Before the white man came from the East, weren't the Indian tribes from the East raiding the Western tribes?

Question

Weren't the Indians living in the West afraid of the Indians in the East?

Answer 1

My tribe was fighting the Washoes and Shoshone long before the white eyes arrived on the scene, and we're located in Nevada. The Washoes were to the west of us and the Shoshones were to the east. The washoes used to steal our womens and that's why i've got some relatives over there in their country.

Usually the late coming tribes fought the tribes that were originally in their homelands.

Answer 2

Different tribes of Indians/Native Americans fought; some tribes were peaceful, some were considered very war-like. I seriously doubt there has been a period in any part of the world where somebody wasn't fighting somebody else. However, it was unknown, at least within historical times, for one tribe to wipe out another tribe in war. "Wars" were small by our standards, and generally consisted of stealing food or animals, or capturing a few people to serve as slaves/servants. The wholesale destruction brought about by Europeans had no precendent in the oral history of the native peoples of the western hemisphere. Even if such slaughter HAD taken place between tribes, it would not have been an excuse for Europeans to come and do it as well.

Answer 3

Remember that before the White man came Native Americans had no horses, so although inter tribal conflict may have been endemic as groups struggled to control food sources - it would have been Small scale and very localized. Prairie tribes hardly knew that there were tribes in the North-east, although there might have been some very long distance trading. Warfare between such peoples would have been impossible.

Answer 4

Indian societies were "warrior" societies and manhood was based on proving your mettle in battle with enemies. This was long true prior to the arrival of the "white man." I believe the word for the Lakota Indians "Sioux" is a Crow word for "enemy." The Crow Indians were bitter enemies of the Lakota and the US army exploited this fact and incorporated Crows as scouts and fighting men in the Army campaigns of the late 1870's. The Army often used the technique of employing rival Indian tribes as scouts and warriors against each other.