter,
and now for several years at Laona, Wis. With the
money recovered for them land has been bought and
houses built for some sixty or seventy families in this
neighborhood and not far from Escanaba in north-
ern Michigan. In addition, horses, cattle, and farm
implements were also provided for them. Thus
by God's kind providence their temporal condition
has been materially improved.

But as to the most important of all, the one
thing needful, I am sorry to say, we have, for
reasons that may partly be inferred from the above
short description, as yet not been able to do much for
them. But I trust and hope in the Lord, who has
had compassion on us all in calling us to Him by the
blessed Gospel, and who would not that any one,
of any nation or tribe, should perish, but that all
should come to repentance and thru faith in Jesus
have everlasting life, that thru the operation of His
Spirit there may yet be an awakening among these
so much neglected and unfortunate people. To
every earnest and praying soul who reads this, I
would say: Oh, remember this poor and ignorant

186 Lutheran Mission Work

Indian tribe in your prayers! My health has been
failing for a number of years, after much mental and
physical exertion thruout life, and I have not been
able to get around much of late years. But Rev. L.
A. Dokiien and his sister, stationed at Carter, who
are yet in the prime of life and active in gettmg
around among the Indians and others, have now for
a few years been in this work. This makes the
situation more hopeful. May we all be more
seriously concerned about our salvation, and by the
grace of God do all we can for our fellow men 1

— E. O. MOERSTAD.

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTES

WE have listed here the more important publications
which have furnished source material or have been of
help in the preparation of the book. As a rule the ed tions
that were accessible to the author lia.e been cite3. There
is no intention to give an exhaustive bibliography. In these
notes we have also indicated the nature of assistance received
from missionaries and others.

CHAPTER I

Acrelius, Israel (Swedish), 1759. A History of New Sweden,
translated by W. M. Reynplds, 1874.

Bjorck, Eric. Dissertatio Gradualis de Plantatione Ecclesiae
Svecanae in America, Upsala, 1731.

Campanius Holm, Thomas (Swedish). A Short Description of
the Province of New Sweden, Stockholm, 1702. Translated
by Peter S. Du Ponceau, Phil., 1839.

Du Ponceau, Peter S. Notes and Observations on Eliot's In-
dian Grammar, in Vol. IX of Mass. Hist. Society Publ.

Ferris. History of the Original Settlements on the Delaware,
Wilmington, 1846.

Johnson, Amandus. The Swedish Settlements on the Dela-
ware. 2 vols., University of Pa., 1911.

Norberg, Otto. Svenska Tcyrkans mission vid Delaware i Nord-
Amerika, Stockholm, 1893.

Plitt-Hardeland. Geschichte der lutherischen Mission, Leipzig,
1894.

Tacobs, H. E., History of the Evang. Luth. Church in the
United States, Vol.' IV in the American Church History
Series, has been consulted for this as also for the follow-
ing chapter. The cut of Campanius' Catechism is from
the copy in the library of Augustana College and Seminary,
Rock Island, 111. Rev. Ira Nothstein, the librarian, was so
kind as to facilitate a proper description of this important
book.

CHAPTER II

Pitcher, J. Historical Address, Hartwick Seminary Centen-
nial, 1897, based upon Memorial Volume, Hartwick Semi-
nary, 1866.

Schmauk, T. E. History of thie Lutheran Ghwch in Penn-
sylvania, 1903.

Urlsperger, S. Der ausfuehrlichen Nachrichten — Salzburger
Emigranten in America. 12 Theile. Halle, 1735-46.

Prof. A. G. Voigt, D.D., of Columbia, S. C, was kind enough
to examine the Urlsperger Nachrichten for the author.
Principal J. G. Traver, D.D., of Hartwick Seminary, also
assisted in every possible way.

188 Lutheran Mission Work

CHAPTER III
Besides the numbers of "Kirchliche Mitteilungen" and

"Der Lutheraner", one must mention

Baierlein, E. R. Im Urwaldc. Bet dm roten Indiancrn. 2.
Auflage. Dresden, 1889.

Fritschel, G. J. Quellen und Dokumente, etc., Lleferung 1-4
Chicago.

Graebner, Th. Lutheran Pioneers. II. The Bavarian Settle-
ments of the Saginaw Valley, St. Louis, 1919.

Karsten. Geschichte der ev. luth. Mission in Leipzig. Quoted
by Fritschel in his translation and adaptation of Jacobs'
History.

Mayer, E. A. Geschichte der evangelisch-lutherischen St. Lo-
rcn::-Gcmcindc U. A. C. aii Frankenmuth, Mich., St. Louis,
1895.

Meyer, H. Dein Reich komme. Missionsvortraege. St. Louis,
1910. Contains a valuable address by R. A. Karpinsky:
Die Indianermission unserer Synode.

Schmid, Friedrich, jr. Das Leben und ^Virken von Pastor
Friedrich Schmid, in Vol. 9, No. 4 of Deutsch-Amerikani-
sche Geschichtsblaetter, herausgegeben v. d. Deutsch-Ame-
rikanischen Historischen Gesellschaft von Illinois,

The late lamented Prof. Dr. T. E. Schmauk consulted for the
author the Minutes of tlte Ministerium of Pennsylvania.
The writer is also indebted to Prof. L. Fuerbringer for
valuable help given in this and the VII chapter. He has
shown a very sympathetic interest in the whole work.

CHAPTER IV
Deindoerfer, J. Geschichte der Evangel.-Luth. Synode von

Iowa und anderen Staaten, Chicago, 1897.
Fritschel, G. J. Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirchc in Ame-

rika, Guetersloh, 1896-7.

The numbers of the "Kirchenblatt" furnish the source
material.

CHAPTER V

All the material as well as the photograph was kindly fur-
nished by Missionary Nielsen.

CHAPTER VI

Harders, J. F. G. Die heuttgen Apachen, Milwaukee, 1912.

Koch, 0. H. JuMlaeumsbuechlein zum fuenfundzwanzig-
jaehrigen Juhilaeum der Evangelisch-Lutherischen India-
nermission der Allgemeinen Synode von Wisconsin, Minne-
sota, Michigan u. a. St. Milwaukee, 1919.
Th© "Synodalberichte" from 1893 on are a fruitful source.

Supplementary matter was furnished by Rev. E. Guenther, the

superintendent, thru Rev. E. A. Sitz.

Among the American Indians 189

CHAPTER VII

Karpinsky's article, referred to in Chapter III, is valuable.
Tjernagel, H. M., The Stockbridge Indians, 1919, also fur-
nishes some information. Most of the material was ob-
tained from the missionaries, Carl Guenther, Otis L. Lang,
and H. M. Tjernagel. Rev. G. C. Schroedel, of the Indian
Mission Board, was also instrumental in obtaining informa-
tion.

CHAPTER VIII

Waller, M. C, Bethany Indian Mission, is a valuable source.
For the presentation of this mission the author found a
very helpful assistant in Superintendent Axel Jacobson,
who furnished much material and all the illustrations,
most of them in cuts.

CHAPTER IX

Rev. Moerstad's article appears substantially as sent In, some

slight stylistic changes being due to the author.

INDEX

Acrelius, 41, 187.
Adascheck, G., 120, 126 ff.
Adolphus, G., 19, 20, 21.
Algonquin, 23.
Apaches, 15, 121 ff.

religion of, 124 ff.
Arapahoes, 106, 107, 109.
Auch, 15, 56, 61, 89.
Auren, J., 35, 40.
Baierlein, 13, 15, 67-86, 188.
Beck, 102, 104, 105.
Bethany Indian Mission

(Michigan), 58 ff.
Bethany Indian Mission

(Norwegian), 169 ff.
Bj0rck, E., 35, 39, 40, 41, 1S7.
Bois-forte Indians, 97, 98.
Boltzius, J., 44, 45, 40.
Braeuninger, 99-106.
Brahe, 27.

Braun, A. T., 48, 54.
Buffalo Synod, 96, 101.
Bunge, 102.
Campanius, J., 25 ff
Campanius, Th., 27, 187.
Carrixo Canyon, 141.
Central Mission Society of

Bavaria, 10, 60, 101.
Charles XI, 35.
Cherokees, 44, 115 ff.
Cheyennes, 100 ff.
Chippewas, 14, 55 ff., 93, 94,

172 f.
- Cliurches, first, 25.
Cibecue, 147 ff.
Cloeter, 93, 94.
Colonial Pioneers, 9.

Colonization, 18.

Columbus, 18.

Cooper, 53.

Craemer, F. A., 00-70, 76, 93.

Crow Indians, 98 ff., 105, 10(i,

110.
Crow Wing, 93.
Danish Ev. Luth. Church,

116.
Defensive League, 33.
Deindoerfer, J., 188.
Delawares, 23, 24, 30, 38, 41.

religion of, 28, 29.
Denominational Rivalry, 12.

67, 83, 87, 00, 92.
Doederloin, 102.
Dokken, L. A., ISO.
Dumser, 56.
Dutch, 24, 27, 33.
East Fork, 135 ff.
Eastman, Ch. A., 12.
Ebenezer, 44, 46, 47.
Eielsen Synod, 183 ff.
Eliot, 13, 30, 31, 38, ,39.
Ernst, .7. F., .54.
Ezardi, Dr., 34.
Fabritius, .33.
Ferris, 187.

Fire-water, 16, 73, S2, !Ml.
Fischer, G., 133.
Flacheneeker, 106, 110.
Fort Apache Reservation,

122 ff.

Fort Christina, 22.
Fort Sarpy, 90.
Francke, Prof., 45, 46,
Franckenmuth, 60 ff.

Fritschel, G. J., 188.

Fritschel, S., 96.

Globe, 141 ff.

Graebner, Th., 62 f., 188.

Gronau, 44, 46.

Guenther, C, 129-133, 161-163,

189.
Gnenther, E., 140 ff., 188.
Haase, H., 132, 139 f.
Harders, G., 15, 132 ff., 188.
Hartwick Seminary, 49, 54.
Hartwig, J. Oh., 49-54.
Hattstaedt, W., 59, 60, 61, 66.
Heckewelder, 38.
Hessellus, A., 41, 42 .
Holland, 18, 19, 21.
Hovde, B., 174.
Hudson Bay Co., 96, 97.
Hymns, Translation of, 75, 76,

81.
Iowa Synod, 95 ff.
i^Iroquois, 23.
Jacobs, H. E., 50, 187.
Jacobson, Axel, 173 ff., 189.
Jesuits, 97.
Johnson, A., 187.
Karpinsky, K. A., 188, 189.
Karsten, 188.
Kessler, 102, 106, 109, 110.
Koch, O. H., 122, 188.

Krebs, 102, 106, 107, 109, 110,

112, 118.
Kretzmann, R., 155 ff.
Kunze, Dr., 48, 49, 54.
Landstr0m, 29.
Lang, O. U, 163-6, 189.
■-^Language, 13, 14, 15.
Larsen, J. D., 154, 157, 158,

160, 161.
Larson, T., 169, 172, 173.
Lenne, Lennape, 23.
Leupp, Francis E., 12.

Lock, L., 33.

Leolie, W., 15, 16, 58, 59, 60,
66, 81, 95 ff.

i^Lord's Prayer, translation of,

145.
•'Luther's Catechism, transla-
tion, 30, 31, 32, 35-41, 137.
Maier, 89.

Matter, 109, 110, 112.
Mayer, E. A., 188.
Mayerhoff, P., 121, 129 ff.,

135 ff.
Meyer, H., 188.
Michigan Synod, 55, 59, 60,

66, 88, 89.
Miessler, 14, 78, 84, 87, 88-92.
Mlnisterium of Pennsylvania,

55, 88.
Minques, 23, 38.
Minuit, P., 21, 22.
Missionary Enterprises, 18.
Missouri Synod, 66, 88, 89, 93,

95, 152 ff.
Modern Civilization, 15.
Moerstad, 169-71, 183 ff., 189.
Mohavpk, 23, 172.
Morgan, Siding, 167.
Mt. Pleasant, 91, 92.
Muehlenberg, H. M., 48, 50.
Neopit, 167.
Neuendettelsau, 58, 60, 96, 105,

113.
Nickel, Th., 154.
Nielsen, N. L., 116 ff., 188.
Nitz, H. C, 147.
Norberg, O., 187.
Norwegian Luth. Church,

169 ff.
Norwegian Synod, 169, 174,

183.
Nothstein, I., 187.
Notions of Christ, 29.
Oaks, Okla., 115 ff.

Ogalala, 104, 105.
Oneiilns, iri2, 172 f.
Oxenstierna, A., 21, 26.
IVmngojin, 77, 85.
I'onii, W., 24.
rL-niis.vlvaiiia Soeietv, u.".. 56,

Peridot, 127 ff.

IMtcher, J., 187.

riitt-IIaideland, 187.

riocher, .T„ 120, 126 ff.

Ponceau, Du, P. S., 38, 1S7.

Pottawatomies, 171, 183 ff.

Pi'intz, 2(i, 27, 32, 33.

Ralibit Lake Indians, 93.

Uoclinagel, E., 143.

Ited Springs, 1j3 ff.

Uedfield, 9G.

Religion, 10-13.

Rhinebeck, 40, 50.

Rising, 32.

Roman Catholics, 31, 43, 47,

97, 134, 147.
Rosin, 147.
Rudniau, 25, 35.
Rumors, spreading of, 06, 67,

S3, 90, 170.
Rykken, T. M., 17S.
Saginaw, 01.
Salzburgers, 43-47.
San Carlos, 134 ff.
San Carlos Reservation,

122 ff.
Schlegel, (!., i;?5.
Schmauck, T. E., 1S7, 18S.
Scliniid, F., 55, 59, 61, 18S.
Schmidt, J. .7., 96 ff.

Schools, 64 ff., 71), 74 ff., S7,
117, lis, 127, 12S. 130 ff.,
l.V, ff.

Srhroedel, C. C, 188.

Schucller, 95.

Scbewaing, 56, 87, 88.

Se.Tler, 102, 105, 109.

Sheboyank, 15, 89.

Sievers, 85, 86.

Sinke, 56.

Sioux, 104, 110, 111, 112.

Sitz, E. A., 141, 188.

Spirit, great, 11.

Stockbridges, 152 ff., 172.

Stuyvesant, 33.

Sussner, 97.

Svedberg, J., 34, 35.

Sweden, 18 ff.

Thelin, .7., 34.

Tjernagcl, II. JI., 100 ft, 189.

Toepel, K., 133.

Torkillus, 2")

Tostrud, O. C, 174 f.

Travcr, J. G., 187.

Treatment of Indians, 9, 10,

22, 24, 20, 27, 47.
United Danish Ev. Luth.

Church, 116 ff.

Uplegger, A., 134, 14(i.

Uplegger, P., 134.

Urlsporger, Dr. S., 44, 1S7.

T's.selinx, 19, 2(i.

Voigt, A. G., 1X7.

Waller, M. C, 175, ]S!i.

Wehaiisen, M., 140.

Weiiulorf. A.. 149.

Wei.ser, 48.

West India Co., 10, 21, 22.

Whiteriver, 141.

Wicacoa, 25.

Winnebagoes, 170, 172 ff.,
1 s:i.

Wisionsin Synod, 121 ff.

Wittcnlicig, 109 ff.

Zoar, l.-.(i ff.

Zuberbicr, A., 133, 149.