Hiawatha's Vision

On the shores of gitchgoomy by the shining big sea water

Hiawatha old and grayin' listened to the older prophet listened to Lagu

And the young men and the women from the land of Ojibways

From the land of the Dakotas from the woodlands and the prairies

Stood and listened to the prophet heard lagu tell Hiawatha

"I have seen" he said, "A water bigger than the big sea water

Broader than the gitchgoomy bitter so that none cold drink it

Salty so that none would use it"

Hiawatha then spoke to them stopped all their jeering and their jesting

And he spoke to all the people

It's true what Lagu tells you for I have seen it in a vision

I have also seen the water to the east to the land of morning

And upon this great water came a strange canoe with pinions

Bigger than a grove of pine trees, taller than the tallest tree tops

And upon this great canoe were sails to carry it swiftly

And it carried many people, strange and foreign were these people

And white were all their faces and with hair their chins were covered

Then said Hiawatha, "I beheld a darker vision"

Many hundreds came behind them pushed their way across our prairies

In our woodlands rang their axes, in our valleys smoked their cities

Our people were all scattered all forgetful of our councils

Left their homelands going westward wild and woeful

And the man with bearded faces, the men with skin so fair

With their barking sticks of thunder drove the remnants of our people

Farther westward, westward, westward then wild wild and wilder

Grew the west that once was ours