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(More customer reviews)As the title states, this is not a biography of Red Cloud. It is, instead, the history of his people-the Oglala-as far back as the middle of the 17th century. However, while Hyde's speculation on the early history is probably the most valuable part, the various migrations and splits of the Sioux are a little hard to follow and make for slow going. It is not until he reaches more familiar territory, from about the Grattan Fight on, that the pace picks up.
This work, originally written in the 1930's and updated in the late 50's appears to be very well researched. However it has it's flaws. Hyde has difficulty overcoming a certain cultural bias, and he has a habit of picking and choosing the information that most supports his point of view. For example, time and again, he laments the poor memory of Indians when it comes to relating their own history, and belittles them for mythologizing certain events at the expense of accuracy. However he insists that it was the Crazy Horse village which J.J. Reynolds attacked and destroyed on the Powder in 1876, and not a Cheyenne village as the Indians of the time asserted, and as is now widely accepted by historians. And in this case he bases his theory on the accounts of certain Indians who said that they saw Crazy Horse fleeing up the bluffs with a small child on his back. The notion of course is rediculous. Crazy Horse's own daughter had died by then, and the idea that the great war chief could come up with nothing better to do during an attack than pick up stray children makes no sense.
Hyde also asserts without doubt, that Crazy Horse, in his last days was planning to break out of the Red Cloud agency with his band, and was not simply escaping to Spotted Tail for sanctuary from his enemies. While this may be true, he has absolutely no evidence to base it on. Having said this, Hyde's habit of pronouncing opposing views as "blatantly absurd" is somewhat refreshing, and keeps the narrative more interesting.
Anyone who studies the Plains Indians must add this to their library, however, they should keep in mind, that it represents only one point of view.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Red Cloud's Folk: A History of the Oglala Sioux Indians (Civilization of the American Indian Series)
The westward drive of the warlike Sioux Indians along a thousand miles of prairie and woodland, from the upper reaches of the Mississippi to the lower Powder River in Montana, is one of the epic migrations of history. From about 1660 to the first quarter of the nineteenth century, the Teton Sioux swept away all opposition: Arikaras, Ponkas, Crees, Crows, Cheyennes--all fell away and dispersed as the Sioux advanced, until the invaders ranged over a vast territory in the northwest, hunting buffalo and raiding their neighbors. During the ensuing years of heavy conflict, between 1865 and 1877, Red Cloud of the Oglalas stood out as one of the greatest of the Sioux leaders.
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