Southeastern Native American Alliance

Vol. 2; No. 1 7 February 1997

MEETING SCHEDULE

Next Executive Council Meeting:   Thursday, 27 February 1997; to be held
                                  at 1314 Wildwood Lake Road
                                  Cleveland, Tennessee 37311
Next General Meeting:             Thursday, 6 March 1997; to be held
                                  1314 Wildwood Lake Road,
                                  Cleveland, Tennessee 37311

* * * * *

DEVELOPER JIM SHARP HONORED
BY SENAA AND THE CHEROKEE NATION

      Saturday, 14 September 1995         Recognizing its importance to
marked two landmark events for the    Native   Americans,    and   being
Southeastern    Native    American    sensitive to our feelings, Sharp
Alliance (SENAA). Not only did it    met with SENAA officials on Friday
mark our first anniversary, it was    17 July 1996, to announce his
then that SENAA, the Eastern Band    decision to preserve the site.
of Cherokees   and the Oklahoma       To ensure that the site is not
Cherokee Nation honored Cleveland    inadvertently destroyed, Mr. Sharp
developer Jim Sharp for setting    set it aside as "green space,"
aside and preserving the Native    never to be developed.
American village and burial site        To make SENAA's anniversary
known as Autumn Ridge.                dinner unforgettable,   an honor
    Autumn Ridge is one of several    ceremony for Mr. Sharp was given,
village sites in Bradley County    where    SENAA   President   Steve
occupied by Native Americans from    Swilling presented him with an
the Archaic Period until the 1838    engraved plaque mounted on a stand
Removal. State Archeologist Nick    that supported a ceremonial pipe,
Fielder called it "one of the most    both hand crafted by artist and
significant    sites     in    the    SENAA member David Morgan.
Southeast."                           (See SHARP HONORED, page 2)

February 1997 SENAA Newsletter 2

SHARP HONORED (from page 1)
    Cherokee Elder Ned Long and    made on our behalf, for showing
Tribal Councilman Bill Brown, from    your respect for the sanctity of
the Eastern Band of Cherokees,    our ancestors' places of rest in
attended the ceremony to express    such a magnanimous way, and for
the Eastern Band's appreciation to    the valuable gift you have given
Jim Sharp for his contribution to    to our people and to our children
the preservation of our heritage.     and grandchildren, we extend to
   The Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma    you our heartfelt thanks and the
was officially represented by Al    hand of friendship.
Swilling at the request of Charles         "May the Creator bless you in
Gourd, Cultural Affairs Director.     all your efforts. You are truly a
     "Mr. Sharp," said Al, "for    man of honor in our eyes, and we
your sensitivity to the feelings    are proud to call you our friend.
of the Cherokee people, for the       Thank you, my friend."
sacrifice that you have willingly          *      *      *      *

NARF AWARDED BY THE CHEROKEE NATION

In early November, at the Qualla      At a special meeting of the NARF
Boundary, Principal Chief Joyce    team, Sheriff Cupp presented them
Dugan of the Eastern Band, and    with the award on behalf of the
Principal Chief Joe Byrd, of the    Cherokee Nation and the Hamilton
Oklahoma Cherokee Nation presented    County Sheriff's Department.
the Native American Reserve Force         The framed citation is now on
(NARF) with a citation for its    display at the Sheriff's office
service to the Native American    in downtown Chattanooga.
people, showing their appreciation        SENAA adds its voice to those
for NARF's efforts in protecting    of other   Native Americans   in
the Moccasin Bend burial grounds.     appreciation of NARF's dedication
Receiving the award for NARF was    and hard work. May NARF enjoy many
Hamilton County Sheriff John Cupp.    more years as the guardians of our
Also present at the presentation    ancestors' resting places.
were NARF officers Gary Williams
and Lynn Triplett.                          *      *      *      *

TENNESSEE INDIAN COMMISSION MEETING
16 November 1996

   At the 16 November 1996 meeting    "corpse" and "corpses," to afford
of the Tennessee Commission on    all burials proper protection.
Indian Affairs,   the   following       Laws pertaining to artifacts
topics were discussed:                were also discussed, with general
Grave and Artifact Protection Laws    agreement that those laws should
   Concern was expressed about the    pertain    to    all    artifacts,
state laws protecting artifacts    including    "prehistoric"     and
and burials, and how they need    cultural items, as well as burial
to be changed.                        items. The purpose for this change
    The general consensus was that    is to eliminate a market for all
the grave desecration laws need to    Native American   artifacts.   If
be reworded to include all "human    there's no market,   there's no
remains," rather than the words    (See COMMISSION MEETING, page 3)

February 1997 SENAA Newsletter 3

COMMISSION MEETING (from page 2)
motive to dig up burials.             spirituality as a part of the
    The Commission asked that each    healing process.
Native    American    organization    NARF Commended
select two people to represent        The Native American Reserve
it in the state legislature, and    Force (NARF) was commended by the
to participate in the rewording of    Commission for the   award they
pertinent laws.                       received from Eastern and Western
Substance Abuse Rehab Hospital        Band Chiefs, Joyce Dugan and Joe
   Another topic discussed was the    Byrd.   NARF was recognized by the
establishment of a substance abuse    Cherokee Nation for outstanding
rehabilitation hospital for Native    work   protecting   the remaining
Americans, which would be located    burials and the historical value
in middle Tennessee. Treatment at    of Moccasin Bend.
the    facility    would   include
bringing   back   Native American           *      *      *      *

OUR NATIVE TONGUE

Syllabary Tsa-La-Gi Pronunciation English

O-ni-di-tlv Oh-nee-dee-tluh Behind

E-la-di-tlv Ay-lah-dee-tluh Below

A-ye-li Ah-yay-lee Between

E-la-di Ay-lah-dee Down

Do Doe Go

Do-yi Doe-yee Go out!

Ga-lv-la-di Gah-luh-lah-dee Heaven, Up

(E.) Yv-wi-ya-hi Yuh-wee-yah'-hee (Native American)
(W.) A-yv-wi-ya-i Ah-yuh-wee-yah'--ee Indian

(E.) A-ni Yv-wi-ya-hi Ah-nee Yuh-wee-yah'-hee
(W.) A-ni A-yv-wi-ya-i Ah-nee Ah-yuh-wee-yah'--ee Indians

Ha-wi-ni Hah-wee-nee Inside

Do-ye-hi Doe-yay-hee Outside

(E.) Yv-wi Yuh-wee
(W.) A-yv-wi Ah-yuh-wee People

Ga-lv-lo-di Gah-luh-low-dee Sky

NOTE: For those on our mailing list who did not receive our first
newsletter, the Cherokee syllabary, and an accompanying
pronunciation guide, appear on the last page of this issue.

February 1997 SENAA Newsletter 4

GO-WE-LI NV-WA-TI
(The Medicine Book)

       Like the foods that nourish        This new series is designed to
the world, up to 80 percent of the    give   fundamental   knowledge of
medicines used today are a direct    various medicinal plants, their
result of the Native Americans'    properties, and their uses. There
knowledge and use   of   healing    are also some very good books on
herbs. Indeed, the survival of    today's market that are accurate
many of the first settlers was due    and reliable. Two examples are:
directly to our ancestors' sharing     Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia
that knowledge. Not only were the    of Herbs; 1987, Rodale Press, Inc.
early settlers'   larders filled    Emmaus, Pennsylvania; and
with   foods   provided   by   our      Back to Eden, by Jethro Kloss;
ancestors,     their     extensive    Message Press, Coalmont, Tenn.
pharmacopoeia consisted primarily      Another helpful book that may be
of medicines obtained from the    of interest is Peterson's Guide to
very   people   they   sought   to    Edible Wild Plants; Peterson's,
destroy.                              Inc., Princeton, NJ.

SACRED PLANTS

Cedar: The popularity of sage has    Cedar may also be combined with
overshadowed, to some degree, the    tobacco, sweet grass and/or sage.
use of traditional substances for    Commercially made smudge sticks of
smudging rituals.    In Cherokee    these mixtures are available at
tradition, sage was not one of the    specialty shops.
original herbs used for smudging.
Originally, cedar and tobacco were    Silver Sage (Artemisia tridentata)
used for such purposes. Cedar,     Is not true sage, though the odor
therefore,   is sacred   to   the    is very similar to culinary sage
Cherokee people.                      (Salvia officinalis). Silver sage,
    Today, among Native Americans    commonly known as sagebrush, grows
and non-Indians alike, cedar is    wild on the American prairies,
known for its clean, fresh smell    whereas   culinary sage   is not
and its ability to repel insects    indigenous to this continent.
such as roaches and moths. Cedar       First considered a sacred plant
shavings placed in bureau drawers    by the plains tribes, it is now
repel insects and keep clothing    commonly held as sacred by most
smelling clean and fresh.   Old    Native American peoples, and is
fashioned cedar "shif-a-robes" and    used by most, either alone or
cedar chests last for decades with    combined with cedar, tobacco, or
minimal care, and were once the    sweet grass, in smudging rituals
first choice for clothing storage.    and other religious ceremonies.
    When using cedar shavings in        Silver sage thrives on the
bureau drawers, placing them in a    American plains, but also does
sachet or a plastic or ceramic    well in the mountains   and in
container perforated with small    domestic gardens.
holes to allow the scent to escape
will keep bits   of   wood from    Tobacco (Nicotiana rustica):   Has
getting into the clothing.            always been sacred to all Native
     Smudge sticks of cedar can be    American tribes. To the Cherokees,
made by   tying small twigs or    its sacred power is surpassed only
thinly split strips into bundles.    (See MEDICINE, page 5)

February 1997 SENAA Newsletter 5

MEDICINE (from page 4)
by Golden Seal. Used for smudging    tonic,    laxative,    antiseptic,
and in pipe ceremonies, it carries    treatment of ulcers, dressing on
the prayers of its users to the    wounds, eye wash, and treatment of
Creator, in the same way that    thrash (yeast infection of the
frankincense and myrrh convey the    mouth).   Powdered root put onto
prayers of   Islam, Jewish   and    poison oak or ivy, or mixed with
Christian people to the Creator.      crushed plantain leaves and aloe
    In addition to its uses in    and put onto the rash, will dry it
religious ceremonies, it also has    up and keep it from spreading.
medicinal properties, in spite of         Powdered goldenseal will also
its bad reputation due to the    effectively draw venom from insect
misuse popularized by non-Indians.    stings and poisonous spider bites,
Moistened and applied to insect    reduce   swelling,   and   promote
bites and stings, tobacco will    healing. Put onto infected wounds,
draw venom out of the wound and    goldenseal will cleanse the wound
reduce swelling. It also exhibits    and promote healing.
some antiseptic properties.               Tea for internal use, as it is
                                      used to treat ulcers and relieve
Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis):    morning sickness during pregnancy,
Also called yellow root, yellow    is made by steeping a teaspoonful
paint root,   orange root, ground    of powder or crushed dried root in
raspberry, yellow puccoon, yellow    a pint of boiling water for twenty
Indian paint, Indian paint, eye    minutes. Stir well, let settle,
root,   eye   balm,   yellow eye,    and drain off liquid.    Take six
tumeric root, and jaundice root.      tablespoonfuls of the tea per day.
   Goldenseal is the most powerful    The tea can also be used as a wash
herb in Cherokee medicine, and it    for inflammations, eczema, open
was from the Cherokees that the    sores, ringworm, and other skin
early settlers learned of this    diseases.   For an eye wash, steep
herb.   Before going into battle,    a small teaspoon of boric acid
Cherokee warriors painted their    (optional) with the tea, let cool,
bodies with the juice and chewed    and mix one teaspoon of tea with
on a piece   of the root   for    «-cup of water. Bathe eyes with
protection against their enemy's    this, using an eye cup or dropper,
weapons.                              for relief of inflammation and
    One group of warriors fighting    tired eyes.   Especially effective
for    the   Confederacy    always    against Staphylococcus aureus.
painted themselves with goldenseal         Goldenseal lowers blood sugar
and did the appropriate rituals    levels, making   it   useful for
before going into battle.   None    treating stress and anxiety.
were ever wounded or killed, while
non-Indians about them fell to       CAUTION: While the doses given
enemy fire.                           here   are   perfectly safe   for
     Powdered goldenseal root was    internal use, it should be noted
(and still is) used in certain    that in   very   large   amounts,
religious ceremonies, especially    hydrastine, an active ingredient
in rituals of protection against    in goldenseal, is toxic. It is
malevolent   forces,   human   and    also cumulative. Large quantities
spiritual. It was also mixed with    overstimulate the nervous system,
bear grease and put on the body to    and can cause convulsions, nausea,
repel insects.                        or respiratory failure. However,
    As a healing herb, goldenseal    ill effects from goldenseal are
is equally impressive.   Among its    extremely rare.
myriad medicinal uses are those of    (See MEDICINE, page 6)

February 1997 SENAA Newsletter 6

MEDICINE (from page 5)
    Goldenseal is also valuable as    diuretics, and diaphoretics.
a dye, and as a pigment in oil and       Gray goldenrod has been used as
watercolor paints.    Mixed with    a carminative.   Sweet goldenrod,
indigo, it gives a pleasant green    also considered a carminative by
color   to cotton.    Used   with    some,   has   been   used   as   a
mordants (fixatives), it produces    stimulant.   Tea made   from the
permanent dyes ranging from pale    leaves    has   been   given   for
yellow to orange.                     flatulence and vomiting, and to
                                      soothe a headache. The flowers
Goldenrod (Solidago): Is another    have laxative properties, and tea
plant sacred to the Cherokees.    made from them have been used to
Its dried stems are, by tradition,    treat urinary tract obstructions.
used to kindle the council fires.         The Chinese use "European"
Both Native Americans and Chinese    goldenrod   for   headaches,   for
have long known the healing powers    treating the flu, sore throat,
of goldenrod.   British folklore    malaria, and measles.
claims that the herb is a healer       As a remedy, steep one teaspoon
of not only the body, but of the    of sweet goldenrod leaves in a cup
pocketbook, as well. Always the    of water.   To use the flowers,
fortune hunters, they claimed that    steep one ounce of flowering tops
the golden flowers   pointed to    in a pint of water.
equally golden hidden treasures.         Crushed goldenrod leaves can be
   The Latin name, Solidago means    used to heal wounds, sores, and
"to make whole," attesting to its    insect bites.
reputation as a healer.                 The flowering heads of goldenrod
    Sweet goldenrod was an early    can be used as fabric dye.   They
herbal equivalent of sugar coating    produce varying shades of yellow,
on a pill. The pleasant smell and    depending on what mordant is used
anise-like taste of the tea could    and the   natural flukiness   of
disguise disgusting flavors and    of natural dyes.   Cyrus Hyde of
odors of other ingredients.           New Jersey's Well-Sweep Herb Farm
     Three varieties of goldenrod;    recommends adding onion skins and
S. nemoralis or gray goldenrod,    sage   to   the dye pot if the
S. odora or sweet goldenrod, and    goldenrod yields   too brassy a
S. virgaurea or European goldenrod    yellow for your taste.
have been used as astringents,          *      *      *      *

CHEROKEE CHURCH NEEDS HELP

     The Cherokee United Methodist    child, no rocking chairs to soothe
Church, at the Qualla Boundary,    and quiet fussy infants, and no
needs help to establish Sunday    changing tables to use.
School classes for its children.         The children of this church
    The church has four classrooms    need your help.
for its 40 to 50 children, but         If you have time to donate to
those rooms are empty and in need    help paint and remodel classrooms,
of painting and remodeling. There    or if you have chairs, materials
are no chairs for them to sit in,    to build tables, or money you can

no tables upon which to do Sunday    spare to help buy Sunday School
School activities, and no supplies    supplies and literature, please
or literature with which to learn    contact Al Swilling, 423-479-2827.
of a loving, caring Creator.            Make cash donations payable to:
    The nursery is bare. There is    Cherokee United Methodist Church
not one crib to lay a sleeping    P.O. Box 367, Cherokee NC 28719

February 1997 SENAA Newsletter 7

Silver Sage (Sagebrush) Goldenseal
(Artemisia tridentata) (Hydrastis canadensis)

Sage Goldenrod
(Salvia Officinalis) (Solidago)

February 1997 SENAA Newsletter 8

THE TSA-LA-GI SYLLABARY

Pronunciation key: a, as in watch; e, as a in game, or the ‚ in
caf‚; i, as ee in keep; o, as in boat; u, as oo in boot; v, as the u in
but; tsi, as chee in cheek, or jee in jeep, sometimes as see in seek;
tso, as cho in chosen, or Jo in Joke, sometimes as so in soak; tsa, as
jah or cha in Charles, sometimes as sah; tse, cha in change, or ja in
Jason, sometimes as sa in sacred; tsu, ju in juice, or choo in choose,
sometimes as soo in soon ; tsv,ju in judge, ch in child or chu in chum,
sometimes as su in sudden; g, as in gun, or approaching k; qw, as qu in
quick or quote, sometimes as k in king or kill.

A - E - I - O - U - V -

GA - GE - GI - GO - GU - GV -

KA -

HA - HE - HI - HO - HU - HV -

LA - LE - LI - LO - LU - LV -

MA - ME - MI - MO - MU -

NA - NE - NI - NO - NU - NV -

HNA - NAH -

QWA - QWE - QWI - QWO - QWU - QWV -

S - SE - SI - SO - SU - SV -

SA -

DA - DE - DI - DO - DU - DV -

TA - TE - TI -

TLA - TLE - TLI - TLO - TLU - TLV -
(HLA)

DLA -

TSA - TSE - TSI - TSO - TSU - TSV -

WA - WE - WI - WO - WU - WV -

YA - YE - YI YO - YU - YV -

Our apologies for the interruption in our printing of the Newsletter. We
will do our best to see that such a delay doesn't happen again. Thank
you for understanding and for your continued support. -- Editor

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S-GI
WA-DO
THANK YOU FOR VISITING.