American
Indian Love Lyrics
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
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MACMILLAN & CO., Limited
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THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd.
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American Indian Love
Lyrics and Other Verse
From the Songs of the
North American Indians
Selected by
Nellie Barnes
Foreword by
Mary Austin
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
PUBLISHERS NEW YORK
1925
COPYRIGHT, 1925, BY THE MACMILLAN COMPANY.
SET UP AND ELECTROTYPED, PUBLISHED DEC., 1925.
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA BY
THE BERWICK & SMITH CO.
The influence of American Indian song-literaturehas touched both the music and the literatureof contemporary America. Those writerswho use Indian themes are legion. Mary Austinhas gone farthest, perhaps, among the writers ofthe day in relating her poetic work to the nativerhythms of America.
These native rhythms pulsed through the songsof our Red Men for centuries before our Christianera. The very beautiful Aztec and the Inca poetrybelong to the earlier and more highly developedcivilizations. Since it is the purpose of this volumeto treat of the more primitive forms of rhythm,it has seemed best to limit the illustrations tosongs from tribes north of Mexico.
The late Mrs. Natalie Curtis Burlin’s collectionof songs in The Indians’ Book makes that volumequite the most representative source book forthe study of Indian lyrics. The original textsof unusual range in poetic patterns, the musicalsettings, the interlinear translations, and theaccompanying narratives add a rich context tofree translations of genuine literary merit.
Among other contributions to Indian song-literature,[6]the studies of Miss Alice CunninghamFletcher, Mr. Carlos Troyer, and Doctor WashingtonMatthews hold a particular charm for theinvestigator.
Mrs. Austin’s notable work, The AmericanRhythm, an analysis of the primitive poetic impulse,