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Some Observations on the Penobscot Writing of Joseph Polis (1809-1884)

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Some Observations on the Penobscot Writing of Joseph Polis (1809-1884) Some Observations on the Penobscot Writing of Joseph Polis (1809-1884) PAULEENA MACDOUGALL University of Maine He was "stoutly built, perhaps a little above the middle height, with a broad face, and, as others said, perfect Indian features and complexion" writes Henry David Thoreau about Joseph Polis (1966:207). Thoreau hired Polis to guide him to the Allagash and East Branch of the Penobscot River in July 1857. Thoreau learned a great deal from Polis about Indian place names, legends and names of birds and plants. And in one place along the East Branch, Thoreau noted that Polis inscribed a few words on a tree in his own language. (Niasoseb. Polis clioi sia Olta oouke ni quambi.) Naya Sosep Polis kaldkwihlesa Olta wawiko nihkwapi) 'I (pron.), Joseph Polis (personal name), I am going in that direction (Al lp sg. pres. perf.), Old Town (Eng. borrowed), he lives continuously, he camps (Al 3p sg.), now (pc).' Polis translated the words for Thoreau (1966:262): "I alone, Joseph Polis start for Old Town right away." Another writer who knew Polis well, fur trader Manly Hardy described him this way (Eckstorm 1945:185-186): He was a very mysterious man, full of quiet drollery. He would come up, and, extending his hand at full arm's length, look one gravely in the face and perhaps give some exclamation in Indian, asking its meaning, although he knew you did not know... He collected and sold curiosities, made and sold baskets, snowshoes and canoes. He kept a little shop on the left side of Main Street before one came to the rise by the school- house. He was always pleased to talk with his customers and often would try to mystify them. He was deeper than a well, always giving one the idea that they didn't know much about him. He would have been a powwow man, if they had had such things in these days. He was a Protestant; he was shamanistic - and so believed to possess special pow­ ers of his own fully equal to the priests'. Polis was the son of Polis Wassoos Mitchell and a member of the bear clan. He learned to read and write at the age of 14, when local minister 1. Polis's orthography is enclosed in shallow angled brackets throughout- phonemic representation (shown in italics) is as devised by Frank T. Siebert, Jr. ' H THE PENOBSCOT WRITING OF JOSEPH POLIS 319 Josiah Brewer taught school on Indian Island. He wrote very well in English, but he also wrote from time to time in Penobscot. It is his Penob­ scot writings that are the subject of this paper. Polis inscribed the above message on a tree on July 26, 1853. This lit­ tle bit of writing tells us that Joseph was literate, but it is a small sample that teases the imagination. However, there are other Penobscot writings by Joseph Polis. I have identified three more, the first, a letter Polis wrote to John Francis, a Passamaquoddy at Pleasant Point, Maine in 1841,2 the second a list of words Polis wrote down for the priest, Vetromile in 1854, and the third a church calendar drawn by Polis in 1866. I will discuss each one in turn. Native writings in the Penobscot language are rare. Mary Alice Nelson, known as Molly Spotted Elk (McBride 1995) composed a small dictionary, but I have seen little in the way of other examples of nar­ ratives. Two of the pieces discussed here include narrative, but the first, the letter to John Francis, is perhaps the most valuable, since it is the most lengthy. The letter is addressed to John Francis, Indian Village, Pleasant Point, with a note in English to "Please deliver to John Francis." John Francis was the son of Francis Joseph Neptune. Francis traveled to Indian Island to take part in the famous incident of cutting down the Liberty Pole in 1849. The Penobscots accused him of trespassing as a result of this incident.5 Since Joseph Polis was also involved in the liberty pole inci­ dent, they undoubtedly knew each other well, were allies or perhaps, were related to each other. LETTER (DATED "AT OLD TOWN, JUN 15TH, 1841.") There is no English translation with this letter, and I have tried my best to translate the passage, but there are a some words that don't lend themselves readily to analysis. The following attempt should be viewed as a possible or probable translation. (1) (Nigoanbi nista alokan bimikiskus Kamantsi hun ta olit hhin si oi ni sana Siek elikk aoikhukun nos bebal Ik euk ) nihkwapi (pc) 'now,' niseta (pc adverbial number) 'twice,' dlohkan (Al 2. In the collection of the Huntington Library, Bronx, New York. 3. In the Vetromile collection, Maine Historical Society, Portland. 4. A photostat copy of which is held in Special Collections, Raymond Fogler Library, University of Maine. 5. Micah Pawling, personal communication 320 PAULEENA MACDOUGALL ty '^e&•o V/7^X/&€U<4 <£^4> />6^ot- oCU-i+^s kr /htUS^h~~*?2 Figure 1: Address from outside of folded letter, reproduced with the permission of the Huntington Library. 3p.sg. subjectless) 'working,' pemakisakahk (II conj. m.reflex), 'during, throughout the day,' kdmac (pc) 'very much,' ata (pc) 'not,' walitahasiwisana (Al m. reflex, neg. prioritive present perfective) 'I have not been pleased with him.'sikelikak (c.conj.) 'the way it looks, he dislikes its appearance,' awihkhikan (inan.) 'the letter,' (nosapepdlihkewok) (TA redupl. conj.) 'when I keep seeing him (the writing).' 'Twice now working throughout the day, I have (not) been pleased with the way the letter looked when I keep seeing it. (2) (Ni nu oa nia Soseph Poris mina hungoanmk) ni (pc) 'then,' na (an. demonstrative pron.) 'that one,' owa (demonstrative pc and pron.) 'this, this one,' naya (pron.) 'I,' 5... mina (pc) 'again,' dkwamak (pc) 'more.' 'Then this one, Joseph Polis more again (I am writing some more?)' (3) (Kataw san tekie nta tsai ahibna Siban hi ke) kataw (pc) 'likely,' pehsantek (II conj.) 'when it is full,' natdhcawi- alihlapana (Al indef. exclusive) 'we must have gone.' THE PENOBSCOT WRITING OF JOSEPH POLIS 321 H~../+'ft' ft^ *t<'-4-itT-~ /rf^sfe.*t•—•-•.. »«.-M * -.--Ax t' ,/. '*'• " ^*:- • ^** >».#«» J:^: /&• /^»«V7 vcW ^-c».*/njw«: /J'- />-«-. -tt+~zfo- «t_-A» JcU^& t.£^-A^t n*-< '/*S\ * 4* •« /I "S X*- <fi'./frt-Ji^ * £-4/£G^ .s-i+1 e*r Off.'7/1 SiS9t*t' Figure 2: Letter from Polis to John Francis, reproduced with the permission of the Huntington Library. 'We must (might) have gone' (to) Sipayike 'Pleasant Point.' (4) (olelmgoeke Senangoabani hesi mkelsta mug) walilamakwe (Al) 'he has good fortune, he is lucky,' senakewepani 'we (excl.) sit peacefully,' ej/r (Al c.conj.) 'when he is in such a condition,' mkelestamok (? Al conj. indef. ) meaning unknown. 'we are in good condition (health)?' (5) (msini Knant kumne na beman wsiuaw ni goanbi) mecimi (pc) 'always,' kandtkaman (TI class la) 'I walk, step toward it,' na (demonstrative pc) 'that one,' napamdwasawino (an.) 'one of my people,' nihkdpi (pc) 'now.' 'Now I am going to walk home ?' (6) (Nia Joseph Polis) 'I, Joseph Polis' (7) (Denia Mul ???) 322 PAULEENA MACDOUGALL WORD LIST The second sample is a word list obtained by a priest named Vetromile who was assigned to Indian Island in the 1850s. In a letter to Vetromille signed J.F. Spaulding, dated March 1, 1859 is a sample of Penobscot words. The letter states "Most of the Indian words are in Joe Poris handwriting." (Alitungwat) nerves The word is derived from el- thus, so, medial -iteha- mental process, II final. It means something like 'it is thoughts, ideas' (Kakiso oikbe) 'basket stuffs' kakiso is II 'it is brittle' and (oikbe) is wikapi (an.) for the tree, inan. if referring to 'a strip of wood young black ash used in basketry,' also, 'strips, grains, layers of wood.' (Kanksk) 'cedar' (an.) kdksokosi 'arborvitae, northern white cedar' (Snanw) 'rock maple' (an.) ssnaw (Lenanbe) 'man, any man' (an.) dlanape (Kau=kee=so) not translated, would mean 'he falls flat.' Kaw- 'fallen, lying flat', -iso reflexive ending. Kdwahsan (inan.) 'fallen dead tree, or log' (Nonaskaoan) 'meet' nawdnaskawa TA 'I meet him.' (Kakiso) brittle trees that don't bend kdhkiso Al m. reflex, 'he is brittle, dried, crisp' (Kake) mad easily = temperf?] (Kani=ka) A stick that will break (not bend). An axe handle for example which is brittle is ka ki (Bot a ousin) = any meetingpotdwasin, 'meeting, council,' potawdsawikawam (inan.) 'council house,' (Polis) Sometimes he writes his last name, Polis, with an / sometimes with an r; IV and hi seem to be allophones of the same phoneme. (Kissok) the air, atmosphere Kisohk (inan.) 'atmosphere, air', AM^sky,' kiskdk 'in the sky' (Kew Kehkw alitakwat? 'What news?' halitungout) Polis usually writes a w for a k™, but sometimes he uses a g. THE PENOBSCOT WRITING OF JOSEPH POLIS 323 / c<-u_- A sis /fs.'Ae / d*dM&-- - ^. •'/• i ** • V.' >, » #«. ttr* <4*^, <f >i •• ''-' V A— - /?££&»~J<^ 5^2L. * 0 r * S^S ^^^^^+r Figure 3: Vetromile word list. Collections of Maine Historical Society. Reproduced with permission. 324 PAULEENA MACDOUGALL CHURCH CALENDAR In a letter to Fannie Hardy Eckstorm from the librarian of the Bangor Public Library the librarian writes "For Mr. R.B. Roberts, who is prepar­ ing a book on writings by American Indians, I have recently had made a photostat of the Penobscot Indian Church calendar, 1866 made by Joseph Polis and on display in the collection of the Bangor Historical Society. Mr. Roberts asked for a translation of the writing on the calendar. I am unable to supply it and suggested to him as possible translators: Princess Watawaso, and Rev.
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