bees in the air, and whizzed by our ears like wind through the trees in
winter. My warriors fell around me; I saw my evil day at hand. The
sun rose dim on us in the morning, and at night it sank in a dark
cloud, and looked like a ball of fire.

That was the last sun that shone on Black-hawk. His heart is dead. He
is now a prisoner to the white men; they will do with him as they wish.
But he can stand torture and is not afraid of death. He is no coward.
Black-hawk is an Indian.

He has done nothing for which an Indian ought to be ashamed. He has
fought for his people, against the white men, who have come year after
year to cheat him and take away his lands.

You know the cause of our making war. It is known to all white men.
They ought to be ashamed of it. The white men despise the Indians and
drive them from their homes.

An Indian who is as bad as the white men could not live in our nation;
he would be put to death and be eaten up by the wolves. The white men
are poor teachers; they shake us by the hand, to make us drunk, and
fool us. We told them to let us alone, but they followed us.

Things were growing worse. There were no deer in the forests; the
springs were drying up and our women and children had no food. The
spirits of our fathers arose and spoke to us, to avenge our wrongs, or
die.

Black-hawk is satisfied. He will go to the land of spirits, content.
He has done his duty. His father will meet him there and praise him.

He is a true Indian and disdains to cry like a woman. He does not care
for himself. He cares for his nation. They will suffer. His
country-men will not be scalped; the white men poison the heart. In a
few years the Indians will be like the white men, and nobody can trust
them. They will need many officers to keep them in order.

Goodby, my nation. Black-hawk tried to save you. He drank the blood
of some of the whites. He has been stopped. He can do no more.

After this, Black-hawk had little authority among the Sacs and Foxes.
They respected him, but they looked only to Keokuk for orders and
advice. Keokuk was made rich by the United States, as reward; he gave
out the goods and monies; he ruled, for he had followed the peace trail.

The Black-hawk prisoners were put in charge of Lieutenant Jefferson
Davis, at Fort Crawford. Then they were sent down by steamboat to
Jefferson Barracks, at St. Louis.

There were Black-hawk, his two sons--Nah-se-us-kuk or Whi