Little is known of this chief, except that he was of sufficient note among his people to be chosen one of a delegation to visit Washington on business relating to his tribe. He is represented to be vindictive and implacable in his resentments. The Indian agent at Prairie du Chien, having offended him, Pashepahaw resolved on revenge, and actually undertook a long journey with the view of killing him. Tai-mah, whose portrait will appear in the course of this work, hearing of the Stabber’s purpose, outsped him, and made known to the agent his bloody design. This timely information, doubtless, saved the agent’s life. The untrimmed locks that hang down the Stabber’s shoulders indicate unsatisfied revenge.
It is not probable, if more was known of this ferocious Indian, that his biography would afford any incident of sufficient interest to deserve a large space in our work. There can be no question that the agreeable epithet, by which he has chosen to be distinguished, is indicative of his character.
The Sauk, as a nation, afford favorable specimens of the Indian race. Among a large number that we have seen, the majority were tall, well formed, active men, who bestowed much care on the decoration of their persons, and were dignified in their manners. They are a warlike, active, and sprightly people, friendly to the whites, and hospitable to strangers. Their principal residence, until recently, was on the shores of Rock river, in Illinois, where their hunting-grounds comprised the most fertile and beautiful region of the west. They have been removed from those lovely plains to other lands beyond the Mississippi, and their recent haunts are now covered with the farms of an industrious population.