The White Feather

A Quaker family living in Ohio in the early 1800's makes peace with a Shawnee Indian tribe during a very troubled time.

Grade 2-5 Young Abe's Quaker family believed that, since ``everybody in the world was God's family,'' they should not run from the rising Shawnee hostility of early 19th-Century Ohio, but rather maintain their usual friendly and hospitable attitude. As tensions build, Abe's father even disposes of his gun, saying that it doesn't speak his language. One inevitable day the Indians arrive. They search the cabin for guns but, of course, find none. Instead, Mother solemnly offers freshly baked biscuits with molasses. The Shawnee eat and silently file away. And then the leader returns. He places a long white feather from his headdress above the family's doorway. It is a sign that the Indians recognize them as friends of peace and will not harm them. The story is based on the experiences of a real Quaker family. It counterbalances the many kill-the-savages-before- they-kill-us stories as exemplified in The Matchlock Gun (Dodd, 1941) by Edmonds. Would that the narrative elements of involvement and suspense here were of such meritorious rank. The illustrations (pen-and-ink over flat beds of color) depict the era accurately, but suffer from the limited palette. Nevertheless, the easy-to-read story is satisfying, and its theme long overdue. Katharine Bruner, Brown Middle School, Harrison, Tenn.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.