Waltey
V primežu lakote
231 Besieged by Starvation
Myths and Legends of Our Own Land · Charles M. SkinnerO besedilu
V primežu lakote
- Vir
- Myths and Legends of Our Own Land
- Avtor
- Charles M. Skinner
- Jezik branja
- Slovenščina
- Jezik izvirnika
- English
- Čas branja
- 3 min branja
- Obseg
- 2 strani
- Naslov izvirnika
- 231 Besieged by Starvation
O izvirniku
Myths and Legends of Our Own Land
Obsežna zgodovinska zbirka ameriških legend, ki jih je Skinner zbral in avtorsko rekonstruiral. Bralni jezik je Slovenščina, izvirnik pa prihaja iz vira Myths and Legends of Our Own Land v jeziku English.
Besedilo
V primežu lakote
Sto let preden so belci postavili svoje trgovske postojanke ob rekah Arkansas in Platte, se je skupina gorskih lovcev spustila nad ljudi, za katere je menila, da so majhna skupina prebivalcev ravnic. Izkazalo pa se je, da je naletela na številčno močnega sovražnika, ki je Ute — napadalci so namreč pripadali temu plemenu — pregnal nazaj v hribe. Večina se jih je zatekla na skalo, podobno grajski utrdbi, na južni strani kanjona Bowlder, kjer so se branili več dni in ob vsakem poskusu naskoka na vzpetino valili navzdol velikanske skale. Ko so oblegovalci spoznali, da je ta gorska utrdba preveč varna, da bi jo zavzeli na tak način, so se utaborili okoli nje ter obkoljenim preprečili dostop do divjadi in vode, tako da so prav vsi pomrli od lakote.
Takšna je tudi zgodba o Starved Rock ob reki Illinois blizu Ottawe v zvezni državi Illinois. To je sto petdeset čevljev visoka peščenjakova pečina, ki ima položnejše pobočje le na eni strani. Njen vrh meri en aker in po La Sallovem ukazu je njegov indijanski namestnik Tonti kraj utrdil ter nanj postavil majhen top. Pozneje je tam tudi umrl. Po umoru Pontiaca v Cahokii so nekateri njegovi rojaki — Otave — za zločin obtožili svoje sovražnike, Illinois. Ti so se, ker jih je bilo malo, utrdili na Starved Rock, kjer so sovražnike držali na varni razdalji, niso pa mogli prebiti njihovih vrst, da bi prišli do živeža. Nekaj časa so si vodo priskrbovali tako, da so na usnjenih jermenih spuščali v reko posode iz lubja, vendar so Otave s kanuji pripluli pod pečino in prerezali jermene. Ker se niso hoteli predati, so Illinoisi ostali tam, dokler niso vsi pomrli od lakote. Na vrhu še občasno najdejo kosti in ostanke njihovih predmetov.
Obstaja še en kraj, o katerem se je ohranila podobna pripoved: Crow Butte v Nebraski, ki je visok dvesto čevljev in ima navpične stene na vseh straneh razen na eni, po kateri se lahko varno povzpne jezdec. Skupina pripadnikov plemena Crow, ki je bežala pred Siuksi, je dosegla to utrdbo in tako odločno branila pot, da so zasledovalci opustili vse poskuse, da bi se povzpeli za njimi. Namesto tega so se mirno utaborili na ravnici in jih začeli izstradati. Neke temne noči so obleganci pobili nekaj svojih ponijev in iz njihovih kož izdelali vrvi, po katerih so se na nezastraženi strani skale spustili na tla. Drug za drugim so zdrsnili navzdol in pobegnili, le en ostarel Indijanec je ostal, da je vzdrževal taborni ogenj in s tem zavajal sovražnika. Naslednji dan se je spustil dol in se predal, toda Siuksi so mu iz spoštovanja do njegove starosti in zvestobe podarili svobodo.
Izvirnik
231 Besieged by Starvation
Naslednje strani prikazujejo izvirno besedilo za primerjavo.
A hundred years before the white men set up their trading-posts on the Arkansas and Platte, a band of mountain hunters made a descent on what they took to be a small company of plainsmen, but who proved to be the enemy in force, and who, in turn, drove the Utes--for the aggressors were of that tribe--into the hills. Most of them took refuge on a castellated rock on the south side of Bowlder Canon, where they held their own for several days, rolling down huge rocks whenever an attempt was made to storm the height; wherefore, seeing that the mountain was too secure a stronghold to be taken in that way, the besiegers camped about it, and, by cutting off the access of the beleaguered party to game and to water, starved every one of them to death.
This, too, is the story of Starved Rock, on Illinois River, near Ottawa, Illinois. It is a sandstone bluff, one hundred and fifty feet high, with a slope on one side only. Its summit is an acre in extent, and at the order of La Salle his Indian lieutenant, Tonti, fortified the place and mounted a small cannon on it. He died there afterward. After the killing of Pontiac at Cahokia, some of his people--the Ottawas--charged the crime against their enemies, the Illinois. The latter, being few in number, entrenched themselves on Starved Rock, where they kept their enemies at bay, but were unable to break their line to reach supplies. For a time they secured water by letting down bark vessels into the river at the end of thongs, but the Ottawas came under the bluff in canoes and cut the cords. Unwilling to surrender, the Illinois remained there until all had died of starvation. Bones and relics are found occasionally at the top.
There is yet another place of which a similar narrative is extant--namely, Crow Butte, Nebraska, which is two hundred feet high and vertical on all sides save one, but on that a horseman may ascend in safety. A company of Crows, flying from the Sioux, gained this citadel and defended the path so vigorously that their pursuers gave over all attempts to follow them, but squatted calmly on the plain and proceeded to starve them out. On a dark night the besieged killed some of their ponies and made lariats of their hides, by which they reached the ground on the unguarded side of the rock. They slid down, one at a time, and made off all but one aged Indian, who stayed to keep the camp-fire burning as a blind. He went down and surrendered on the next day, but the Sioux, respecting his age and loyalty, gave him freedom.
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