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hair (Keller 1999:38, 59, 62­63, 79­80).26 Recurring illnesses were a major source of Pauline Johnson's financial difficulties throughout the years often leaving her incapacitated and unable to perform, sometimes for months. Pauline Johnson was only 22 years old when her father passed away on February 19, 1884 from erysipelas. By 1885 Emily could no longer afford to maintain Chiefswood so they leased it to a farmer and then she and her daughters relocated to the nearby settler town of Brantford. Pauline Johnson's first poem was published just a month before her father's death. Several poems and articles were to follow, but the income was not much and the Johnson women were supported financially by Eva Johnson's job and Emily's widow pension (Keller 1981:55). Pauline Johnson had expectations for marriage, which would have alleviated her financial dependency on her mother and siblings; however, as she approached thirty her prospects seemed to dwindle (Keller 1981:50­56).27 Over time, Pauline Johnson's impecunious circumstances led her to transform her hobby into a self-supporting career and gave her the opportunity to lead an extraordinary life. Until she lost her father, she would not have considered a career on stage, a profession that would have been considered disreputable for a gently bred young woman. Her break came in the form of an old school friend, Frank Yeigh, President of the Young Liberals Club of Toronto, who convinced her to read some of her poetry for a Canadian literary evening he was hosting in January of 1892. Introduced as the "Indian poet-princess," Pauline Johnson recited "A Cry from an Indian Wife" and "As Red Men Die," which were received with "tumultuous applause" (Foster 1931:39­40). She instantly became a favorite amongst Canadian literati and a darling of the Toronto press (Johnson 1997:9). Indeed the response to her performance was so positive that two weeks later Yeigh had arranged for her a solo performance at Association Hall for which occasion she wrote one of her most famous poems, "The Song My Paddle Sings" (Hartley 1980:24­25). Again her performance was met with success and Yeigh took on the role as her manager, booking her one hundred and twenty-five recitals, thus launching her career as a performer (Hartley 1980:24­25). Throughout her life, Pauline Johnson underscored her Mohawk heritage in a number of ways beyond her writings. For example, she adopted her great-grandfather's name "Tekahionwake" (or "Double Wampum") to honor him and "in order to draw attention to the Indian heritage of which she was so proud" (Keller 1981:47). She often used this name in her publications, interviews, during her performances, and in signing 26 Pauline Johnson's bout with erysipelas started in December of 1901, and took her six weeks to recover (Keller 1999:80). Keller (1981:20) argues that she may have contracted erysipelas as a child from her father, who died from it in 1884. 27 Pauline Johnson did receive multiple marriage proposals but did not accept, possibly due the unsuitability of the proposals and/or to her unwillingness to give up her career (Keller 1981:132; Strong-Boag and Gerson 2000:67­8). At age 36, she became engaged to financier, Charles Robert Lumley Drayton, a move which surprised and disappointed the people of Brantford (Keller 1981:132). However the engagement was eventually called off by Drayton under pressure from his father's objections to Pauline Johnson's age, career choice, and heritage (Keller 1999:59­60). 42