Miller’s reaction to the Sioux Indians recalled the remark of Benjamin West when he first saw the Apollo Belvedere: “By God, a Mohawk.” Miller believed the Sioux to be ideal sculptural specimens and lamented that sculptors had not come west to see them and model after them. (Tyler, 1982, p. 34) He had a similar reaction to the Crows, noting “some splendid specimens of this tribe, well mounted on good horses.” The Crow Indians were one of the largest groups at the rendezvous, and Miller was also impressed with their ability to make war. “While we remained with them,” he wrote, “they brought in some scalps of their Indian enemies, which they stretched on small hoops and tanned; we managed to get 3 of them. They varied in size from four to six inches in diameter, with long black hair attached, and appeared to have been taken from the crown of the head.” (Ross, 1968, text accompanying plate 63)
