Jim Poweshiek Sees Bright Lights

POWESHIEK

Posted By: Marilyn Holmes (email)
Date: 11/22/2011 at 15:39:41

The Grinnell (IA) Herald; April 10, 1928

JIM POWESHIEK SEES BRIGHT LIGHTS

Jim Poweshiek, 73 years old, an Indian of the Sac and Fox Tribe, better known as the Mesquakies, returned Saturday to the Tama reservation after having spent three months in the effete East.

When he left on his journey he went directly to Philadelphia, where he was the guest of a white man who, as a boy, had come west many years ago, possibly with the intention of killing red-skins, but who, on arriving at Tama changed his mind and went to work for one of them. For a season or two he was employed by Jim Poweshiek, later returning to Philadelphia and acquiring enough money so that he could spare some of it to help defray the cost of a trip to the East of his old-time red skinned employer. The matter was finally arranged by having him pay car-fare one way, Jim to pay it the other. In addition the Philadelphian fed the Indian while he was in Philadelphia.

Jim wore a broad grin when in the News-Herald office Monday he told of the trip. He never had as good a time. He never saw such buildings. "You couldn't see the top of 'em," Jim said. "Way up in the air."

He especially liked New York City. "So many people, see 'em everywhere, and all in a hurry. Never saw a big town like that before--never saw any big town. White men do lots of things. Getting pretty old but maybe I can go again some time. There three months, plenty to eat, white men give me lots of cigars, maybe a whole box at a time, maybe ten or twenty cans smoking tobacco. Give me everything I want, treat me fine.

"Went to New Jersey, too. Big towns there and places where there's nothing but sand. Lots of sand. Nothing but country in one place and pretty soon nothing but big town. In the country one day I saw a deer, running along like they used to do out here. Not very far away from a big town.

"I played my flute down there. Dressed all up in Indian clothes, feathers and beads and everything. People like to hear me play. Maybe after I play they give me some money, maybe a lot of cigars. Maybe I can go back there sometime."--Tama News-Herald.