The Comparison of Chanuka and Neosho

The Indian boys, Chanuka and Neosho, are both very adventurous. When the boys can’t go on the big hunt they both decide to go on their own adventure. The boys, from different tribes, already had their enemies decided for then. When Chanuka came across Neosho and helped him an unspoken friendship occurred. He knew that he had come across another boy like him with no better reason to be there than he was, but that it was forbidden. Both boys knew the Indian sighs that all Indians know to communicate with each other, yet still they did not talk. The boys shared many of the same features, do to the fact they where both Indians. Neither boy wanted to fight the other like their tribal elders would have wanted. So they didn’t, but instead they took care of each other and Chanuka hunted and feed Neosho when he was weak. Chanuka wanted to fight Neosho and take him back to his tribe as a captive as soon as he was better, but when he realized Noesho was not a warrior his determination failed.
Although both are adventurous they have a very different culture. Chanuka belonged to the Ojibway, and woodland tribe that hunts elk and moose, while Neosho belonged to the Dakota a Great plains people hunting mostly bison. Chanuka thought it was foolish the way Neosho didn’t know the moose would charge, but Neosho didn’t know any better. Noesho liked to talk about his tribe and the buffalo dance they do, but Chanuka did not want to talk about anything. He would only listen sometimes to the stories of Neosho. Chanuka was scared to go home to his tribe because the last time he had done this he was put to squaw's work. While Neosho was happy to be going home to perform the famous buffalo dance when the warriors would arrive home.

Summary

Chanuka left on a forbidden journey to the no man's land between his enemies, the Dakota, and his own tribe, the Ojibway. He couldn't really find a good reason for hating the Dakota except that his father hated them, and his father before that. He wasn't a warrior yet so he loved to take his own secret adventures. When he was in the middle of his silent journey through the marshes, he noticed a Dakota Indian lying on the ground injured from a moose attack.
He thought getting attacked by the moose was foolish because he was of the Ojibway and knew the ways of the moose, but the other Indian was of the Dakota and only knew the ways of the buffalo. Chanuka wanted to bring back this warrior for captive as an apology for his forbidden journey.
As he aided the Dakota warrior, they did not speak, but the other Indian identified himself as Neosho. Neosho tried to speak to Chanuka, but Chanuka only would listen. Neosho would talk about the Dakota and the buffalo dance they would perform when the warriors would come back from the hunt.
Chanuka wanted to know more, but could not because he knew they were enemies. He noticed Neosho's limp and realized that he wasn't a warrior, and the determination to bring him home, died. So as soon as Neosho was well, Chanuka brought him back to his tribe, the Dakotas. Chanuka was scared when he went back to his tribe. He did not know what they would do with him.
The chief had watched him when he had returned, but had not done anything to him yet. One day the chief came up to him and asked him to go on a journey to the south to see how well the Dakota food supply was. The chief did this not only because he new Chanuka had gone that way before, but also because he saw how mature Chanuka had become.
Chanuka went to the Dakota camp and only waited a day before the warriors returned from the hunt. He saw that they had plenty of food for winter and was relieved, but Chanuka was determined to bring something back, so that his chief knew he did not lie.
He waited until nightfall and until the people were gathered for the Buffalo dance and then entered the river to cross. As he searched the cabins, out of one of them came the Medicine Man and a couple other warriors. They passed by the entire camp, as they made sure all the people were at the buffalo dance. Chanuka got pushed all the way to the wood pile by the fire until he was out of sight. He would not be able to escape after the buffalo dance started and the buffalo just started around the fire when Chanuka heard a familiar voice and someone tapped him on his shoulder.
It was Neosho, and the only way to escape now was to switch costumes with Neosho. Just before Chanuka went to circle the fire they switched shoes and he was out to the fire a bit late, but stilled pulled it off. Neosho's shoes were bigger than his but when he was done he slipped into the crowd and into the river. It was so loud from the celebration that only one person heard him and by the time he got to the river, only the horse costume was left.
Chanuka was already paddling up stream and back to the Ojibways. When he returned and his chief asked for proof, he held up Neosho's moccasins and didn't say another word. The next day at the Dakota camp Chunuka's moccasins hung up for every one to see. Too bad no one knew the Moccasins belonged to friends, not enemies.