Building Decentralized Trust: Multidisciplinary

Perspectives on the Design of Blockchains and

Distributed Ledgers Victoria L. Lemieux (Editor)
download
https://textbookfull.com/product/building-decentralized-trust-
multidisciplinary-perspectives-on-the-design-of-blockchains-and-
distributed-ledgers-victoria-l-lemieux-editor/

Download full version ebook from https://textbookfull.com

We believe these products will be a great fit for you. Click
the link to download now, or visit textbookfull.com
to discover even more!

The Palgrave Handbook of Multidisciplinary Perspectives

on Entrepreneurship Romeo V. Turcan

https://textbookfull.com/product/the-palgrave-handbook-of-
multidisciplinary-perspectives-on-entrepreneurship-romeo-v-
turcan/

Unlocking Blockchain on Azure: Design and Develop

Decentralized Applications Shilpa Karkeraa

https://textbookfull.com/product/unlocking-blockchain-on-azure-
design-and-develop-decentralized-applications-shilpa-karkeraa/

Performance Based Building Design Hugo S. L. Hens

https://textbookfull.com/product/performance-based-building-
design-hugo-s-l-hens/

Data Privacy And Trust In Cloud Computing: Building

Trust In The Cloud Through Assurance And Accountability
Theo Lynn

https://textbookfull.com/product/data-privacy-and-trust-in-cloud-
computing-building-trust-in-the-cloud-through-assurance-and-
accountability-theo-lynn/
Refugees and Forced Migrants in Africa and the EU
Comparative and Multidisciplinary Perspectives on
Challenges and Solutions Elisabeth Wacker

https://textbookfull.com/product/refugees-and-forced-migrants-in-
africa-and-the-eu-comparative-and-multidisciplinary-perspectives-
on-challenges-and-solutions-elisabeth-wacker/

Nature Based Flood Risk Management on Private Land

Disciplinary Perspectives on a Multidisciplinary
Challenge Thomas Hartmann

https://textbookfull.com/product/nature-based-flood-risk-
management-on-private-land-disciplinary-perspectives-on-a-
multidisciplinary-challenge-thomas-hartmann/

Equality: Multidisciplinary Perspectives 1st Edition

François Levrau

https://textbookfull.com/product/equality-multidisciplinary-
perspectives-1st-edition-francois-levrau/

Building Performance Simulation for Design and

Operation 2nd Edition Jan L. M. Hensen

https://textbookfull.com/product/building-performance-simulation-
for-design-and-operation-2nd-edition-jan-l-m-hensen/

Blockchains: A Handbook on Fundamentals, Platforms and

Applications 2024th Edition Sushmita Ruj

https://textbookfull.com/product/blockchains-a-handbook-on-
fundamentals-platforms-and-applications-2024th-edition-sushmita-
ruj/
Victoria L. Lemieux
Chen Feng Editors

Building
Decentralized
Trust
Multidisciplinary Perspectives
on the Design of Blockchains and
Distributed Ledgers
Building Decentralized Trust
Victoria L. Lemieux • Chen Feng
Editors

Building Decentralized Trust

Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the Design
of Blockchains and Distributed Ledgers
Editors
Victoria L. Lemieux Chen Feng
School of Information School of Engineering
University of British Columbia University of British Columbia Okanagan
Vancouver, BC, Canada Kelowna, BC, Canada

ISBN 978-3-030-54413-3 ISBN 978-3-030-54414-0 (eBook)

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-54414-0

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the
material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation,
broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information
storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology
now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication
does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant
protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this
book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or
the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any
errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional
claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
Preface

This manuscript is one of the latest examples of how the blockchain and distributed
ledger technology (DLT) research and education cluster at the University of British
Columbia, “Blockchain@UBC,” has been working as a multidisciplinary group of
scholars and educators over the past few years while serving as a catalyst for
research, teaching, and community building. Blockchain@UBC currently comprises
the largest multidisciplinary research and education cluster in Canada and has thus
been able to be at the forefront of blockchain and DLT theoretical thinking and
development from a multidisciplinary perspective, a perspective that is, arguably,
required to avoid the pitfalls of siloed thinking that can lead to unintentional negative
consequences sometimes associated with the introduction of emerging technologies.
The opportunity for the present academic collaboration arose when the
Blockchain@UBC cluster received support from the Peter Wall Institute for
Advanced Studies, also part of the University of British Columbia, through its
International Research Roundtable Program. The International Research Roundtable
Program, according to Peter Wall Institute, is intended to “foster excellence in
research, and serv[e] as a catalyst for collaborative research between international
scholars and UBC scholars.”1 The program aims at providing a platform for
scholars, community leaders, artists, policy makers, and diverse networks of stake-
holders. The roundtable program allows for exploration of a multidisciplinary topic,
creating the foundation for innovative research and prompting relevant discussions
and advances in science and society. Within the context of this program,
Blockchain@UBC leaders proposed to create a 3-day intensive collaborative expe-
rience during the summer of 2019, which was the impetus for this volume. We

1
https://pwias.ubc.ca/program/virtual-roundtables

v
vi Preface

sincerely hope the volume meets its aim of contributing to innovative research and
prompting multidisciplinary discussions and advances in the design of blockchain
and distributed ledger systems.

Vancouver, Canada Victoria L. Lemieux

Kelowna, Canada Chen Feng
April 2020
Acknowledgments

VLL and CF would like to thank the Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies for
providing funding and logistical support for the International Research Roundtable
with which this volume began. Without the generous support to multidisciplinary
research efforts such as those at Blockchain@UBC, the insights presented in this
volume would not have been possible. In particular, we would like to express our
appreciation to Bernadette Mah, Program Manager, at the Peter Wall Institute for
Advanced Studies.
We would also like to thank Michelle Ho, Blockchain@UBC’s Program Coor-
dinator, for her tireless organizational efforts and logistical support.
For the most part, the roundtable participants served as peer reviewers of one
another’s chapters, following the single blind peer review process we set out during
the roundtable; however, in some cases, we felt it necessary to seek out the special
expertise of external reviewers. We would like to thank Dr. Darcy Allen, Research
Fellow at the RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub, Melbourne; Dr. Ning Nan, Asso-
ciate Professor at the Sauder School of Business, University of British Columbia;
and Dr. Konstantin Beznosov, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at
the University of British Columbia, for ably reviewing draft chapters.
We would also like to express our appreciation to Dr. Marcelo Bravo, who
brought his creative vision to the roundtable and the process of producing this
volume—without his expert facilitation we would not have had such a successful
roundtable nor would we have had nearly as much fun. To our graduate students and
postdoctoral research fellows, who served as roundtable facilitators and chapter
production coordinators—Danielle Batista, Amir Fard Bahreini, Darra Hofman,
Chang Lu, Chris Rowell, and Artemij Voskobojnikov—please accept our special
thanks for your hard work and enthusiasm for this project. You always went above
and beyond in your support of this process.

vii
viii Acknowledgments

We would be remiss if we were not to thank all of the roundtable participants for
sharing ideas and knowledge to contribute to this volume, and for their willingness to
engage in our experimental strategic design approach.
Finally, we would like to express our appreciation to Jennette Chalcraft as well as
the staff at Springer for their excellent editorial assistance.
Contents

1 Introduction: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the

Design of Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Systems (Part I) . . . . . 1
Victoria L. Lemieux and Marcelo Bravo
2 Blockchain Governance: De Facto (x)or Designed? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Darra Hofman, Quinn DuPont, Angela Walch, and Ivan Beschastnikh
3 Incentives to Engage Blockchain and Ecosystem Actors . . . . . . . . . . 35
Mohan Tanniru, Jianyu Niu, Chen Feng, Claudio Gottschalg Duque,
Chang Lu, and Harish Krishnan
4 Balancing Security: A Moving Target . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Artemij Voskobojnikov, Volker Skwarek, Atefeh Mashatan,
Shin’Ichiro Matsuo, Chris Rowell, and Tim Weingärtner
5 Distributing and Democratizing Institutional Power Through
Decentralization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Amir Fard Bahreini, John Collomosse, Marc-David L. Seidel,
Maral Sotoudehnia, and Carson C. Woo
6 Blockchains and Provenance: How a Technical System
for Tracing Origins, Ownership and Authenticity Can
Transform Social Trust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Danielle Batista, Henry Kim, Victoria L. Lemieux, Hrvoje Stancic,
and Chandana Unnithan
7 Conclusion: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the
Design of Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Systems (Part 2) . . . . . 129
Victoria L. Lemieux and Chen Feng

ix
Chapter 1
Introduction: Theorizing from
Multidisciplinary Perspectives
on the Design of Blockchain and Distributed
Ledger Systems (Part I)

Victoria L. Lemieux and Marcelo Bravo

1.1 A Comprehensive Perspective: The Opportunity

and Need for Blockchain and Distributed Ledger
Technology Systems Integrated Theoretical
Advancements

Blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) systems, which Michael Casey
and Paul Vigna (2018) have called “The Truth Machine”, have emerged as a solution
to the problem of trust which, at the moment, is experiencing une crise (Edelman
2017). Trust is at an all-time low in connection with data and records (as an example,
we are bombarded daily with misinformation); in social, political and economic
institutions; and in technical systems that are designed for the manipulation of data
but not for its protection. Many people no longer trust our institutions, our informa-
tion systems, nor the information they contain. Moreover, some individuals increas-
ingly mistrust centralized authorities in any form.
Cheney et al. (2009) observe: “historically, databases. . .were trusted because
they were under centralized control: it was assumed that trustworthy and knowl-
edgeable people were responsible for the integrity of the data.” But times have
changed. As Collomosse et al. (2018) note, trust in archival institutions, traditionally
seen as places that could be trusted to preserve the long-term integrity and authen-
ticity of records, has eroded. This erosion of trust is because, in many contexts, those
in control of centralized systems have proven to be untrustworthy, manipulating the

V. L. Lemieux (*)
School of Information, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
e-mail: [email protected]
M. Bravo
School of Public Policy and Global Affairs, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC,
Canada
e-mail: [email protected]

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021 1

V. L. Lemieux, C. Feng (eds.), Building Decentralized Trust,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-54414-0_1
2 V. L. Lemieux and M. Bravo

records and information which they were supposed to be protecting. Nor has
decentralization been the answer up until now: data originating from the web or
social media have proven to be quite untrustworthy in many cases. We have lacked,
as of today, a comprehensive solution to these problems.
Now, however, blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) systems are
being advanced as a solution to the global crisis of trust due to their potential as a
digital trust infrastructure. Blockchain is characterized by confirmed and validated
sets of transactions that are chained together to make tampering difficult and render
records immutable. Blockchain and DLT’s design and unique capabilities, some
argue, circumvent the need for trust, which is why they are sometimes called
“trustless” technologies (Kasireddy 2018). In practice, however, blockchain and
DLT technology really does not obviate the need for trust. Instead, they offer a
new way to substitute what we once relied upon as the basis of trust but which is now
viewed as untrustworthy, inefficient or flawed (e.g., long-term social ties, traditional
legal contracts, or information supplied by intermediaries) with other sources of trust
(e.g., computation). The unique potential of blockchain and DLT technology vis-a-
vis the problem of trust establishes them as emerging technologies with socio-
economic, data records, and technical implications that far exceed most other
emerging technologies.
Yet, despite their potential, blockchain and DLT systems are still under theorized
and not well understood. We do not fully comprehend, for example, the ways that
different aspects of a blockchain or DLT solution interacts with, or creates trade-offs
that have an effect on, trust, whether among human social actors or technical system
components. This is a gap that this volume seeks to help fill. The following sections
of this introductory chapter therefore will explain (1) the opportunity and need for
blockchain and DLT system theoretical advancement, (2) the methodological foun-
dation of the collaborative theory building using a design-led approach known as the
Strategic Design Method, (3) the interdisciplinary philosophical underpinnings and
preparations for crafting the roundtable experience that has given rise to this volume,
(4) the experience of the multidisciplinary work that took place during the Peter Wall
Institute for Advanced Studies’ International Research Roundtable on blockchain
and distributed ledger technologies (hereafter referred to as the PWIAS RT), and the
subsequent writing and review activities that materialized into this book, and (5) an
applied reflection, lessons learned from the process, and future applications.

1.2 Blockchain and DLT Systems’ Interacting Trust Layers

This volume began with the theoretical proposition that the design of blockchains
and DLT systems as decentralized trust infrastructures can be said to rely upon three
interacting “trust layers” (Lemieux et al. 2019): a social layer, the layer at which
social actors of all types interact with one another and determine how much
information they need, and in what form (e.g., by social convention, how much
from the blockchain system and how much from other sources external to the
1 Introduction: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the Design of. . . 3

Fig. 1.1 Three-layer trust model of blockchain technology (Lemieux et al. 2019)

system) in order to be able to trust and take action on the basis of that trust; a data/
records layer that supplies trustworthy (and trusted) information that social actors
have decided they need to obtain from the blockchain system to give them confi-
dence to act; and a technical layer, being the technical means (e.g., applications,
networks, consensus mechanisms) by which social actors interact and create, store
and obtain information about those interactions as tamper-resistant and
non-repudiable proof of facts about acts (see Fig. 1.1).
Each of these layers interoperates with the goal of achieving trusted transactions.
Due to their capacity to alter existing technical, data/records, and social trust
relations, blockchain and DLT systems hold the potential to disrupt a myriad of
social, political, and economic domains.
Much of the blockchain research to date naturally focuses on the technical aspects
of these emerging technologies. In addition, there is a growing body of research
focusing on the social, economic, and political potential for transformation of
blockchain and DLTs and on the question of blockchains and data privacy. A
much more limited amount of research has also been done on the recordkeeping
aspects of blockchains. Very little work has been done at the interstices of these
aspects and their implications for the design of blockchain and DLT systems, though
Kannengiesser, Lins, Dehling and Suyaev’s work (2019) stands as a notable excep-
tion. In that work, the authors observe that blockchain/DLT “is available in different
designs that exhibit diverse characteristics. Moreover, DLT designs have comple-
mentary and conflicting characteristics. Hence, there will never be an ideal DLT
design for all DLT use cases; instead, DLT implementations need to be configured to
contextual requirements” (p. 1). With this exception, discussions of trade-offs in the
blockchain/DLT literature are largely conceptualized in terms of the tension that
exists between speed and security (see, e.g., Kiayias and Panagiotakos 2015).
Kannegeisser et al. (2019) expand this to considerations of trade-offs among six
properties: security, performance, usability, development flexibility, level of ano-
nymity, and institutionalization, drawn from a systematic analysis of extant literature
on blockchain and DLT. Although their framework for analysis of the trade-offs
among key blockchain and DLT characteristics conceives of blockchain and DLT as
socio-technical in nature (for example, they discuss institutionalization and the
contextual requirements of different use cases), our work seeks to draw attention
to, and raise to a first order focus of analysis, the way in which blockchain and DLT
4 V. L. Lemieux and M. Bravo

systems are used for recording and communicating information in record form
among social actors and, by extension, the way in which blockchain and DLT
systems’ novel approach to recording and communication configures human social
relations.
We see this as an important and novel contribution to the extension of prior work
because one of the key disruptive affordances of blockchains and DLT systems is the
supply of supposedly trustworthy records and information aimed at the promotion of
social trust in particular; thus, to overlook this key aspect of such systems is to fail to
understand their fundamental nature as systems of recordkeeping and, to a large
extent, miss the point of blockchain and DLT technology. The interactions among
these three aspects (the social; data/records; and technical), we argue, have yet to be
understood and explored, though current research certainly points to and confirms
the importance of understanding interrelationships in blockchain and DLT system
design. By bringing researchers from diverse backgrounds together, the PWIAS RT
that gave rise to this volume sought to further unpack relationships by exploring
interdependencies among the social, data/records and technological aspects of
blockchain and DLT systems which are, at present, not fully appreciated and
understood.
Too many novel technologies have been introduced without thought to the way
that the technical affordances of the technology impact upon social behavior (think
about social media as an example), the way that the business models of new
technologies affect user privacy (think about large-scale platforms that gather up
our data), or the way in which more efficient machine processing of information
affects society (think about AI as an example here). Thus, a core premise of this
volume is that a failure to understand and consider the relationships and interdepen-
dencies among the interstices of these three aspects—the social, data/records, and
technical—of blockchain and DLT systems and, indeed, any emerging technology
would likely end in unintended consequences and regret. Through focusing upon
and theorizing about the three layers and the interstices and interrelationships among
them, the aim of the contributors to this volume is to strengthen the design of
blockchain/DLT solutions so that, ultimately, their application may achieve a net
beneficial effect on society—as many proponents of these technologies envision
blockchain and DLT can do—or, at the very least, avoid some disastrous
unintentional introduction of risks to humanity and the environment.

1.3 The Design Approach: Introducing Strategic Design

as a Guiding Collaborative Framework

Strategic design has been an ongoing theoretical development in the world of design-
led methodologies that has been serving industry in the last two decades, usually
referred to as design thinking (Liedtka et al. 2014; Brown 2009; Martin and
Christensen 2013). However, its influence has been progressively adopted and
1 Introduction: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the Design of. . . 5

adapted in academia and the public sector based on its creative planning possibilities,
human-centred approaches, and fast-paced learning applications.
Strategic design, a term explored and expanded in Canada by Professor Moura
Quayle—system designer formerly at the University of British Columbia’s (UBC)
Sauder School of Business and currently at the UBC School of Public Policy and
Global Affairs—has served in the last decade to shape and re-think numerous
organizational developments and academic initiatives at UBC, in Canada, and
abroad (UBC d.studio 2015; UBC Policy Studio 2017). Strategic design advances
have been led initially by Sauder’s d.studio and more recently by the Policy Studio,
both at the University of British Columbia. These units have successfully engaged
participants from various academic disciplines, as well as industry, government and
the general public. Strategic design can be understood as a design-led method that is
human centred, highly collaborative, and that offers an integrative thinking approach
that incorporates both critical thinking as well as creative thinking cognitive domains
(Quayle 2017).
Strategic design has been used to tackle challenges that span varied academic
disciplines, non-academic space, as well as cross-disciplinary endeavors that require
a higher level of collaboration, effective reflection, and novel thinking, all of which
make it a perfect approach for addressing theoretical gaps in an emerging technology
that has an inherently multidisciplinary character.1 The following is a more in-depth
exploration of the particular features of the Strategic Design Method and the
rationale for its application to collaborative efforts that supports blockchain and
DLT system design theoretical advances.
Strategic design emphasizes a practical, reflective, and a co-generative approach.
It starts with an understanding of the interests, assumptions, and guiding values of
participants. In the context of a strategic design work, participants act as
co-designers of ideas, prototypes, and new initiatives.
Strategic design is an integration of thinking as well as doing; therefore, Quayle,
one of its main proponents, departs from the term design thinking to assert: “Design
is active. It’s a verb. Design is not just about thinking, but about constantly trying
and doing” (Quayle 2017, pp. 75–76). Strategic design works as a learning and
collaborative platform for discovery. It allows testing and expanding ideas into new
findings, propositions, or models.
The method, according to Bravo’s (2019) empirical findings, is in essence an
interdisciplinary-inspired methodological approach. Strategic design, he states, “has
benefited from a vast array of disciplinary areas that contribute with core knowledge
bringing perspectives that supports problem finding and solution finding” (p. 94).
For instance, strategic design incorporates frameworks and tools from education,
psychology, philosophy, management, engineering, and design led disciplines.

1
Examples include the UBC d.studio “Design Challenge” where multidisciplinary groups of
undergraduate and graduate students co-developed multi-sectoral approaches in climate change
efforts, or the UBC Policy Studio “Resilient Cities Policy Challenge” where graduate students
explored policy programs to strengthen resiliency at the societal level with the City of Vancouver.
6 V. L. Lemieux and M. Bravo

Fig. 1.2 The strategic design process by Quayle and Beausoleil (Reproduced from Quayle 2017,
p. 75)

Strategic design is also integrative in ways that deliberately create space for
divergent and convergent thinking styles aimed at the exploration of a proposed
task or challenge. The method allows space for participants that exhibit different
learning styles to be comfortable and participate in co-generative ways through the
use and application of toolkits that support learning and engagement. On this,
Beausoleil (2016) explored in detail thinking styles and pedagogical approaches
that support design-led education that used the Strategic Design Method in learning
contexts that targeted enhancement of innovativeness competencies.
Importantly, one of the most relevant features of the method relies on the
inclusion of dedicated time for reflection that is deliberately applied throughout
design exercises (see Fig. 1.2). Reflection can be programmed as a personal or
collective task. As Beausoleil’s work revealed, the method can explicitly recognize
diverse types of thinking modes and habits, therefore allowing opportunities for
participants with different styles to think, reflect, and engage.
Another key feature of the Strategic Design Method is the visual-oriented appli-
cation of tools and techniques. Facilitators usually propose activities that are highly
visual and engaging based on educational research, (see for example Sniukas et al.
(2016), Brand (2017), and Galsworth (2018)) supporting the benefits of visual
learning capabilities that participants can gradually incorporate in collaborative
initiatives.
1 Introduction: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the Design of. . . 7

A final characteristic of strategic design, which appeals to both academia and

industry, relates to its highly collaborative nature and how this supports innovation
processes. The method is well-adapted to work to address complex problems—
usually referred to as “opportunities”—that traditionally exceed well-established
academic or domain boundaries (Kolko 2012; Julier and Kimbell 2016; Dunne
2018). As a result, some authors use strategic design to tackle systemic or resilient
challenges that involve multidisciplinary approaches and, in some cases, multi-
sectoral participation through a series of interactive sessions. Significantly, strategic
design or design thinking is a method that several authors propose as a way to
achieve “innovations”, which Liedtka et al. (2014) define as an “idea or an invention
that is implemented and creates value” (p. 3).
The list of authors that have used either design thinking or strategic design is
extensive and growing. For example, in the domain of business we might find the
works of Brown (2009), Martin (2009), Kimbell (2014), Beausoleil (2018), and
Liedtka et al. (2014). These and other scholars of strategic design have been testing
and applying the use of design-led approaches with projects in government, educa-
tion and not for profit sectors. Examples can be found in the work of Liedtka (2017),
Beausoleil (2016), Brown and Wyatt (2010), Quayle (2017), Bellefontaine (2013),
Kolko (2012), Dunne (2018), and studios and consultancy agencies such as IDEO,
Helsinki Design Lab, Dk Mind Lab City, the UK’s Design Council, City of
Vancouver Solutions Lab, amongst others.
The following section now turns to discussing the application of strategic design
as a methodological approach for the PWIAS RT, held in Vancouver in 2019 to
explore and theorize the nature and interrelationships of the proposed three layers of
blockchain and DLT systems.

1.4 Interdisciplinary and Multidisciplinary Underpinnings,

and the Design of the Collaborative Experience

As introduced at the beginning of this chapter, the opportunity to include a design-

led methodology to foster a unique learning and collaborative theory-building
experience was the product of the collaboration of Blockchain@UBC and the
Peter Wall Institute through its International Research Roundtable program. A
specific theme was defined: “The Truth Machine: Exploring the Social, Records
and Technical Potential and Pitfalls of Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technol-
ogies”. The academic leaders of the Blockchain@UBC, a University of British
Columbia blockchain education and research cluster, carefully selected and invited
global thought leaders in blockchain and DLT systems. A key undertaking was to be
able to form a broad-multidisciplinary group in terms of academic backgrounds,
university affiliations, country of origin, and topic of research in blockchain and
DLT, with the interest to share and co-generate knowledge in an intensive, fast-
paced collaborative process.
8 V. L. Lemieux and M. Bravo

Fig. 1.3 Preparatory activities—meeting with teamwork facilitators

Once the invitation was sent and responses received, 28 individuals had con-
firmed their participation and willingness to travel to Vancouver, BC for the PWIAS
RT experience (see Annex 1 for a complete list of participants).
The next step was to carefully select and invite a small group of graduate and
postgraduate students to serve as teamwork discussion facilitators, as well as chapter
development and follow-up leaders. This group was intended to be multidisciplinary
in nature and ideally engaged in some capacity with the Blockchain@UBC cluster.
An initial activity that the facilitators undertook was to review the papers that were
prepared by the larger group of participants invited to the PWIAS RT Subsequently,
a meeting was organized by the lead facilitators (i.e., Dr. Victoria Lemieux, the
International Research Roundtable Co-Principal Investigator and Blockchain@UBC
Co-Lead, and Dr. Marcelo Bravo, the lead International Research Roundtable
Facilitator and expert in strategic design) to inform the teamwork facilitators of the
preparations underway. The key information introduced and discussed during this
preparatory time is included in the following figure (Fig. 1.3).
Part of the discussion at this meeting was to inform the future teamwork facili-
tators of this unique opportunity to bring world-renowned blockchain and DLT
scholars to the University of British Columbia in order to co-generate knowledge
together through discussion and peer-facilitated writing work. The following prin-
ciples of the Strategic Design Method were shared and discussed:
1. Teamwork facilitators are expected to show initiative, and serve as mediators and
catalyzers to move their theme group to achieve the specific day outcomes
outlined by the leader facilitators;
2. Teamwork facilitators should pay attention to inviting all members of the team to
participate, regardless of disciplinary background or area of expertise; and
1 Introduction: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the Design of. . . 9

Fig. 1.4 The Double Diamond design process of the UK’s Design Council

3. Teamwork facilitators are expected to guide and orient the group in a series of
personal and group-shared reflections that will lead to written chapters in the
following weeks/months.
A design model used to plan the collaborative experience with the teamwork
facilitators relied upon an adaptation from the Double Diamond process developed
by the Design Council in the UK. This process, according to the UK’s Design
Council (2005), has been used intensively in different realms of design challenges
that could involve product design, service design, program development, etc. In this
case, the lead facilitators used the model to portray a roadmap of the 2-day intensive
co-reflection and co-writing work being planned. The four main elements of the
Double Diamond were applied (see Fig. 1.4 for a high-level diagram of this model).
It is important to note that the model is sequential but not linear in the sense that the
four phases can sometimes overlap and inform the design process interactively and
iteratively to achieve idea refinements and advancements.
First the Discover phase involved having the participants explore and self-select a
theme from a broader list of potential themes. These themes reflected the intellectual
contributions of participants, and served as early exploration entry points for the
theme under discussion through the three-layer blockchain and DLT model reflec-
tion and their “trade-offs in Socio/Economical and Political (Human interaction)—
Data/Records (Recorded facts about human interactions that can serve as evidence),
and Technical (Means of recording facts about human interactions” (Lemieux
2019).
For the second phase known as the Define phase, participants were invited to
focus and narrow down the types of reflections, ideas, and applied cases to be further
explored in relation to the selected theme. The aim of this phase was to converge into
a series of early peer-reviewed reflections.
The third phase, Develop, corresponded in this case to a process of collaborative,
phased writing. In the first phase, participants were asked to individually write up
their reflections on the selected theme. This was followed by team writing supported
by the teamwork facilitator. This third phase was also programmed to include a
10 V. L. Lemieux and M. Bravo

Fig. 1.5 The PWIAS RT’s Truth Machine wiki page

mechanism of formal peer review, wherein experts from one chapter served as
reviewers for other chapters.
Finally, the fourth phase Deliver was projected to be the final (off-site) write-up
period, with suggestions and edits on draft chapters following a more traditional
single blind peer-review process culminating in the final chapters to be included in
the volume.
A final instruction provided to the teamwork facilitators was to familiarize
themselves and plan to support participants with the Open Science Framework
(OSF) dedicated space (see Fig. 1.5). The OSF is an open digital platform that
provides a dedicated site for multi-user scientific communication that facilitates data
sharing, storage of materials, feedback, and the creation of virtual collaboration
groups. This platform was selected as a preliminary tool for participants’ and
facilitators’ early exchange of ideas and reflections.

1.5 The PWIAS RT Experience and Follow-Up

Collaborative Work

The PWIAS RT followed the Blockchain@UBC Annual Conference, which

consisted of a full day of paper presentations by many of the PWIAS RT partici-
pants, along with introductions, discussions, and conversations with industry and
community partners and the general public. This event, held at the University of
British Columbia’s downtown Vancouver campus at Robson Square, served as an
1 Introduction: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the Design of. . . 11

opportunity for the participants to physically meet and discuss preliminary ideas on
the themes to be considered for discussion.
As noted, the PWIAS RT comprised two full days of group work, initially
involving the group at large, but then using a process of self-selection to form
smaller working groups based on focal themes. Participants participated in the
smaller groups based on their preference and expertise (see Annex 2 for a detailed
agenda).
Day 1 of the PWIAS RT opened with the program agenda and broader introduc-
tions. Facilitators welcomed participants and informed them of the general plan for
the two intensive reflection and writing days. Participants were given a document
providing an overview of the roadmap of the experience, which included the double
diamond process as well as the opportunity/challenge that participants were to be
part of, stated as: To co-generate knowledge and capture the interrelationships
among the three layers in the design of blockchain and distributed ledger technol-
ogies: social, data/records, and technical ones—through a process of peer-led
generative dialogue and group writing.
An important component of the first morning of work was to inform the partic-
ipants that the lead facilitators planned a design-led experience informed by the
principles of strategic design. The facilitators explained that the strategic design
perspective works at its best when multidisciplinary groups are invited, which was
the case; where the problem, quest or challenge is broader than what can be solved
through the lens of one academic discipline, which was also true; and importantly
that strategic design was ideally practiced in studio settings. In order to achieve this
last criterion, participants were introduced to a studio “etiquette” that required they:
• Internalize that the room (working space) was meant to replicate a studio expe-
rience, therefore active participation with both analytical and creative approaches
were expected and encouraged.
• Contribute to the wider group discussion at large, as well as the dedicated small
teamwork tasks, consequently exercising effective listening as well as disposition
to participate in critical and creative thinking tasks.
• Refrain from early judgement that could halt the generative process of ideation
and reframing.
• Be both knowledge “sharers” and knowledge “learners”, and aim to enrich their
unique disciplinary experience and practical expertise through the process of
dialogue and active participation.
After this introduction, a follow-up activity conceived of as a “warm up” exercise
was delivered by one of the facilitators. This group activity involved physical
movement that required finding interesting facts about people’s interests and the
experiences of participants in the room. In order to do this, participants were required
to find out information from their peers, and to obtain their signature as a means of
verification for subsequent rewards (somewhat modeling the operation of blockchain
and DLT systems). Typical questions included for example: find a participant that
speaks at least three languages; find someone who has lived in Vancouver for at least
10 years; find someone who knows how the theme “Truth Machine” originated, etc.
12 V. L. Lemieux and M. Bravo

Fig. 1.6 The list of preliminary PWIAS RT themes for discussion

The idea was for participants to start engaging with each other in a friendly and
collaborative way.
Following this active introductory team building exercise, participants were
asked to focus on the challenge, i.e., how to co-generate knowledge together,
based on the exploration and selection of pre-informed themes. To accomplish
this, a list of pre-selected potential themes for further exploration was displayed by
the facilitators (see Fig. 1.6 for the list of pre-selected themes).
This preliminary list constituted an integration of themes proposed originally by
Dr. Victoria Lemieux, Blockchain@UBC’s Cluster Co-Lead. This list of themes was
the output of analysis of academic papers sent by PWIAS RT participants and early
consultation with blockchain and DLT theoretical experts.
The next activity planned was the participant’s selection of the theme of interest.
For this, the facilitators converted the room into a physical open canvas where the
name of each theme was included at the top of a large sheet of paper affixed to the
walls. Participants were then asked to include early ideas and reflections on each
theme. To activate this, participants were handed several “Post-it® notes” on which
they could write down their ideas and affix them to the sheets of paper on the wall.
The aim of this exercise was for the participants to contribute as much as possible to
every theme/sheet, including adding to an unnamed sheet that was available for
themes not previously considered (Fig. 1.7).
After this activity was performed, the facilitators requested that individual par-
ticipants reflect and choose a theme of preference. Here, the idea was to have each
participant mapped to each theme and select the most popular themes (i.e., those
with the greatest number of ideas/reflections/Post It Notes). In addition to this
self-selection process, the composition and size of the small working groups were
taken into account. For example, the facilitators aimed to ensure that each group
1 Introduction: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the Design of. . . 13

Fig. 1.7 Participants contributing to “themes” development

included individuals whose expertise covered the three layers of the blockchain
design space we were exploring. Ideally each small teamwork group was expected to
include four to five participants of diverse expertise, as well as a graduate student
serving as facilitator. The themes selected at the end of this process were: Decen-
tralization, Governance, Incentives, Provenance, and Security, which have come to
form the multi-authored chapters within this volume.
Subsequently, participants were introduced to the Open Science Framework
(OSF) page or “Wiki” prepared for the occasion, as well as the writing protocol
suggested for experts’ written reflections and ideas. Facilitators then proposed the
following structure for a group collaborative writing exercise: (1) to start with
20 minutes of individual writing, this writing to be recorded directly into the OSF
wiki platform; then, (2) to stop writing and dedicate 20 minutes to read the comments
and ideas expressed by their team members; and (3) to subsequently dedicate
20 minutes to offer a written response to colleagues’ ideas, or to start a process of
written exchange of ideas indicating similarities and differences in perspectives, as
well as the need to conduct further analysis or research.
The first day concluded with two cycles of this collaborative writing process
paused only by a planned small break as intermission. During this time, the facili-
tators were in direct contact with the participants in order to clarify expectations of
the writing circles, as well as to hear direct feedback from the participants and the
teamwork facilitators. This was an applied exercise of the practice of reflection,
proposed by the Strategic Design Method that requires an openness to update or
change processes for best results. At the end of the day, facilitators allowed for the
small group facilitators to start customizing the writing experience for the purpose of
14 V. L. Lemieux and M. Bravo

Fig. 1.8 The Truth Machine, as elaborated by PWIAS RT participants

increased team productivity and to allow a certain degree of team agency into the
process as the teams became more comfortable working together.
Day 2 began with a warm-up that consisted of a creative visualization of the
theme “Truth Machine”. Participants were primed for this group task by inviting
them to be as creative as possible and asked to come up with a designed scheme,
picture, or representation of this abstract theme. Groups were also required to share
their ideas with the larger group. During the day, and at break time, participants were
requested to vote for the best drawing and members received a symbolic reward for
this creative effort.
Figure 1.8 shows the winner of the “Truth Machine Illustration” exercise, elab-
orated by the Provenance team members.
The main purpose of this day 2 exercise was to continue advancing on the first
day’s ideas and reflections, and for the small groups to now work on a
“Chapter visualization”. To do this, groups were allotted a certain amount of time
and were required to discuss, through reflection on their ideas, how their ideas could
be refined during the overall writing time of the project. Participants were encour-
aged to use big charts where they visualized “how” the chapter might be integrated.
It was required for them to be as visual as possible, to include the main elements of a
possible chapter, and to always give consideration to the idea that the theme chosen
had to discuss the interconnection of the three blockchain design layers that were at
the core of the PWIAS RT discussion experience.
After the groups performed this activity, the lead facilitators requested that the
groups share with the larger group the result of this activity. The objective of this
task was twofold: to keep organizing the team’s shared thinking on the chapter and to
1 Introduction: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the Design of. . . 15

Fig. 1.9 Small teamwork groups sharing their ideas of chapter visualization

open the floor for feedback and open reflection by other participants who, although
not writing on that specific theme, were also knowledgeable on the subject and thus
able to contribute with ideas and suggestions to aid in the preparation of chapters.
Figure 1.9 depicts the moments where participants were sharing and adopting
feedback presented by the group at large.
Day 2 was thus proposed as an opportunity for small group integration and
enhancement of the ideas and reflections on the chosen themes to be incorporated
into this volume. It also included some opportunity for hearing about professional
development opportunities in the blockchain and DLT domain: Participants
informed one another about upcoming conferences, additional writing opportunities,
research funding opportunities, as well as future plans for Blockchain@UBC as a
multi-stakeholder cluster initiative.
Finally, the day ended with the review of the schedule for completion of the
upcoming off-site work time, discussion of the type of support required from the
teamwork facilitators, and discussion of the best ways for continuing communication
and interaction. Participants were informed of the required commitment expected
during the off-site time, which was articulated as the time for realization of the
Develop and Deliver phases of the design-led process.
Notably, the time after the face to face PWIAS RT experience was identified as a
critical time for the teamwork facilitators. This small group comprised of five
graduate and postgraduate students served as a connector, guide, and in some
cases, leaders for the successful completion of the remaining work. During this
time, Dr. Victoria Lemieux had constant communication with these facilitators,
supported the process of sending reminders, and was available to facilitate the
follow-up work that resulted from the chapter drafts.
16 V. L. Lemieux and M. Bravo

1.6 Applied Reflection, Lessons Learned from the Process,

and Future Applications

The application of a design-led pedagogical process known as strategic design

turned out to offer a useful and novel mechanism for participants’ engagement in a
designed sharing, reflecting and writing process. For instance, it confirmed the need
and opportunity to incorporate both “face to face” academic meetings with the
support of new “collaborative technologies” that facilitate project development. It
was also clear that the particularities of and diverse composition of the cluster (e.g.,
the place of origin of participants) necessitated a design journey that included a fast
and well-developed roadmap for participants’ engagement and full understanding of
the task at hand.
Another important lesson was the need to include constant check-ins with both
the group at large as well as the teamwork facilitators. This constant feedback
throughout both days, and beyond, allowed small yet fundamental adjustments to
the pace and effective work of the small groups. Another interesting validation was
the opportunity to test out the timing of the method, at least during the 2 days of the
PWIAS RT. It was clear that the right combination of personal work time and group
work time was an important element for participants to fully experience the process
and to remain engaged.
Preliminary feedback also spoke to the balanced nature of including both critical
thinking approaches as well as creative ones. As a premise of strategic design, the
time dedicated to carefully plan and roll out the activities with the participants served
to create an atmosphere of innovativeness in the process that aimed at materialized
theoretical developments. It was also demonstrated that the inclusion of the above-
described activities reinforced the nature of collaboration and opened space for
creativity that was required as a means to meet the broader objective of the
PWIAS RT: a multidisciplinary collaboration that involved a three-layered socio-
informational-technical analysis.
Interestingly, this design-led model pointed to the importance of taking risks and
the challenges of applying new methodologies that can support the goal of
multidisciplinary collaborations. Although greatly appreciated in academia,
multidisciplinary work is sometimes a common aspirational place or an ambitious
objective that is difficult to realize in practice. Systemic barriers that prevent
cooperation are still found, and key barriers exist at the epistemological and meth-
odological level. The PWIAS RT confirmed that the Strategic Design Method can be
used to overcome these barriers.
However, as with any other method, there is opportunity and invitation to
continue with the development of new applications, tools, and techniques that can
be applied in different contexts. The opportunity is there for a continued validation
and experimentation of both strategic design as a method that supports and
strengthens multidisciplinary collaborations, as well as the blockchain and DLT
system theoretical advancements that emerged from the application of strategic
design in the context of our International Research Roundtable.
1 Introduction: Theorizing from Multidisciplinary Perspectives on the Design of. . . 17

Annex 1: Participants by Last Name

1. Beschastnikh, Ivan
2. Collomosse, John
3. DuPont, Quinn
4. Duranti, Luciana
5. Feng, Chen
6. Gottschalg Duque, Cláudio
7. Lemieux, Victoria
8. Kim, Henry
9. Krishnan, Harish
10. Lu, Chang
11. Markey-Towler, Brendan
12. Mashatan, Atefeh
13. Matsuo, Shin’ichiro
14. Nan, Ning
15. Rokmaniko, Maksym
16. Rowell, Chris
17. Sebregondi, Francesco
18. Seidel, Marc-David
19. Skwarek, Volker
20. Stancic, Hrvoje
21. Summerwill, Bob
22. Tanniru, Mohan
23. Tseng, Francis
24. Unnithan, Chandana
25. Walch, Angela
26. Weingärtner, Tim
27. Woo, Carson

Teamwork Facilitators

28. Batista, Danielle

29. Fard Bahreini, Amir
30. Hofman, Darra
31. Lu, Chang
32. Rowell, Chris
33. Voskobojnikov, Artemij
Random documents with unrelated
content Scribd suggests to you:
may do what you please with them." Tecumseh walked over to the group
and found four Shawnees, who, while fighting on the side of the Americans,
had been captured. "Friends," said Tecumseh, "Colonel Elliott has placed
you under my charge and I will send you back to your nation, with a talk to
your people."

Accordingly, he took them with the army as far as Raisin, from which
point their return home would be less dangerous, and then sent two of his
warriors to accompany them with a friendly message to their chiefs. They
were thus discharged, under their parole not to fight against the British
during the war.

Tecumseh was an unruly ally, because he despised Proctor. One day,

provisions being scarce, salt beef was given the English soldiers, while the
Indians received only horse-flesh. Angered at the outrage, Tecumseh strode
to Proctor's tent and demanded an explanation. Seeing the English general
about to treat the complaint with indifference, Tecumseh significantly
struck the hilt of the commander's sword, touching at the same time the
handle of his tomahawk, and said: "You are Proctor. I am Tecumseh." This
hint at a mode of settling the difficulty brought Proctor to terms at once.

After an unsuccessful attempt to reduce Fort Stephenson, then

garrisoned by one hundred and sixty men commanded by Major Croghan,
Proctor and his forces retreated to Malden.

About this time, an American citizen, Captain Le Croix, was arrested

by order of the British commander and confined on board a ship, to be sent
to Montreal. Tecumseh had an especial friendship for Le Croix, and it may
have been because of his influence with the chief that he was seized.
Tecumseh, suspecting that Le Croix had been imprisoned, called on General
Proctor, and asked if he knew anything of his friend. He even ordered the
British general to tell him the truth, adding, "If I ever detect you in a
falsehood, I, with my Indians, will immediately abandon you." The general
was obliged to acknowledge that Le Croix was a prisoner. Tecumseh then
demanded that his friend should be instantly liberated. General Proctor
wrote a line stating that the "King of the Woods" desired the release of
Captain Le Croix, and that it must be done at once. The order was obeyed.
Tecumseh treated the American commander with equal contempt. A recent
writer gives a challenge which that great chief sent to General Harrison at
the first siege of Fort Meigs. It was as follows:

"General Harrison: I have with me eight hundred braves. You have an

equal number in your hiding place. Come out with them and give me battle.
You talked like a brave when we met at Vincennes, and I respected you, but
now you hide behind logs and in the earth, like a ground-hog. Give me
answer.

"Tecumseh."

The Americans always had great confidence in Tecumseh, though he

was an enemy. Once when the English and Indians were encamped near the
River Raisin, some Sauks and Winnebagos entered the house of a Mrs.
Ruland and began to plunder it. She immediately sent her little daughter to
ask Tecumseh to come to her assistance. The chief was in council and was
making a speech when the child entered the building and pulled the skirts of
Tecumseh's hunting-shirt, saying, "Come to our house, there are bad Indians
there." Tecumseh did not wait to finish his speech, but walked rapidly to the
house. At the entrance he met some Indians dragging a trunk away. He
knocked down the first one with a blow from his tomahawk. The others
prepared to resist. "Dogs!" cried the chief, "I am Tecumseh!" The Indians
immediately fled and Tecumseh turned upon some English officers who
were standing near: "You," said he, "are worse, than dogs, to break your
faith with prisoners." The officers immediately apologized to Mrs. Ruland,
and offered to put a guard around her house. She declined this offer,
however, saying that she was not afraid so long as that man, pointing to
Tecumseh, was near.

The ill success which attended the efforts of the British caused
Tecumseh not only to lose heart, but dissipated what little faith he had felt
in Proctor. He seriously meditated a withdrawal from the contest.
Assembling the Shawnees, Wyandots and Ottawas, who were under his
command, he declared his intention to them. He told them that when they
had taken up the tomahawk and joined their father, the King, they were
promised plenty of white men to fight with them; "but the number is not
now greater," said he, "than at the commencement of the war; and we are
treated by them like the dogs of snipe hunters; we are always sent ahead to
start the game. It is better that we should return to our own country, and let
the Americans come on and fight the British."

To this proposition his followers agreed; but the Sioux and Chippewas
discovering his intention, went to him, and insisted that inasmuch as he had
first united with the British, and had been instrumental in bringing their
tribes into the alliance, he ought not to leave them; and through their
influence he was finally induced to remain.

Tecumseh's last grudge against Proctor was on account of the retreat of

the English from Malden, after Commodore Perry's victory on Lake Erie.
The Indians did not understand the movements of a naval battle, and
General Proctor, who doubtless dreaded the influence of a defeat upon
them, said to Tecumseh, "My fleet has whipped the Americans, but the
vessels being much injured have gone to Put-in-Bay to refit, and will be
here in a few days."

The suspicions of Tecumseh were soon aroused, however, when he

thought he perceived indications of a plan to retreat from Maiden. When he
spoke to Proctor on the subject, that cringing coward told him that he was
only going to send all his valuables up the Thames, where they would be
met by a reinforcement and be safe. Tecumseh, however, felt sure that the
commander was meditating a retreat. He demanded, in the name of his
Indians, that he be heard by General Proctor. Audience was granted him on
September 18, and the Indian orator delivered his last speech, a copy of
which was afterward found in Proctor's baggage when it was captured. We
can only quote two paragraphs from it here:

"You always told us," said he, "you would never draw your foot off
British ground; but now, father, we see that you are drawing back, and we
are sorry to see our father doing so without seeing the enemy. We must
compare our father's conduct to a fat dog that carries its tail on its back, but
when affrighted drops it between its legs and runs off. Father, listen! The
Americans have not yet defeated us by land; neither are we sure they have
done so by water; we, therefore wish to remain here and fight our enemy,
should they make their appearance. If they defeat us, we will then retreat
with our father.

"Father, you have got the arms and ammunition which our great father
sent to his red children. If you have an idea of going away, give them to us
and you may go, and welcome. For us, our lives are in the hands of the
Great Spirit. We are determined to defend our lands, and if it be his will, we
wish to leave our bones upon them."

In spite of Tecumseh's protest, Proctor burned Malden and began a

retreat. He pretended from time to time that he would halt and give battle.
When the retreat commenced, Tecumseh said, "We are now going to follow
the British, and I am sure that we shall never return." At last, on October 5,
Proctor was forced to halt and oppose the pursuing Americans in the battle
of the Thames. Just before the engagement Tecumseh said to the group of
chiefs around him: "Brother warriors, we are about to enter into an
engagement, from which I shall never come out—my body will remain on
the field of battle." Unbuckling his sword and handing it to a chief, he said,
"When my son becomes a noted warrior and able to wield a sword, give this
to him."

The battle which followed was for a time fiercely contested, and the
position selected was well adapted for defense. The Indians, under their
indomitable leader, stood their ground longer than the British regulars.

Proctor fled, like the coward he was, leaving the great chief and his
warriors to receive the brunt of the battle. The flight of the British
commander was too rapid for him to be overtaken, though they captured his
baggage.

With one arm bleeding and almost useless, Tecumseh, too proud to fly,
stood his ground, dealing prodigious blows right and left, and inspiring his
warriors with his loud commanding war-whoop, which was heard above the
din of the battle.

Col. Richard M. Johnson and his Kentucky cavalry were ordered to

charge the Indians. This they did with such fury that the savage warriors
fled; but not until their intrepid leader had received a bullet through his
head, which stilled his clarion voice in death.

The discussion as to who killed Tecumseh became a singularly heated

one in subsequent political campaigns, the chief recommendation for office
in that day being skill as an Indian fighter.

The friends of Col. Richard M. Johnson, of Kentucky, claimed that

honor for their hero when he was a candidate for the Vice-Presidency. This,
indeed, constituted one of his chief claims to the suffrage of his party, just
as Harrison's victories at Tippecanoe and the Thames elevated him to the
Presidency. Johnson himself never made the claim, saying that his assailant
was so close upon him that he did not stop to ask him his name before
shooting him.

It may be doubted whether anybody ever did know who fired the shot
that killed the great chief. Those who saw him shot, from the American
side, did not know him from any other Indian, for there was nothing in his
dress to distinguish him from his warriors, and the Indians who saw him fall
did not know his slayer. Many mistook the body of a gayly dressed and
painted warrior for that of Tecumseh.

James, the English historian, and Eggleston, both assert that from the
body of this Indian much of the skin was actually flayed and converted into
razor-strops by some of the pioneer Kentuckians, who had become almost
as barbarous as the savages against whom they fought. The truth of this
statement is confirmed by the testimony of several American officers and
privates who were in the battle of the Thames. They state, however, that it
was the work of a few brutish individuals, and that the great mass of the
army were shocked at its perpetration. {FN}

{FN} The author when a youth was told by Dr. William A. Moore, of Milford,
Kentucky, a member of the Legislature and an old-school gentleman of the highest
integrity, that he (the Doctor) had seen a razor-strop made from the skin that covered
Tecumseh's backbone. It has been demonstrated that Tecumseh's body was not
harmed, but another Indian mistaken for him was both scalped and flayed.
 A short distance from where Tecumseh fell, the body of his friend,
Wasegoboah, the husband of Tecumapease, was found. They had often
fought side by side, and now, in front of their men, bravely battling the
enemy, they side by side closed their mortal careers.

The British historian, James, in his account of the battle of the Thames,
makes the following remarks upon the character and personal appearance of
the subject of this sketch.

"Thus fell the Indian warrior, Tecumseh, in the forty-fourth year of his
age. He was of the Shawnee tribe, five feet ten inches high, and with more
than the usual stoutness, possessed all the agility and perseverance of the
Indian character. His carriage was dignified, his eye penetrating, his
countenance, which even in death betrayed the indications of a lofty spirit,
rather of the sterner cast.

"Had he not possessed a certain austerity of manners, he could not

have controlled the wayward passions of those who followed him to battle.
He was of a silent habit; but when his eloquence became roused into action
by the reiterated encroachments of the Americans, his strong intellect could
supply him with a flow of oratory that enabled him, as he governed in the
field, so to prescribe in the council.

"Such a man was the unlettered savage, Tecumseh. He has left a son,
who, when his father fell, was about seventeen years old, and fought by his
side. The prince regent in 1814, out of respect to the memory of the old,
sent out as a present to the young Tecumseh, a handsome sword.
Unfortunately, however, for the Indian cause and country, faint are the
prospects that Tecumseh, the son, will ever equal, in wisdom or prowess,
Tecumseh, the father."

The name of Tecumseh's son was Pugeshashenwa. The prince regent

also settled upon him an annual pension, in consideration of his father's
services. He was treated with much respect, because he was the son of his
father, and removed to Indian Territory with the remnant of the Shawnee
nation.
 Tecumseh is described as a perfect Apollo in form, his face oval, his
nose straight and handsome, and his mouth regular and beautiful. His eyes,
singularly enough, were "hazel, clear and pleasant in conversation, but like
balls of fire when excited by anger or enthusiasm." His bearing was that of
a lofty and noble spirit, a true "King of the Woods," as the English called
him. He was temperate in his habits, loving truth and honor better than life.
He was an ideal Indian, and both in body and mind the finest flower of the
aboriginal American race.

Possessing a genius which must have made him eminent in any age or
country, like Brant, Pontiac and King Philip, his illustrious predecessors, he
had failed yet like them he was great in defeat. He was the first great
chieftain to prohibit the massacre of prisoners.

Trumbull, in his "Indian Wars," thus refers to this renowned leader:

"He was the most extraordinary Indian that has ever appeared in history. His
acute understanding very early in life informed him that his countrymen had
lost their importance that they were gradually yielding to the whites, who
were acquiring an imposing influence over them. Instigated by these
considerations, and perhaps by his natural ferocity and attachment to war,
he became a decided enemy to the whites, with an invincible determination
to regain for his country the proud independence she had lost.

"Aware, at length, of the extent, number and power of the United

States, he became fully convinced of the futility of any single nation of red
men attempting to cope with them."
 "He formed, therefore, the grand scheme of uniting all the tribes east
of the Mississippi into hostility against the United States. This was a field
worthy of his great and commanding genius."

Besides several towns in different States christened in his honor, his

name was also borne by one of the greatest of American generals.

At the meeting of the Republican National Committee in Washington,

November 23, 1891, to select a city in which to hold a Presidential
convention, President Palmer, of the World's Fair Commission, gave in an
eloquent plea for the selection of Detroit, the promise to take the visitors
thirty miles over into Canada to view the spot where Tecumseh, "the
greatest Indian the American continent ever knew, was slain."

Paradoxical as it may seem, he was a savage, yet one of nature's

noblemen.

The words of Hamlet apply to this "King of the Woods" in a striking

manner:

"See, what a grace was seated on this brow

Hyperion's locks; the front of Jove himself;
An eye like Mars, to threaten and command
A station like the herald Mercury,
New-lighted on a heaven-kissing hill
A combination, and a form, indeed,
Where every god did seem to set his seal,
To give the world assurance of a man."
 CHAPTER XI.
BLACK HAWK, OR MA-KA-TAI-ME SHE-KIA-
KIAK, AND HIS WAR.

Great warriors among the Indians, like those of the favored white
race, learned from those who preceded them. We have seen that King Philip
united the tribes of New England against their common enemy, the whites,
in the first great Indian war, and his example was copied in turn by Pontiac
and Tecumseh.

Black Hawk led a band of his own warriors and fought under
Tecumseh in the war of 1812, and must have gained much inspiration as
well as a knowledge of the most effectual methods of fighting the
Americans, from that great chieftain. Certain it is Black Hawk also sought
to form a confederation of the neighboring tribes, including the
Pottawatomies, Winnebagos, Chippewas, Menomonees and Ottawas. But
they had not forgotten the lessons of the preceding half-century or more,
and remained neutral.

He also visited the commander of the British forces at Malden,

opposite Detroit, hoping to gain encouragement and munitions of war, but
in this he was disappointed. The commander, knowing the power of the
Americans and the feeble resources of the Indians, strongly advised against
a hopeless war. This was not the kind of advice the enraged chief wanted,
and, of course, it was declined.

What was the cause of the Black Hawk War? There are several
answers to this question, but we think the explanation of Black Hawk
himself in his autobiography is authentic and the real "casus belli." This
autobiography was dictated to an amanuensis, by means of an interpreter. In
it the chief said:

"In 1804 one of our people killed an American and was captured and
confined in the prison at St. Louis for the offense. We held a council at our
village to see what could be done for him, and determined that
Quashquame, Pashepaho, Onchequaka and Hashequarhiqua should go
down to St. Louis, see our American father and do all they could to have
our friend released, by paying for the person killed, thus covering the blood
and satisfying the relations of the murdered man; this being the only means
with us for saving a person who had killed another, and we then thought it
was the same way with the whites.

"The party started with the good wishes of the whole nation, who had
high hopes that the emissaries would accomplish the object of their mission.

"The relations of the prisoner blacked their faces and fasted, hoping
the Great Spirit would take pity on them and return husband and father to
his sorrowing wife and weeping children.

"Quashquame and party remained a long time, but finally returned and
encamped a short distance below the village. They did not come up that
day, nor did any one approach their camp. They appeared to be dressed in
fine coats and had medals. From these circumstances we were in hopes that
they had brought good news.

"Early the next morning the council lodge was crowded. Quashquame
and party came up and gave us the following account of their mission:

"'On our arrival at St. Louis we met our American father and explained
to him our business, urging the release of our friend. The American chief
told us he wanted land. We agreed to give him some on the west side of the
Mississippi, likewise more on the Illinois side opposite Jefferson. When the
business was all arranged we expected to have our friend released to come
home with us. About the time we were ready to start our brother was let out
of prison. He started and ran a short distance, when he was shot dead!'
 "This was all they could remember of what had been said and done. It
subsequently appeared that they had been drunk the greater part of the time
while at St. Louis.

"This was all myself and nation knew of the so-called treaty of 1804. It
has since been explained to me. I found by that treaty, that all of the country
east of the Mississippi and south of Jefferson was ceded to the United States
for one thousand dollars a year. I will leave it to the people of the United
States to say whether our nation was properly represented in this treaty? Or
whether we received a fair compensation for the extent of country ceded by
those four individuals?

"I could say much more respecting this treaty, but I will not at this
time. It has been the origin of all our serious difficulties with the whites."

On June 27, 1831, Black Hawk made a treaty with General Gaines,
and gave a reluctant consent to abandon his village and cornfields on the
Rock River in Illinois and join Keokuk's band on their reservation in Iowa.
General Gaines believed the trouble was ended, and so it probably would
have been had the whites observed the provisions of the treaty. The Indians
had been promised corn to supply the wants of their families in lieu of that
which was left in their fields, but the amount was so meager that they began
to suffer.

In this emergency, a party of Sacs, to quote the language of Black

Hawk, crossed the river "to steal corn from their own fields."

Moving with his band up Rock River, he was overtaken by a

messenger from General Atkinson ordering him to return and recross the
Mississippi. Black Hawk said he was not on the warpath, but going on a
friendly visit to the village of White Cloud, the Winnebago Prophet, and
continued his journey. General Atkinson now sent imperative orders for him
to return at once, or he would pursue him with his entire army and drive
him back. In reply Black Hawk said the general had no right to make the
order so long as his band was peaceable, and that he intended to go on to
the Prophet's village.
 When Black Hawk reached a point about forty miles above Dixon's
Ferry he was met in council by some Pottawatomie and Winnebago chiefs.
They assured Black Hawk that their people would not join him in making
war upon the United States, contrary to his expectations. Black Hawk now
saw that the Prophet and others had misrepresented the plans and intentions
of these tribes, and resolved to send a flag of truce to General Atkinson and
ask permission to descend Rock River, recross the Mississippi and return to
their reservation.

About this time General Whitesides had concentrated a large force of

militia at Dixon's Ferry, and, at the solicitation of Major Stillman, permitted
him to take out a scouting party of 270 mounted men. They ascended Rock
River to the mouth of Sycamore Creek and encamped within a few miles of
Black Hawk's band, but ignorant of that fact. Indian scouts soon reported to
Black Hawk that a large company of mounted militia were coming toward
his camp, and the chief at once dispatched three warriors with a white flag
of truce, and an invitation for the officers to visit his camp. The whites paid
no attention to this flag, but captured the messengers, killing the flag-bearer
instantly. Black Hawk also sent five others to look after the flag-bearers.
They were pursued and one killed, but the remainder, together with the two
flag-bearers, made their escape in the confusion incident to making
preparation to charge the Indian camp.

When the old chief heard that his flag of truce was disregarded and
two of his warriors killed, he gave the war-whoop and prepared to meet the
whites. He had only about forty mounted warriors, the others being absent
on a hunting trip. Having taken a position in a copse of timber and
underbrush near Sycamore Creek, he waited the approach of the whites.
The soldiers advanced in disorderly fashion, and, having crossed the creek,
were surprised by a terrific war-whoop from the Indians who were
concealed in the bushes and with deadly aim commenced firing into their
ranks. Judging from the yelling of the Indians their number was variously
estimated at from one to two thousand. The entire party was thrown into
such confusion that Major Stillman had no control of them and ordered a
retreat.
 The forty Indians put the two hundred and forty to flight, killing a
dozen and losing only two or three.

With one exception the entire company continued their flight to

Dixon's Ferry, a distance of thirty miles; some never stopped until they were
safe at home.

Black Hawk and fifteen warriors soon gave up the chase, and returned
to his camp. But the remainder pursued the fugitives several miles,
overtaking and killing a few whose horses were too slow to keep out of
their way.

Among the slow mounted of the retreating party was a Methodist

preacher, who adopted a novel plan to save himself and horse. On coming
to a ravine he left the main track and followed down the ravine until he
found a place where the banks were deep enough to shelter himself and
horse from view, and remained there for two hours in safety. He had the
precaution to keep a strict count of the Indians as they crossed the ravine.
When they had returned and continued on their way to their camp, he left
his hiding-place and trotted leisurely along to Dixon's Ferry, which he
reached about sunrise the next morning.

When he reported the stratagem by which he was saved, and was asked
the number of the pursuing Indians, he promptly replied "twenty-five by
actual count." Great indignation was manifested by some of the brave
volunteers, who reached camp several hours before him and reported the
number of the Indians at fifteen hundred to two thousand. But the minister
was well known by many of the volunteers as a high-toned Christian
gentleman whose veracity had never been questioned, and they stood by
him, and no violence was attempted.

The news of Stillman's defeat "by two thousand blood thirsty Indian
warriors" spread fast, far and wide, and Governor Reynolds, of Illinois,
called for more volunteers.

When the news reached Washington General Scott was ordered to take
a thousand soldiers and proceed to the seat of war and take the command.
While en route this army was attacked by cholera, which swept off a large
number and rendered the remainder unfit for service. It is now generally
conceded that the violation of a flag of truce, which is respected in all
civilized wars, the wanton murder of its bearers, and the attack upon a mere
remnant of Black Hawk's band when suing for peace, precipitated a war
which could have been and should have been avoided.

As positive proof that the volunteers were guilty of precipitating the

war by killing the bearer of the white flag of truce, we quote the narrative of
Elijah Kilbourn, one of the scouts connected with Stillman's command. It
seems that Kilbourn was captured by Black Hawk during the war of 1812,
and adopted into his tribe. He finally escaped, and was again captured by
three of Black Hawk's braves at the battle of Sycamore Creek. The story
also shows the noble character of Black Hawk, and will be told in
Kilbourn's own language. Said he: "We had been scouting through the
country that lay about Fort Stephenson, when early one morning one of our
number came in with the intelligence that the fort was besieged by a
combined force of British and Indians. We were soon in the saddle and
riding with all speed in the direction of the fort, hoping to join in the fight.
But in this we were disappointed, as we learned that the brave little
garrison, under the command of Major Crogan, had repulsed the enemy
with great slaughter. We learned, however, that Black Hawk, the leader of
the savages, at the termination of the battle, had gone back with twenty of
his warriors, to his village on Rock River, and we determined at once to
follow him.

"At sunrise the next morning we were on his trail and followed it with
great care to the banks of a stream. Here we ascertained that the savages
had separated into nearly equal parties—the one keeping straight down the
bank of the stream, while the other had crossed to the other side and
continued toward Rock River. Our leader now detailed four of us to follow
the trail across the stream, while he with the rest, some seven or eight in
number, immediately took the one down the bank."
 "During the course of the following morning we came across a great
many different trails, and by these we were so perplexed that we resolved to
return to the main body, but from the signs we had already seen we knew
that such a step would be attended with the greatest danger. It was at last
decided that it would be far more safe for all hands to separate, and each
man look out for himself. This resolve was immediately put into execution,
and a few minutes later found me alone in the great wilderness. I had often
been so before, but never had I been placed in a situation as dangerous as
the present one, for now on all sides I was surrounded by hostile Indians.

"I encountered nothing very formidable till some two hours before
sunset, when, just as I emerged from a tangled thicket, I saw an Indian on
his knees at a clear, sparkling spring, slaking his thirst. Instinctively I
placed my rifle to my shoulder, drew a bead upon the savage and pulled the
trigger. Imagine, if you can, my feelings as the flint came down and was
shivered to pieces without igniting the priming.

"The next moment the savage was up on his feet, his piece leveled
directly at me and his finger pressing the trigger. There was no escape. I had
left my horse in the woods some time before. The thicket behind me was
too dense to permit me to enter it again quickly, and there was no tree
within reach of sufficient size to protect me from the aim of my foe, who,
now finding me at his mercy, advanced, his gun still in its threatening rest
and ordered me to surrender. Resistance and escape were alike out of the
question, and I accordingly delivered myself up his prisoner, hoping by
some means to escape at some future period. He now told me, in good
English, to proceed in a certain direction. I obeyed him and had not gone a
stone's throw before, just as I turned a thick clump of trees, I came suddenly
upon an Indian camp, the one to which my captor undoubtedly belonged.

"As we came up all the savages, some six or eight in number, rose
quickly and appeared much surprised at my sudden appearance amongst
them; but they offered me no harm, and they behaved with most marked
respect to my captor, whom, upon a close inspection I recognized to be
Black Hawk himself. The tall chief, with his keen eye, looked every inch a
warrior.
 "'The white mole digs deep, but Makataimeshe Kiakiak (Black Hawk)
flies high and can see far off,' said the chieftain in a deep guttural tone,
addressing me. He then related to his followers the occasion of my capture,
and as he did so they glared at me fiercely and handled their weapons in a
threatening manner, but at the conclusion of his remarks they appeared
better pleased, although I was the recipient of many a passing frown. He
now informed me that he had told his young men that they were to consider
me a brother, as he was going to adopt me into the tribe.

"This was to me little better than death itself, but there was no
alternative, and so I was obliged to submit, with the hope of making my
escape at some future time. The communication of Black Hawk, moreover,
caused me great astonishment, and after pondering the matter I was finally
forced to set down as its cause one of those unaccountable whims to which
the savage temperament is often subject.

"The next morning my captors forced me to go with them to their

village on Rock River, where, after going through a tedious ceremony, I was
dressed and painted, and thus turned from a white man into an Indian.

"For nearly three years ensuing it was my constant study to give my

adopted brothers the slip, but during the whole of that time I was so
carefully watched and guarded that I never found an opportunity to escape.

"However, it is a long lane that has no turning, and so it proved in my

case. Pretending to be well satisfied with my new mode of life, I at last
gained upon the confidence of the savages, and one day when their
vigilance was relaxed, I made my escape and returned in safety to my
friends, who had mourned for me as dead.

"Many years after this I was a participant in the battle at Sycamore

Creek, which is a tributary of Rock River. I was employed by the
Government as a scout, in which capacity it was acknowledged I had no
superior, but I felt no pride in hearing myself praised, for I knew I was
working against Black Hawk, who, although he was an Indian, had once
spared my life, and I was one never to forget a kindness. And, besides this, I
had taken a great liking to him, for there was something noble and generous
in his nature. However, my first duty was to my country, and I did my duty
at all hazards.

"Now you must know that Black Hawk, after moving west of the
Mississippi, had recrossed, contrary to his agreement; not, however, from
any hostile motive, but to raise a crop of corn and beans with the
Pottawatomies and Winnebagos, of which his own people stood in the
utmost need. With this intention he had gone some distance up Rock River,
when an express from General Atkinson ordered him peremptorily to return.
This order the old chief refused to obey, saying that the general had no right
to issue it. A second express from Atkinson threatened Black Hawk that if
he did not return peaceably force would be resorted to. The aged warrior
became incensed at this and utterly refused to obey the mandate, but, at the
same time, sent word to the general that he would not be the first to
commence hostilities.

"The movement of the renowned warrior was immediately trumpeted

abroad as an invasion of the State, and with more rashness than wisdom,
Governor Reynolds ordered the Illinois militia to take the field, and these
were joined by the regulars under General Atkinson, at Rock Island. Major
Stillman, having under his command two hundred and seventy-five
mounted men, the chief part of whom were volunteers, while a few, like
myself, were regular scouts, obtained leave of General Whitesides—then
stationed at Dixon's Ferry—to go on a scouting expedition. I knew well
what would follow; but still, as I was under orders, I was obliged to obey,
and together with the rest proceeded some thirty miles up Rock River to
where Sycamore Creek empties into it. This brought us to within six or
eight miles of the camp of Black Hawk, who, on that day, May 14, was
engaged in preparing a dog feast for the purpose of fitly celebrating a
contemplated visit of some Pottawatomie chiefs.

"Soon after preparing to camp we saw three Indians approach us,

bearing a white flag; and these, upon coming up, were made prisoners. A
second deputation of five were pursued by some twenty of our mounted
militia and two of them killed, while the other three escaped. One of the
party that bore the white flag was, out of the most cowardly vindictiveness,
shot down while standing a prisoner in camp. The whole detachment, after
these atrocities, now bore down upon the camp of Black Hawk, whose
braves, with the exception of some forty or fifty, were away at a distance,
hunting.

"As we rode up a galling and destructive fire was poured in upon us by

the savages, who, after discharging their guns, sprang from their coverts on
either side, with their usual horrible yells, and continued the attack with
their tomahawks and knives. My comrades fell around me like leaves; and
happening to cast my eyes behind me I beheld the whole detachment of
militia flying from the field. Some four or five of us were left unsupported
in the very midst of the foe, who, renewing their yells, rushed down upon us
in a body. Gideon Munson and myself were taken prisoners, while others
were instantly tomahawked and scalped, Munson, during the afternoon,
seeing, as he supposed, a good opportunity to escape, recklessly attempted
it, but was immediately shot down by his captor. And I now began to wish
they would serve me in the same manner, for I knew that if recognized by
the savages, I should be put to death by the most horrible tortures. Nothing
occurred, however, to give me any real uneasiness upon this point till the
following morning, when Black Hawk, passing by me, turned and eyed me
keenly for a moment or so. Then, stepping close to me, he said, in a low
tone: 'Does the mole think that Black Hawk forgets?'

"Walking away with a dignified air, he left me, as you may suppose,
bordering on despair, for I knew too well the Indian character to imagine for
a single instant that my life would be spared under the circumstances, I had
been adopted into the tribe by Black Hawk, had lived nearly three years
among them, and by escaping had incurred their displeasure, which could
only be appeased with my blood. Added to this, I was now taken prisoner at
the very time that the passions of the savages were most highly wrought
upon by the mean and cowardly conduct of the whites. I therefore gave up
all hope, and doggedly determined to meet stoically my fate.

"Although the Indians passed and repassed me many times during the
day, often bestowing on me a buffet or a kick, yet not one of them seemed
to remember me as having formerly been one of the tribe. At times this
infused me with a faint hope, which was always immediately after
extinguished, as I recalled to mind my recognition by Black Hawk himself.
 "Some two hours before sunset Black Hawk again came to where I
was bound, and having loosened the cords with which I was fastened to a
tree, my arms still remaining confined, bade me follow him. I immediately
obeyed him, not knowing what was to be my doom, though I expected
nothing short of death by torture. In silence we left the camp, not one of the
savages interfering with us or offering me the slightest harm or indignity.
For nearly an hour we strode on through the gloomy forest, now and then
starting from its retreat some wild animal that fled upon our approach.
Arriving at a bend of the river, my guide halted, and turning towards the
sun, which was rapidly setting, he said, after a short pause:

"'I am going to send you back to your chief, though I ought to kill you
for running away a longtime ago, after I had adopted you as a son, but
Black Hawk can forgive as well as fight. When you return to your chief I
want you to tell him all my words. Tell him that Black Hawk's eyes have
looked upon many suns but they shall not see many more, and that his back
is no longer straight, as in his youth, but is beginning to bend with age. The
Great Spirit has whispered among the tree-tops in the morning and evening,
and says that Black Hawk's days are few, and that he is wanted in the spirit
land. He is half dead, his arm shakes and is no longer strong, and his feet
are slow on the warpath. Tell him all this, and tell him, too,' continued the
untutored hero of the forest, with trembling emotion and marked emphasis,
'that Black Hawk would have been a friend to the whites, but they would
not let him, and that the hatchet was dug up by themselves and not by the
Indians. Tell your chief that Black Hawk meant no harm to the palefaces
when he came across the Mississippi, but came peaceably to raise corn for
his starving women and children, and that even then he would have gone
back; but when he sent this white flag the braves who carried it were treated
like squaws and one of them inhumanly shot. Tell him, too,' he concluded
with terrible force, while his eyes fairly flashed fire, 'that Black Hawk will
have revenge, and that he will never stop until the Great Spirit shall say to
him, Come away.'

"Thus saying, he loosened the cord that bound my arms, and after
giving me particular directions as to the best course to pursue to my own
camp, bade me farewell and struck off into the trackless forest, to
commence that final struggle which was decided against the Indians."
 Although the Winnebagos and the Pottawatomies had resolved to take
no part in the war, yet a few young warriors from each of these tribes,
emboldened by Black Hawk's easy victory over Stillman's raw recruits,
decided to join his band. These committed many depredations among the
settlements along the Fox and Illinois rivers.

When the warriors returned from their hunting expedition, Black

Hawk concentrated his entire force, consisting of about five hundred
warriors, according to his own statement, at a point between the Rock and
Wisconsin rivers.

General Atkinson, with a force of nearly two thousand men, pressed on

to meet him. But the wily chief declined to risk a battle with such odds and
withdrew into the wilderness. General Atkinson followed, incurring the
danger of an ambuscade, but Black Hawk could not be brought to a stand.

When Black Hawk reached the Mississippi River, he let most of his
women and children descend it in canoes, but a majority were captured by
the whites and quite a number drowned.

With the main body of his warriors he approached the river, intending
to cross, but was met at this point by the steamboat Warrior.

The chief was so touched by the suffering of the women and children,
the starving condition of his men, and the utter hopelessness of continuing
the unequal struggle, that he decided to surrender. Accordingly, he sent a
hundred and fifty warriors to the edge of the stream with a flag of truce. An
effort was also made to communicate with the Winnebago interpreter on
board the boat. But either the interpreter failed to understand what was
shouted to him by the Indians on shore or he was treacherous and failed to
report the message correctly to Captain Throckmorton, of the Warrior, or
Lieutenant Kingsburg, who commanded the troops, for certain it is those on
the boat paid no attention to the white flag of truce or the expressed desire
on the part of Black Hawk to surrender.

Orders were given to shell the Indians on the shore with musketry and
a six-pounder loaded with canister. It resulted in killing twenty-three
Indians outright and wounding a large number. The savages were trying to
surrender, and were so astonished at this unexpected attack, that they fired
only a few random shots, one of which passed through a man's leg on the
Warrior.

As the wood began to fail, and night was approaching, the Warrior
went on to Prairie du Chien. The final battle of the war occurred the next
day, August 2. This is known as the battle of Bad Axe and was fought where
the little stream by that name joins the Mississippi. The account we give of
it is quoted from Black Hawk's autobiography, in which the chief said:
"Early in the morning a party of whites, being in advance of the army, came
upon our people, who were attempting to cross the Mississippi. They tried
to give themselves up; the whites paid no attention to their entreaties, but
commenced slaughtering them. In a little while the whole army arrived. Our
braves, but few in number, finding that the enemy paid no regard to age or
sex, and seeing that they were murdering helpless women and little
children, determined to fight until they were killed. As many women as
could commenced swimming the Mississippi, with their children on their
backs. A number of them were drowned, and some shot before they could
reach the opposite shore.

"This massacre, which terminated the war, lasted about two hours. Our
loss in killed was about sixty, besides a number that was drowned. The loss
of the enemy could not be ascertained by my braves exactly; but they think
that they killed about sixteen during the action."

It was afterward estimated that the loss of the Americans in killed and
wounded was twenty-seven—that of the Indians nearly two hundred.

In reviewing the Black Hawk War the student of history is forced to

the conclusion that it was caused by the white man's avarice and
determination to swindle the Indian out of his birthright, the finest lands of
Wisconsin, Missouri and Illinois, for the usual mess of pottage. It began by
the deliberate murder of the bearer of a white flag of truce (which is
respected by every civilized nation on earth), and it ended in an
indiscriminate massacre of men, women and helpless children, while the
chief and warriors were suing for peace, and actually trying to surrender.
 Having escaped through the lines of the American army, Black Hawk,
with a small party, fled to the Winnebago village at La Crosse. On his
arrival here he entered the lodge of their chief and told him he intended
giving himself up to the American war-chief and die if it pleased the Great
Spirit. Black Hawk still retained his medicine bag, which he now presented
to the chief, and informed him that it was "the soul of the Sac nation—that
it never had been dishonored in any battle; take it, it is my life—dearer than
life—and give it to the American chief!" The Winnebago chief received it,
promised to take special care of it, and said if Black Hawk's life was spared
he would send it to him, but for some unknown cause this promise was
never fulfilled.
 During his stay at this village the squaws made him a suit of white
deerskin, which he wore when he went with several Winnebagos to Prairie
du Chien and gave himself up.

On August 27, 1833, about noon, Black Hawk and his companion,
called the Prophet, surrendered to General Street at Prairie du Chien.

On September 7, Black Hawk, now a prisoner of war, together with the

Prophet and others, were taken on board the steamer Winnebago and sent to
Jefferson Barracks, in charge of Lieut. Jefferson Davis, of whom the chief
said: "He is a good and brave young chief, with whose conduct I was much
pleased, and treated us with great kindness."

We are here reminded that at least four men who took part in the Black
Hawk War were heard of again. Col. Zachariah Taylor and Capt. Abraham
Lincoln each became President; Lieut. Jefferson Davis, Taylor's son-in-law,
President of the Southern Confederacy, while Gen. Winfield Scott, "the hero
of four wars," escaped the cholera, which almost destroyed his army, to
become a strong Presidential probability, and the standard-bearer of the
Whig party.

While Black Hawk was not equal to Pontiac, Brant or Tecumseh as a

warrior and leader of men, yet his skill in oratory placed him in the class
with Red Jacket, Logan, or even the gifted Tecumseh. Fortunately many of
his speeches were made under circumstances which have permitted them to
be preserved and though they were probably "revised," in some instances,
by admiring friends, yet he undoubtedly possessed a peculiar poetical
eloquence all his own.

When the fallen chieftain entered the presence of General Street as a

prisoner he thus addressed him: "You have taken me prisoner with all my
warriors. I am much grieved, for I expected if I did not defeat you to hold
out much longer and give you more trouble before I surrendered. I tried
hard to bring you into ambush, but your last general understands Indian
fighting. The first one was not so wise. When I saw I could not beat you by
Indian fighting, I determined to rush on you and fight you face to face. I
fought hard, but your guns were well aimed. The bullets flew like birds in
the air, and whizzed by our ears like wind through the trees in winter. My
warriors fell around me; it began to look dismal. I saw my evil day at hand.
The sun rose dim on us in the morning and at night it sank in a dark cloud,
and looked like a ball of fire. That was the last sun that shone on Black
Hawk. His heart is dead and no longer beats quick in his bosom. He is now
a prisoner to the white man; they will do with him as they wish. But he can
stand torture and is not afraid of death. He is no coward. Black Hawk is an
Indian.

"He has done nothing for which an Indian ought to be ashamed. He has
fought for his countrymen, the squaws and pappooses, against white men,
who came year after year to cheat him and take away their lands. You know
the cause of our making war. It is known to all white men. They ought to be
ashamed of it. The white men despise the Indians and drive them from their
homes. But the Indians are not deceitful. The white men speak bad of the
Indian and look at him spitefully. But the Indian does not tell lies; Indians
do not steal.

"An Indian who is as bad as the white men could not live in our nation;
he would be put to death and eaten up by the wolves. The white men are
bad schoolmasters; they carry false looks and deal in false actions; they
smile in the face of the poor Indian to cheat him; they shake them by the
hand to gain their confidence, to make them drunk, to deceive them. We
told them to let us alone and keep away from us; but they followed on, and
beset our path as they coiled themselves among us, like a snake. They
poisoned us by their touch. We were not safe. We lived in danger. We were
becoming like them, hypocrites and liars, adulterers, lazy drones—all
talkers and no workers.

"We looked up to the Great Spirit. We went to our great father. We

were encouraged. His great council gave us fair words and big promises;
but we got no satisfaction. Things were growing worse. There were no deer
in the forest. The opossum and beaver were fled; the springs were drying up
and our squaws and pappooses without victuals to keep them from starving;
we called a great council and built a large fire. The spirit of our fathers
arose and spoke to us to avenge our wrongs or die. We all spoke before the
council-fire. It was warm and pleasant. We setup the war-whoop, and dug
up the tomahawk; our knives were ready, and the heart of Black Hawk
swelled high in his bosom when he led his warriors to battle. He is satisfied.
He will go to the world of spirits contented. He has done his duty. His father
will meet him there and commend him.

"Black Hawk is a true Indian and disdains to cry like a woman. He

feels for his wife, his children and his friends. But he does not care for
himself. He cares for his nation and the Indians. They will suffer. He
laments their fate. The white men do not scalp the head; but they do worse
—they poison the heart; it is not pure with them. His countrymen will not
be scalped, but they will, in a few years, become like the white men, so that
you can't trust them, and there must be, as in the white settlements, nearly
as many officers as men, to take care of them and keep them in order.

"Farewell, my nation! Black Hawk tried to save you and avenge your
wrongs. He drank the blood of some of the whites. He has been taken
prisoner and his plans are stopped. He can do no more. He is near his end.
His sun is setting and will rise no more. Farewell to Black Hawk."

Black Hawk at the time of his imprisonment was sixty-six years of

age.

Some time during the month of September the United States made a
treaty with the Sacs and Foxes by which six million acres of choice land
were ceded, containing the rich lead mine near Galena. In payment for this
cession the United States agreed "to pay an annuity of $20,000 for thirty
years; to support a blacksmith and gunsmith in addition to those then
employed; to pay the debts of the tribes; to supply provisions; and, as a
reward for the fidelity of Keokuk and the friendly band, to allow a
reservation to be made for them of forty square miles, on the Iowa River, to
include Keokuk's principal village." This treaty also required that Black
Hawk, his two sons, the Prophet, Neopope (the second chief) and five
others of the hostile band were to remain in the hands of the whites as
hostages during the pleasure of the President of the United States.

The captive Indians were sent to Washington by order of President

Jackson, and arrived at their destination April 22, 1833. The day following
Black Hawk had a long interview with the President; it is said that his first
greeting on meeting President was, "I am a man, and you are another."

"Old Hickory" had had a wide experience with Indians, and at once
made them feel at ease by greeting them kindly, and after having the articles
of dress provided for them exhibited he told Black Hawk they would be
delivered to him for distribution. He then said they would have to leave
shortly for Fortress Monroe and remain until he gave them permission to
return to their country. That date depended upon the conduct of the Indians,
but he hoped they would soon evince good feeling and thereby shorten the
time.

During this interview Black Hawk gave a brief history of the cause of
the war, saying: "We did not expect to conquer the whites; no. They had too
many houses, too many men. I took up the hatchet, for my part, to revenge
injuries which my people could no longer endure. Had I borne them longer
without striking, my people would have said, 'Black Hawk is a woman, he
is too old to be a chief; he is no Sac.' These reflections caused me to raise
the war-whoop. I say no more of it, it is known to you. Keokuk once was
here; you took him by the hand, and, when he wished to return to his home,
you were willing. Black Hawk expects that, like Keokuk, we shall be
permitted to return too."

The President assured him that he was acquainted with the essential
facts of the war, and that the chief need feel no uneasiness about the women
and children whom they had left behind. They would be looked after and
protected from their Indian foes.

On April 26 the captives arrived at Fortress Monroe. Here they

received much kindness, and though confined were not shackled, and their
imprisonment made as easy as possible. But they pined for the free air of
the prairies, for their rude wigwams and the companionship of their
families. Time passed slowly, with little to occupy their minds, but their
own sad thoughts.

We can not help but wonder if the mind of Black Hawk at this time
reverted to the young war-chief (Jefferson Davis) who treated him so kindly
while on board the steamer Winnebago en route for Jefferson Barracks; who
Welcome to our website – the ideal destination for book lovers and
knowledge seekers. With a mission to inspire endlessly, we offer a
vast collection of books, ranging from classic literary works to
specialized publications, self-development books, and children's
literature. Each book is a new journey of discovery, expanding
knowledge and enriching the soul of the reade

Our website is not just a platform for buying books, but a bridge
connecting readers to the timeless values of culture and wisdom. With
an elegant, user-friendly interface and an intelligent search system,
we are committed to providing a quick and convenient shopping
experience. Additionally, our special promotions and home delivery
services ensure that you save time and fully enjoy the joy of reading.

Let us accompany you on the journey of exploring knowledge and

personal growth!

textbookfull.com