This Small Tribe
Still Retains The Peculiarities Of Customs And Dress For Which It Was
Remarkable Many Years Ago, As Mentioned By Mr. Henry In The Interesting
Account Of His Journeys In These Countries.
They are said to be great
rascals.
The great body of the Crees were at that time named Opimmitish
Ininiwuc, or Men of the Woods. It would however be an endless task to
attempt to determine the precise people designated by the early French
writers. Every small band naming itself from its hunting grounds was
described as a different nation. The Chippeways who frequented the Lake
of the Woods were named from a particular act of pillage Pilliers, or
Robbers: and the name Saulteurs, applied to a principal band that
frequented the Sault St. Marie, has been by degrees extended to the whole
tribe. It is frequently pronounced and written Sotoos.)
The original character of the Crees must have been much modified by their
long intercourse with Europeans; hence it is to be understood that we
confine ourselves in the following sketch to their present condition, and
more particularly to the Crees of Cumberland House. The moral character
of a hunter is acted upon by the nature of the land he inhabits, the
abundance or scarcity of food, and we may add, in the present case, his
means of access to spiritous liquors. In a country so various in these
respects as that inhabited by the Crees the causes alluded to must
operate strongly in producing a considerable difference of character
amongst the various hordes.
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