This two hundred page book1 is attributed to Grey Owl and Little Pigeon, with illustrations by Daniel Nicholas, and published by Herald Publishing House2 (Independence, MO). The copyright date is 1974, long after Grey Owl's death. In fact, the entire book is written by Little Pigeon, with here and there a quotation or anecdote of Grey Owl.
The first few chapters of the book discuss the modern plight of the American Indian: the loss of land, the broken treaties, the laws made against Indian traditions. Then slowly, the emphasis of the book changes. There follow a few vague stories of the discovery of strange old relics by European pioneers, the Mound-Builders, and legends of tribal migrations across the North and South American continents. While reading, I had an uncomfortable feeling, as if a tiger was creeping up behind me. Suddenly, Little Pigeon relates that the old relics (both stone carvings and writing on parchment) contained ancient Hebrew characters! Indeed, the Indians must have possessed the same Ten Commandments as Moses! In the last half of the book, Little Pigeon tries to explain that all Native Americans are really descendents of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel. He quotes not only the Bible, but also the Book of Mormon. He states parallels between old Indian customs and the ancient Temple rites of the Hebrews, as well as amazing coincidences between their languages.
I admit I do not believe that the indigenous peoples of the Americas are really the Lost Tribes. Little Pigeon does not give any evidence, other than old Indian stories (how can we know these are authentic?) and quotations from religious books. In addition, readers are told that Indians have kept many secrets from white people over the centuries and these secrets fully support the thesis of the book. If only the book had been better written, I might still have excused it. Little Pigeon may not have learned English as a first language. I was not able to find any biographical information about this person, except for scraps within the book itself which seem to indicate that Little Pigeon was a wife or close friend of Grey Owl and lived with him for some time. The chapters are formatted like independent essays of varying lengths, and they do not flow together well. There is hardly any organization to the arguments within each chapter. The bottom line appears to be an appeal for all Native Americans to recognize their shared heritage and connection to Christianity.
Notes:
1. Cry of the Ancients by Grey Owl and Little Pigeon. ISBN 0-8309-0108-6
2. http://www.heraldhouse.org