firelight before him
illuminated his heavy features.

Sitting near Eagle Feather, Redbird looked around and saw silent figures
standing in the shadows as the people waited to hear what Wave had to
say. Gravely he took tobacco out of a pouch at his waist and filled the
bowl of the calumet. Then he touched a dry stick to his fire and carried
the flame to the pipe. It flared up bright yellow over the pipe bowl as
he puffed on it.

Wave cleared his throat and spoke in a strong voice. "Earthmaker gave us
the sacred tobacco as a means of making peace among us. No one may break
a promise sealed with tobacco. Our chief, Falcon, asks me to say this to
you:

"Black Hawk, you have frightened the long knives greatly, brought them
much sorrow, and forced them to pursue you over rivers and swamps and
mountains. Black Hawk, your honor has been satisfied. Falcon offers this
tobacco to you and asks that you end this war, for the sake of your
women who are hungry and sick and your children who are without
fathers."

_Yes, let it be done. Let this war be over before all of us are dead._

Redbird's heart leaped with hope as she saw Black Hawk reach toward the
pipe that Wave held out to him. He was about to take it and smoke it!
But his hand, instead of grasping, only pointed at the pipe.

"I will not smoke this pipe. I believe the Sauk should fight on until
they cannot fight anymore."

_Please, Earthmaker, let at least one man be moved to stand for peace._

Wave added more tobacco to the pipe and puffed on it again. He stood
before the Winnebago Prophet.

"Show your wisdom, Uncle. Smoke the sacred tobacco."

Flying Cloud took a step backward and raised both arms. "It is wrong for
the Winnebago to turn against us in our time of need. Go back and tell
your Chief Falcon that if he does not join us in making war on the long
knives, they will take his land from him as they have taken ours from
us." He crossed his arms before his chest.

Despairing, Redbird realized that the Winnebago Prophet could not smoke
the pipe because that would be admitting that all his advice up to now
had been wrong.

"What will you do, Sauk shaman?" Wave said to Owl Carver. "Do not the
spirits tell you to smoke the calumet?"

"Please do it, Father," Redbird whispered.

She wanted to shout it aloud. But she held her tongue. She remembered
with pain the derision of Wolf Paw and the others when she spoke out at
the war council.

She bit her lip. Mayb