Tobacco

Submitted By John Kahionhes Fadden

This story was gathered by Ray Fadden years ago, and in turn he published it in pamphlet form. Then, during the mid-seventies, it was reprinted in a booklet by Akwesasne Notes entitled, "Tales of the Iroquois." It is retold here, and it should be known that there are other stories regarding the origin and use of tobacco.

A long time ago there was a settlement of Iroquois people living along a river in what is now known as the state of Ohio. The name Ohio, incidentally, is from the Iroquois word ohi-yo', meaning "great river."

One day, as the people were going about their usual activities at this village, a strange, unusual sound came from the direction of the river. The people stopped what they were doing and went to the riverbank to find out what was causing the sound.

The sound that came from up the river sounded very unusual. It was nothing anyone had ever heard before. There was an eeriness to it. It sounded like the howl of a strange animal mixed with the singing voices of people. The noise grew closer, and closer. Then, as they continued to watch, the people saw a canoe with unusually dressed humans in it coming around the bend in the river. In the center of the canoe was what appeared to be a large rawhide kettle drum that some were beating upon to accompany their strange singing.

This mysterious sight gave the people the sense that the singers were medicine people of some kind. Then, an especially loud voice was directed toward the people on the shore. The voice told them to return to their homes, and if they didn't, harm would come to them. Many left as directed, but some stayed. Those who stayed fell to the ground, dead, as the canoe passed, and continued down the river.

The next day a party of men organized and paddled down river in their canoes in search of the strange people. After traveling for a day, they came across the canoe in a sheltered bay. Two men were asleep in the canoe. A voice emanated from somewhere, and told the village men that if these men were destroyed the village would benefit. Plus, that would avenge the death of their fellow villagers from the day before.

The men hid in the nearby forest as one of them approached the canoe, and from a stone's throw distance, he threw a stone at the canoe. The strange men awoke, and chased the stone thrower. That man ran until he came to an abandoned bark house, and ran into it. The strangers pursued him. At that point, the man's fellow villagers came from hiding, and ran into the bark house with war clubs. The strange men were slain.

Afterward, the bodies of the strangers were cremated into ashes. In time, from the ashes grew an unusual plant. The plant was the tobacco plant, and instructions were given in its usage.