Chapter III: Front Matter (3)

American Wild Onion. It is an inhabitant of the lower mid-coast ranges, and the extract obtained from it is compounded with the powdered berries of _Rhus trilobata_.

RHUS TRILOBATA
(_Ind. Sa-lat_)

American Squaw-weed. An inhabitant of Southern California’s higher ranges, it makes an excellent restorative for an inactive stomach which refuses food. The Indians also obtained the fiber from the vines of the shrub by stripping it off with the thumbnail and using it for basket making.

For poisonous insect-bites.

ALLIUM CANADENSE or ALLIUM VINEALE
(_Ind. Ye-sil-we-na_)

American Wild Field Garlic. A plant held in great esteem by the Indians, protecting them, when hunting or exploring, from poisonous snakes, lizards, scorpions, tarantulas and insects during the summer season.

It was the custom of the Indians then to discard their buckskin clothes and roam around with as little covering as possible until the fall of the year, when they donned their heavier clothing again for the approaching cold weather. Now, it is well-known how disagreeable the odor of garlic is to most human beings, but they don’t know that it is likewise so to reptiles and insects. The Indians, however, knew this, although they never ate it. They used it only as medicine when needed, but its greatest usefulness was to guard against being bitten by poisonous vermin.

The Indians ground the wild garlic into a pulp and then rubbed it well over their legs up to the thighs, making extra sure that the skin was thoroughly saturated with the garlic juice and thus protected. The Indian would enter any locality to do his hunting, even if it was infested with thousands of rattlesnakes, without the slightest fear or worry. The reason is very simple. Whenever the snake or insect comes within smelling distance of the garlic, it is so much affected by it as to become well-nigh asphyxiated and is rendered helpless.

The white man, in order to follow fashion, wears leggings, but I am sure that he could use the formula I have given, very much to his advantage. I give this formula freely to mankind, a formula which has remained a secret for over a century and it will mean the saving of many lives if used as described above.

Antidote.

BERTHOLLETIA
(_Ind. Pacah-quit_)

American Arrow-wood. It is an inhabitant of the California River border lands within the Pacific coastal belt, and is occasionally also found on the southern border of the western desert lying in the northern part of the Pacific coast.

There has been much discussion in the past, and many arguments, many flatly declaring that the arrowwood was used by the Indians for making bows and arrow stocks.

Being an Indian, that and nothing else, let me explain the matter clearly as to this particular controversy. The young shoots of the _Bertholletia_ were selected from the parent stock, well-seasoned and then used for arrow stocks on which small arrow points were fitted for the young Indian children to practice and hunt with. It was never used for bows, however. For the making of fire through friction, it was very useful and yet, this alone would not give an adequate account of the value of arrowwood shrub. This is left to the decoction made from it, to counteract the poison in wounds inflicted by arrowheads in battle engagements, and therein lies its principal claim to the consideration shown it by the Indians.

Sedative.

PHYTOLACCA DECANDRA
(_Ind. Che-ne-va-ica-cal_)

American Ink Berry. This shrub, a common inhabitant of California’s coastal regions, has been placed by the white writer in the division of poisonous plants, and we agree with him. So the only credit given the plant is chiefly for the remarkable beauty it displays with its starlike flowers and racemes of dark-blue berries. Yet it has been condemned under the label of poison, and much is being done toward its destruction wherever found. However, it is a fruitless task, and may only become a near-success when the Indians and the birds shall be known as two signs of life vanished from the face of the earth. For these two are responsible for the preservation and propagation of the shrub.

Morphine, opium, and cocaine are by far deadlier poisons than _Phytolacca_—why, then, do doctors prescribe them to soothe and ease pain, etc.? The root of the plant has some medicinal qualities to ease severe neuralgic pains, and is deemed very efficient and important in Indian medical formulas. For making dyes and inks the berries are excellent, whereas the leaves are most useful in the treatment of skin diseases, and to eradicate and clean the epidermis of pimples and blackheads.

Therefore, help to conserve and not destroy this really valuable plant.

Diseases of the liver.

RORIPPA NASTURTIUM OFFICINALE
(_Ind. Pang-sa-mat_)

American Water Cress. It is an inhabitant of the coastal regions, swamps and rivers. This aquatic plant is more deserving of attention than has been given it, and is fully worthy of the name it bears, _Officinale_, which means all that the word implies. The Indians, having discovered the medicinal qualities of this plant, immediately gave it a place in their medical and food division and, up to the present year of our Lord, the plant has been used in the treatment of disorders of the liver—cases such as torpid liver, cirrhosis of the liver and as a dissolvent of gallstones, etc.

When these diseases are curable, the diet is simple—with no restrictions and no red tape to plague the patient. The first meal taken in the morning must consist of _Nasturtium officinale_, salted very sparingly, and of this the patient should eat as much as possible and do without further food until noon, when he may eat whatever he likes. This method must be repeated every morning. Care must be taken not to use liquor if one wishes to insure quick recovery.

When the liver is ulcerated it takes at least two months to heal properly, but all other cases are of short duration.

Reducing teas.

LEPIDIUM EPETALUM
(_Ind. Chesa-mok-ka-mok_)

American Pepper Grass.

SALINIA
(_Ind. Cheena-wah_)

American Salt Grass.

PANICUM CAPILLARE
(_Ind. Ne-wa-cha-mo_)

American Witch Grass. The first two are fond of rich, agricultural soils, whereas the latter prefers alkaline lands. All three have been declared noxious weeds and are listed as such by the Department of Agriculture, although the Indians found some use for these grasses.

There were times when some of our men and women became over-fat; in fact, so fat that they had great difficulty in traveling, the exertion making them complain of heart trouble which in reality was nothing but a discomfort due to short respiration caused by excessive fatness. Accordingly, something had to be done. A search was made, and experiments with good results finally obtained. These grasses compounded with the bark of sassafras, wall-wort and others (also named for extermination, just like the three above-named plants) are excellent for reducing purposes.

The chief trouble in our schools where botany is taught seems to be that too much attention is given to the _appearance_ of plants, instead of to their medicinal value and other useful properties.

Birth control.

IVA AXILLARIS
(_Ind. Na-wish-mal_)

American Poverty-Weed. This hardy plant predominates on most of the salty marshes and lake shores. It is hardly worth destroying as it mostly grows in soils totally unfit for agriculture, or anything else, for that matter.

Let me mention, however, that there is quite a history connected with the earliest beginning of the Indian’s life in connection with this plant. No doubt it will be of interest to the readers of this book to learn that the plant played an important part in what is today assumed to be a modern institution—birth-control.

The Indians knew and practiced it from the earliest times, but only in cases when women proved themselves incapable, even when at their best, to give birth to healthy children.

In such cases they were compelled to make use of this plant as a preventative and this should explain the Indian’s wonderful stamina, his sturdiness and perfect physique. Moreover, the great chiefs prohibited the raising of deformed children, as ordinarily they considered this a great sin.

In later years the secret was let out by some Indian women, and thus it found its way among the Spanish and American settlers, when many cases of abortion were due to the use of this herb—a universal practice of modern civilization with its accompanying evils of genocide and other evils of a criminal nature.

Kidney diseases.

CROTON CORYMBOSUS
(_Ind. O-chot-pa-wish_)

Spurge. Its habitat is in the southern Mojave sand dunes. This beautiful shrub, like many of the other desert plants, seems to select the worst of soils to grow in, and is often to be found in crevices of mineralized dykes of crystalline rocks. The infusion made from the plant cured kidney infections.

EPHEDRA
(_Ind. Tut-tut_)

The Tea of the Indian is found in the swamplands of the coastal regions. The infusion made from the leaves and blossoms was taken internally for pleurisy of the kidneys.

An infusion made separately from the roots was also used internally to relieve severe cases of gonorrhea and painful bloating of the stomach. This remedy is very effective and highly esteemed by the Indians as one of the royal plants for the cure of these dangerous ailments, which take the lives of so many of the white race.

APIUM
(_Ind. Se-ma-mek_)

American Parsley. Its habitat is the swamps and coastal regions. The infusion made from this plant was taken regularly and in preference to water or any other beverage for chronic diseases of the kidneys.

The tea is very rich in flavor and pleasant to the taste. The patient should partake of as much as one half gallon per day and also eat an equal amount of it. The plant having been domesticated it is no trouble to get it anywhere. Even butcher shops and vegetable dealers sell it.

XANTHIUM CANADENSE
(_Ind. Cho-co-late_)

American Cocklebur. It grows everywhere in California, being found in every swamp and pasture land—a veritable nuisance to the cattle raiser.

From the medical standpoint, however, the plant is very valuable to the members of both sexes who are suffering from diseased kidneys complicated with gonorrhea, diseases which, when allowed to take their own course, will in due time develop into tuberculosis, rheumatism, and finally total paralysis of both the upper and lower limbs, as has happened in such cases.

The introduction of these maladies occurred with the advent of the white race into our territory and this caused the Indians to go into further botanical research to find the proper plants to combat and conquer these dreadful diseases. I introduce the world in general to two other sister plants, and also three belonging to a different group.

CENTAUREA MELITENSIS
(_Ind. Se-sa-naa_)

American Star Thistle.

XANTHIUM SPINOSUM
(_Ind. O-yu-mo-val_)

American Spiny Cocklebur.

MALVACEA RUBRA
(_Ind. E-ya-wa-manka_)

American Creeping Rock Mallow. Spanish _Yerba Mora Real_.

Venereal diseases.

CERCOCARPUS BETULAEFOLIUS
(_Ind. Man-geet_)

American Mahogany Shrub. Its habitat is in the California hills and mountains, and it is quite common. The bark and roots were made into an infusion and taken by the Indians for venereal diseases or gonorrhea gleet.

CENTUNCULUS
(_Ind. Pepe-nel_)

American Pimpernel. Its habitat is on the northern slopes of the highest mountain peaks of California, at an elevation of from eight to ten thousand feet above sea level. This wonder plant is made into a tea and taken in acute cases of gonorrhea, where the bladder and urinal tract fail to function.

EDIBLE FRUITS OF SHRUBS

The plants listed here are common in our California mountains:

_Arctostaphylos_ Manzanita Berry
_Sambucus pubens_ Elderberry
_Ribes glutinosum_ Wild Currant
_Ribes amarum_ Gooseberry
_Prunus serotina_ Wild Black Cherry
_Prunus ilicifolia_ Hollyleaf Cherry
_Heteromeles arbutifolia_ California Holly Berry
_Vitis vulpina_ Wild Grape
_Rubus villosus_ Wild Raspberry
_Rhus trilobata_ Squaw Bush Berry
_Rhus integrifolia_ Lemonade Berry

These berries should be eaten sparingly, as the acidity contained in them is much stronger than that of citric acid. Their chief use is to quench the thirst, where water is scarce in the mountains, either when hunting or hiking, or engaged in fighting forest fires. For this purpose the berries above will be found excellent and a veritable boon. Everyone traveling in desert or mountains should make himself familiar with the plants and fruits growing therein, as this knowledge not only permits him to guard against possible discomfort or hardship, but has also been the means of saving life. The Indians knew that better than anyone else.

No doubt, the following literary effort in the English language by Chief Pablo will set the risibilities of my readers to working. Als, the Chief, never had the benefit of a school education, and English wasn’t easy for him to acquire. However, he was game, and in 1908, when he was appointed Chief of the Indian Reservation, he bravely set to work and wrote this article.

He was sixty-four years old then. Nothing would do but he must have a typewriter. Right manfully he tackled it, but when he had finished he heaved a tremendous sigh and declared he’d rather go on the warpath than pound a typewriter again.

But he surely deserves great credit and his record as Chief of the Indian Police was a brilliant one.

The Legend of Console Mineral Springs near Homuba Canyon

The canyon has been known as Homuba among the Indians for many years. And on that canyon there are three mineral springs. They are located near Loma Linda. It is southeast from Loma Linda, way up in the canyon, a distance of three miles.

Professor J. Console, an Indian friend, is the owner of the mineral springs nowadays. In the early days the Indians called the springs _Phal-poole_, _Phal-quapekalet_, _Hickescah-heppasca_, which means Witch Springs, Life Springs, Sisters and Brother Springs.

Those three springs were discovered in this way. There were Indian settlements all over that country, near the springs and around the springs. One day three Indian children, two sisters and one brother, went up the canyon and disappeared in those springs. The father and mother and other relatives of the missing children followed the tracks of the children until they came to the springs. After having tried everything to find them, the father and mother and the relatives in their sorrow went to the witch-doctors to see if they could help them find the children. Then one witch-doctor said:

“Come with me and I will show you where your children are and how they disappeared in those springs. You may not see them but you will hear them, and you will have to be satisfied.”

So the children’s family went there and the witch-doctor stopped at the center spring and said:

“Listen to the Great Father who is above us, the Creator of the world. He has taken your boy and put him in this spring, so that this spring will bring health to you and to others.”

Then the witch-doctor walked up to the spring and spoke:

“Brother, your father and mother and all the relatives are here, and they would like to hear from you.”

Then a voice arose from the spring and said:

“I am here with my two sisters. We were placed here by our Lord, the Creator of the world. He has given me the power to bring new life to those who are sick. You may come and visit me and my sisters whenever you wish. My elder sister is in the spring on the east side of me, and my younger sister in the spring on the west side of me. But we are all three in this one place, and if you will live together and honor the great Lord, when you are sick if you will use these life springs, we will help you get back your health. These springs shall be known as the ‘Two Sisters and Brother Life Springs.’”

And all the people listened. Therefore the Indians went up there and held a great ceremony, and from then on they used the springs for medical purposes.

Then the Catholic missionaries came to this country and established the missions. They took the Indian children by force and made them Catholics. And these Christians also went up to the springs and used them for many years.

Later on the United States Government came to this country and took these lands and gave the Indians reservations for their use. And the Indians had to leave the springs, which originally belonged to them.

When the mission was first built at San Gabriel the priest asked an Indian:

“Why do you Indians take your children, when they are sick, to those springs, instead of taking them to a doctor?”

And the Indian answered:

“Father, the springs at Homuba Canyon can cure any sickness. That is why we take our children there when they are sick, and they are healed. Our ancestors used those springs and became healed.”

Then the priest went up to the springs to examine the water, and he took some of the water and made the Indian carry it to the chapel, and he blessed the water, and held Mass with it, and used it to cure the sick. And, finally, the priest moved the mission from San Gabriel to San Bernardino. Old San Bernardino is now known as Redlands. The mission was established there. It is about three miles from the springs. And from there the priest used to send the Indians to bring the waters to the mission, using it as medicine. And he cured many sick Indians.

Now there were two Indian villages nearby, and they fought over the possession of those springs. They went on the warpath over the Two Sisters and Brother Life Springs. So the mission went away and settled elsewhere, and the priest also went away.

Then our white neighbors came, as I said, and drove the Indians from our sacred springs. That is why the Indians are dying out in Southern California, because we must live on worthless lands far away from those springs.

Our white neighbors may think we Indians have no religion, but that is not so. We do believe in God who is the Creator of the world, and of the firmament, of Indians as well as white people.... Therefore we are brothers in God, as we are created by God.

I often hear white people say they are Americans in America, and we are Indians. I say we are the native sons of America. We are good to our country and to our white neighbors, and do not trouble them. When the missions first came to this country the Indians were numerous and the country well inhabited by the Indians. Then the Indians did not know that the country was going to be filled with intoxicating liquor. If they had known that, they would never have allowed the missionaries to establish any missions in this country. For a great number of Indians died of intoxicating liquor.

However, the United States Government made a law prohibiting the sale of intoxicating liquor to the American Indians. But by that time it was too late. The American Indians are nearly all gone. But maybe a few will be saved.

It was in 1908 that special officers suppressed the liquor traffic among the mission Indians in Southern California. The chief of these special officers came to me and asked:

“Why is it that you are always fighting the whites?”

“Because they are all liars, thieves, and whisky peddlers,” I answered.

He looked at me and said:

“Am I a liar and a whisky peddler?”

“No,” I answered. “You do not look like one. I think you are on the square.”

So he said to me:

“I want you to work with me on the same job.”

“What job do you mean?” said I.

“To suppress the liquor traffic among the mission Indians,” he said.

So I was deputized as Special Officer since then, and I became Chief of Police in the Indian Service for nine Indian reservations under the United States Government, to protect the Indians, to make transactions for the Indians, and to help them become sober, improve their morals, and become civilized. In 1847 if the United States Government had sent us a man like Mr. C. T. Coggeshall, who is the superintendent of the nine Indian reservations, the Indians would never have lost the Two Sisters and Brother Life Springs. Mr. Coggeshall is a man with large experience and he has done a lot of good for the Indians under his jurisdiction.

However, I am glad that Mr. John Console owns the springs, because he is a friend of the Indians. He helps the Indians with those springs. The springs cure light sickness, but for serious sickness we have to use herbs.

Chief William Als Pablo

Index of Herb Application:

A
Aids to Living:
Basket-making, 59, 63
Compass, 48
Deodorizer, 37, 52
Disinfectant, 12, 15, 37
Fire-making, 64
Fishing, 47, 61
Horse-racing, 36
Hunting, 34, 52, 53
Insect repellant, 63
Jewelry-making, 51
Lightning-repellant, 40, 41
Revitalization, 43
Sunstroke preventive, 22
Talismans, 42, 51
Thirst-quenchers, 47, 48, 70
Toy arrows, 64
Travel, 22, 47, 48, 64
Weather forecasting, 47, 48
Anemia, 42, 43, 62, 63, 64
Appetite, Loss of, 62, 63, 64
Arteries, Hardening of, 22
Asthma, 19, 20

B
Birth control, 67
Bleeding:
After-birth, 14
Navel, 56
Wounds, 56
Blood poisoning, 16
Blood diseases, 21, 22, 28, 32, 33, 34
Bronchitis, 19
Burns, 12

C
Catarrh, 24, 25
Chills and fever, 26, 27
Cirrhosis of the liver, 65
Colds, 17, 18
Colic, 7
Constipation, 8, 9, 18, 20, 21
Coughs, 17, 18, 19, 20
Coughs, Chronic, 19
Cuts, 15

D
Dandruff, 37
Diarrhea, 6, 7
Dysentery, 7

E
Eyes, Care of, 54

F
Fever, eruptive, 5, 10
Fever with headache, 10
Fistulas, 12
Foot infections, 11
Fractures, 27, 28

G
Gallstones, 65
Gangrene, 16
General medication, 48
Gonorrhea, 68, 69, 70
Grippe, 9

H
Hair, Care of:
Color restorative and preserver, 13
Dandruff, 37
Shampoo, 40
Tonic, 6, 14, 37, 40, 57
Household needs:
Bleaching, 39, 58, 59
Cleaning (soaps), 39, 40
Dyeing, 55, 56, 65
Food, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 70
Ink, 65
Mattresses, 55, 58
Stain removal, 39
Tanning, 55, 56, 65

I
Inoculation, 11, 63
Insomnia, 22, 23, 60, 65

K
Kidney diseases, 21, 22, 68, 69, 70

L
Liver complaints, 65
Lung fever, 9, 20
Lung hemorrhages, 19