Swa-go, Pottawattamie Indian

Swago

Description:	Swa-go. Pottawattamie Indian (title from verso of last page) AMs, handwritten, 3 p. (written on paper with embossed seal reading Croton) Swago was viewed as a comic figure whenever he came to Ewing and Walkers trading post in Logansport, where he often tried to obtain whiskey, although he rarely had any money. He acted as attendant and follower to the great orator Nas-waw-kay, although the latter rarely drank and the former was rarely sober. Swago was celebrated as a swift runner and was said to have run down a deer as a younger man. The illustration meant to accompany this essay illustrates Swago after he has purchased whiskey in town and is on his way back to camp. He is resting in a drunken state by an old tree stump and corks the partially drained bottle with his finger. G.W. sketched Swago in 1837 near a temporary camp of Nas-waw-kay and his followers at the confluence of the Wabash and Eel rivers, next to Barrons cabin. Note: this MS contains several Potawatami words, with translations.
Created By:	Winter, George, 1810-1876;
Publisher:	Tippecanoe County Historical Association
Source:	http://earchives.lib.purdue.edu/cdm/ref/collection/gwinter/id/414
Collection:	George Winter
Copyright:	Images in the George Winter Collection should not be used without written permission from the Tippecanoe County Historical Association. To obtain reproduction rights and prices, contact the Tippecanoe County Historical Association at info@tippecanoehistory.org
Subjects:	Indians of North America--Indiana Potawatomi Indians Alcoholism

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