The Sioux have a
curious superstition respecting a mound near the mouth of the Whitestone
River, which they call the Mountain of Little People or Little Spirits;
they believe that it is the abode of little devils in the human form, of
about eighteen inches high and with remarkably large heads; they are armed
with sharp arrows, in the use of which they are very skilful. These little
spirits are always on the watch to kill those who should have the
hardihood to approach their residence. The tradition is that many have
suffered from their malice, and that, among others, three Maha Indians
fell a sacrifice to them a few years since. This has inspired all the
neighbouring nations, Sioux, Mahas, and Ottoes, with such terror, that no
consideration could tempt them to visit the hill.[A]
[Footnote A: Lewis and Clarke, _Travels to the Source of the Missouri
River._ Quoted in _Flint Chips_, p. 346. The tale is also given in _Folk
Lore, Oriental and American_ (Gibbings & Co.), p. 45.]
The mounds or hills inhabited by the fairies are, however, of very diverse
kinds, as we discover when we attempt to analyse their actual nature.
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