ADVERTISEMENT.

To secure this has been the aim of the Publishers of these volumes, and they are encouraged to hope that their plan has already been approved by the rapid sale of very large impressions of two former series. Instead of the Tale with the single and fanciful frontispiece for One Shilling, they now present a series at Eighteenpence per volume, comprehending various and authentic information, and embellished with original and correct illustrations.

THE MANDAN INDIANS.

.Most of us have read and heard of the Red Indians of North America, and, perhaps, have mentally classed them all as one people, speaking the same language, having the same manners and customs, and of the same race. The fact, however, is, that there are as wide diversities of origin, character, habits, and language, among the native tribes scattered over the North American continent, as among the nations of Europe.

Our knowledge of the Red Indians has been greatly increased by the labours of George Catlin, who, for eight years (from 1832 to 1840) travelled and lived among them: during that time he devoted himself to the task of

obtaining every possible information respecting the manners and customs of the different tribes. He painted the portraits of many of their principal men and women; he took sketches of their dresses, their ceremonies, and their sports; and his book, which is profusely illustrated with outline engravings, taken from his paintings, will remain as a vivid memento of Indian life, when, as it is too probable will soon be the case, the people whose story it records have utterly disappeared from the face of the earth. This has already been the case with one tribe, in many respects the most remarkable among all that he visited; the wild and gentlemanly Mandans, a view of whose village is prefixed to this chapter.

At the time when Mr. Catlin visited them, the tribe was located on the west bank of the Missouri river, about 1800 miles above St. Louis, one of the most westerly cities of the United States. The Mandans at that time numbered in all about 2000 souls, who were divided between two villages, situated about two miles apart.