Micmac Vs Iroquois Research Paper

The Micmac V.S. The Iroquois

Although the Micmac and the Iroquois Confederacy are both Aboriginal groups, they have many differences as well as similarities. One area of such, is their traditional justice systems. Their governments and laws are in some ways similar, but in many ways different. The Micmac reside in what is now Nova Scotia, eastern New Brunswick,
Prince Edward Island, and southern Gaspe. The territory was subdivided in to seven districts. Each of these districts contained family groupings in small settlements based on hunting and fishing. Those from P.E.I. held more territory in common than any other Micmac district. Their land was allotted by family. The Iroquois were a agricultural people. They lived in permanent
villages
The first five nations to join the confederacy were Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca.
Tuscaroras migrated from Carolina and joined the confederacy in 1722. The
Iroquois are bound in a treaty of friendship with the Ojibway to the North. The Micmac government was three-tiered, with local, district, and national chiefs, or ‘Sagamores'. Each settlement's council of elders chose a local chief. The chief was the focus of power in the settlement. The local chief attained position through both hereditary right and meritorious behavior. The oldest son of a dead chief was usually given first consideration as a successor.
If he was found unfit for office, despite special training, others in family and/or others in the community were considered. These chiefs usually had two assistants or captains. These were called second and third watchers. They would assume command from a sick or incompetent chief. The local chiefs would convene in a district council and select one of their numbers to preside over their meetings and represent the regions' interests. Councils usually met in the spring or fall, and all decisions were based on unanimity. District Sagamores made up the governing body of the Micmac nation.
The elder women were the heads of the families. The women had orators representing them at council meetings, or they spoke directly through a chief. In times of war, women were peace makes by right and duty. A distinction existed between Iroquois leaders in times of peace and during wars. A sachem could not participate in a battle in his official capacity.
Constitution specified that each sachem have a war chief and a runner to bring tidings; in war, the sachem was to step down and be replaced by the war chief until hostilities ended. The war chief acted as an advisor to his sachem in peace, his words carry considerable weight. The lesser chiefs, or captains as they were occasionally called, existed in Iroquois villages. These chiefs were intermediaries between the sachems and their people, and grew in influence. Men were awarded these positions according to merit, family rank being of no consequence. A warrior who assisted the chiefs capably, and who was trustworthy and honest, was appointed chief by the others. The lesser chieftainships were not hereditary. The chiefs were governed by requests to their people, rather than with orders; it appears that they possessed no powers of force other