Page:History of Iowa From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century Volume 1.djvu/144



the Fox tribe. He was born at Prairie du Chien in 1787, and at the time of the erection of Fort Armstrong, on Rock Island, his principal village was on the east side of the Mississippi, where the city of Rock Island was subsequently laid out. In 1829 he moved his village to the west shore of the river opposite Muscatine Island. A few year later he had a village built where the town of Wapello now stands. He belonged to the “peace party,” and supported Keokuk and Pashepaho in adhering to the treaty of 1804. He signed numerous treaties with the United States, ceding lands to the government. He appears to have been easily influenced by Keokuk to part with their lands. It is related of Wapello that when one of his sons was slain by a Sioux warrior, in 1836, instead of avenging the murder, he purchased a barrel of whisky and, inviting his people to partake, they appeased their sorrow by indulging in a drunken debauch. his favorite hunting grounds were along the Skunk River, but he finally moved his village to the Des Moines Valley where Ottumwa now stands. He died in 1842 and was buried at Agency City, near the grave of General Street, who had been his friend.

Kiskkekosh, which signifies “The man with one leg,” was a Fox chief. He was a daring warrior and won his fame in battle with the Sioux. He was an orator; tall, straight and perfect in figure. His village was at one time on Skunk River in Jasper County. He sought to bring about a reform with his tribe by changing the long established custom of his race which required Indian women to perform all of the labor, while the warriors, young and old, refrained from work as degrading. He was very much attached to his beautiful wife and was unwilling to leave all of the toil for her to perform. It was a hopeless effort, but this independent chieftain, though unsuccessful in overcoming an unjust and oppressive requirement, exhibited his convictions of right by aiding his wife in her labor. From 1843 to 1845 his tribe lived