In 1931, a poet by the name of John Neihardt journeyed into rural South Dakota to interview Indians as research for an epic poem. He encountered an extremely elderly member of the Lakota tribe by the name of Black Elk, whom Neihardt hoped could remember the old ways. The interview proved difficult; Neihardt knew no Lakota and Black Elk knew no English; but with two-way translations provided by Black Elk's grandson Ben, a remarkable narrative emerged. …showed first 75 words of 302 total…

…showed last 75 words of 302 total…Elk had pretty much given that idea up. After a brief stint traveling with Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show, he had converted to Catholicism, changed his name to Nicholas Black Elk, and (with the exception of not speaking English) now lived a rather conventional life. This was also a fairly typical result of the debacle at Wounded Knee, and it was certainly the one which white society at that time demanded. But ------------------------------------------------------------------------ **Bibliography**