Many Iroquois today are Christians. It’s a miracle. The early missionaries often hit brick walls. (The Iroquois thought “the Black Robes” might be witches, and not without reason. One of the prime witch job descriptions is to be the bringer of plagues, which the first Europeans certainly were.) Only when they respected the Iroquois as they were did the missionaries start to reach them. Today the Christian Iroquois are often guarded about old supernatural traditions.
A third major influence upon the Iroquois was their own prophet, Handsome Lake. A half brother of the Seneca war chief Cornplanter, Handsome Lake was troubled by the deterioration of Iroquois society due to alcohol, relocation, and the loss of traditions. A series of famous visions led Handsome Lake to create a code of conduct or Gaiwiio, which means, “the good word.” In 1913, Arthur C. Parker published and annotated the Gaiwiio in The Code of Handsome Lake. The prophet’s code adapts the old traditions to a new way of life, seemingly including Christian influences. This Longhouse religion is still quite influential. Handsome Lake the man became known as a witch finder, and you will find many of your most serious witch-dreaders today among his followers.
INTO THE WOODS
Traditions
The old Iroquois historians kept a significant body of myth and legend, but none of it was written. The first European visitors were more interested in proselytizing and grabbing resources than in preserving native traditions, and it took centuries for the Iroquois material to be written down. Most sources consider the nucleus of it to be at least four centuries old.
Some of the whites who saw the Iroquois before the Revolution considered them the most avid storytellers on Earth and suspected that the body of their tales would dwarf that of any other society. Even in the early twentieth century it was said that whenever parties of Iroquois met, sessions of storytelling followed the initial greetings. Few, though, would tell their tales within earshot of outsiders, which may be why this tradition is not better understood.
We should be aware from the start that we have only parts of the body of legend that was once that of the Iroquois. No source anywhere is considered a bible of preserved Iroquois tales and stories, either.
We should also remember that folklore everywhere is a plastic art, always growing and absorbing. Iroquois storytellers used elements and even motifs—story outlines—from other societies, including ones brought to them by whites. The church had a big hand in this, and it’s no wonder that biblical elements occasionally appear, including the Western Devil.
The “golden age” of Iroquois folklore has been said to be from 1880 to 1925. Hope Emily Allen, William Beauchamp, Harriett Maxwell Converse, Jesse Cornplanter, Elias Johnson, Arthur C. Parker, Lewis Henry Morgan, Henry Schoolcraft, and others had the advantage of talking to Iroquois folk when the traditional wisdom stories were still strong. A lot may have been lost quickly thereafter, and the Iroquois have been notably quiet since. There is also a living supernaturalism on the reservation and among Iroquois folk everywhere. Most non–Native Americans would be stunned to know the prevalence and survival power of this ancient tradition.
Never forget that there are people who talk about the subjects of these stories as if they are true. They will look you in the eye and tell you about an experience of the Little People, a curse, a witch light, a magic charm, or a visionary dream. And not all of them are Native Americans; New Yorkers of any origin describe things they still see on the Iroquois homeland that could have stepped right out of ancient Iroquois legend. Take tales like these with no less respect than you would give to a UFO report, a Bigfoot sighting, a ghost story, or any psychic or religious experience. We want to show where it all came from and how it so gloriously survives today.
The Storyteller’s Bag
The old Iroquois tales fall into three main subject areas. When delivered live, the storyteller introduced each tale with a formulaic phrase that alerted listeners to the story type they were about to hear.
The first category is creation tales about the origins of the world and of the nations: “These are things that really happened,” the storyteller often began. These are mythic or religious. Another category is animal tales: “It’s as if an animal walked. . . .” Many of these tales are ingenious and familiar: “How the Skunk Got His Stripe” or “How the Bear Lost His Tail.” Most of them are whimsical and remind us of jokes or riddles. Both these categories have been well preserved from their ancient forms, and neither belong in our book.
The forest tales make a third category: “They went into the woods.” These stories can change by the decade. To the Iroquois, field and village were the domain of humans. Like the Celts of Europe, the Iroquois considered the forest and remote regions to be the realms of the supernatural. Though the supernatural could reach into the community—usually with a bit of inviting—even witches left their village homes for their dark rites and spells in the woods. The forest was also home to the most famous Iroquois supernatural beings: Flying Heads, Stone Giants, vampire skeletons, Little People, and the rest. This book is about the subjects of the forest.
In addition to the formulaic introductions, traditional Iroquois storytellers abided by a number of conventions. Particularly when entertaining children, the storyteller might bring a bag to the event and spill it at the start. It was always filled with small objects, often curious, sometimes junk: a bone, a stone, a feather, a broken pipe. Before starting, the storyteller picked one of these items and improvised a way that it reminded him of the upcoming tale. The children’s eyes widened.
This book is
