SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION—BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY.

A STUDY OF SIOUAN CULTS.

BY

JAMES OWEN DORSEY.

CONTENTS.

Bureau of Ethnology.	Eleventh Annual Report. Plate XLIV
GAST LITH. CO.
SIOUAN TENTS.

[Pg 361]

A STUDY OF SIOUAN CULTS.

BY JAMES OWEN DORSEY.

CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION.

DEFINITIONS OF “CULT” AND “SIOUAN.”

§ 1. Cult, as used in this article, means a system of religious belief and worship, especially the rites and ceremonies employed in such worship. The present article treats of the cults of a few of the Siouan tribes—that is, with two exceptions, of such tribes as have been visited by the author.

“Siouan” is a term originated by the Bureau of Ethnology. It is derived from “Sioux,” the popular name for those Indians who call themselves “Dakota” or “Lakota,” the latter being the Teton appellation. “Siouan” is used as an adjective, but, unlike its primitive, it refers not only to the Dakota tribes, but also to the entire linguistic stock or family.

SIOUAN FAMILY.

The Siouan family includes the Dakota, Assiniboin, Omaha, Ponka, Osage, Kansa, Kwapa, Iowa, Oto, Missouri, Winnebago, Mandan, Hidatsa, Crow, Tutelo, Biloxi, Catawba, and other Indians. The Sapona, who are now extinct, probably belonged to this family.

The author was missionary to the Ponka Indians, in what is now part of Nebraska, from 1871 to 1873. Since 1878 he has acquired native texts and other information from the Omaha, Ponka, Osage, Kansa, Winnebago, Iowa, Oto, Missouri, and Dakota.

In seeking information respecting the ancient beliefs of the Indians the author has always found it expedient to question the Indian when no interpreter was present.

AUTHORITIES.

§ 2. This study is based for the most part upon statements made by Indians, though several publications were consulted during the preparation of the fifth and sixth chapters.

[Pg 362]

The following Indians had become Christians before the author met them: Joseph La Flèche, Frank La Flèche, John Big Elk, and George Miller, all Omaha. Joseph La Flèche, who died in 1888, was the leader of the civilization party in the Omaha tribe after 1855. He was at one time a head chief. He spoke several Indian languages, having spent years among other tribes, including the Pawnee, when he was in the service of the fur company. His son, Frank, has been in the Indian Bureau at Washington since 1881. The author has obtained considerable linguistic material from the father and son. The father, with Two Crows, aided the author in the summer of 1882 in revising his sociologic notes, resulting in the preparation of “Omaha Sociology,” which was published in the third annual report of the director of the Bureau of Ethnology. John Big Elk, a full Omaha, of the Elk gens, furnished an article on “Sacred Traditions and Customs,” and several historical papers, published in “Contributions to North American Ethnology, Vol. VI.” George Miller, of the Ictasanda or Thunder gens, is a full Omaha, from whom was obtained nearly half of Chapter III, including most of the Omaha illustrations.

The following Indians were not Christians: Gahige, Two Crows, Ԁaȼiⁿ-naⁿpajĭ, and Samuel Fremont, all Omaha; Nudaⁿ-axa, a Ponka; and the Kansa, Osage, Missouri, Iowa, and Winnebago informants.

Two Crows has been connected in several ways with the ancient organizations of his people. He has been a head man, or nikagahi, being thus an ex-officio member of the class which exercised the civil and religious functions of the state. He has been a policeman during the buffalo hunt. He has acted as captain, or war chief, and he is the leading doctor in the order of Buffalo shamans, being the keeper of the “sweet medicine.”

Ԁaȼiⁿ-naⁿpajĭ, or He-who-fears-not-the-sight-of-a-Pawnee, is a member of the Black Bear subgens, and he is also one of the servants of the Elk gens, it being his duty to be present at the sacred tent of that gens, and to assist in the ceremonies pertaining to the invocation of the Thunder Beings.

Gahige was the chief of the Iñke-sabĕ, a Buffalo gens, and at the time of his death he was the keeper of the two sacred pipes.

Samuel Fremont is a member of the Eagle subgens. He came to Washington in the autumn of 1888 and assisted the author till February, 1889.

Nudaⁿ-axa is a chief of a part of the Thunder-Being gens of the Ponka. The author has known him since 1871.

The other Indian authorities need not be named, as they are in substantial agreement.

The following authorities were consulted in the preparation of the Dakota and Assiniboin chapter:

Bruyier (John), a Dakota, MS. Teton texts. 1888. Translated by himself. Bureau of Ethnology.

[Pg 363]

Bushotter (George), a Dakota, MS. Teton texts. 1887-’88. Translated by J. Owen Dorsey. Bureau of Ethnology.

Fletcher (Miss Alice C.), The Sun-dance of the Ogalalla Sioux. In Proc. Am. Assoc. Adv. Sci., Montreal Miss meeting, 1882, pp. 580-584.

Fletcher (Miss Alice C.), several articles in Rept. Peabody Museum, vol. 3, 1884, pp. 260-333.

Hovey (Rev. H. C.), “Eyay Shah,” in Am. Antiquarian, Jan., 1887, pp. 35, 36.

Long (Maj. S. H.), Skiff Voyage to Falls of St. Anthony. In Minn. Histor. Soc. Coll., vol. II, pt. 1, pp. 18, 19, 55.

Lynd (J. W.), Religion of the Dakotas. In Minn. Histor. Soc. Coll., vol. II, pt. 2, pp. 57-84.

Pond (G. H.), Dakota Superstitions. In Minn. Histor. Soc. Coll., vol. II, pt. 3, pp. 32-62.

Riggs (S. R.), Theogony of the Sioux. In Am. Antiquarian, vol. II, No. 4, pp. 265-270.

——. In Am. Antiq., vol. V, 1883, p. 149.

——. In Am. Philolog. Assoc. Proc., 3d An. Sess., 1872, pp. 5, 6.

——. Tah-koo Wah-kon, or, The Gospel Among the Dakotas, 1869.

Say (Thos.), in James (E.), Account of Long’s Exped. Rocky Mts., vol. I, Phil., 1823.

Shea (J. Gilmary), Am. Cath. Missions, N. Y. (after 1854).

Smet (Rev. P. J. de), Western Missions and Missionaries, N. Y. (n. d.).

Woodburn (Dr. J. M., Jr.), MS. Letter and Teton Vocabulary, 1890. Bureau of Ethnology.

ALPHABET.

§ 3. With the exception of seven letters taken from Riggs’s Dakota Dictionary, and which are used only in the Dakota words, the characters used in recording the Indian words occurring in this paper belong to the alphabet adopted by the Bureau of Ethnology.

a, as in father.
‘a, an initially exploded a.
ă, as in what, or as o in not.
‘ă, an initially exploded ă.
ä, as in hat.
c, as sh in she. See ś.
ɔ, a medial sh, a sonant-surd.
ć (Dakota letter), as ch in church.
ç, as th in thin.
[ç], a medial ç, sonant-surd.
ȼ, as th in the.
e, as in they.
‘e, an initially exploded e.
ĕ, as in get.
‘ĕ an initially exploded ĕ.
g, as in go.
ġ (in Dakota), gh. See x.
ɥ (in Osage), an h after a pure or nasalized vowel, expelled through the mouth with the lips wide apart.
ḣ (in Dakota), kh, etc. See q.
i, as in machine.
‘i, an initially exploded i.
ĭ, as in pin.
j, as z in azure, or as j in the French Jacques.
ʞ a medial k, a sonant-surd.
k’, an exploded k. See next letter.
ḳ (in Dakota), an exploded k.
ŋ (in Dakota), after a vowel has the sound of n in the French bon. See ⁿ.
ɯ (in Kansa), a medial m, a sound between m and b.
ñ, as ng in sing.
hn, its initial sound is expelled from the nostrils and is scarcely heard.
o, as in no.
‘o, an initially exploded o.
[p], a medial b or p, a sonant-surd.
p’, an exploded p.
q, as German ch in ach. See ḣ.
[s], a medial z or s, a sonant-surd.
ś (in Dakota), as sh in she. See c.
ʇ, a medial d or t, a sonant-surd.
t’, an exploded t.
u, as oo in tool.
‘u, an initially exploded u.
[Pg 364]ŭ, as oo in foot.
ṵ, a sound between o and u.
ü, as in German kühl, süss.
x, gh, or nearly the Arabic ghain. See ġ.
ź (in Dakota), as z in azure. See j.
dj, as j in judge.
tc, as ch in church. See ć.
tc’, an exploded tc.
ʇɔ, a medial tc, a sonant-surd.
ts’, an exploded ts.
ʇ[s], a medial ts, a sonant-surd.
ai, as in aisle.
au, as ow in how.
yu, as u in tune, or ew in few.

The following have the ordinary English sounds: b, d, h, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, w, y, and z. A superior n (ⁿ) after a vowel (compare the Dakota ŋ) has the sound of the French n in bon, vin, etc. A plus sign (+) after any letter prolongs it.

The vowels ‘a, ‘e, ‘i, ‘o, ‘u, and their modifications are styled initially exploded vowels for want of a better appellation, there being in each case an initial explosion. These vowels can not be called “breaths,” as no aspiration is used with any of them; nor can they be spoken of as “guttural breaths,” as they are approximately or partially pectoral sounds. They have been found by the author not only in the Siouan languages, but also in some of the languages of western Oregon. In 1880 a brother of the late Gen. Armstrong, of Hampton, Va., who was born on one of the Hawaiian islands, informed the author that this class of vowel sounds occurred in the language of his native land.

ABBREVIATIONS.

The abbreviations in the interlinear translations are as follows:
sub.—subject.
ob.—object.
st.—sitting.
std.—standing.
recl.—reclining.
mv.—moving.
col.—collective.
lg.—long.
cv.—curvilinear.
pl.—plural.
sing.—singular.
an.—animate.
in.—inanimate.

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CHAPTER II. DEFINITIONS.

ALLEGED BELIEF IN A GREAT SPIRIT.

§ 4. It has been asserted for several hundred years that the North American Indian was a believer in one Great Spirit prior to the coming of the white race to this continent, and that, as he was a monotheist, it was an easy matter to convert him to Christianity. Indians have been represented as speaking of “The Great Spirit,” “The Master of Life,” etc., as if the idea of the one and only God was familiar to our aborigines during the pre-Columbian period.

While the author is unwilling to commit himself to a general denial of this assertion, he has been forced to conclude that it needs considerable modification, at least so far as it refers to the tribes of the Siouan stock. (See §§ 7, 15, 21-43, 72-79, 92-99, 311, 312, 322-326, 341-346.)

On close investigation it will be found that in many cases Indians have been quick to adopt the phrases of civilization in communicating with white people, but in speaking to one another they use their own terms. The student of the uncivilized races must ever be on his guard against leading questions and their answers. The author has learned by experience that it is safer to let the Indian tell his own story in his own words than to endeavor to question him in such a manner as to reveal what answers are desired or expected.

§ 5. In 1883 the author published an article on “The Religion of the Omahas and Ponkas,” in The American Antiquarian of Chicago. Since then he has obtained additional data, furnishing him with many undesigned coincidences, which lead him to a broader view of the subject.

PHENOMENA DIVIDED INTO HUMAN AND SUPERHUMAN.

§ 6. In considering the subject from an Indian’s point of view, one must avoid speaking of the supernatural as distinguished from the natural. It is safer to divide phenomena as they appear to the Indian mind into the human and the superhuman, as many, if not most natural phenomena are mysterious to the Indian. Nay, even man himself may become mysterious by fasting, prayer, and vision.

One fruitful source of error has been a misunderstanding of Indian terms and phrases. It is very important to attempt to settle the exact meanings of certain native words and phrases ere we proceed further [Pg 366]with the consideration of the subject.

TERMS FOR “MYSTERIOUS,” “LIGHTNING,” ETC.

§ 7. The attention of the author having been called to the article on “Serpent Symbolism” of the Iroquoian languages, by Mr. Hewitt[1] of the Bureau of Ethnology, a similar investigation of the Siouan terms was made, the results of which are now presented. In connection with the terms for “serpent,” Mr. Hewitt showed how they are related in the languages with which he was familiar with other terms, such as “demon,” “devil,” “wizard,” “witch,” “subtile,” “occult,” “mysterious,” and “supernatural.”

In Dakota we find the following: Wakaⁿ, mysterious, wonderful, incomprehensible, often rendered “holy” by the missionaries; wakaⁿ-hdi (in Santee), wakaⁿ-kdi (in Yankton), lightning, perhaps containing a reference to a zigzag line or forked lightning; wakaⁿ etcoⁿ, to practice sleight of hand; and waⁿmducka, serpent. There are many derivatives of wakaⁿ, among which are, Taku Wakaⁿ, literally “something mysterious,” rendered “some one mysterious,” or “holy being,” and Wakaⁿ-tañka, literally, “Great mysterious (one),” both of which terms are now applied to God by the missionaries and their converts, though Wakaⁿ-tañka is a name for the Thunder-being.

In Riggs’s alphabet (Contr. N. A. Ethn., Vol. VII), these words are thus written: Wakaŋ, wakaŋhdi, wakaŋkdi, wakaŋ ećoŋ, waŋmduśka, Taku Wakaŋ, and Wakaŋtaŋka. One of the Dakota words for “aged” is kaⁿ (kaŋ in Riggs’s alphabet); but though this refers to persons we can not tell whether it is related to wakaⁿ (or wakaŋ).

In the Ȼegiha, the language spoken by the Ponka and Omaha, Wakanda means “the mysterious” or “powerful one,” and it is applied in several senses. It is now used to denote the God of monotheism. Some of the old people say that their ancestors always believed in a supreme Wakanda or Mysterious Power. It sometimes refers to the Thunder-being. On one occasion, a Ponka shaman, Cramped Hand, said to the author: “I am a Wakanda.” Wakandagi, as a noun, means a subterranean or water monster, a large horned reptile mentioned in the myths, and still supposed to dwell beneath the bluffs along the Missouri River. With this term compare the Dakota Uñkteqi (Uŋkteḣi, of Riggs) and the Winnebago Waktceqi, the latter having given a name to the Water Monster gens (Waktceqi ikikaratcada). Wakandagi is sometimes used adverbially, as, si wakandagi, he is wonderfully stingy! E wakandagi, he (a small child) speaks surprisingly well (for one so young)! ┴aⁿȼiⁿ wakandagi, he runs very well (for one so young)! Maⁿȼiⁿ wakandagi, he (a small child) walks very well! Wakandiȼe, to be in great haste, perhaps contains the idea of putting forth a great effort in order to accomplish something speedily. Wĕs‘ă, a serpent, is not related to the others just given. Nor can the word for “wizard” or “conjurer” be found related to them. In Kansa, Wakanda[Pg 367] is used of superhuman beings or powers, as in Omaha and Ponka, but the author never heard a shaman apply the term to himself. Wakandagi has another meaning, mysterious, wonderful, incomprehensible, as, nika wakandagi, mysterious man, shaman, juggler, doctor; nanüŭⁿba wakandagi, mysterious or sacred pipe; wakandagi wagaxe, the sleight-of-hand tricks of the mysterious men and women. Wakanda qudje, the gray mysterious one, the elephant. Wakaⁿ does not mean serpent, but pumpkin, answering to the Omaha and Ponka, wataⁿ, and to the Osage, wakqaⁿ and watqaⁿ. [M]yets‘a (almost, Byets‘a) is the Kansa word for a serpent.

In Osage, Wakaⁿʇa answers to the Kansa Wakanda, and Waɥkaⁿ-ʇa-ʞi is the same as the Kansa, Wakandagi. Wets‘a is a serpent. In Kwapa, Wakaⁿʇaʞi seems to answer to the Kansa Wakandagi.

In ┴ɔiwere (Iowa, Oto, Missouri), Wakaⁿʇa is the same as the Kansa Wakanda. Wakaⁿ means a serpent. Wakaⁿ kiʞraʇɔe, the Serpent gens. Wa-hu-priⁿ, mysterious, as a person or animal; but wa-qo-nyi-taⁿ, mysterious, as an inanimate object.

In the Winnebago, three names for superhuman beings have been found. One is Waʞuⁿse or Waguⁿze, which can not be translated; another is Maⁿ‘uⁿ-na, Earth-maker, the third being Qo-piⁿ-ne qe-te-ră, Great Mysterious One. Qopiⁿne seems related to waqopini (with which compare the ┴ɔiwere, wahupriⁿ), a term used to distinguish people of other races from Indians, just as in Dakota wacitcuⁿ (in Riggs’s alphabet, waśićuŋ), now used for “white man,” “black man,” etc., retains in the Teton dialect its ancient meaning of superhuman being or guardian spirit. Wakawaⁿx, in Winnebago, denotes a witch or wizard. Wakaⁿ-na is a serpent, and wakaⁿ ikikaratca-da, the Serpent gens; Wakaⁿtca, or Wakaⁿtca-ra, thunder, the Thunder-Being; Wakaⁿtcañka-ra, a shaman or mysterious man.

OTHER OMAHA AND PONKA TERMS.

§ 8. Other terms are given as being pertinent to the subject. They occur in the language of the Omaha and Ponka. Qube, mysterious as a person or animal (all animals were persons in ancient times); but a mysterious inanimate object is spoken of as being “waqube.” Uqube means the mysteriousness of a human being or animal. Uqubeaʇaȼicaⁿ, pertaining to such mysteriousness. Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ, pertaining or referring to Wakanda. Nikie is a term that refers to a mythical ancestor, to some part of his body, to some of his acts, or to some ancient rite ascribed to him. A “nikie name” is a personal name of such a character. Iȼa‘eȼĕ, literally, “to pity him on account of it, granting him certain power.” Its primary reference is to the mysterious animal, but it is transferred to the person having the vision, hence, it means “to receive mysterious things from an animal, as in a vision after fasting; to see as in a vision, face to face (not[Pg 368] in a dream); to see when awake, and in a mysterious manner having a conversation with the animal about mysterious things.”

§ 9. The names for grandfather, grandmother, and old man are terms of veneration, superhuman beings having these names applied to them in invocations. (See §§ 15, 99.)

SIGNIFICANCE OF PERSONAL NAMES AND KINSHIP TERMS.

In a note upon “The Religious Ceremony of the Four Winds or Quarters, as Observed by the Santee Sioux,” Miss Fletcher[2] remarks: “A name implies relationship, and consequently protection; favor and influence are claimed from the source of the name, whether this be the gens or the vision. A name, therefore, shows the affiliation of the individual; it grades him, so to speak, and he is apt to lean upon its implied power.  *  *  *  The sacred import of a name in the mind of the Indian is indicated in that part of the ceremony where the “Something that moves” seems to overshadow and inclose the child, and addresses the wakan man as father. The wakan man replies, calling the god, child, at the same time invoking the supernatural protection and care for the boy, as he lays at the feet of the messenger of Unseen Power the offerings of gifts and the honor of the feast. The personal name[3] among Indians, therefore, indicates the protecting presence of a deity, and must, therefore, partake of the ceremonial character of the Indian’s religion.”

In this ceremony the superhuman being is addressed by the term implying juniority, and the human being, the wakan man, by that associated with seniority, an apparent reversal of the usual custom; but, doubtless, there can be found some explanation for this seeming exception to the rule.

MYTH AND LEGEND DISTINGUISHED FROM THE SUPERHUMAN.

§ 10. The Omaha, Ponka, and cognate tribes distinguish at the present day between the myth (higaⁿ, higu) and the legend or story (iuȼa, etc.) on the one hand; and what on the other hand is called “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ,” “uqubeaʇaȼicaⁿ,” and “iȼa‘eȼĕaʇaȼicaⁿ.” The former are told only for amusement and are called, “iusictaⁿ iuȼa,” lying tales. They are regarded as “iqawaȼĕaʇaȼicaⁿ,” pertaining to the ludicrous. With this may be compared the statements of Lang:[4]

“Among the lowest and most backward, as among the most advanced races, there coexist the mythical and the religious elements in belief. The rational factor (or what approves itself to us as the rational factor) is visible in religion; the irrational is prominent in myth.”  *  *  *  “The rational and irrational aspects of mythology and religion may be of coeval antiquity for all that is certainly known, or either of [Pg 369]them, in the dark backward of mortal experience, may have preceded the other.” The author has found certain Indian myths which abound in what to the civilized mind is the grossest obscenity, and that too without the slightest reference to the origin of any natural phenomena. Myths of this class appear to have been told from a love of the obscene. Nothing of a mysterious or religious character can be found in them. Perhaps such myths are of modern origin; but this must remain an enigma.

§ 11. The Omaha and Ponka are in a transition state, hence many of their old customs and beliefs are disappearing. Some have been lost within the past fifty years, others within the last decade, according to unimpeachable testimony. The Ponka are more conservative than the Omaha, and the Kansa and Osage are more so than the Ponka, in the estimation of the author.

§ 12. Though it has been said that the Indians feared to tell myths except on winter nights (and some Indians have told this to the author), the author has had no trouble in obtaining myths during the day at various seasons of the year.

§ 13. James Alexander, a full Winnebago of the Wolf gens and a non-Christian, told the author that the myths of the Winnebago, called wai-kaⁿ-na by them, have undergone material change in the course of transmission, and that it is very probable that many of them are entirely different from what they were several generations ago. Even in the same tribe at the present day, the author has found no less than three versions of the same myth, and there may be others.

The myth of the Big Turtle is a case in point.[5] The narrator acknowledged that he had made some additions to it himself.

§ 14. No fasting or prayer is required before one can tell a myth. Far different is it with those things which are “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ,” or are connected with visions or the secret societies. This agrees in the main with what Mr. James Mooney, of the Bureau of Ethnology, has learned from the Cherokee of North Carolina. Mr. Frank H. Cushing has found that the Zuñi Indians distinguish between their folk-lore and their cult-lore, i.e., between their legends and mythic tales on the one hand, and their dramatized stories of creation and their religious observances on the other, a special name being given to each class of knowledge. To them the mythic tales and folk-lore in general are but the fringe of the garment, not the garment itself. When they enact the creation story, etc., they beeve that they are repeating the circumstances represented, and that they are then surrounded by the very beings referred to in the sacred stories. Similar beliefs were found by Dr. Washington Matthews, as shown in his article entitled “The Prayer of a Navajo Shaman,” published in the American Anthropologist of Washington, D.C., for April, 1888.

[Pg 370]

§ 15. At the same time there seems to be some connection between certain myths and the personal names called, “nikie names.” This will be considered in detail in a future monograph on “Indian Personal Names,” now in course of preparation. One example must suffice for the present. In the [K]aⁿze gens of the Omaha there is a nikie name, Ԁasi duba, Four Peaks. The author did not understand its derivation until he studied the myth of Haxige and observed the prayers made in gathering the stones for the sweat-bath. Each stone was invoked as a venerable man (see § 9), the Four Peaks were mentioned several times, and the two superior deities or chief mysterious ones (Wakanda ʇañga agȼañʞaⁿhaⁿ hnañkace) were invoked.[6]

This last refers to the Wakanda residing above and the one in the ground. It is therefore possible that in past ages the Siouan tribes did not differentiate between the myth and what is “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ.” But we have no means of proving this.

§ 16. Most of the Omaha governmental instrumentalities (“wewaspe”) were “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ,” but there were things that were “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ,” which were not “wewaspe,” such as the law of catamenial seclusion.[Pg 371] which were not “wewaspe,” such as the law of catamenial seclusion.

CHAPTER III. CULTS OF THE OMAHA, PONKA, KANSA, AND OSAGE.

BELIEFS AND PRACTICES NOT FOUND.

§ 17. There are certain beliefs and practices which have not been found among the four tribes whose cults are treated of in this chapter. Ancestors were not worshiped. They were addressed reverently when alive, and when they died it was not contrary to custom to refer to them by name, nor did their deaths involve the change of name for a single object or phenomenon. It was a very common occurrence for the name of the deceased to be assumed by a surviving kinsman. This is shown by genealogical tables of a few Siouan tribes, the material for which was collected by the author, and which will form part of his monograph on “Indian Personal Names,” now in course of preparation for publication by the Bureau of Ethnology.

§ 18. They never heard of Satan or the devil until they learned of him from the white people. Now they have adopted the terms, “Wanáxe piäjĭ,” “Iñgȼaⁿxe piäjĭ,” and “Wakanda piäjĭ.” The first is used by the Omaha and Ponka, the others were heard only among the Ponka. They have a certain saying, applicable to a young man who is a liar, or who is bad in some other way: “Wanáxe piä´jĭ égaⁿ áhaⁿ,” i. e. “He is like the bad spirit!” This becomes, when addressed to the bad person, “Wanáxe piä´jĭ éȼikigaⁿ´-qti jaⁿ´,” i.e. “You act just like the (or a) bad spirit.”

§ 19. Though it has been said that hero worship was unknown among the Omaha and Ponka, it has been learned that Omaha mothers used to scare their unruly children by telling them that Icibajĭ (a hero of the ┴e-sĭnde gens) or his friend ┴exujaⁿ (a hero of the [K]aⁿze gens) would catch them if they did not behave. There was no worship of demigods, as demigods were unknown. Two Crows and Joseph La Flèche said that phallic worship was unknown, and they were surprised to hear that it had been practiced by any tribe. (See § 132, 164.) As the Ponka obtained the sun-dance from their Dakota neighbors, it is probable that they practiced the phallic cult.

§ 20. Totems and shamans were not worshiped, though they are still reverenced. Altars or altar-stones were unknown. Incense was not used, unless by this name we refer to the odor of tobacco smoke as it ascended to the Thunder-being, or to the use of cedar fronds in the sweat lodge. There were no human sacrifices, and cannibalism was not [Pg 372]practiced.

OMAHA, PONKA, AND KANSA BELIEF IN A WAKANDA.

§ 21. According to Two Crows and Joseph La Flèche, the ancestors of the Omaha and Ponka believed that there was a Supreme Being, whom they called Wakanda. “Wakanda t‘aⁿi tĕ eȼegaⁿi, they believed that Wakanda existed.” They did not know where He was, nor did they undertake to say how He existed. There was no public gathering at which some of the people told others that there was a Wakauda, nor was there any general assembly for the purpose of offering Him worship and prayer. Each person thought in his heart that Wakanda existed. Some addressed the sun as Wakanda, though many did not so regard him. Many addressed Wakanda, as it were, blindly or at random. Some worshiped the Thunder-being under this name. This was especially the case when men undertook to go on the war path. [7] Mr. Say recorded of the Kansa: “They say that they have never seen Wakanda, so they cannot pretend to personify Him; but they have often heard Him speak in the thunder. They often wear a shell which is in honor or in representation of Him, but they do not pretend that it resembles Him, or has anything in common with his form, organization, or size.”

SEVEN GREAT WAKANDAS.

§ 22. Ԁaȼiⁿ-naⁿ-pajĭ said that there were seven great Wakandas, as follows: “Ugahana[p]aze or Darkness, Maxe or the Upper World, ┴ande or the Ground, Iñgȼaⁿ or the Thunder-being, Miⁿ or the Sun, Niaⁿba or the Moon, and the Morning Star. The principal Wakanda is in the upper world, above everything.” (This was denied by Joseph La Flèche and Two Crows; see § 93.) The author thought at first that these were the powers worshiped by Ԁaȼiⁿ-naⁿpajĭ and the members of his gens or subgens; but subsequent inquiries and statements occurring in the course of texts furnish cumulative evidence favoring the view that some or all these powers had many believers among the Omaha and the cognate tribes.

INVOCATION OF WARMTH AND STREAMS.

§ 23. Ԁaȼiⁿ-naⁿpajĭ said that Macte or Warmth was a good Wakanda. Ni ȼiⁿ, the flowing Stream, according to him, was thus addressed by a man who wished to ford it: “You are a person and a Wakanda. I, too, am a person. I desire to pass through you and reach the other side.” Two Crows denied this, saying that his people never prayed to a stream; but George Miller said that it was true, for his father, Little Soldier, [Pg 373]prayed to a stream when he was on the war path, and that such invocations were made only in time of war.

PRAYER TO WAKANDA.

§ 24. Prayer to Wakanda, said La Flèche and Two Crows, was not made for small matters, such as going fishing, but only for great and important undertakings, such as going to war or starting on a journey. When a man wished to travel he first went alone to a bluff, where he prayed to Wakanda to help him and his family by protecting them during his absence and by granting him a successful journey. At a time when the Ponka were without food, Horse-with-yellow-hair, or Cañge-hiⁿ-zi, prayed to Wakanda on the hill beyond the Stony Butte. The latter is a prominent landmark in northern Nebraska (in what was Todd county, Dakota, in 1871-’73), about 7 miles from the Missouri River and the Ponka Agency (of 1870-’77)[8]. Several Omaha said that the places for prayer were rocks, high bluffs, and mountains. “All Omaha went to such places to pray, but they did not pray to the visible object, though they called it Grandfather.”—(Frank La Flèche.) They smoked towards the invoked object and placed gifts of killickinnick, etc., upon it. Compare with this the Dakota custom of invoking a bowlder on the prairie; calling it Tŭñkaⁿcidaⁿ (Tuŋkaŋśidaŋ), or Grandfather, symbolizing the Earth-being.[9] Though it has been said that a high bluff was merely a place for praying to Wakanda, and that it was not itself addressed as Wakanda, the author has learned from members of the Omaha and Pouka tribes that when they went on the warpath for the first time, their names were then changed and one of the old men was sent to the bluffs to tell the news to the various Wakandas, including the bluffs, trees, birds, insects, reptiles, etc.[10]

ACCESSORIES OF PRAYER.

Among the accessories of prayer were the following: (a) The action called ȼistube by the Omaha and Ponka, riçtowe by the three ┴ɔiwere tribes, and yuwiⁿtapi (yuwiŋtapi) by the Dakota, consisting of the elevation of the suppliant’s arms with the palms toward the object or the face of the being invoked, followed by a passage of the hand downward toward the ground, without touching the object or person (see §§ 28, 35, 36). (b) The presentation of the pipe with the mouthpiece toward the power invoked (see §§ 29, 35, 40). (c) The use of smoke from the pipe (See §§ 27, 36), or of the odor of burning cedar needles, as in the sweat lodge. (d) The application of the kinship term, “grandfather,” or its alternative, “venerable man,” to a male power, and “grandmother” to a female power (see §§ 30, 31, 35, 39, 59, 60, etc.). (e) Ceremonial wailing or crying (Xage, to wail or cry—Dakota ćeya. See § 100).[11] (f) Sacrifice or offering of goods, animals, pieces of the[Pg 374] suppliant’s flesh, etc. In modern times the Kansa have substituted the lives of animals, as deer, grouse, etc., for those of human enemies (see §§ 28, 33, etc.).

OMAHA AND KANSA EXPRESSIONS ABOUT WAKANDA.

§ 25. Samuel Fremont said that before the advent of the white race the Omaha had certain expressions which they used in speaking of Wakanda. When an Indian met with unexpected good fortune of any sort the people used to say, “Wakanda has given him some assistance.”[12] Or they might say, “Wakanda knows him.”[13] Sometimes they said, “Wakanda has planned for his own (i. e., for his friend, relation, or subject).”[14] If a Kansa prospers, he says, “Wakan´da aká aⁿmaⁿ´yüxü´dje aka´ eyaú,” i. e., “Wakanda has indeed been looking at me!” And in speaking of the success of another, he says, “Wakan´da aká níka yiñké uyü´xüdje aká eyaú,” i. e., “Wakanda has indeed been looking at the man.”

Samuel Fremont said that when an animal detected the approach of the hunter and consequently fled from him, the man prayed thus:

i. e., “Ho, Wakanda, you may have given me an animal, but now it seems that you have taken it from me. I hope that you will cause another to appear to me.” But if the hunter shot at an animal and missed it, he said nothing.

PONKA BELIEF ABOUT MALEVOLENT SPIRITS.

§ 26. About eighteen years ago, the author was told by the Ponka, whose reservation was then in southern Dakota, that they believed death to be caused by certain malevolent spirits, whom they feared. In order to prevent future visits of such spirits, the survivors gave away all their property, hoping that as they were in such a wretched plight the spirits would not think it worth while to make them more unhappy. At the burial of Mazi-kide, an Omaha, the author observed that some one approached the corpse and addressed it. In referring to this in 1888, Samuel Fremont said that the speaker said, “Wakanda has caused your death.” In telling this, Fremont used the singular. “Wakanda aka.” On repeating this to George Miller, the latter said that it should have been “Wakanda ama,” in the plural, “the Mysterious Powers,” as the Omaha believed in more than one Wakanda before they learned about the one God of monotheism.

[Pg 375]

This agrees with what was learned about the Dakota by the late missionaries, Messrs. S. R. Riggs and G. H. Pond, and by the late James W. Lynd, as stated in chapter V.

AN OLD OMAHA CUSTOM.

§ 27. “Abicude,” said Samuel Fremont, “is a word which refers to an old Omaha and Ponka custom, i.e., that of blowing the smoke downward to the ground while praying. The Omaha and Ponka used to hold the pipe in six directions while smoking: toward the four winds, the ground, and the upper world.” The exact order has been forgotten by Fremont, but Lewis and Clarke have recorded the corresponding Shoshoni custom. Capt. Lewis tells how the Shoshoni chief, after lighting his pipe of transparent greenstone (instead of catlinite), made a speech, after which he pointed the stem of the pipe toward the four points of the heavens, beginning with the east and concluding with the north. After extending the stem thrice toward Capt. Lewis, he pointed it first toward the heavens and then toward the center of the little circle of guests, probably toward the ground, symbolizing the subterranean power.[15]

In addressing the four winds, a peculiar expression is employed by the Omaha:

Instead of the singular classifier, ȼaȼiⁿce, the regular plural, nañkácĕ, ye who sit, stand, or move, might have been expected. (See § 33.)

In smoking toward the ground and upper world, the suppliant had to say, “I petition to you who are one of the two, you who are reclining on your back, and to you who are the other one, sitting directly above us. Both of you help me!” “Here,” said Fremont, “the ground itself was addressed as a person.” Two Crows said that some Omaha appealed to a subterranean Wakanda when their word was doubted, saying, “Iⁿc‘áge hídeaʇa aká aⁿná‘aⁿi,” “The venerable man at the bottom hears me.” The author is unable to say whether this was ┴ande or Wakandagi. (See § 37.)

The following was recorded of the Omaha, and refers to a custom relating to the buffalo hunt.[16]

On coming in sight of the herd, the hunters talk kindly to their horses, applying to them the endearing names of father, brother, uncle, etc. They petition them not to fear the bisons, but to run well and keep close to them, but at the same time to avoid being gored.

The party having approached as near to the herd as they suppose the animals will permit without taking alarm, they halt to give the pipe bearer an opportunity [Pg 376] to perform the ceremony of smoking, which is considered necessary to their success. He lights his pipe, and remains a short time with his head inclined, and the stem of the pipe extended toward the herd. He then smokes, and puffs the smoke toward the bisons, and the earth, and finally to the cardinal points successively.

THE SUN A WAKANDA.

§ 28. In the Osage traditions the “mysterious one of day” is invoked as “grandfather.”[17]

He replies that he is not the only Wakanʇa. That the Kansa worshiped the sun as a Wakanda appears from the following: “On one occasion, when the Kansa went against the Pawnees, the stick was set up for the mystic attack or ‘waqpele gaxe.’ The war captain addressed the rising sun thus:

“I wish to kill a Pawnee! I desire to bring horses when I return. I long to pull down an enemy! I promise you a calico shirt and a robe. I will give you a blanket also, O Wakanda, if you allow me to return in safety after killing a Pawnee!” When warriors performed the “waqpele gaxe” or the attack on the stick representing the foe, no member of the Lṵ or Thunder gens could participate. On such an occasion the warrior turned to the east and said:

i.e., I wish my party to pass along the road to the foe(?). I promise you a blanket, O Wakanda (if I succeed?).” On turning to the west he said:

i. e., “I promise you a feast, O Wakanda (if I succeed?).” When it was decided to perform the “waqpele gaxe,” the dudaⁿhañga or war captain made one of the lieutenants carry the sacred bag, and two of the kettle tenders took bundles of sticks, which they laid down in the road. The four remaining kettle tenders remained at the camping place. The next morning all the warriors but those of the Lṵ gens went to the place where the sticks had been laid, drew a circle around the bundles, set up one of the sticks, and attacked it, as if it were a Pawnee. This ceremony often caused the death of real enemies.

Among the Osage and Kansa prayer was made toward the rising sun in the morning and towards the setting sun in the afternoon and evening.

[Pg 377]

Among the Omaha and Kansa the head of a corpse is laid towards the east. For this reason no Omaha will consent to recline with his head towards that point. The Kansa lodges also are orientated, and so were those of the Omaha (see § 59). The east appears to symbolize life or the source thereof, but[18] the west refers to death; so among the Osage the course of a war party was towards the mythic or symbolic west, towards which point the entrances of the lodges were turned[19] (see §§ 83 and 384).

Gahige, the late Omaha chief, said that when he was young all the Omaha prayed to the sun, holding up their hands with the palms towards the sun and saying, “Wakan´da, ȼá‘eaⁿ´ȼa-gă,” etc., i. e., “O Wakanda, pity me!” They abstained from eating, drinking, and (ordinary) smoking from sunrise to sunset; but after sunset the restrictions were removed.[20]

For four nights the men who thus prayed did not sleep at home. At the end of that period the task was finished. “Íwackaⁿ gáxai,” i. e., they made or gained superhuman power. They could thus pray at any time from the appearance of grass in the spring until the ground became frozen.

THE OFFERING OF TOBACCO.

§ 29. In 1889 George Miller gave an account of what he called “Niní bahaí tĕ,” i. e. the offering or presentation of tobacco. Whether this phrase was ever used except in a religious or superhuman connection is more than the author is able to say. Whenever the Indians traveled they used all the words which follow as they extended the pipe with the mouthpiece toward the sun:

This may be rendered freely thus: “Ho, Mysterious Power, you who are the Sun! Here is tobacco! I wish to follow your course. Grant that it may be so! Cause me to meet whatever is good (i. e., for my advantage) and to give a wide berth to [Pg 378] anything that may be to my injury or disadvantage. Throughout this island (the world) you regulate everything that moves, including human beings, when you decide for one that his last day on earth has come, it is so. It can not be delayed. Therefore, O Mysterious Power, I ask a favor of you.”

THE PONKA SUN DANCE OF 1873.

In the summer of 1873, when the author was missionary to the Ponka in what was Todd County, Dakota, that tribe had a sun dance on the prairie near the mission house. The scarifications and subsequent tortures and dancing lasted but three hours instead of a longer period, owing to the remonstrances of Bishop Hare, the agent, and the missionary. The head chief, White Eagle, was tied to his pony, after he had been scarified and fastened to the sun pole. Some of his policemen, armed with whips, lashed the pony until it leaped aside, tearing out the lariat that fastened the chief to the sun pole, and terminating his participation in the ceremony. (See Pl. XLVI and § 187.) For obvious reasons the author did not view the sun dance, but he was told about it by some of the spectators. As the chief, Standing Buffalo, had said to Bishop Hare in the council previous to the sun dance, “You white people pray to Wakanda in your way, and we Indians pray to Wakanda in the sun dance. Should you chance to lose your way on the prairie you would perish, but if we got lost we would pray to Wakanda in the sun dance, and find our way again.”

THE MOON A WAKANDA.

§ 30. No examples of invocations of the moon have yet been found among the Omaha and Ponka. But that the moon is “qube” appears from the decorations of robes and tents. (See §§ 45-47.)

The moon is addressed as a “grandfather” and is described as the “Wakanʇa of night” in “Osage Traditions,” lines 55-59.[21]

BERDACHES.

The Omaha believe that the unfortunate beings, called “Miⁿ-qu-ga,” are mysterious or sacred because they have been affected by the Moon Being. When a young Omaha fasted for the first time on reaching puberty, it was thought that the Moon Being appeared to him, holding in one hand a bow and arrows and in the other a pack strap, such as the Indian women use. When the youth tried to grasp the bow and arrows the Moon Being crossed his hands very quickly, and if the youth was not very careful he seized the pack strap instead of the bow and arrows, thereby fixing his lot in after life. In such a case he could not help acting the woman, speaking, dressing, and working just as Indian women used to do. Louis Sanssouci said that the miⁿ-quga took other men as their husbands. Frank La Flèche knew one such[Pg 379] man, who had had several men as his husbands. A Ponka child once said to the author, “Miⁿjiñga-ma nujiñga ama ʇi-gaxe-nandi, miⁿquga, ai,” i.e., “If boys make a practice of playing with the girls they become (or are called) miⁿquga.” This term may be rendered “hermaphrodite” when it refers to animals, as “ʇe miⁿquga,” a hermaphrodite buffalo. It must have been of this class of persons, called “Miⁿ-quge” by the Kansa that Say wrote when he said:

Many of the subjects of it (i.e., sodomy among the Kansa) are publicly known, and do not appear to be despised or to excite disgust. One was pointed out to us. He had submitted himself to it in consequence of a vow he had made to his mystic medicine, which obliged him to change his dress for that of a woman, to do their work, and to permit his hair to grow.[22]

After giving an account of the Miⁿquga which agrees with what has been written above, Miss Fletcher[23] tells of “a man who had the misfortune to be forced to this life and tried to resist. His father gave him a bow and some arrows, but the penalty of his vision so wrought upon his mind that, unable to endure the abnormal life, he committed suicide.” (See §§ 212, 353.)

STARS AS WAKANDAS.

§ 31. That the Omaha and Ponka regarded the stars as Wakandas seems probable from the existence of nikie names and the personal mystery decorations. (See §§ 45, 47, and 52.) There are star names in the Night gens of the Kansa, and they point to the mythical origin of the gens. The Kansa made offerings to the morning star. Among the Osage the traditions of the Tsiɔu Wactaʞe and Bald Eagle people mention several Wakanʇas among the stars. These are as follows: Watse ʇuʞa, a “grandfather;” Watse miⁿʞa, a “grandmother;” Miⁿkak’e peȼŭⁿ[p]a, the Seven Stars (Pleiades?), a “grandfather;” the constellation Ta ȼa[p]ȼiⁿ or the Three Deer, a “grandfather;” the morning star, Miⁿkak’e tañʞa (literally, large star), a “grandfather;” the small star, a “grandfather;” the bowl of the Dipper, called “Wa[p]aha ȼiñkce; the Funeral Bier,” a “grandfather,” and the Female Red Bird, a “grandmother,” the eponym of the Tsiɔu Wactaʞe or “Red Eagle” gens. She, too, was probably a star.[24]

“The Indians used to invoke various objects, including the mountains, saying, ‘O, all ye mysterious powers, I ask a favor of you!’ They prayed to the ground, saying, ‘O, you who are the ground! May I tread you a little while longer!’ i.e., ‘May my life on earth be prolonged!’ When one prayed to the four winds, he would say, ‘Ho, ye four winds, help me!’ Thus did speak when they prayed to the Wakandas.”—(George Miller.)

THE WINDS AS WAKANDAS.

§ 33. The Omaka and Ponka invoked the winds, as has been stated in part of the preceding section. See also the statement of Samuel Fremont (§ 27).[25]

In preparing for the pipe dance the tobacco pouch, two gourd rattles, and the ear of corn have a figure drawn on each of them with green paint; it is the cross, indicating the four quarters of the heavens or the four winds.[26]

KANSA SACRIFICE TO THE WINDS.

“In former days the Kansa used to remove the hearts of slain foes and put them in the fire as a sacrifice to the four winds. Even now (1882) offerings are made to every Wakanda by the Kansa, to the power or powers above, to those under the hills, to the winds, the thunder-being, the morning star, etc. As Aliⁿkawahu and Pahaⁿlegaqli are Yata men (i. e., members of gentes camping on the left side of the tribal circle), they elevate their left hands and begin at the left with the east wind, then they turn to the south wind, then to the west wind, and finally to the north wind, saying to each, ‘Gá-tcĕ, Wakan´da, mik’ü´ eyau´,’ i. e., ‘O Wakanda, I really give that to you.’ In former days they used to pierce themselves with knives and splinters of wood, and offer small pieces of their flesh to the Wakandas.”[27]

OSAGE CONSECRATION OF MYSTIC FIREPLACES.

The author considers that the following statement of the Osage chief, [K]ahiʞe-waʇayiñʞa (of the Tsiɔu Wactaʞe gens), refers to the invocation of the four winds. It appears to have been associated with fire or hearth worship. Whenever a permanent village of earth lodges was[Pg 381] established among the Osage and Kansa, there was a consecration of a certain number of fireplaces before the ordinary fireplaces could be made by the common people. The consecrated fireplaces were made in two parallel rows, beginning at the west and ending at the east. Among the Kansa there were seven on one side and six on the other, but among the Osage there seem to have been seven on each side. Among the Osage, the Tsiɔu Wactaʞe and Paⁿɥka gentes were the ‘roadmakers,’ i. e., those who consecrated the two rows of fireplaces. [K]ahiʞe-waʇayiñʞa said, “When the old Tsiɔu man made his speech, he went into details about every part of a lodge, the fireplace, building materials, implements, etc. Four sticks were placed in the fireplace, the first one pointing to the west (see §§ 40, 84). When the first stick was laid down, the Tsiɔu leader spoke about the west wind, and also about a young buffalo bull (Tseʇṵ-ɔiñʞa), repeating the name, Wanie-skă (meaning not gained). When the stick pointing to the north was laid down he spoke of Tsehe-qṵʇ[s]e (gray buffalo horns), or a buffalo bull. When the stick at the east was laid down, he spoke of Tse-ʇṵʞa-tañʞa (a large buffalo bull). On laying down the fourth stick, pointing to the south, he spoke of Tse miⁿʞa (a buffalo cow). At the same time a similar ceremony was performed by the aged Paⁿɥka man for the gentes on the right side of the tribal circle. In placing the stick to the east, he mentioned Taʇ[s]e [K]aqpa tsĕ (the east wind) and Tahe ca[p]e (dark horned deer). In placing that to the north, Taʇ[s]e Ԁa[s]aⁿ tsĕ (the north wind, literally, ‘the pine wind’) and Tahe qṵʇ[s]e (the deer with gray horns) were mentioned. In placing that pointing to the west, Taʇ[s]e Maⁿha tsĕ (the west wind) and an animal which makes a lodge and is with the Tahe pa[s]iʞe (probably a deer name) were mentioned. In placing the stick pointing to the south, he spoke of Taʇ[s]e Ak’a tsĕ (the south wind) and Ta wañka he aʞȼaɔi skutañʞa (probable meaning, a large white female deer without any horns).

§ 34. In time of war, prayers were made about the fire (§ 287), when a warrior painted his face red, using the “fire paint,” a custom of the left or Tsiɔu side of the tribe. Those on the right or Hañʞa side used “the young buffalo bull decoration,” and probably offered prayer in connection therewith, in order to be filled with the spirit of their “little grandfather” (the young buffalo bull), as they rushed on the enemy. This will be seen from the words employed by the warrior: “My little grandfather is always dangerous as he makes an attempt. Very close do I stand, ready to go to the attack!”[28]

THE THUNDER-BEING A WAKANDA.

OMAHA AND PONKA INVOCATION OF THE THUNDER-BEING.

§ 35. Among the Omaha and Ponka, when the first thunder was heard in the spring of the year, the Black bear people went to the sacred[Pg 382] tent of the Elk gens, and there they assisted the Elk people in the invocation of the Thunder-being. At a similar gathering of the Ponka, the Ponka Black bear people said, “Hau, iⁿc‘áge, ȼiʇúcpa ȼéȼu añ´ga-taⁿ ganáxiwaȼáȼai. Maⁿciáʇahá maⁿȼiñ´gă,” i. e., “Ho, venerable man! by your striking (with your club) you are frightening us, your grandchildren, who are here. Depart on high.”[29]

THUNDER-BEING INVOKED BY WARRIORS.

The Thunder-being is invoked by all present during the feast preparatory to starting on the warpath, when there is a small party of warriors. Each one addresses the Thunder-being as “Nudaⁿhañga,” leader in war, or war captain.[30]

When a large war party is desired, the Thunder-being is invoked (See history of Wabaskaha, in Contr. N. A. Ethn., Vol. VI, p. 394). Wabaskaha himself prayed, saying, “Oh, Wakanda, though foreigners have injured me, I hope that you may help me.” All who heard him knew that he desired to lead a large war party. When the four captains were chosen, they had to cry incessantly at night as well as by day, saying, “Oh, Wakanda! pity me! help me in that about which I am in a bad humor.” During the day they abstained from food and drink; but they could satisfy their thirst and hunger when night came.

At the feast preparatory to starting off as a large war party, the keepers of the sacred bags sing thunder songs as well as other sacred songs. One of the thunder songs used on such an occasion begins thus:

“Wi-ʇí-gaⁿ naⁿ´-pe-wá-ȼĕ é-gaⁿ,
Wi-ʇí-gaⁿ naⁿ´-pe-wá-ȼĕ é-gaⁿ,
Wé-tiⁿ kĕ gȼi-haⁿ´-haⁿ ʞĭ,
Naⁿ´-pe-wá-ȼĕ ——.”
“As my grandfather is dangerous,
As my grandfather is dangerous,
Dangerous when he brandishes his club,
Dangerous ——.”

When he had proceeded thus far, Ԁaȼiⁿ-naⁿpajĭ stopped and refused to tell the rest, as it was very “waqube.” He said that the principal captains of a large war party tied pieces of twisted grass around their wrists and ankles, and wore similar pieces around their heads. But Two Crows, who has been a captain, says that he never did this. (See, however, the Iowa custom in § 75.)

[Pg 383]

ICTASANDA CUSTOM.

The following “nikie” or ancient custom of the Ictasanda gens was related by George Miller:

[Pg 384]

Notes.

383, 4, et passim. Ȼaȼiⁿce ejaⁿmiⁿ, contracted in rapid pronunciation to, ȼaȼiⁿcejaⁿmiⁿ.

383, 4-6. Ȼigȼize-maⁿȼiⁿ, Ȼiaⁿba-tigȼe, Ȼiaⁿba-gínaⁿ, and Gaagigȼedaⁿ are “nikie names” of the Ictasanda or Thunder gens of the Omaha. They may refer to four Thunder beings, one at each point of the compass, or one dwelling in the direction of each of the four winds.

383, 8. Ciⁿȼiqade, with the arms elevated and the hands stretched out, palms down, towards the clouds.

383, 9-10. Nikaciⁿga wedajĭ ama, etc. Other gentes of Omaha fear to mention these Ictasanda names, or to bestow them on members of their gentes.

383, 11. Agudictĕ ... iȼa‘eȼĕ ama, etc. Refers to the Iñgȼaⁿ iȼa‘eȼĕ ama, or the Thunder shamans, of the other Omaha gentes.

Translation.

When the Ictasanda people become fearful during a shower, they fill a pipe with tobacco and offer it to the Thunder-beings. And when they offer the tobacco, they speak thus: “O grandfather! I am very poor here. In some direction or other cause a place to be abandoned by those (who would injure me?). I think that you are there O Ȼigȼize-maⁿȼiⁿ! I think that you are there. O Ȼiaⁿba-tigȼe! I think that you are there. O Ȼiaⁿba-gi naⁿ! I think that you are there. O Gaagigȼedaⁿ! I think that you are there.”

And when they do not offer the tobacco, they stand with the arms elevated and the hands stretched out, palms down, as they cry towards the clouds. And they say that the Thunder-beings know about them, their worshippers.

The Omaha of the other gentes fear to mention these Ictasanda nikie names, or to bestow them on members of their gentes, as well as to invoke the Thunder-being or beings, unless they belong to the order of Thunder shamans. In that case, they can do as the Ictasanda people do. They make songs about the Thunder-beings, and stand singing their own songs. They fill the pipe with tobacco, and stand, holding it with the mouth-piece toward the clouds, as they gaze towards them.

These shamans often act otherwise. Sometimes they do not fill the pipe, and then they stand singing the Thunder songs, without offering anything to the Thunder-beings.

And these shamans know when anything promises to result in good or evil to the person undertaking it. So when a person wishes to join a large hunting party, he fills a pipe with tobacco, and offers it to a shaman, thus causing him to prophesy. As he wishes him to know the result of following a certain course, (i. e., of traveling in a certain direction), he induces the shaman to sing (sacred songs). And sometimes the shaman predicts the very occurrence which comes to pass; if, for instance, he foretells that the inquiring man will kill game, he may [Pg 385]say, ‘The Thunder-beings (?) have given me some quadrupeds.’

KANSA WORSHIP OF THE THUNDER-BEING.

§ 36. The following was a custom of the Lṵ or Thunder-being gens. At the time of the first thunder-storm in the spring of the year, the Lṵ people put a quantity of green cedar on a fire, making a great smoke. The storm ceased after the members of the other gentes offered prayers. The Buffalo or Tcedŭñga gens aided the Lṵ gens in the worship of the Thunder-being, by sending one of their men to open the sacred bag of gray hawk skin and remove the mystery pipe. These objects were kept by a Lṵ man, Kinuyiñge, who was not allowed to open the bag.

Pahaⁿle-gaqli, of the Large Hañga gens, and Aliⁿkawahu, of the Small Hañga, are the leaders in everything pertaining to war. Pahaⁿle-gaqli furnished the author with a copy of his war chart, on which are represented symbols of the mystery songs. In the middle of the chart there should be a representation of fire, but Pahaⁿle-gaqli said that he was afraid to draw it there, unless he fasted and took other necessary precautions. The songs used in connection with the chart are very “wakandagi,” or mysterious. They are never sung on common occasions, or in a profane manner, lest the offender should be killed by the Thunder-being. One of the three songs about the sacred pipe, sung when the wrappings are taken from the pipe (See § 85) by Aliⁿkawahu is as follows:

“Ha-há! tcé-ga-nú ha-há!
Ha-há! tcé-ga-nú ha-há!
Ha-há! tcé-ga-nú ha-há!
Hü-hü´!”

(Unintelligible to the author. Said when Aliⁿkawahu presses down on the covers or wrappings of the pipe.)

“Yu! yu! yú! Hü-hü´! Hü-hü´!”

(Chorus sung by all the Large and Small Hañga men.)

This last line is an invocation of the Thunder-being. The arms, which are kept apart and parallel, are held up toward the sky, with the palms of the hands out. Each arm is then rubbed from the wrist to the shoulder by the other hand.[31]

After the singing of these three songs, Pahaⁿle-gaqli carries the sacred clam shell on his back.

The second figure on the chart is that of the venerable man or Wakanda, who was the first singer of all the Hañga songs. When Aliⁿkawahu and Pahaⁿle-gaqli are singing them, they think that this Wakanda walks behind them, holding up his hands toward the Thunder-being, to whom he prays for them.

[Pg 386]

When the war pipe is smoked by any Hañga man, he holds the pipe in his right hand, and blows the smoke into the sacred clam shell, in his left. The smoke ascends from the clam shell to the Thunder-being, to whom it is pleasant.

The Kansa used to “cry to” the Thunder-being before going on the warpath. When the captain (the head of the Large Hañga gens) smoked his pipe, he used to say,

i. e. “Ho, Wakanda! I really wish a Skidi” (or, Pawnee Loup) “to die!”

The men of the two Hañga gentes unite in singing songs to stop rain, when fair weather is needed, and songs to cause rain when there has been a drought. (See § 43.)

SUBTERRANEAN AND SUBAQUATIC WAKANDAS.

§ 37. The Omaha and Ponka believe in the Wakandagi, monsters that dwell beneath the bluffs and in the Missouri river. These monsters have very long bodies, with horns on their heads. One myth relates how an orphan killed a Wakandagi with seven heads.[32]

The Omaha have a tradition that a Wakandagi was seen in the lake into which Blackbird creek empties, near the Omaha agency. It is impossible to say whether the Wakandagi and the ┴ande or Ground were differentiated (See § 27). The Kansa Mi-á-lṵ-cka were somewhat like the Wakandagi, though in one respect they resembled the mythical Ԁá-[s]nu-ta of the Omaha, i. e., in having enormous heads. The Kansa speak of the Mialṵcka as a race of dreadful beings with large heads and long hair.[33] They dwelt in remote places, to which they were supposed to entice any unwary Indian who traveled alone. The victim became crazy and subsequently lived as a miⁿquga or catamite. Some of the Mialṵcka dwelt underground or in the water, sitting close to the bank of the stream. The ancient Mialṵcka was a benefactor to the Indians, for he took some wet clay and made first a buffalo calf and then three buffalo bulls, which he ordered the Indians to shoot, after teaching them how to make bows and arrows and to use them.

THE INDAȻIÑGA.

§ 38. The Ponka, in 1871, told the author of a being whom they called the Ĭndáȼiñga. This being was a superhuman character, who dwelt in the forests. He hooted like an owl, and he was so powerful that he could uproot a tree or overturn a lodge. The Ponka had a song about him, and mothers used to scare their children by saying, “Behave, else the Ĭndaȼiñga will catch you!” Joseph La Flèche had heard it spoken of as a monster in human shape, covered with thick hair. As [Pg 387]the Ponka for wearing a mask is “Ĭndáȼiñga gáxe,” or “to act the Ĭndáȼiñga,” it may be that this character was an aboriginal bogy. Compare the Dakota Ćaŋotidaŋ, Hoḣnoġića, Uŋgnaġićala, etc. (§ 232.) Omaha mothers used to scare their children by telling them that if they did not behave, Icibajĭ (a hero of the ┴e-sĭnde gens) or ┴exujaⁿ (a hero of the [K]aⁿze gens) would catch them.[34] Another fearful being was Ĭnde-naⁿba, or Two Faces, the very sight of whom killed a woman who was enceinte.[35] This being resembled, in some respects, Ictinike, the deceiver,[36] though Ictinike was usually the counterpart of the Dakota Ikto, Iktomi, or Uŋktomi. (See §§ 228-231.) As a worker of evil Ictinike may be compared with the Dakota Anŭŋg-ite or Two Faces, and the latter in turn resembled the Ĭndáȼiñga of the Ponka. (See §§ 233, 234.)

OTHER KANSA WAKANDAS.

§ 39. The third figure on the Kansa war chart is[37] that of the Wakanda or aged man who gives success to the hunter. He is thus addressed by Aliⁿkawahu and Pahaⁿle-gaqli:

i.e., “Venerable man, go hunting! Kill whatever persons or quadrupeds meet you!” They think that this being drives the game towards the hunter.

In the war chart there are seven songs of the Wakanda who makes night songs. Fig. 16 of that chart refers to a song of another Wakanda who is not described. Fig. 18 refers to two shade songs. Shade is made by a Wakanda. Fig. 19 is a dream song. There is a Wakanda who makes people sleepy, an Indian Somnus.

§ 40. OMAHA INVOCATIONS OF THE TRAP, ETC.

[Pg 388]

Notes.

i. e., “Ho, ye four firebrands that meet at a common point (i. e., in the middle of the [Pg 389] fireplace)!” He subsequently changed it to an invocation of the fireplace itself. But it is very probable that there was an invocation of the four firebrands, resembling the ceremonies of the Kansa and Osage (see § 33). George has given all that he remembers of the invocations, but he does not recollect the exact order.

387, 3. [p]eje-hide, “lower part,” or “roots of grass,” an archaic name for “makaⁿ”, medicine. Nini gakĕ—the classifier kĕ shows that a long object, the pipe, is referred to, the tobacco being in the pipe when it is offered to the powers.

388, 1. aiȼagaȼaȼiⁿhe, contr. from áiȼágaȼa áȼiⁿhé, used here in the sense of “abȼiⁿ,” I have.

388, 12. aⁿȼaⁿbakĭnde, eq. to aⁿȼaⁿbista ȼéwaȼĕ, to send them (through) when they are so close that they touch me.

Translation.

The invisible being who first made the beaver medicine and taught its use to mankind, was thus addressed: “Oh, Thou who didst teach how to make the medicine, here is tobacco! Though I have your medicine, the nature of which I do not understand at all, grant that I may easily acquire something or other by means of it! Here is tobacco!”

When he addressed the beavers, he said, “Ho, ye Beavers! Here is tobacco! Let all of you travel in your feeding places which you have made. Here is tobacco!” To the beaver medicine itself, he said, “Ho, Medicine! Here is tobacco! Stand thinking thus, ‘At any rate an animal shall surely pass me and be caught in the trap, and its nostrils shall be large enough to smell me.’” The trap itself was thus addressed: “Ho, ye pieces of iron! Here is tobacco! Sit ye and think thus: ‘At any rate I will kill one!’” To the pack-strap was said, “Ho, pack-strap! Here is tobacco! Think thou, ‘At any rate I shall press against many quadrupeds.’” The right side of the entrance to the tent (?) was thus addressed: “Ho, Thou who standest at the right side of the entrance to the tent! (§ 232) Here is tobacco! Think thou, ‘At any rate I shall continue to have some one bring dead animals on his back and send through me suddenly, rubbing against me as they pass through.’” To the principal tent pole these words were said, “Ho, Thou who standest with the buffalo tail tied to thee! Here is tobacco! Think thou, ‘At any rate, I shall have a quadruped to come near me.’” When the man invoked the fireplace, he said, “Ho, Fireplace! Here is tobacco! Think thou, ‘At any rate I shall sit and have the water fall on me in drops as it boils over from the kettle containing the quadruped.’”

These invocations may be compared with what the prophet Habakkuk tells us about the Chaldeans, in the first chapter of his prophecy. In his prayer to God, he says, “These plunderers pull out all men with the hook, draw them in with their casting net, and gather them with their draw net, and rejoice and are glad in it. Therefore they make offerings to their casting net, and burn incense to their draw net, for through [Pg 390]them their catch is rich and their food dainty.”[38]

FASTING.

§ 41. This topic naturally precedes that of visions or dreams about mystery, animals, and objects. Two Crows and Joseph La Flèche heard the following spoken of as an ancient custom. It was told them in their youth by some of the old men of that day, who had received it from their elders as having been practiced by the tribe for unnumbered generations. When old men had sons, sisters’ sons, or grandsons, who approached manhood, they used to direct those youths to abstain from food and drink, and to put clay on their faces, saying:

i. e., “Walk ye in remote places, crying to Wakanda. Neither eat nor drink for three or four days. Even though you do not acquire personal mysterious power, Wakanda will aid you. If you act as poor men, and pray as you cry, he will help you.”

When their throats became dry, their voices gave out. When they had completed their fasts, they went home, being exceedingly emaciated. At that time they could not swallow solid food, so they were obliged to subsist on mush mixed with much water, till by degrees they became able to eat what they pleased. Many thought that this fasting enabled them to have superhuman communications with Wakanda.

Fasting was practiced at other times, but always in order to obtain superhuman assistance or to acquire a transfer of superhuman power. A Ponka war captain exhorted each of his followers thus: “Ahaú! Wackaⁿ´ egañ´-gă! Qu´bekiȼa´-bi ȼiⁿhe´!” i.e., “Oho! Do exert yourself! Be sure to make yourself the possessor of superhuman power by the aid of the animal that you have seen in your vision after fasting!”[39] Members of a small war party had to fast four days, counting from the time that they started on the warpath.[40] Before the large war party was formed to avenge the wrongs of Wabaskaha, the four prospective captains fasted.[41] When the Kansa captain fasted, he could not visit his family, but a small fasting lodge was erected for him at some distance from his own house.[42]

MYSTIC TREES AND PLANTS.

§ 42. The Omaha have two sacred trees, the ash and the cedar. The ash is connected with the beneficent natural powers. Part of the sacred pole of the Omaha and Ponka is made of ash, the other part being of cottonwood. The stems of the niniba weawaⁿ, or “sacred pipes of [Pg 391]friendship,” are made of ash. But the cedar is linked with the destructive agencies, thunder, lightning, wars.[43]

When the seven old men took the pipes around the Omaha tribal circle, the bad Maⁿȼiñka-gaxe people wore plumes in their hair and wrapped branches of cedar around their heads, being awful to behold. So the old man passed them by and gave the pipe to the other Maⁿȼiñka-gaxe, who were good. In the Osage traditions, cedar symbolizes the tree of life. When a woman is initiated into the secret society of the Osage, the officiating man of her gens gives her four sips of water, symbolizing, so they say, the river flowing by the tree of life, and then he rubs her from head to foot with cedar needles three times in front, three times at her back, and three times on each side, twelve times in all, pronouncing a sacred name of Wakanʇa as he makes each pass. Part of the Paⁿɥka gens of the Osage tribe[44] are Red Cedar people. The Pañka gens of the Kansa tribe is called “Qŭndjalaⁿ,” i.e., “wearers of cedar (branches) on the head.” Cedar is used by the Santee Dakota in their ceremony of the four winds. (See § 128.) The Teton Dakota believe in the efficacy of the smell of cedar wood or of the smoke from cedar in scaring away ghosts. (See § 272.) In the Athapascan creation myth of Oregon, obtained by the author in 1884, the smoke of cedar took the place of food for the two gods who made the world, and the red cedar is held sacred as well as the ash, because these two trees were the first to be discovered by the gods.[45]

That the Hidatsa have a similar notion about the red cedar is shown by their name for it, “midahopa,” mysterious or sacred tree. Compare what Matthews tells about the Hidatsa reverence for the cottonwood with what is recorded above about the Omaha sacred pole.[46] (§ 344.)

The cottonwood tree also seems to have been regarded as a mystic tree by the Omaha and Ponka, just as it is by the Hidatsa. The sacred pole of the two tribes was made from a tall cottonwood.[47] When the lower part of the sacred pole became worn away, about 8 feet remained, and to this was fastened a piece of ash wood about 18 inches long. In preparing for the dance called the Hede watci, the Iñke-sabĕ people sought a cottonwood tree, which they rushed on, felled, and bore to the center of the tribal circle, where they planted it in the “ujeʇi.” Mystic names taken from the cottonwood are found in the Ȼixida and Nika[p]aɔna, the two war gentes of the Ponka tribe, and in the Ȼatada and [K]aⁿze gentes of the Omaha.[48]

That there were other mystic trees and plants, appears from an examination of the personal names of the Omaha, Ponka, and cognate tribes. For instance, ┴ackahigȼaⁿ, a nikie name of the ┴a[p]a, or Deer[Pg 392] gens of the Omaha, conveys some reference to a white oak tree, ʇackahi; and in the Nuqe, a Buffalo gens of the Ponka tribe, we find the name ┴abehi, from a plant, bush, or tree found in Nebraska, the leaves of which, resembling those of red cherry trees, are used by the Omaha for making a tea. Further study may show that the Winnebago, who have the name Waziʞa, Pine Person, reverence a pine tree. (Query: May not this name be Cedar Person, rather than Pine Person?)

Among the Iowa, Oto, and Missouri, we find several cedar, corn, and pumpkin names. Several corn and pumpkin names occur in the name list of the Kansa tribe. Corn, elm, and black hawthorn names are found in the Osage name list, as well as cedar names; and their traditions tell of the cedar, red oak, and sycamore, as well as of the corn and pumpkin.[49] (See § 49.)

IȻA‘EȻĔ.

§ 43. This term has been defined in Chapter II (§ 8). It is very probable that fasting for several days tended to produce the condition of mind and body requisite for the supposed superhuman communications. According to Ԁaȼiⁿ-naⁿpajĭ and other Omaha, some persons thought that they saw or heard ghosts or various animals. Sometimes men were roused from sleep, imagining that they heard mysterious voices. They claimed to have interviews with U-ga-ha-na-[p]a-ze, or the Ancient of Darkness; Ma-qpi, or the Ancient of Clouds; ┴ande, or the Ground Being; Iñgȼaⁿ, or the Thunder-being; the Sun, the Moon, the Morning Star, the Ancient of Rattlesnakes, the Ancient of Grizzly Bears, the Ancient of Black Bears, the Ancient of Buffaloes, the Ancient of Big Wolves, and the Ancient of Prairie Wolves. Each being or animal thus seen in a dream or vision seems to have been regarded as the special guardian spirit of the person claiming to have had interviews with him. The Iñgȼaⁿ iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma, or Those who had interviews with the Thunder-being, never danced at the meetings of their society. They invited one another to feast, and they sang as they remained seated. The songs referred to the Thunder-being. When they finished eating and singing the ceremonies ended. This order of Thunder shamans claimed the power to make rain (see § 36).

According to Ԁaȼiⁿ-naⁿpajĭ and Little Village Maker, these shamans could also make circles of seven colors around the sun and moon, and the two men just named said that they had seen this done. Joseph La Flèche and Two Crows gave the following explanation: “When there are clouds that obscure the moon, a circle is seen around the moon, and it sometimes resembles a rainbow.” Though Two Crows belongs to the Buffalo society (┴e iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma, or Order of Buffalo shamans—see § 89), he said that he had never had an interview with a mysterious buffalo, but that his work in the order was confined to the practice of surgery, he being the keeper of the “makaⁿ skiȼĕ,” or sweet[Pg 393] medicine. Notwithstanding this, there are certain buffalo songs, the property of the order, and which they claim to be powerful charms capable of working cures, when used by the surgeons of their order. Said Two Crows to the author, “If they had sent for the doctors of our order we could have cured President Garfield.” The author obtained two of these Buffalo songs from an Omaha, but they are recorded only in singing notation.[50]

Among the Omaha societies are the Cañge iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma, the Horse shamans,[51] the Caⁿʇañga iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma, the Big Wolf shamans,[52] and the Maⁿtcu iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma, the Grizzly Bear shamans.[53]

According to Francis La Flèche,[54]

“There are three degrees of powers which come to men through visions: First, when the vision takes the form of an animal which addresses the man, he will then have acquired a power which will stead him in danger, and give him success in life. Second, if the vision assumes the appearance of a cloud, or a human shape having wings like an eagle, and a voice addresses the man, he will have the additional power of being able to foretell events. Third, when the vision comes without any semblance and only a voice is heard, the man is given not only the power to achieve success and foretell events, but he can foresee the coming of death. Should a man endowed with the third degree so elect, he can in due form join the Ghost Society; or, if he prefers, he can practice his powers individually.”

His father, the late Joseph La Flèche, told the author in 1882 that the Ghost Dance formerly belonged to the Ponka tribe, from whom the Omaha took it; though it has not been used by the Omaha since about A. D. 1850.[55] The only inference which the author can draw from this statement of the father is that if the Omaha obtained the Ghost Dance from the Ponka, the Ghost Society or order of Ghost shamans is not an original Omaha society. That the two are closely connected is proved by the names, Wanaxe iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma, the (order of) Ghost shamans (or, The Ghost Society), and Wanaxe iȼa‘eȼĕ watcigaxe, The dance of those who have visions of ghosts, or, The Ghost Dance.

The Kansa have the Tce wactce, or Buffalo shaman, and an order of such shamans. When a Kansa had a vision or dream (i-ya-k’e-ye) of an animal, etc., he painted the mystery object on his shield. An old woman used to “iyak’eye” of a flying serpent, the [M]yets‘a táji lícka. The remains of such enormous serpents are found in the Black Hills, “and if one finds such a reptile, he must die.” For an account of the Kansa “wakandagi” see § 66.

The Kwapa or Ukaqpa Indians speak a dialect more closely allied to that of the Omaha and Ponka than to those of the Kansa and Osage. With them, to have superhuman communications is called dȼa-q‘é-dȼĕ; shamans and doctors are níka qúwĕ, mysterious men, and among their [Pg 394]societies of such men are the following: Te dȼáq‘edȼĕ, Those having superhuman communications with the Buffalo; the Maⁿtú dȼaq‘édȼĕ, Those having interviews with the Grizzly Bear; the Iⁿtaⁿ´dȼaⁿ tañ´ʞa dȼaq‘édȼĕ, Those having interviews with the Panther; and the Jawé dȼaq‘édȼĕ, Those having interviews with the Beaver. There were doubtless other orders, but they are unknown to the author’s Kwapa informant, Alphonsus Valliere, of the Wajiñʞa or Bird gens.[56]

PERSONAL MYSTERY DECORATIONS.

§ 44. The Omaha and Ponka have certain personal mystery decorations, some of which are worn on garments, and others appear on the tents of their owners. The makers and wearers of such decorations must be members of one of the orders of shamans. George Miller’s father, Little Soldier, used to wear a buffalo robe decorated in the style shown in Figs. 156 and 157. It was his personal mystery decoration, which no one else could use. Even members of his gens (the Ictasanda, a Thunder and Reptile gens) feared to imitate it. The father promised to paint this decoration on four white blankets for his son George, but he died before he could paint the fourth one.

FIG. 156.—George Miller’s personal mystery decoration.

George received the first one when he was about seventeen years of age. Before he married he had worn out three. He still has the right to decorate and wear the fourth blanket, according to his father’s intention. He could decorate other white blankets in this style, and wear them, if he wished, but he could not transmit to any one of his children (the grandchildren of Little Soldier) the right to make and wear such a decoration, unless George himself should hereafter see the objects in a dream or vision.

FIG. 157.—A variant of Fig. 156.

The right to use such designs on a buffalo robe, blanket, tent, etc., must originate with one who has had[Pg 395] a vision or dream in which the mystery objects are manifested. Those who could use the class of designs represented in the accompanying illustrations (Figs. 156-161) were members of the order of Thunder shamans (Iñgȼaⁿ iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma).

ORDER OF THUNDER SHAMANS.

§ 45. This order is composed of those who have had dreams or visions, in which they have seen the Thunder-being, the Sun, the Moon, or some her superterrestrial objects or phenomena.

When a person saw the Thunder-being or some other mystery object, he kept the matter a secret for some time. He took care to join the first war party that went from his camp or village. When the party reached the land of the enemy or got into some trouble the man told of his dream or vision. Should the dreamer or seer kill or grasp a foe while a member of the expedition he made a Thunder song. He who brought back one of the enemy’s horses also had the right to make a Thunder song. Some time having elapsed after the return of the warriors, the seer painted the mystery objects on a robe or blanket, and prepared a feast, to which he invited all the members of the order of Thunder shamans. When the guests had assembled the robe was hung up and shown to them. Then all who were present rejoiced. From that time onward the host was a member of the order, and he could wear the robe with safety.

FIG. 158.—Robe of Wanukige.

He could give his son the right to wear such a robe, but unless that son had a similar vision he could not transmit the right to one of the next generation. Little Soldier painted a buffalo robe with his personal mystery decoration, and gave it to Two Crows, whose father had been one of the leaders of the order of Thunder shamans. So Two Crows wore the robe, and he can make another like it; but he can not transmit the right to his son, Ga‘iⁿ-bajĭ. Two Crows would have been afraid to wear the robe or to copy the decoration on it had he not been a member of the order by direct inheritance from his father. A father can clothe his son in such a robe when that son is large enough[Pg 396] to go courting. The man can not give such a robe to his daughter, but he can give one to his son’s son, or to his daughter’s son, should that grandson be a large youth, who has neared or reached the age of puberty.

FIG. 159.—Tent of Wanukige.

If a man who became eligible by his vision to membership in the order of Thunder shamans ventured to wear the decorated robe without inviting the members of the order to a feast, he incurred the anger of the members and misfortune was sure to follow. Should a man wear such a decorated robe without having had a vision of the mystery object, he was in danger (if the object was connected with the Thunder-being, etc.) of being killed by lightning. Every Omaha feared to decorate his robe, tent, or blanket with an object seen by another person in a dream or vision. For instance, George Miller would not dare to have bears’ claws, horses’ hoofs, etc., on his robe, because neither he nor his father ever saw a bear or horse mysteriously. There are penalties attached to violations of the prohibitions of the other orders, but George Miller did not know about them.

FIG. 160.—Robe of Ȼaqube.

Besides the personal mystery decoration of the robe or blanket, is that of the tent. Pl. XLIV, E is a sketch of a tent, furnished to the author by Dried Buffalo Skull, an old man of the Ȼatada gens of the Omaha. The decoration of this tent was the personal mystery or “qube” of Hupeȼa, Sr., father of Hupeȼa, Jr. (now known as ┴enugaʇañga), of the Wasabe-hit‘ajĭ or Black Bear sub-gens of the Ȼatada. After the death of Hupeȼa, Sr., the decoration became the property of his kinsman, Agaha-wacuce, of the same sub-gens, and father of Ԁaȼiⁿnaⁿpajĭ. The circle at the top, representing a bear’s cave, is sometimes painted blue, though Agaha-wacuce had it reddened. Below the four zigzag lines (representing the lightnings of different colors) are the[Pg 397] prints of bears’ paws. The lower part of the tent was blackened with ashes or charcoal. Among the four zigzag lines, red, according to Mr. Francis La Flèche, symbolizes the east.

FIG. 161.—Robe of Ԁahe-ʇap‘ĕ.

Wanukige, a chief of the Ictasanda gens, had a vision of the aurora borealis, so he depicted this on his robes and tent, as shown in Figs. 158 and 159. On the tent were seven stripes, three on each side of the entrance and one in the rear. Each robe that he wore had seven stripes.

FIG. 162.—Generic decoration referring to night, etc.

Fig. 160 represents the personal mystery decoration of Ȼaqube of the [K]aⁿze gens. George Miller’s father could wear this decoration, but the right to it could not be transmitted by him to any one else. Ԁahe-ʇap‘ĕ, of the [K]e-‘iⁿ subgens of the Ȼatada gens, once had a vision of two stars and the new moon. Consequently he decorated his buffalo robe, as shown in Fig. 161, and joined the order of Thunder shamans. He died when the author was at the Omaha agency (between 1878 and 1880).

GENERIC FORMS OF DECORATION.

§ 46. There are examples of generic forms of decoration, as well as those of specific forms. For instance, when a person had a vision of the night, or of the Thunder-being, or one of some other superterrestrial object, he blackened the upper part of his tent and a small portion on each side of the entrance, as shown in Fig. 162.

[Pg 398]

It was given thus by George Miller:

SPECIFIC FORMS OF DECORATION.

FIG. 163.—Tent of Aⁿpaⁿ-skă, Sr.

A specific form related to the generic one just described is shown in Fig. 163. The blackened part of the tent represents the night, and the star denotes the morning star. There was a star on the left hand at the back of the tent, and another star on the right side. Black and blue are occasionally interchangeable in Omaha symbolism; hence we find that the night is represented by a blue band on a coyote skin worn by the elder Aⁿpaⁿ-skă, and subsequently by his son and namesake, when the latter was a small boy. The blue band was worn next the shoulders of the owner (Fig. 164).

FIG. 164.—Robe of Aⁿpaⁿ-skă, Sr.

The decoration refers to his “qube” or “sacred vision.” Little Cedar, of the Maⁿȼiñka-gaxe (Omaha) gens, belonged, we are told, to the Miⁿ iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma, or order of Sun and Moon shamans, probably identical with the order of Thunder shamans. Fig. 165 represents a vision which Little Cedar once had, described thus by George Miller:

[Pg 399]

FIG. 165.—Tent of Mazi-jiñga—ghost vision.

FIG. 166.—A tent of Nikuȼibȼaⁿ.

The black band refers to the night; the circle, to the moon; the circumscribed figure is a ghost that he saw in the moon; and the dots above the moon refer to the “white which stands above the rising sun or moon.” Pl. XLIV B shows another tent decoration of the same man. The red circle represents the sun, in which stands a man holding the ʇa-cá-ge, or deer rattles, made of the hard or callous knobs found near the hoofs of the deer. These knobs are split, hollowed out, and strung on sticks. The tent being very large, the figure of the man was almost life size, and a real feather was tied to his head. The blue band at the bottom may represent night, but there is no certainty about it.

§ 47. Fig. 166 is the decoration of one of the tents of Ni-ku-ȼi-bȼaⁿ, father of the present Wackaⁿ-maⁿȼiⁿ (Hard Walker), an ex-chief of the Omaha. Nikuȼibȼaⁿ was one of the two leaders of the order of Thunder shamans, and was regarded as being very “qube” or mysterious. The black band at the bottom refers to the night, and above it are seen the moon and a star. The old man named one of his grandchildren Haⁿakipa (Meets the Night), after the vision to which the tent decoration refers.

George Miller furnished the description of Nikuȼibȼaⁿ’s tent, obtained from an old woman, who is his widow:

[Pg 400]

FIG. 167.—Another tent of Nikuȼibȼaⁿ.

That is, “I myself did not see him, but I have heard what was told. They say that he had a vision of the Thunder-being, so he made that rainbow which appears in the figure (Fig. 167). The old woman, his widow, has told that he painted the top of the tent, near the smoke-hole, in spots. They say that he said that the Thunder-being had carried him up on high, and that the place there resembled this world. The man was regarded as very mysterious; therefore he decorated his tent according to the pattern that he wished to make. The painted spots represent hail.” Many years ago, Nikuȼibȼaⁿ said that he had been carried up into the world above this one, and that he found[Pg 401] it resembled the world in which we live. The rainbow and hail depicted on the tent formed part of the vision, but their exact significance has not been explained.

FIG. 168.—Blanket of Cuʞa-maⁿȼiⁿ.

FIG. 169.—Tent of ┴e-saⁿ; vision of a cedar.

FIG. 170.—Tent of ┴e-saⁿ; sun and rainbow vision.

Cu-ʞa maⁿ-ȼiⁿ, an Omaha, had a vision which gave him the right to use the decoration given in Fig. 168. The meanings of the different marks have not been learned. Cuʞa maⁿȼiⁿ bequeathed the blanket to his son, [K]axe-giaⁿ (Flying Crow), now known as Gilbert Morris.

§ 48. The old chief ┴e-saⁿ (Ta sone of Maj. Long), Distant-white Buffalo, father of the chiefs Standing Hawk and Fire Chief, had a vision of a cedar tree, which he painted on each side of his tent, as seen in Fig. 169. The next sketch (Fig. 170) shows the back part of another tent of ┴e-saⁿ. The blue band near the top is called “sabe” (black); below this is the sun and a blue rainbow; near the bottom are two horsetails. The only decorations on the front of the tent are two horsetails, one on each side of the entrance. This tent was used by Standing Hawk after the death of his father. This decoration may have been made after a vision of horses, as Standing Hawk was a member of the order of Horse Shamans (Cañge iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma). George Miller speaks thus about it:

That is, “As the man was a head chief, he may have had a vision, for he occupied a tent on which he painted the sun, and he also decorated it with horse-tails at the lower part. He painted the border of the smoke-hole a dark blue (ʇu sabĕ, [Pg 402] which is some-times called, sabĕ).

That is, “When the fathers decorate their tents in consequence of their respective visions, their sons (who succeed them) usually imitate them (or dwell in the decorated tents), even when they themselves have not had visions of the objects. Therefore he (i.e., Standing Hawk) did so.”

George Miller told the following about Ԁede-gahi or Fire Chief, another son of ┴e-saⁿ:

FIG. 171.—Cornstalk decoration of the tents of Fire Chief and Waqaga.

This refers to Fig. 171, and may be thus rendered: “And I have likewise seen the tent of Fire Chief. It was decorated with cornstalks, but I do not know the reason for it. He dwelt in such a tent because he was a chief. Corn was regarded as “waqube,” mysterious. In the sub-gens of Fire Chief, the Wajiñga-ȼatajĭ, or, those who eat no small birds, the people feared to eat the first ears of corn that matured, lest the small birds (particularly blackbirds) should come and devour the rest of the crop. There was a similar tent decoration in the Iñke-sabĕ and Hañga gentes.” In the former, it was used by Waqaga (see § 53). The cornstalks and ears were green, the tips of the ears were black. There were two similar cornstalks on the back of the tent.

[Pg 403]

CORN AND THE BUFFALO.

§ 49. Corn is regarded as a “mother” and the buffalo as a “grandfather” among the Omaha and other tribes.[57] In the Osage tradition, corn was bestowed upon the people by four buffalo bulls or “grandfathers.”[58] Dr. Washington Matthews tells of a similar Arikara belief about an ear of corn.[59] (See § 42.)

OTHER OMAHA MYSTERY DECORATIONS.

FIG. 172.—Robe of Ni-ȼactage.

FIG. 173.—Duba-maⁿȼiⁿ’s father’s tent.

FIG. 174.—Maⁿtcu-naⁿba’s tent.

§ 50. Among the members of the order of Buffalo (┴e iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma) was Niȼactage, whose robe is shown in Fig. 172. The red band is at the top.[Pg 404] The black spots represent the places where the buffaloes play “buffalo wallows.” Buffalo hoofs are in blue.

Duba-maⁿȼiⁿ’s father had a vision of horses, hence he wished to depict horse-tails and tracks on his tent, as found in Fig. 173; but he died before he finished it.

FIG. 175.—Wackaⁿhi’s tent.

FIG. 176.—Tent of unknown Omaha.

FIG. 177.—Tent of ┴ebi‘a.

The father of Maⁿtcu-naⁿba had a vision of horses, and bequeathed to his son Maⁿtcu-naⁿba the right to decorate his tent in the style shown in Fig. 174. The yellow was connected with the vision. When the owner dwelt in an earth-lodge, the horse-tail was tied to a long pole, which was thrust through the opening at the top of the lodge. So when he used his skin tent, the horse-tail hung from the top of a long pole above the smoke-hole.

When the Omaha dwelt near the present town of Homer, Nebr., and Wackaⁿhi was a young child, he went out to play, and fell asleep. He said that he was aroused by the sounds made by many chickens crowing and cackling. In those days (fide George Miller) there were no white people in that neighborhood; but now in that very place where Wackaⁿhi had the vision, there is a wealthy family living, and besides large herds they have a great many chickens. In remembrance of that occurrence, Wackaⁿhi painted his tent with his personal decoration as given in Fig. 175.

An unknown Omaha had a vision of deer, so he decorated his tent accordingly. (See Fig. 176.) George Miller could not furnish the man’s name.

§ 51. Among the members of the order of Grizzly Bear shamans was an Omaha named ┴ebi‘a (Frog). The top of his tent was painted yellow, as shown in Fig. 177. There was no other decoration; but this yellow evidently was connected with a grizzly bear vision, as it appears in the decoration adopted by the father of Two Crows, who was not only one[Pg 405] of the two leaders of the order of Thunder shamans (Iñgȼaⁿ iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma) but also a member of the orders of Buffalo and Grizzly Bear shamans (┴e iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma and Maⁿtcu iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma). (See Pl. XLIV, D, in which a grizzly bear is depicted as emerging from his den. The blue part represents the ground.)

This decoration (of the tent of Two Crows’ father) is thus described by George Miller:

That is, “When they have had visions of grizzly bears, they decorate their tents accordingly. When they see grizzly bears, they behold them coming out of the ground, and so they paint the tents. They always (or usually) paint the ground blue, and part of the tent they paint in a yellow band.” This shows the conventional use of colors. See Pl. XLIV, E, for the sketch of another tent representing the vision of a grizzly bear.

KANSA MYSTERY DECORATIONS.

FIG. 178.—Tent of a Kansa who had an eagle vision.

§ 52. Three Kansa decorations follow. They are taken from an original sketch made by a Kansa man, known to the white people as Stephen Stubbs. The first tent (Fig. 178) is that of a man who had fasted and held mysterious communication with an eagle which gave him some feathers. He had danced the pipe dance once for some one. At the base of this tent are seen two peace pipes on each side of the entrance. At the back are a black bear and a large turtle. The second tent (Fig. 179) is that of a man who had danced the pipe dance three times. Buffalo tails are fastened to the tops of the triangular[Pg 406] pieces forming the shelter of the smoke-hole, feathers hang from the two shields, and the stars are above and on the base of the tent skins. Feathers, shields, and stars are also on the back of this tent.

FIG. 179.—Kansa decorated tent.

FIG. 180.—Kansa decorated tent.

Fig. 180 is the tent of a man who has danced the pipe dance four times. It is very probable, judging from the stars on the tents, that the owners of the second and third Kansa tents had had visions. The Kansa say that when a man has danced the pipe dance twice, his tent can be decorated with two cornstalks at the front (one on each side of the entrance), and two more at the back. The pipes used in the calumet or pipe dance are regarded as “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ” by the Omaha and Ponka, and the inference is that the Kansa and Osage had a similar belief about these pipes and the accompanying dance. Perhaps there was a time when no man could undertake the pipe dance unless he had a vision of some kind.

FIG. 181.—Maⁿze-guhe’s robe.

[Pg 407]

OMAHA NIKIE DECORATIONS.

FIG. 182.—Maⁿze-guhe’s tent.

§ 53. As the gentes of the Omaha and Ponka are regarded as being “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ,” the “nikie” and “nikie names” have a religious significance. George Miller has furnished the author with a few nikie decorations, which are now given.

Maⁿze-guhe, an Omaha, belonged to the Waȼigije sub-gens of the Iñke-sabĕ gens. The decoration of his robe (Fig. 181) marks the nikie of the sub-gens, as it consisted of spiral forms known as “waȼigije.” That of the tent (Fig. 182) refers to the nikie of the entire gens. In the latter case, the buffalo head was painted on the back of the tent.

FIG. 183.—Duba-maⁿȼiⁿ’s father’s blanket.

Duba-maⁿȼiⁿ, who has a nikie name referring to the buffalo, belongs to the Waȼigije sub-gens. His father wore a black blanket embroidered with beadwork in two rows of spirals, between which was a star. All these figures were made of white beads. (See Fig. 183.)

In the Pipe sub-gens of the Iñke-sabĕ there were several tent decorations. Of the first, George Miller speaks thus:

[Pg 408]

FIG. 184.—Iñke-sabĕ tent decoration.

That is, “Those persons who belong to the Iñke-sabĕ sub-gens known as Keepers of the Pipes, paint their tent(s) with the pipe decoration. I do not know of any other persons, members of other gentes, using this decoration; I think that no others use it. I think that the Iñkesabĕ chief decorates his tent in this manner, and that he did not decorate it in any way he pleased. When the sacred pipes were made (on the tent) the pipestem was made flat, porcupine work was put around it, several heads of birds were fastened on it, and tufts of reddened horses’ hair were tied to it at intervals.” (See Fig. 184 and Pl. XLIV, C.) This Iñke-sabĕ tent had only two pipes on it—one on each side of the entrance.

The second Iñke-sabĕ tent decoration is thus described by the same authority:

[Pg 409] That is, “When, in my childhood, I saw the tents in which the people dwelt, they were of this sort. (See Fig. 185.) I saw the tent decorated with the pipes having feathers attached to each pipe at right angles. I saw a tent of this sort when it was occupied by Waqaga of the Pipe sub-gens. (See another tent decoration of this man, § 48.) Though these pipes closely resemble the peace pipes (niniba waqube), they are made with the feathers attached to the stems at right angles. These are the pipes used in the pipe dance. By means of the pipes the people made for themselves that which was equivalent to (or, lead to) the chieftainship. So they regarded the sacred pipes as of the greatest importance. Even when the people were very bad, even when different tribes continued to struggle with one another; even when they shot often at one another, when some persons came forth with the peace pipes, and bore them to a place between the opposing forces, carrying them all along the lines, they stopped shooting at one another. The Indians regarded the pipes as precious.”

FIG. 185.—Iñke-sabĕ tent decoration.

A ┴a[p]a nikie tent decoration is shown in the tent of Heqaga. (Pl. XLIV, C.) This tent had two pipes on each side of the tent, double the number on the Iñke-sabĕ tent (Fig. 184).

FIG. 186.—Waqaga’s robe.

Fig. 186 is given as the nikie decoration of a robe belonging to Waqaga. The bird on the robe is an eagle. Members of the Pipe sub-gens of the Iñke-sabĕ have eagle birth names. And we know that Waqaga belonged to that sub-gens.

The author understood Joseph La Flèche and Two Crows to say, in 1882, that while nikie names possessed a sacredness, it was only the sacredness of antiquity, and that they were not “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ.”

But the author now thinks that such a statement needs modification; for, besides what appears at the beginning of this section, we know that among the Osage and Kansa the nikie names are associated with the traditions preserved in the secret society of seven degrees, and that this applies not only to names of gentes and sub-gentes, but also to personal nikie names. The author frightened an Osage in January, 1883, by mentioning in public some of this class of names.

[Pg 410]

OMAHA NIKIE CUSTOMS.

§ 54. Among the nikie of the Omaha, the following may be mentioned: The Wajiñga-ȼatajĭ, or “Blackbird people,” had a curious custom during the harvest season. At that time the birds used to devour the corn, so the men of this sub-gens undertook to prevent them, by chewing some grains of corn which they spit around over the field.[60] During a fog, the [K]e-‘iⁿ men would draw the figure of a turtle on the ground, with its head to the south. On the head, tail, middle of the back, and each leg, were placed small pieces of a (red) breechcloth with some tobacco. They imagined that this would make the fog disappear very soon.[61] The [K]aⁿze gens, being Wind people, flap their blankets to start a breeze when mosquitoes abound.[62] The ┴a-[p]a gens have a form for the naming of a child on the fifth morning after its birth, according to Lion, one of the chiefs of that gens.[63] In the feast on the hearts and tongues,[64] the Hañga men who belong to the sub-gens keeping the sacred pole, eat the buffalo tongues, though the buffalo is their “grandfather” and the eponym of their gens; but they can not eat the “ʇa” or buffalo sides. However, the other Hañga men, who can not eat the tongues, are allowed to eat the consecrated buffalo sides, after the ceremonies connected with the thanksgiving and anointing of the sacred pole.[65] No Omaha child had its hair cut until it had been taken to an old man of the Ictasanda gens, to have the first locks cut, the first moccasins put on the child’s feet, and prayers to be said over it. Sometimes the old man said

i.e., “O grandchild, may Wakanda pity you, and may your feet rest a long time on the ground!” Another form was sometimes used—“Wakanda ȼa‘eȼiȼe tate. Maⁿȼiñka si aȼagȼe tate. Gudihegaⁿ ne tate,” i.e., “May Wakanda pity you! May your feet tread the ground! May you go ahead (or, live hereafter)!”[66]

§ 55. When there is a “blizzard,” the other Kansa beg the members of the Tcihaciⁿ or Kaⁿze gens to interpose, as they are Wind people.

‘O grandfather (said to one of the Kaⁿze gens), I wish good weather. Please cause one of your children to be decorated!’” Then the youngest son of one of the [Pg 411]Kaⁿze men, say one over 4 feet high, is chosen for the purpose, and painted with red paint (I´gamaⁿ jü´dje i´kik’ŭⁿ´kiya´be au). The youth rolls over and over in the snow and reddens it for some distance all around him. This is supposed to stop the storm.

GOVERNMENTAL INSTRUMENTALITIES.

§ 56. Among the Omaha governmental instrumentalities which are “Wakandaʇaȼicaⁿ” are the chiefs, the keepers of the three sacred tents, the keepers of the sacred pipes, the gentes, sub-gentes, and taboos, none of which can be regarded as fetiches, and the following which appear to be fetiches: The sacred pipes (including the war pipes of the Elk gens, the two peace pipes kept by the Iñke-sabĕ gens, the mysterious objects kept by the “keepers of the pipes” in the Ȼatada, [K]aⁿze, Maⁿȼiñka-gaxe, ┴e-sĭnde, ┴a-[p]a, and Ictasanda gentes, and the weawaⁿ or pipes used in the calumet dance), the sacred pole, the sacred hide of a white buffalo, the sacred arrows of divination, and the sacred clam shell of the Elk gens.[67]

§ 57. OMAHA AND PONKA TABOOS.

Buffalo skull not touched by—

• 1. ┴e-[p]a it‘ajĭ sub-gens of Ȼatada (Omaha).
• 2. Waȼigije sub-gens of Iñke-sabĕ (Om.).
• 3. ┴e-sĭnde gens (Om.).
• 4. Part of the Wacabe gens (Ponka).
• 5. Part of Necta gens (P.).

Buffalo tongue not eaten by—

• 1. Waȼigije sub-gens of Iñke-sabĕ (Om.).
• 2. Hañgaqti or Wacabe sub-gens of Hañga (Om.).
• 3. Part of Nika[p]aɔna gens (P.).
• 4. Part of Wacabe gens (P.).
• 5. Part of Necta gens (P.).

Buffalo (black) horns not touched by part of Iñke-sabĕ gens (Om.).

Buffalo sides (when consecrated), not eaten by ┴a waqube ȼatajĭ sub-gens of Hañga gens (Om.).

Buffalo rib (lowest one, ʇeȼiʇ-ucagȼe), not eaten by ┴e-sĭnde gens (Om.).

Buffalo and domestic calf not eaten when the hair is red, but can be eaten when the hair turns black, by ┴e-sĭnde gens (Om.).

Buffalo calf can not be touched, when its hair is “zi” (yellow or red), by a sub-gens of the Necta gens (P.).

Buffalo calf can not be eaten at any time by—

• 1. Iñgȼe-jide gens (Om.).
• 2. Part of Wacabe gens (P.).
• 3. Part of Necta gens (P.).

[Pg 412] Deer not eaten by—

• 1. Part of Hisada gens (P.).
• 2. Part of Nika[p]aɔna gens (P.).

Male deer not eaten by Elk gens (Om.); but Deer gens can eat venison.

Skin of any animal of the deer family can not be touched by ┴ada gens (Om.).

Flesh of male elk not eaten by Elk gens (Om.).

Bladder and sinew of male elk not touched by Elk gens (Om.).

Elk not eaten by part of Nika[p]aɔna gens (P.).

Turtles not eaten by Turtle sub-gens (Om.).

Black bear skin not touched by—

• 1. Black bear sub-gens (Om.).
• 2. Black bear sub-gens (P.).

Wild-cat skin, not touched by pipe sub-gens of Deer gens (Om.).

Cranes and swans not eaten by part of Hañga gens (Om.).

Swans not touched (formerly?) by Miⁿxasaⁿ wet‘ajĭ sub-gens of Maⁿ-ȼiñka-gaxe gens (Om.).

Small birds not eaten by Wajiñga-ȼatajĭ (Blackbird or Small bird) sub-gens of the Ȼatada gens (Om.). They can eat wild turkeys, ducks, geese, swans, cranes. When members of this sub-gens are sick they can eat grouse.

(Small birds) blackbirds, (black ones), swallows, and grouse not eaten by part of Hisada gens (P.).

Reptiles neither touched nor eaten by—

• 1. Ictasanda gens (Om.).
• 2. Wajaje gens (P.).

Blood not touched by part of the Ȼixida gens (P.), hence their name, Wami it‘ajĭ.

Red corn not eaten by a sub-gens of the Iñke-sabĕ gens (Om.).

Charcoal not touched by—

• 1. A sub-gens of the Iñke-sabĕ gens (Om.).
• 2. The Pipe sub-gens of the Deer gens (Om.).
• 3. A sub-gens of the Ȼixida gens (P.).
• 4. The Pipe sub-gens of the Wajaje gens (P.).

Verdigris not touched by—

• 1. [K]aⁿze gens (Om.).
• 2. Pipe sub-gens of Deer gens (Om.).
• 3. Part of the Ȼixida gens (P.).
• 4. Pipe sub-gens of the Wajaje gens (P.).

FETICHISM.

§ 58. According to Dr. Tylor, “Fetichism is the doctrine of spirits embodied in, or attached to, or conveying influence through, certain material objects.”[68]

[Pg 413]

Fetiches may be regarded as of two kinds—those pertaining to the tribe or gens, and those belonging to individual members of the social organization. Some fetiches are amulets, others are charms.

FETICHES OF THE TRIBE AND GENS.

§ 59. Omaha tribal fetiches.—The sacred pole and white buffalo hide, in the keeping of the Hañga gens until a few years ago, but now in the Peabody Museum of Archæology and Ethnology at Cambridge, Mass., were regarded by the Omaha as “wakanda egaⁿ,” i.e., “like Wakandas,” or “partaking of the nature of deities.” During the public thanksgiving after the buffalo hunt, prayer was made towards the sacred pole.[69]

The sacred tent in which the sacred pole of the two tribes was kept was never painted. When the people remained in their permanent villages of earth lodges, the entrance of the sacred tent faced the sunrise; but when the tribe migrated, the entrance of the tent faced the direction in which they traveled. The pole was never exposed to dew, rain, or snow, but was kept within the lodge, during any kind of bad weather. It was never laid down, but was tied to a tent pole. In good weather it was exposed to view. Sometimes it was tied to one of the tent poles near the entrance, as shown in Fig. 187. When not tied thus, it rested on a forked post set in the ground, either in the rear of the tent or in front of it. The top of the pole, to which the scalp was fastened, projected beyond the forked post. When this post was in the rear of the tent, the top of the pole pointed towards the tent; but when the post was set up in front, the pole pointed in the direction to be traveled. The place for the pole in good weather was determined by its keeper.

FIG. 187.—Sacred tent in which the pole was kept.

The people feared the pole, and they would not dare to tread on the tent or its tent-poles. Should a horse tread on a tent-pole of this tent, its legs were sure to be broken subsequently. George Miller knew of two horses that did this, and their legs were broken when the people were surrounding a herd of buffalo.

Frank La Flèche has told the author about some sacred stone arrows which were used for purposes of divination. Hence, the nikie name, Maⁿ pĕjĭ, Bad Arrow, i.e. Good Arrow, a personal name of the Hañga gens. Other objects, which may have been fetiches, have been named in § 56. In addition to all which have been mentioned must be named the waȼixabe or mysterious bags. While these are not governmental instrumentalities, they are “waqube” mysterious things,[Pg 414] and on certain occasions they are addressed as “grandfathers.” There used to be five of these bags among the Omaha, but only three are now in existence. Those which could be carried in time of war were made of the skins and feathers of the gȼedaⁿ or pigeon hawk, the iⁿbe-jañka or fork-tailed hawk, and the nickucku or swallow.[70]

┴ade uȼeȼĕ, according to Big Elk (but denied by Joseph La Flèche and Two Crows) is the mystic rite performed by the principal captain when near the camp of the enemy. It is thus described by Big Elk (See § 62):

“Four times he untied the bag which he had made sacred. He caused the wind to waft the odor of the medicine toward the lodges. When the medicine arrived there, it made the Pawnees forget their warlike temper; it made them forget their weapons.”[71]

That there was some foundation for this statement, compare what is said in Omaha Sociology, p. 321:

“When the principal captains wish to open their sacred bags, they assemble their followers in a circle, making them sit down. Any of the followers or servants may be ordered to make an “ujeʇi” in the center of the circle by pulling up the grass, then making a hole in the ground (the “U-ma-ne” of Miss Fletcher[72]). Then the sacred bags are laid at the feet of the principal captains, each one of whom opens his own bag (i.e. the one borrowed by him from its keeper), holding the mouth of the bird toward the foe, even when some of the warriors are going to steal horses.”

During the ordeal of the “wastegistu,” as the Omaha call it, the successful warriors were called up, one by one, and as each man stood over one of the sacred bags, he addressed the bag itself thus:

“Ho, venerable man! though I will tell you something, I will not lie when I tell it to you.” As he spoke he let a small stick drop on the bag. It was supposed that if the stick rested on the bag instead of rolling off, the man had told the truth (Om. Soc., p. 328).

§ 60. Osage tribal fetiches.—The corresponding Osage custom has been described by the author:[73] The old men assembled at the war tent. The sacred bags were brought into the tent to test the warriors, who were watched very closely by the old men. All the old men who had been distinguished in war were painted with the decorations of their respective gentes.  *  *  *  Each warrior had four sticks about 6 inches long, and he was required to lay them in succession on the sacred bag. The warriors were taken in the following order: First, the captain, next the lieutenants, then the heralds, after whom came the man who had struck the first blow, then he who gave the second blow, and so on. As each captain laid his first stick on the bag he said, “Ho, O grandfather! I lay this down on you because I am the one [Pg 415]who has killed a man.” On laying down the second stick, he said, “Ho, O grandfather! I wish to be fortunate in stealing horses! I wish our children, too, to be as fortunate as we have been!” When he put down the third, he said, “Ho, O grandfather! I wish to raise a domestic animal. I wish to succeed in bringing it to maturity.” By this he meant a son. The prayer made when the last stick was laid down was as follows: “Ho, O grandfather! May we continue a people without sustaining any injuries!” Similar petitions were made by the lieutenants and heralds. He who gave the first blow said, as he laid down the first stick, “Ho, O grandfather! I lay this down on you as one who has caused another to stun a foe!” The rest of his petitions were those made by the captains. He who struck the second blow said as follows, on laying down the first stick: “Ho, O grandfather! I place this on you because I was the next one to strike and stun a man!” The other petitions follow, as given above. The first petition of each of the remaining warriors is as follows: “Ho, O grandfather! I lay this on you as a token that I have aided in overcoming the enemy.”

§ 61. Kansa tribal fetiches.—Among the Kansa, the following fetiches belong to the two Hañga gentes: The war pipe and the war clam shell. The war pipe was kept in 1882 by Pahaⁿle-wak’ü, the son of Aliⁿkawahu, for the two Hañga gentes. This pipe has an eye on each side, so that it may see the enemy! There is no pipestem, but there is one hole to which the mouth is applied, and in the bowl is another hole in which the tobacco is placed. The pipe, which is all in one piece, is of catlinite, about as thick as two hands. It is never taken from the wrappings, except when all the men of the two Hañga gentes assemble at the lodge of the chief Aliⁿkawahu. The sacred clam shell was kept in 1882 by Pahaⁿle-gaqli, the chief of the other Hañga gens. It is wrapped in five coverings, similar to those around the war pipe. They are as follows: (1) The innermost covering, the bladder of a buffalo bull; (2) next covering, made of the spotted fur of a fawn; (3) made of braided rushes or “sa;” (4) a very broad piece of deerskin; (5) the outermost covering, made of braided hair from the head of a buffalo bull.

PERSONAL FETICHES.

§ 62. Ԁaȼiⁿ-naⁿpajĭ said that there were some Omaha who considered as “waqube” the skins of animals and the skins and feathers of birds used in making their “waȼixabe” or mystery bags. Among these birds and animals he named the eagle, sparrow hawk, yellow-backed hawk, green-necked duck, great owl, swallow, otter, flying squirrel, mink, miʞa skă (“white raccoon” sic), and mazaⁿhe. The last is an animal resembling an otter. It is covered with thick black and reddish-yellow hair, and its tail is bushy. Samuel Fremont said (in 1889) that this animal was not found in that part of Nebraska where the Omaha dwelt, but that he had heard of its being found among the Dakota. Two Crows and Joseph La Flèche never heard of the miʞa skă and mazaⁿhe[Pg 416] among their own people; but they said that when the Omaha traveled, some used to take with them their respective “makaⁿ” or medicines, evidently their personal fetiches, for they used to say, “Our medicines are wise; they can talk like men, and they tell us how many horses we are to receive from the people to whom we are going.”

When the Omaha went against the Pawnee during the boyhood of the present Big Elk, one of the captains, named Gi‘aⁿhabi, had a war club of the kind called “weaqȼade.” He made this club “waqube,” in order to use it mysteriously. When near the camp of the enemy he brandished the club four times toward the Pawnees. This was followed by the use of the sacred bag, as related in § 59.

It is probable that the medicines of the Watci Waȼupi, Wase-jide aȼiⁿ-ma, and the Ԁaȼiⁿ-wasabĕ watcigaxe ikagekiȼĕ, of the Omaha,[74] the Red Medicine of the Kansa, and the Red Medicine of the Osage Makaⁿ ɔüʇ[s]e watsiⁿ or Red Medicine Dance, were used as fetiches, as they conferred wonderful powers on those who used them. When the author was at the Omaha Agency, in 1878, he obtained the following: Rocky Mountain beans, which are scarlet, and are called “Makaⁿ jide” or Red Medicine, confer good luck on their owners. If the beans like their owners, they will never be lost; even if dropped accidentally, they will return to the possession of their owners. Ni-k’ú-mi, an aged Oto woman, told one of her granddaughters (then Susette La Flèche, known as Bright Eyes after 1879, and now the wife of T. H. Tibbles) of her own experience with one of these beans. She had dropped it in the grass, but she found it on retracing her steps. It is impossible to say whether this scarlet bean was identical with the Red Medicine of the Iowa (§ 87), Kansa, and Osage; but it certainly differed from that of the Wase-jide aȼiⁿma of the Omaha.

There are sacred or mystery rites practiced by the dancing societies, including those to which the wazeȼĕ or doctors belong. Two Crows said that he did not know those of his society, the ┴e iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma. As initiation into one of these societies is very expensive, it is unreasonable to suppose that Two Crows would communicate the secrets of his order for a small sum, such as $1 a day.

SORCERY.

§ 63. There have been sorcerers, i.e., such as prepared love potions for those who bought them, and who were thought to cause the death of those persons who had incurred their displeasure. The author has been told that the sorcerers give a high price for a small quantity of the catamenial discharge of a virgin. It is mixed with a love potion, and when the compound is administered to a man he can not help courting the woman, even when he knows that he does not love her.

[Pg 417]

JUGGLERY.

§ 64. Ickade or sleight of hand exists not only in the secret societies but also along with the practice of medicine, government, and religion. Some of the Omaha and Ponka doctors of the first class (the wazeȼĕ, not the makaⁿ aȼiⁿ-ma or root doctors) pretend to draw sticks from the bodies of their patients, or worms from aching teeth, saying that those things are the causes of the diseases. Every disease is a “nie” or “pain,” and there must be a cause for that pain.

§ 65. In 1872 Big Grizzly Bear, a subordinate Ponka chief, told the following to the author: “One day Whip, a head chief, said, ‘I am going to make the sun blue.’ And he did so. Then he said, ‘I am going to pull out some of the hair of the man in the moon.’ He held up his hands to show that they had no hair in them. Then he began to sing. Suddenly he had some bloody hair in each hand. Ga-ʇi-de maⁿ-ȼiⁿ and a great many others were witnesses. Once, when the Ponka were destitute of food, Buffalo Bull, the father of Grizzly Bear’s Ear, said, ‘I will use magic.’ His wife replied, ‘Please do so.’ So he made a pile of earth about 2 feet high and shot four arrows into it. A large deer was slain, furnishing them with plenty to eat.”

In 1871 the author saw an exhibition of the skill of Cramped Hand and Bent Horn, two Ponka shamans. One afternoon, near sunset, about two hundred persons, mostly Indians, stood in a large circle around a tent in which sat the shamans and their assistants. Presently the shamans and the aged chief, Antoine Primeau, came out of the tent and stood within the circle. One of the shamans, Cramped Hand, danced along the inner side of the circle, exhibiting a revolver (Allen’s patent), one chamber of which he seemed to load as the people looked on. After he had put on the cap, he handed the weapon to the chief, who fired at the shaman. Cramped Hand fell immediately, as if badly wounded. Bent Horn rushed to his relief and began to manipulate him. It was not long before Cramped Hand was able to crawl around on his hands and knees, though the bullet had apparently hit him in the mouth. He groaned and coughed incessantly, and after a tin basin was put down before him he coughed up a bullet which fell in the basin, and was shown in triumph to the crowd. This is told merely to show how the Indian juggler has adopted some of the tricks of his white brother. In a few moments Bent Horn danced around, showing to each of us an object which appeared to be a stone as large as a man’s fist, and too large to be forced into the mouth of the average man. Cramped Hand stood about 10 or 15 feet away and threw this stone toward Bent Horn, hitting the latter in the mouth and disappearing. Bent Horn fell and appeared in great pain, groaning and foaming at the mouth. When the basin was put down before him, there fell into it, not one large stone, but at least four small ones. We were told that the chief, Antoine, had to give a horse for the privilege of shooting at the shaman.

[Pg 418]

It is probable that some of the Omaha shamans performed similar tricks, though the author has been unable to obtain any accounts of them.

§ 66. He was fortunate, however, in making the acquaintance of the chief “wakandagi,” or shaman of the Kansa, when at Kaw Agency, in the winter of 1882. This man, Nixüdje-yiñge, was very communicative. He said that there used to be ten shamans in the tribe, and all had round pebbles which they blew from their mouths against the persons whom they “ʞilŭⁿxe” or “shot in a mysterious manner.” The arrow of the shamans was called “Mi-pa-ha,” which is a name of the Buffalo gens. This missile was made of part of the red-breasted turtle.

A woman named Saⁿ-si-le had two “makaⁿ” (medicines, fetiches?) which she used for “ickade” or “wakandagi wagaxe” (magic, shamanistic legerdemain). She could swallow a knife; and when she swallowed a certain kind of grass she drew a green snake from her mouth. John Kickapoo’s father had a red medicine, which was used for women who desired to become enciente, for horses, and for causing good dreams. Nixüdje-yiñge’s mother, who was a shaman, has a small pebble and a clam shell, which she used in her mystery acts.

Pagani had a “sika-hyuka” or “needle” (so represented by Nixüdje-yiñge, but it may not have been a steel needle), which he swallowed and voided through the urethra. Gahige-wadayiñga used to stab himself with a “mahiⁿsü” or arrow-point, about 6 inches long, causing the blood to spurt from his left shoulder as he danced. The other shamans used to spurt water on his back from their mouths, while he held his arms horizontally from his body, with the forearms pointing upward. When they finished no wound could be found. One shaman had a fish called “hu blaska” or flat fish, to which he talked. He made a necklace of the skin, and he used it for “ʞilŭⁿxe.”

Wakanda-zi had the skin of a small black bear as his sacred bag. As he danced he held it by the tail and shook the skin. After shooting the round pebble from his mouth at a person he thrust the bear skin at the wounded man, drawing it back very quickly. The round pebble was drawn into the mouth of the bear and dropped on the ground when the skin bag was held with the tail up.

He who wished to be shot at handed a gun to some one, who shot him in the side, much blood escaping. He seemed to be dead; but the shamans assembled and manipulated him. One put the mouth of the otter (of the otterskin sacred bag) to the mouth of the patient in order to perform the act called “lüpayiⁿ” (to raise up or resuscitate his own). Then, “Zü´be aká eyaú tuhnañ´ge aká,” i.e., when the bag was drawn away rapidly, the otter made the sound “zübe,” as when one draws in the breath, and the bullet was in its mouth. On the patient’s recovery he gave a horse to the man who shot at him.

Mañge-zi had a clam shell and a snake that he used in his sleight-of[Pg 419]-hand acts. He also swallowed “mahiⁿ-tu,” a kind of green grass about a foot long and as thick as a pencil. Before swallowing this, he warmed it at a fire. He rubbed himself on his chest after swallowing it, saying, “Let all look at me!” Then he called to him a man to act as his assistant. He coughed and in the assistant’s hand there was a snake, which he took around the circle of spectators, showing it to every one, though no one handled it. On his returning the snake to Mañge-zi, the latter swallowed it and coughed up the long grass.

Nixüdje-yiñge said that there were eight objects used by the shamans for “shooting,” the needle; flint (?) arrow head; beaver teeth; the half of a knife blade, i.e., that part next to the point; the fish-fan, made of “huqtci” or “real fish;” the red medicine; the hiyádadáxe or medicine bag that was caused to fly; and the tuhnañge, or otter skin bag. (See §§ 292-295, 307.)

OMAHA AND PONKA BELIEF AS TO A FUTURE LIFE.

§ 67. They have a very crude belief. Each person is taught to have a wanaxe or spirit, which does not perish at death. According to Joseph La Flèche and Two Crows, the old men used to say to the people, “Ȼiudaⁿ ʞĭ, wanaxe udaⁿ-maʇa ci tate. Ȼipiäjĭ ʞĭ, wanaxe piäjĭ-maʇa ci tate,” i.e., “If you are good, you will go to the good ghosts. If you are bad, you will go to the bad ghosts.” Nothing was ever said of going to dwell with Wakanda, or with demons.[75]

Rev. William Hamilton found a belief that retribution is in this life, and he says, “Their notions are exceedingly crude.”

§ 68. Frank La Flèche told the author before 1882 that he had heard some old men relate a tradition that years ago a man came back to life and told about the spirit land. He said that for four nights after death the ghost had to travel a very dark road, but that after he reached the Milky Way there was plenty of light. For this reason, said he, the people ought to aid their deceased friends by lighting fires at the graves, and by keeping them burning for four nights in each case. After going along the Milky Way, the ghost came at last to a place where the road forked; and there sat an aged man, clothed in a buffalo robe with the hair outside. (See § 359½.) He said nothing, but pointed to each inquirer the road for which he asked. One road was a very short one, and he who followed it soon came to the place where the good ghosts dwelt. The other road was an endless one, along which the ghosts went crying. The spirits of suicides could not travel either road; but they hovered over their graves. But Joseph La Flèche and Two Crows (in 1882) said that the road of the ghosts was not the Milky Way, and they regarded the account of the endless road as a modern addition, which is very probable. The latest statements[Pg 420] of Frank La Flèche are given in the Jour. Amer. Folk-Lore, vol. II, No. 4, pp. 10, 11:

There are a variety of beliefs concerning the immediate action of the spirit upon its withdrawal from the body. Some think that the soul at once starts upon its journey to the spirit land; others, that it hovers about the grave as if reluctant to depart. Because of this latter belief, food and water are placed at the head of the grave for several days after the burial. The spirit is supposed to partake of this food. No Indian would touch any article of food thus exposed; if he did, the ghost would snatch away the food and paralyze the mouth of the thief, and twist his face out of shape for the rest of his life; or else he would be pursued by the ghost, and food would lose its taste, and hunger ever after haunt the offender. There is a belief in the tribe that before the spirits finally depart from men who died of wounds or their results, they float toward a cliff overhanging the Missouri, not far from the present Santee Agency, in Nebraska, and cut upon the rocks a picture showing forth their manner of death. A line in the picture indicates the spot where the disease or wound was located which caused the death. After this record is complete, the spirit flies off to the land of the hereafter. It is said that these pictures are easily recognized by the relatives and friends of the deceased. This place is known as Iñ-gȼaⁿ´-xe ʞi-ʞá-xai ȼaⁿ,[76] or, Where the spirits make pictures of themselves. A suicide ceases to exist; for him there is no hereafter. A man struck by lightning is buried where he fell, and in the position in which he died. His grave is filled with earth, and no mound is raised over one who is thus taken from life.

In 1873 some of the Ponka said they had the following beliefs concerning a murderer: (1) The ghosts surround him and keep up a constant whistling; (2) he can never satisfy his hunger, though he eat much food; (3) he must not be allowed to roam at large lest high winds arise.

It is important to compare this whole section with the Dakota beliefs found in §§ 266-278.

The author was told by the Omaha that when a man was killed by lightning, he ought to be buried face downwards, and the soles of his feet had to be slit. When this was done, the spirit went at once to the spirit land, without giving further trouble to the living. In one case (that of a Wejiⁿcte man, Jadegi, according to George Miller and Frank Le Flèche)[77] this was not done, so it was said that the ghost walked, and he did not rest in peace till another person (his brother) was slain by lightning and laid beside him.

When Joseph La Flèche and Two Crows heard what Frank had told about the Milky Way, etc., they remarked, “We have never been to the spirit land, so we can not tell what is done there. No one has ever come back and told us.” All that they had ever heard was the old story about the forked road.

§ 69. Gahige, the late chief of the Iñke-sabĕ (a buffalo gens), told the author about the address made to a member of his gens, when dying. According to him, the person was addressed thus: “You are going to the animals (the buffalos). You are going to your ancestors. Ánita dúbaha hné (which may be rendered, You are going to the four living ones, [Pg 421]if not, the four winds). Wackañ´-gă (Be strong).” Gahige was understood to speak of four spirits or souls to each person, but Joseph La Flèche and Two Crows said that the Omaha did not believe that a person had more than one spirit. Two Crows gave the following as the address to a dying member of his gens, the Hañga, another buffalo gens:

face this way again. When you go, continue walking.” The last sentence is a petition to the departing spirit not to return to this earth to worry or injure the survivors. That the dead are referred to as still existing, and as having some knowledge of what is happening here, may be seen from the address to a Ponka chief at his installation: “Ȼiádi gáhi, ȼijiⁿ´ȼĕ gáhi, ȼiʇígaⁿ gáhi, ámustáqti ȼidaⁿ´be maⁿ´ȼiⁿ tai;” i.e., “Your father was a chief, your elder brother (i.e., his potential elder brother, Ubiskă, a former head chief of the Ponka) was a chief, and your grandfather was a chief; may they continue to look directly down on you!”[78]

§ 70. Those who boil sacred food, as for the warpath, pour some of the soup outside the lodge, as an offering to the ghosts. (Omaha custom.)

There has been no belief in the resurrection of the body, but simply one in the continued existence of the ghost or spirit. While some of the Iowas expressed to Mr. Hamilton a belief in the transmigration of spirits, that doctrine has not been found among the Omaha and Ponka, nor has the author heard of it among other Siouan tribes.

Not all ghosts are visible to the living. They may be heard without being seen. One Omaha woman, the mother of Two Crows, told how she had been in a lodge with many persons, who were invisible from the knees upward.[79]

KANSA BELIEFS RESPECTING DEATH AND A FUTURE LIFE.

§ 71. When the author was at Kaw Agency, Indian Territory, in the winter of 1882-’83, a man named Ho-sa-sa-ge died. After the representatives of all the gentes had assembled at the house, Wakanda (named after the Thunder-being), the father-in-law of the deceased, removed the lock of hair called the “ghost,” and took it to his own house, weeping as he departed.

When Mr. Say was among the Kansa[80] he obtained the following information about their beliefs concerning death and the future life:

When a man is killed in battle the thunder is supposed to take him up, they do[Pg 422] not know whither. In going to battle each warrior traces an imaginary figure of the thunder on the soil; he who represents it incorrectly is killed by the thunder. A person saw this thunder one day on the ground, with a beautiful moccasin on each side of it. Having need of a pair, he took them and went his way; but on his return to the same spot the thunder took him off, and he has not since been heard of.

They seem to have vague notions about the future state. They think that a brave man or a good hunter will walk in a good path; but a bad man and a coward will find a bad path. Thinking that the deceased has far to travel, they bury with his body moccasins, some articles of food, etc., to support him on the journey. Many persons, they believe, who have revived have been, during their apparent death, to strange villages, where they were not treated well by the people, so they returned to life.

The author, when among the Kansa, in the winter of 1882-’83, learned the following, which differs from anything he has ever obtained elsewhere: “The Kansa believe that when there is a death the ghost returns to the spirit village nearest the present habitat of the living. That is to say, all Indians do not go to one spirit village or ‘happy hunting ground,’ but to different ones, as there is a series of spirit villages for the Kansa, beginning with the one at Council Grove, where the tribe dwelt before they removed to their present reservation in Indian Territory, and extending along both sides of the Kansas River to its mouth, thence up the Missouri River, as far as the tribe wandered before meeting the Cheyennes (near the State line), thence down the river to the mouth of Osage River, and so on, down to the mouths of the Missouri and Ohio rivers,” etc.

[Pg 423]

CHAPTER IV. ┴[C]IWERE AND WINNEBAGO CULTS.

§ 72. The Rev. William Hamilton, who was a missionary to the Iowa and Sac Indians of Nebraska, from 1837 to 1853, is the authority for most of the Iowa material in this chapter. About the year 1848, he published a series of letters about the Iowa Indians in a Presbyterian weekly newspaper, and with his permission the present writer transcribed these letters in 1879, for his own future use.

Other information about the three ┴ɔiwere tribes (Iowa, Oto and Missouri) was obtained by the author from Ke-ʞre[ç]e, an Oto; Ckaʇɔinye, a Missouri; and the delegation of Iowa chiefs that visited Washington in 1882.

The principal Winnebago authority was James Alexander, a full-blood and a member of the Wolf gens.

TERM “GREAT SPIRIT” NEVER HEARD AMONG THE IOWA.

Mr. Hamilton wrote thus in one of his letters:

It is often said that the Indians are not idolaters, and that they believe in one Supreme Being, whom they call the Great Spirit. I do not now recollect that I ever heard the Iowas use the term Great Spirit since I have been among them. They speak of God (Wakanta), and sometimes of the Great God or Bad God. But of the true character of God they are entirely ignorant. Many of them speak of God as the creator of all things, and use a term that signifies “Creator of the earth.” Sometimes they call him “Grandfather” (hiⁿtuka). But they imagine him to be possessed of like passions with themselves, and pleased with their war parties, scalp dances, thefts, and such like sin.  *  *  *  They sometimes speak of the sun as a god, because it gives light and heat. The moon they sometimes speak of as a god, because it seems to be to the night what the sun is to the day. I asked an Indian the other day how many gods the Iowas had, and he promptly replied, ‘Seven.’

THE SUN A WAKANTA.

§ 73. An Iowa told Mr. Hamilton that he had once killed a bear, which he offered to the sun, allowing the animal to lie where he had killed it.

THE WINDS AS WAKANTAS.

§ 74. An Iowa told Mr. Hamilton that Tatce, or Wind, was one of the seven great gods of his tribe. Another told him that he had made offerings to the South Wind, who was considered a beneficent Wakanta. But the North-east Wind was a maleficent one.

Judging from some of the Winnebago personal names, it is probable that the winds were regarded as powers by that people.

[Pg 424]

THE THUNDER-BEING A WAKANTA.

§ 75. Among the Iowa and Oto, the Tcexita is the eagle and thunderbird gens, and Mr. Hamilton was told by the Iowa that the Thunder-being was called Tcexita, and Wakanta, the latter being its peculiar title. “They supposed the Thunder-being to be a large bird. When they first hear the thunder in the spring of the year, they have a sacred feast in honor of this god.”

The Winnebago called the Thunder-being “Wakaⁿtca-ra,” and one division of the Bird gens is the Wakaⁿtca ikikaratca-da, or Thunder-being sub-gens. The Thunder-beings are the enemies of the Waktceqi or Submarine Wakantas. One person in the Thunder-being sub-gens is named Five-horned Male, probably referring to a Thunder-being with five horns! Other personal names are as follows: Green Thunder-being, Black Thunder-being, White Thunder-being, and Yellow Thunder-being; but James Alexander, a full-blood Winnebago of the Wolf gens, says that these colors have no connection with the four winds or quarters of the earth (See § 381).

The Iowa told Mr. Hamilton of a Winnebago who saw a Thunder-being fighting a subaquatic power. Sometimes the former bore the latter up into the air, and at other times the subaquatic power took his adversary beneath the water. The Winnebago watched them all day, and each Power asked his assistance in overcoming the other, promising him a great reward. The man did not know which one to help; but at last he shot an arrow at the subaquatic power, who was carried up into the air by the Thunder-being, but the wounded one said to the man, “You may become a great man yourself, but your relations must die.” And so they say it happened. He became very great, but his relatives died.

When the warriors returned home from an expedition against their enemies, they plaited grass and tied the pieces around their arms, necks, and ankles. Sometimes to each ankle there was a trailing piece of plaited grass a yard long. This was probably associated, as were all war customs, with the worship of the Thunder-being (See Chap. III, § 35).

SUBTERRANEAN POWERS.

§ 76. An Indian became deranged from the use of whisky, and ran wild for several days. The Iowa supposed that his madness was caused by a subterranean power, whom he had seen, and whose picture he had drawn on the ground, representing it with large horns.

SUBAQUATIC POWERS.

§ 77. Some Iowa claim to have seen them. No Heart (Natce-niñe) told Mr. Hamilton that he had seen a “water god in the Missouri river, when a man was drowned. When a person is drowned they some[Pg 425]times say that the god who lives in the water has taken him for a servant. Not a year since, some Iowa went over the river for meat. A young girl sat down in the canoe with her load on her back. When near the shore the canoe was upset accidentally, and the girl was drowned. The men thought that they heard a god halloo in the water, and that he had taken her. One told me that the gods of the air (i. e. the Thunder-beings) fought the gods of the water, and when the latter came out of the water, the former stole upon them and killed them.”

The subterranean and subaquatic powers are called “waktceqi” by the Winnebago, and this tribe has a gens called Waktceqi ikikaratcada. The Winnebago say that the waktceqi dwell under the ground and the high bluffs, and in subterranean water, that they are caused to uphold the earth, trees, rivers, etc., and that they are the enemies of the Thunder-beings (§ 386). In the Winnebago Waktceqi gens are the following personal names: Black Waktceqi, White Waktceqi, Green Waktceqi, “Waktceqi that is saⁿ” (which may be gray or brown), Four Horned Male, Two Horned Male, and Lives in the Hill.

ANIMALS AS WAKANTAS.

§ 78. Mr. Hamilton wrote that the Iowa often spoke about the buffaloes, whom they regarded as gods, addressing them as “Grandfathers.” He also told of a doctor whom he met one day; the doctor seized a joint-snake that was handed him by another doctor, calling it his “god,” spoke of it as being good medicine, and after putting its head into his mouth, he bit it twice.

APOTHEOSES.

§ 79. “They also seem to think that human beings may become gods, and in this respect they are like the Mormons.”

DWELLINGS OF GODS.

§ 80. “High rocks are supposed by the Iowa to be the dwellings of gods.” “There is a Winnebago tradition that a woman carrying her child was running from her enemies, so she jumped down a steep place and was turned into a rock. And now when they pass that place they make offerings to her.”

WORSHIP.

§ 81. “One of their most common acts of worship, and apparently one of daily occurrence, is observed when a person is about to smoke his pipe. He looks to the sky and says, ‘Wakanta, here is tobacco!’ (See §§ 29, 40, ‘Nini bahai tĕ.’) Then he puffs a mouthful of smoke up towards the sky, after which he smokes as he pleases.” “They also make offerings of tobacco by throwing a small quantity into the fire.[Pg 426]” “They frequently offer a small portion of food at their feasts, before they begin eating.”

Mr. Hamilton saw dogs hung by their necks to trees or to sticks planted in the ground, and he was told that these dogs were offerings. “No Heart told me that when the smallpox raged among them about fifty years ago” (i. e. about 1798), “and swept off so many, that they made a great many offerings.” Said he, “We threw away a great many garments, blankets, etc., and offered many dogs to God. My father threw away a flag which the British had given him. When we had thrown away these things, the smallpox left us.” These offerings to God (literally, to Wakanta) were the means of checking it. “To throw away,” in Iowa, is the same as “to offer in sacrifice.”

TABOOS.

§ 82. Mr. Hamilton was told by the Iowa that no member of any gens could eat the flesh of the eponymic animal.

The author gained the following taboos from a Missouri, Ckaʇɔe-yiñe or Ckaʇɔinye, who visited the Omaha in 1879: The members of the Tunaⁿp’iⁿ, a Black Bear gens in the Oto and Nyut’atci (or Missouri) tribes can not touch a clam shell. The Momi people, now a subgens of the Missouri Bird gens, abstain from small birds which have been killed by large birds, and they can not touch the feathers of such small birds.

PUBLIC OR TRIBAL FETICHES.[81]

§ 83. Among these are the sacred pipes, the sacred bags, or waruxawe, and the sacred stone or iron. The sacred pipes are used only on solemn occasions, and they are kept enveloped in the skin wrappers. The sacred bags, or waruxawe, are made from the skins of animals. They are esteemed as mysterious, and they are reverenced as much as Wakanta. Among the Winnebago (and presumably among the ┴ɔiwere tribes) no woman is allowed to touch the waruxawe. There used to be seven waruxawe among the Iowa, “related to one another as brothers and sisters,” and used by war parties. On the return from war the seven bags were opened and used in the scalp dance. They contained the skins of animals and birds with medicine in them, also wild tobacco and other war medicine, also the war club. There used to be seven war clubs, one for each waruxawe, but during the last expedition of the Iowa, prior to the date of Mr. Hamilton’s letters, the war club and pipes or whistles were lost from the principal bag. The next kind of sacred bags, the Waci waruxawe, numbered seven. They were the bad-medicine bags, by means of which they professed to deprive their enemies of power, when they had discouraged them by blowing the whistles. Owing to this enchantment, they said, their enemies could neither shoot nor run, and were soon killed. The next[Pg 427] kind were the Tce waruxawe, or buffalo medicine bags. They were not used in war, but in healing the wounded. These bags contain medicine and the sticks with the deer hoofs attached which they shake while treating the sick; also a piece of buffalo tail, and perhaps a piece from the skin covering the throat of an elk.

The Ta waruxawe, or deer medicine bags, contain the sacred otter skins used in the Otter dance. (See § 86.)

In some of the sacred bags are round stones, which the warriors rub over themselves before going to war, to prevent their being killed or wounded.

The waruxawe is always carried with the same end foremost, the heads of the animals or birds being placed in the same direction, and care is taken to keep them so. (See § 28.) On one occasion a leader broke up a war party by turning the bag around.

The Iowa claim to have a mysterious object by which they try men, or make them swear to speak the truth. This mysterious iron or stone had not been gazed upon within the recollection of any of the Iowa living in 1848. It was wrapped in seven skins. No woman was allowed to see even the outer covering, and Mr. Hamilton was told that he would die if he looked at it.

Ckaʇɔinye, the Missouri, told the author that there were four Tu-naⁿp’iⁿ men who kept sacred pipes (raqnowe waqonyitaⁿ), their names being Weqa-nayiⁿ, Cŭⁿ-ʞiqowe, Naⁿ[ç]ra[ç]raʇɔe, and Naⁿʇɔe-yiñe. It is probable that two of these men belong to the Tunaⁿp’iⁿ gens of the Oto tribe and two to the Tunaⁿp’iⁿ gens of the Nyut’atci tribe, as these two tribes have been consolidated for years. In the Aruqwa or Buffalo gens of the Oto, ┴ɔe-ʇo-nayiⁿ and ┴ɔe-wañeʞihi are the keepers of the sacred pipes of that gens.

SYMBOLIC EARTH FORMATIONS OF THE WINNEBAGO.[82]

§ 84. The Winnebago tent used for sacred dances is long and narrow; not more than 20 feet wide and varying from 50 to 100 feet long.

In the Buffalo dance, which is given four times in the month of May and early June, the dancers are four men and a large number of women. As the dancers enter each woman brings in a handful of fine earth and in this way two mounds are raised in the center at the east—that is, between the eastern entrance and the fire, which is about 15 feet from the eastern entrance. The mounds thus formed are truncated cones. An old man said to me, “That is the way all mounds were built; that is why we build so for the buffalo.”

The mounds were about 4 inches high and not far from 18 inches in diameter. On top of the mounds were placed the head-gear worn by the men, the claws, tails, and other articles used by the four leaders or male dancers.

The men imitate the buffalo in his wild tramping and roaring, and dance with great vigor. They are followed by a long line of gaily decked women in single file. Each woman as she dances keeps her feet nearly straight and heels close together, and the body is propelled forward by a series of jerks which jars the whole frame, but the general effect on the long, closely packed line is that of the undulating appearance of a vast herd moving. [Pg 428]The women dance with their eyes turned toward the ground and with their hands hanging closely in front, palms next to the person. The track left by their feet is very pretty, being like a close-leaved vine. It is astonishing to notice how each woman can leap into her predecessor’s track. Water is partaken of and the entire dance is clearly indicative of the prayer for increase and plenty of buffalo. The two mounds remind one of larger structures and suggest many speculations, particularly when taken in connection with the manner of their building.

In the great mystery lodge, whence so many of the sacred societies among other tribes professedly take their rise and inspiration, the fire is at the east, and is made by placing four sticks meeting in the center and the other ends pointing to the four points of the compass.[83] Just at that part of the initiation of the candidate when he is to fall dead to the old life, be covered as with a pall, and then be raised to the new life, the remains of the four sticks are taken away and the ashes raised in a sharp conical mound, again suggesting hints of a peculiar past.

Upon the bluffs of the Missouri, on a promontory  *  *  *  is a little depression cut in the ground, circular in form, with an elongated end at the east. The depression is 1 foot in diameter and about 6 inches deep. Placing my compass in the center, the long end or entrance was found to be exactly to the east. To the south of this sacred spot, for it is cleared and cleaned  *  *  *  every year, stood a large cedar tree, now partly blown down. This was the sacred tree on which miraculous impersonation of visions lit; and here the spirits tarried as they passed from one resting place to another going over the country. About every 50 miles there is one of these strange, supernatural resting places.

PERSONAL FETICHES.

§ 85. All medicines were regarded as mysterious or sacred. The heart of a slain enemy was sometimes dried and put in the medicine bag to be pulverized and mixed with the other medicines. “One or two days before a war party started from the village of the Iowa, the man who was to carry the sacred bag hid it while the others busied themselves with preparing sacred articles” (probably their personal fetiches). “The hunters often brought in deer, after eating which, the warriors painted themselves as they would do if they expected to see an enemy. Next, one of their number measured a certain number of steps in front, when each man took his place, and knelt down. As soon as the word was given, each one pulled away the grass and sticks, moving backwards till he came to the poles, when he arose. Then each placed his own sacred objects (personal fetiches?) before him, and began his own song. While singing, they opened their sacred objects, asking for good luck. They sang one song on opening them (as among the Kansa, see § 36), and another while putting them back into their places, a song being supposed necessary for every ceremony in which they engaged. In the conversations which ensued, they were at liberty to jest, provided they avoided common or vulgar terms.”

DANCING SOCIETIES.

There is very probably some connection between these societies and the cults of the tribes now under consideration. (See §§ 43, 62, 111, 113, 120, et passim.)

[Pg 429]

THE OTTER DANCING SOCIETY.

§ 86. The members of this order shot at one another with their otterskin bags, as has been the custom in the Wacicka dancing society of the Omaha (Om. Soc., pp. 345, 346). Some have said that they waved their otter-skin bags around in order to infuse the spirit of the otter into a bead in its mouth, and that it was by the spirit of the otter that they knocked one another down. Each one who practiced this dance professed to keep some small round object in his breast to cough it up before or during the dance, and to use it for shooting one of his companions in the neck. He who was thus shot did in turn cough up the mysterious object, and at the end of the dance each member swallowed his own shell or pebble.

THE RED MEDICINE DANCING SOCIETY.

§ 87. The Indians used to obtain in the prairies, towards the Rocky Mountains, an object about the size of a bean or small hazelnut and of a red color. Mr. Hamilton was told that it grew on bushes, and that it was considered to be alive, and they looked on it as a mysterious animal. In the red medicine dance the person who makes the medicine kills the animals by crushing the beans and boiling them in a large kettle filled with water. This drink is designed for or appropriated by a few members, and they drink the liquid when it is quite hot. The more that they drink the more they desire, and they seem able to drink almost any quantity. It produces a kind of intoxication, making them full of life, as they say, and enabling them to dance a long time. (See § 62.)

GREEN CORN DANCE.

§ 88. This dance did not originate with the Iowa. It is said that the Sac tribe obtained it from the Shawnee. It is held after night. Men and women dance together, and if any women or men wish to leave their consorts they do it at this dance and mate anew, nothing being urged against it.

BUFFALO DANCING SOCIETY.

§ 89. The Iowa have the buffalo dance, and by a comparison of Mr. Hamilton’s description of it, and his account of the buffalo doctors, and of the medicine or mystery bag of buffalo hide, with what has been learned about the Omaha order of buffalo shamans (see § 43), it seems probable that among the Iowa this dance was not participated in by any but those who had had visions of the buffalo, and that there was also some connection between all three—the dancing society, the buffalo doctors, and the mysterious bag of buffalo hide. As among the Omaha, the buffalo doctors of the Iowa are the only surgeons.

[Pg 430]

┴[C]IWERE TRADITIONS.

§ 90. The ┴ɔiwere tribes have traditions of their origin similar to those found among the Osage, Kansa, and Ponka, and these traditions are considered as “waqonyitaⁿ,” or mysterious things, not to be spoken of lightly or told on ordinary occasions.

As among the Osage and Kansa, the traditions tell of a period when the ancestors of the present gentes dwelt, some in the upper world, and others in the ground (or in the world beneath this one).

Mr. Hamilton’s informant said, “These are sacred things, and I do not like to speak about them, as it is not our custom to do so except when we make a feast and collect the people and use the sacred pipe.” These traditions were preserved in the secret societies of the tribes. They explain the origin of the gentes and subgentes, of fire, corn, the pipes, bows and arrows, etc.

It is probable that similar secret societies exist among the Winnebago. James Alexander, a Winnebago of the Wolf gens, told a part of the secret tradition of his gens, in which appear some resemblances to the ┴ɔiwere traditions, such as the creation of four kinds of wolves, and their dwelling underground, or in the world beneath this one. (See §§ 381, 383.)

BELIEF IN FUTURE LIFE.

That the ┴ɔiwere believed in the existence of the ghost or spirit after death is evident from what Mr. Hamilton observed:

They often put provisions, a pitcher of water, and some cooking utensils on the grave for the use of the spirit for some time after burial.  *  *  *  At the time of burial, they often put new clothing and ornaments on the corpse, if they are able, and place by its side such things as they think necessary. I once saw a little child with some of its playthings which its mother had placed by it, in her ignorance, thinking that they would be pleasing to it.  *  *  *  They are generally careful for a year or so, to keep down all the weeds and grass about the grave, perhaps for 10 feet around.

[Pg 431]

CHAPTER V. DAKOTA AND ASSINIBOIN CULTS.

ALLEGED DAKOTA BELIEF IN A GREAT SPIRIT.

§ 92. That the Dakota tribes, before the advent of the white race, believed in one Great Spirit, has been asserted by several writers; but it can not be proved. On the contrary, even those writers who are quoted in this study as stating the Dakota belief in a Great Spirit, also tell us of beliefs in many spirits of evil. Among the earlier writers of this class is Say, who observes:

Their Wahconda seems to be a protean god; he is supposed to appear to different persons under different forms. All who are favored with his presence become medicine men and magicians in consequence of their having seen and conversed with Wahconda, and of having received from him some particular medicine of wondrous efficacy.

The same writer records that “Wahconda” appeared sometimes as a grizzly bear, sometimes as a bison, at others as a beaver, or an owl, or some other bird or animal.[84] It is plain that Say mistook the generic term, “Wahconda,” for a specific one. (See §§ 6, 21-24.)

Shea says:

Although polytheism did not exist, although they all recognized one Supreme Being, the creator of all,  *  *  *  they nowhere adored the God whom they knew.  *  *  *  The demons with which they peopled nature, these alone, in their fear they sought to appease.  *  *  *  Pure unmixed devil-worship prevailed throughout the length and breadth of the land.[85]

§ 93. Lynd made some very pertinent remarks:

A stranger coming among the Dakotas for the first time, and observing the endless variety of objects upon which they bestow their devotion, and the manifold forms which that worship assumes, at once pronounces them pantheists. A further acquaintance with them convinces him that they are pantheists of no ordinary kind—that their pantheism is negative as well as positive, and that the engraftments of religion are even more numerous than the true branches. Upon a superficial glance he sees naught but an inextricable maze of gods, demons, spirits, beliefs and counter-beliefs, earnest devotion and reckless skepticism, prayers, sacrifices, and sneers, winding and intermingling with one another, until a labyrinth of pantheism and skepticism results, and the Dakota, with all his infinity of deities appears a creature of irreligion. One speaks of the medicine dance with respect, while another smiles at the name—one makes a religion of the raw fish feast, while another stands by and laughs at his performance—and others, listening to the supposed revelations of the[Pg 432] circle dance, with reverent attention, are sneered at by a class who deny in toto the wakan nature of that ceremony.[86]

In common with all nations of the earth the Dakotas believe in a Wakantanka or Great Spirit. But this Being is not alone in the universe. Numbers of minor deities are scattered throughout space, some of whom are placed high in the scale of power. Their ideas of the Great Spirit appear to be that He is the creator of the world and has existed from all time; but after creating the world and all that is in it He sank into silence and since then has failed to take any interest in the affairs of this planet. They never pray to Him, for they deem Him too far away to hear them, or as not being concerned in their affairs. No sacrifices are made to Him, nor dances in His honor. Of all the spirits He is the Great Spirit; but His power is only latent or negative. They swear by Him at all times, but more commonly by other divinities.[87]

Yet Lynd is not always consistent, for he says on another page (71) of the same work: “No one deity is held by them all as a superior object of worship.”

§ 94. Pond writes:

Evidence is also wanting to show that the Dakotas embraced in their religious tenents the idea of one supreme existence, whose existence is expressed by the term Great Spirit. If some clans at the present time entertain this idea it seems highly probable that it has been imparted to them by individuals of European extraction. No reference to such a being is found in their feasts, fasts, or sacrifices. Or if there is such a reference at the present time it is clear that it is of recent origin and does not belong to their system. It is indeed true that the Dakotas do sometimes appeal to the Great Spirit when in council with white men, but it is because they themselves have embraced the Christian doctrines. Still, it is generally the interpreter who makes the appeal to the Great Spirit, when the Indian speaker really appealed to the Taku Wakan, and not to the Wakantanka. It is true that  *  *  *  all the Dakota gods  *  *  *  are mortal. They are not thought of as being eternal, except it may be by succession.[88]

The author agrees with Pond in what he says about the average Indian interpreter of early days, who seldom gave a correct rendering of what was spoken in council. But at the present time great improvement has doubtless been observed.

It should be remembered that Messrs. Riggs and Pond were missionaries to the Dakotas, while Messrs. Say, Shea, and Lynd must be classed among the laity. Yet the missionaries, not the laymen, are the ones who make the positive statements about the absence of a belief in one Great Spirit.

RIGGS ON THE TAKU WAKAN.

§ 95. Riggs remarks:

The religious faith of the Dakota is not in his gods as such. It is an intangible, mysterious something of which they are only the embodiment, and that in such a measure and degree as may accord with the individual fancy of the worshiper. Each one will worship some of these divinities and neglect and despise others; but the great object of all their worship, whatever its chosen medium, is the TA-KOO [Pg 433]WAH-KON, which is the supernatural and mysterious. No one term can express the full meaning of the Dakota’s Wakan. It comprehends all mystery, secret power, and divinity.  *  *  *  All life is Wakan. So also is everything which exhibits power, whether in action, as the winds and drifting clouds, or in passive endurance, as the bowlder by the wayside.[89]

MEANING OF “WAKAN.”

In the mind of a Dakota  *  *  *  this word Wah-kon (we write, wa-kan) covers the whole field of their fear and worship. Many things also that are neither feared nor worshiped, but are simply wonderful, come under this designation. It is related of Hennepin that when he and his two companions were taken captive by a Sioux war party, as they ascended the upper Mississippi one of the men took up his gun and shot a deer on the bank. The Indians said, “Wah-kon chi?”—Is not this mysterious? And from that day   *  *  *  the gun has been called Mah-za wah-kon, mysterious iron. This is shortened into Mah-za-kon. The same thing we may believe is true when, probably less than two centuries ago, they first saw a horse. They said “Shoon-ka wah-kon,” wonderful dog. And from that day the horse has been called by the Sioux wonderful dog, except when it has been called big dog, Shoon-ka tonka. These historical facts have satisfied us that the idea of the Great Spirit ascribed to the Indians of North America does not belong to the original theogony of the Sioux, but has come from without, like that (sic) of the horse and gun, and probably dates back only to their first hearing of the white man’s God.[90]

Taku Wakan.—This is a general term, including all that is wonderful, incomprehensible, supernatural—what is wakan; but especially covering the objects of their worship. Until used in reference to our God, it is believed that the phrase was not applied to any individual object of worship, but was equivalent to “the gods.”[91] As tuwe, who, refers to persons, and taku, what, to things, the correctness of Riggs’s conclusion can hardly be questioned, provided we add that the Dakota term, Taku Wakan, could not have conveyed to the Dakota mind the idea of a personal God, using the term person as it is commonly employed by civilized peoples.

DAIMONISM.

§ 96. Lynd says:

The divinities of evil among the Dakotas may be called legion. Their special delight is to make man miserable or to destroy him. Demons wander through the earth, causing sickness and death. Spirits of evil are ever ready to pounce upon and destroy the unwary. Spirits of earth, air, fire, and water (see § 36) surround him upon every side, and with but one great governing object in view—the misery and destruction of the human race.[92]

ANIMISM.

§ 97. Their religious system gives to everything a soul or spirit. Even the commonest sticks and clays have a spiritual essence attached[Pg 434] to them which must needs be reverenced; for these spirits, too, vent their wrath upon mankind. Indeed, there is no object, however trivial, but has its spirit.[93]

In his article on the Mythology of the Dakotas,[94] Riggs says of the Dakota:

They pray to the sun, earth, moon, lakes, rivers, trees, plants, snakes, and all kinds of animals and vegetables—many of them say, to everything, for they pray to their guns and arrows—to any object, artificial as well as natural, for they suppose that every object, artificial as well as natural, has a spirit which may hurt or help, and so is a proper object of worship.

Lynd says:

The essentially physical cast of the Indian mind (if I may be allowed the expression) requires some outward and tangible representation of things spiritual before he can comprehend them. The god must be present, by image or in person, ere he can offer up his devotions.  *  *  *  Similar to this “belief in a spiritual essence” is the general Dakota belief that each class of animals or objects of a like kind possesses a peculiar guardian divinity, which is the mother archetype.  *  *  *  Sexuality is a prominent feature in the religion of the Dakotas. Of every species of divinity, with the exception of the Wakantanka, there is a plurality, part male and part female. Even the spirits, which are supposed to dwell in the earth, twigs, and other inanimate substances, are invested with distinctions of sex.[95]

§ 98. Pond asserts that “evidence is wanting to show that these people divide their Taku-wakan into classes of good and evil. They are all simply wakan.”[96]

PRINCIPAL DAKOTA GODS.

The gods of the Dakotas are of course innumerable; but of the superior gods these are the chief: The Unkteḣi, or god of the water; the Wakinyan, or thunder god; the Takuśkanśkan, or moving god; the Tunkan, Inyan, or stone god; the Heyoka god; the Sun; the Moon; the Armor god; the Spirit of the Medicine Sack; and the Wakantanka, who is probably an intrusive deity.[97]

MISS FLETCHER ON INDIAN RELIGION.

§ 99. The following remarks are those of a later writer, Miss Fletcher:

The Indian’s religion is generally spoken of as a nature and animal worship. The term seems too broadcast and indiscriminate. Careful inquiry and observation fail to show that the Indian actually worships the objects which are set up or mentioned by him in his ceremonies. The earth, four winds, the sun, moon, and stars, the stones, the water, the various animals, are all exponents of a mysterious life and power encompassing the Indian and filling him with vague apprehension and desire to propitiate and induce friendly relations. The latter is attempted not so much through the ideas of sacrifice as through more or less ceremonial appeals. More faith is put in ritual and a careful observance of forms than in any act of self-denial in its moral sense, as we understand it. The claim of relationship is used to strengthen the appeal, since the tie of kindred among the Indians is one which can not be ignored or disregarded, the terms grandfather and grandmother being[Pg 435] most general and implying dependence, respect, and the recognition of authority. (See §§ 9, 100.)

One of the simplest and most picturesque explanations of the use of the varied forms of life in the Indian worship was given to me by a thoughtful Indian chief. He said: “Everything as it moves, now and then, here and there, makes stops. The bird as it flies stops in one place to make its nest, and in another to rest in its flight. A man when he goes forth stops when he wills. So the god has stopped. The sun, which is so bright and beautiful, is one place where he has stopped. The moon, the stars, the winds, he has been with. The trees, the animals, are all where he has stopped, and the Indian thinks of these places and sends his prayers there to reach the place where the god has stopped and win help and a blessing.”

The vague feeling after unity is here discernible, but it is like the cry of a child rather than the articulate speech of a man. To the Indian mind the life of the universe has not been analyzed, classified, and a great synthesis formed of the parts. To him the varied forms are equally important and noble. A devout old Indian said: “The tree is like a human being, for it has life and grows; so we pray to it and put our offerings on it that the god may help us.” In the same spirit the apology is offered over a slaughtered animal, for the life of the one is taken to supplement the life of the other, “that it may cause us to live,” one formula expresses it. These manifestations of life, stopping places of the god, can not therefore be accurately called objects of worship or symbols; they appear to be more like media of communication with the permeating occult force which is vaguely and fearfully apprehended. As a consequence, the Indian stands abreast of nature. He does not face it, and hence can not master or coerce it, or view it scientifically and apart from his own mental and emotional life. He appeals to it, but does not worship it.[98]

PRAYER.

§ 100. Every power is prayed to by some of the Dakota and Assiniboin. Among the accessories of prayer the Dakota reckons the following: (a) Ceremonial wailing or crying (ćéya, to weep, wail; whence, ćékiya, to cry, to pray, and woćékiye, prayer), sometimes accompanied by articulate speech (§§ 177, 208); (b) the action called yuwiⁿtapi (yuwiŋ´tapi) described in § 24; (c) holding the pipe with the mouthpiece toward the power invoked, as the Heyoka devotees sometimes do (§§ 223, 224); (d) the use of smoke from the pipe or the odor of burning cedar needles (§§ 159, 168); (e) the application of the kinship terms, “grandfather” (or its alternative, “venerable man”) to a male power, and “grandmother” to a female one (§§ 99, 107, 239); (f) sacrifice, or offering of goods, animals, or pieces of one’s own flesh, etc. (see § 185).

SACRIFICE.

§ 101. The radical forms of worship among the Dakota, according to Lynd, are few and simple. One of the most primitive is that of Wocnapi (Wośnapi) or Sacrifice. To every divinity that they worship they make sacrifices. Even upon the most trivial occasions the gods are either thanked or supplicated by sacrifice. The religious idea it carries with it is at the foundation of the every-day life of the Dakota. The wohduze or taboo has its origin there; the wiwaŋyag waćipi or sundance[Pg 436] (§§ 141-211) carries with it the same idea; the wakaŋ wohaŋpi or sacred feast (feast of the first-fruits) is a practical embodiment of it; and haŋmdepi or god-seeking of the extreme western tribes is but a form of self-sacrifice. No Dakota in his worship neglects this ceremony. It enters into his religious thoughts at all times, even at the hour of death. The sacrifices made upon recovery from sickness are never composed of anything very valuable, for the poverty of the Indian will not permit this. Usually a small strip of muslin, or a piece of red cloth, a few skins of some animals, or other things of no great use or value are employed. Sometimes a pan or kettle is laid up for a sacrifice. But after a short time, the end for which the sacrifice was made is attained, and it is removed. Those in need of such things as they see offered in sacrifice may take them for their own use, being careful to substitute some other articles. Perhaps the most common forms of sacrifice are those which are made in the hunt. Particular portions of each animal killed are held sacred to the god of the chase or some other deities. If a deer is killed, the head, heart, or some other part of it is sacrificed by the person who has slain it. The part sacrificed differs with different individuals. In ducks and fowls the most common sacrifice is of the wing, though many sacrifice the heart, and a few the head. This custom is called wohduze, and is always constant with individuals, i. e., the same part is always sacrificed. The other wohduze or taboo is connected with the wotawe or armor,[99] and will be described hereafter (§ 125).

§ 102. Haŋmdepi or god-seeking.—Haŋmdepi or god-seeking is a form of religion among the Dakotas that points back to a remote antiquity. The meaning of the word, in its common acceptation, appears to be greatly misunderstood by some. Literally, it means only to dream, and is but another form of haŋma; but in its use it is applied almost wholly to the custom of seeking for a dream or revelation, practiced by the Sisitonwan, Ihanktonwanna, and Titonwan (Sioux), and by the Crow, Minnetaree, Assiniboin, and other western Dakota. In this respect it has no reference whatever to the common dreams of sleep, but means simply the form of religion practiced.

If a Dakota wishes to be particularly successful in any (to him) important undertaking, he first purifies himself by the Inipi or steam bath, and by fasting for a term of three days. During the whole of this time he avoids women and society, is secluded in his habits, and endeavors in every way to be pure enough to receive a revelation from the deity whom he invokes. When the period of fasting is passed he is ready for the sacrifice, which is made in various ways. Some, passing a knife through the breast and arms, attach thongs thereto, which are fastened at the other end to the top of a tall pole raised for that purpose; and thus they hang, suspended only by these thongs, for two, three, or even four days, gazing upon vacancy, their minds being intently[Pg 437] fixed upon the object in which they desire to be assisted by the deity, and waiting for a vision from above. Once a day an assistant is sent to look upon the person thus sacrificing himself. If the deities have vouchsafed him a vision or revelation, he signifies the same by motions, and is released at once; if he be silent, his silence is understood, and he is left alone to his reverie.

Others attach a buffalo hair rope to the head of a buffalo just as it is severed from the animal, and to the other end affix a hook, which is then passed through the large muscles in the small of the back, and thus fastened they drag the head all over the camp, their minds meanwhile being fixed intently, as in the first instance, upon the object in which they are beseeching the deity to assist them.

A third class pass knives through the flesh in various parts of the body, and wait in silence, though with fixed mind, for a dream or revelation. A few, either not blessed with the powers of endurance or else lacking the courage of the class first named, will plant a pole upon the steep bank of a stream, and attaching ropes to the muscles of the arm and breast, as in the first instance, will stand, but not hang, gazing into space, without food or drink, for days.

Still another class practice the haŋmdepi without such horrid self-sacrifice. For weeks, nay, for months, they will fix their minds intently upon any desired object, to the exclusion of all others, frequently crying about the camp, occasionally taking a little food, but fasting for the most part, and earnestly seeking a revelation from their god.[100]

§ 103. Similar testimony has been given respecting the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara, though this last tribe belongs to the Caddoan stock. Smet wrote thus about them:

They cut off their fingers and make deep incisions in the fleshy parts of the body before starting for war, in order to obtain the favors of their false gods. On my last visit to these Ricaries, Minataries, and Mandans I could not discern a single man at all advanced in years whose body had not been mutilated, or who possessed his full number of fingers.[101]

In treating of the religious opinion of the Assiniboin, Smet says:

Some burn tobacco, and present to the Great Spirit the most exquisite pieces of buffalo meat by casting them into the fire; while others make deep incisions in the fleshy parts of their bodies, and even cut off the first joints of their fingers to offer them in sacrifice.[102]

Lynd says:

§ 104. Frequently the devout Dakota will make images of bark or stone, and, after painting them in various ways and putting sacred down upon them, will fall down in worship before them, praying that all danger may be averted from him and his. It must not be understood, however, that the Dakota is an idolater. It is not the image that he worships,  *  *  *  but the spiritual essence which is represented by that image, and which is supposed to be ever near it.[103]

[Pg 438]

This plausible distinction has been made by persons of different nations at various periods in the world’s history, but it seems to be of doubtful value.

USE OF PAINT IN WORSHIP.

§ 105. In the worship of their deities paint forms an important feature. Scarlet or red is the religious color for sacrifices, while blue is used by the women in many of the ceremonies in which they participate (§§ 374, 375). This, however, is not a constant distinction of sex, for the women frequently use red or scarlet. The use of paints the Dakotas aver was taught them by the gods.[104]

For accounts of the Sun-dance and a sacrifice to the Dawn, see §§ 141, 211, 215.

THE UNKTEḢI, OR SUBAQUATIC AND SUBTERRANEAN POWERS.

§ 106. The gods of this name, for there are many, are the most powerful of all. In their external form they are said to resemble the ox, only they are of immense proportions. They can extend their horns and tails so as to reach the skies. These are the organs of their power. According to one account the Unkteḣi inhabit all deep waters, and especially all great waterfalls. Two hundred and eleven years ago, when Hennepin and Du Luth saw the Falls of St. Anthony together, there were some buffalo robes hanging there as sacrifices to the Unkteḣi of the place.[105]

§ 107. Another account written by the same author informs us that the male Unkteḣi dwell in the water, and the spirits of the females animate the earth. Hence, when the Dakota seems to be offering sacrifices to the water or the earth, it is to this family of gods that the worship is rendered. They address the males as “grandfathers,” and the females as “grandmothers.” It is believed that one of these gods dwells under the Falls of St. Anthony, in a den of great dimensions, which is constructed of iron.[106]

§ 108. “The word Unkteḣi defies analysis, only the latter part giving us the idea of difficult [sic], and so nothing can be gathered from the name itself of the functions of these gods. But Indian legend generally describes the genesis of the earth as from the water. Some animal, as the beaver [compare the Iowa and Oto Beaver gentes, Paça and Paqça.—J. O. D.] living in the waters, brought up, from a great depth, mud to build dry land.”[107] According to the Dakota cosmogony, this was done by the Unkteḣi, called in the Teton dialect Ŭñktcexila or Uŋkćeġila. (Compare the Winnebago, Waktceqi ikikaratcada or water-monster gens, and the Wakandagi of the Omaha and Ponka, see §§ 7, 77).

[Pg 439]

§ 109. The Iowa and Oto tribes have among their nikie names, Niwaⁿcike, Water Person, and Niwaⁿcikemi, Water Person Female. If these do not refer to the beaver, they may have some connection with the water monsters or deities. An Omaha told the author a Yankton legend about these gods of the waters. The wife of the special Unkteḣi coveted an Indian child and drew it beneath the surface of the river. The father of the child had to offer a white dog to the deity in order to recover his son; but the latter died on emerging from the water, as he had eaten some of the food of the Unkteḣi during his stay with the deity. After awhile the parents lost a daughter in like manner, but as she did not eat any of the food of the Unkteḣi, she was recovered after an offering of four white dogs.[108]

Smet tells of offerings made by the Assiniboin to “the water” and “the land,” but it is probable that they were made to the Unkteḣi.[109]

§ 110. The Dakota pray to lakes and rivers, according to Riggs,[110] but he does not say whether the visible objects were worshiped or whether the worship was intended for the Unkteḣi supposed to dwell in those lakes and rivers.

POWER OF THE UNKTEḢI.

§ 111. These gods have power to send from their bodies a wakan influence which is irresistible even by the superior gods. This influence is termed “tonwan.” This power is common to all the Taku Wakan. And it is claimed that this tonwan is infused into each mystery sack which is used in the mystery dance. A little to the left of the road leading from Fort Snelling to Minnehaha, in sight of the fort, is a hill which is used at present as a burial place. This hill is known to the Dakota as “Taku Wakan tipi,” the dwelling place of the gods. It is believed that one of the Unkteḣi dwells there.

§ 112. The Unkteḣi are thought to feed on the spirits of human beings, and references to this occur in the mystic songs. The mystery feast and the mystery dance have been received from these gods. The sacrifices required by them are the soft down of the swan reddened with vermilion, deer skins, dog, mystery feast and mystery dances.

In Miss Fletcher’s article on “The Shadow or Ghost Lodge: A ceremony of the Ogallala Sioux,” we read that 2 yards of red cloth are “carried out beyond the camp, to an elevation if possible, and buried in a hole about 3 feet deep. This is an offering to the earth, and the chanted prayer asks that the life, or power in earth, will help the father” of the dead child “in keeping successfully all the requirements of the ghost lodge.”[111] (See § 146.)

SUBORDINATES OF THE UNKTEḢI.

The subordinates of the Unkteḣi are serpents, lizards, frogs, ghosts, owls, and eagles. The Unkteḣi made the earth and men, and gave the [Pg 440]Dakota the mystery sack, and also prescribed the manner in which some of those pigments must be applied which are rubbed over the bodies of their votaries in the mystery dance, and on the warrior as he goes into action.

THE MYSTERY DANCE.

§ 113. Immediately after the production of the earth and men, the Unkteḣi gave the Indians the mystery sack and instituted the Wakan waćipi or mystery dance. They ordained that the sack should consist of the skin of the otter, raccoon, weasel, squirrel, loon, one variety of fish, and of serpents. It was also ordained that the sack should contain four species of medicines of wakan qualities, which should represent fowls, medicinal herbs, medicinal trees, and quadrupeds. The down of the female swan represents the first, and may be seen at the time of the dance inserted in the nose of the sack. Grass roots represent the second, bark from the roots of the trees the third, and hair from the back or head of a buffalo the fourth. These are carefully preserved in the sack. From this combination proceeds a wakan influence so powerful that no human being, unassisted, can resist it.

Those who violated their obligations as members of the Mystery dance, were sure of punishment. If they went into forests, the black owl was there, as a servant of the Unkteḣi; if they descended into the earth, they encountered the serpent; if they ascended into the air, the eagle would pursue and overtake them; and if they ventured into the water, there were the Unkteḣi themselves.[112] An account of the mystery or medicine dance is given by Pond, op. cit., pp. 37-41.

“Those Dakotas,” said Lynd, “who belong to the medicine dance esteem the Unkteḣi as the greatest divinity. Among the eastern Dakotas the medicine dance appears to have taken the place of these more barbarous ceremonies (i. e., the self-tortures of the hanmdepi, piercing of the flesh, etc.)—among the Winnebagoes entirely.”

The Omaha do not have the sun dance, but the wacicka aȼiⁿ, answering to the Dakota mystery dance, is said to be of ancient use among them.

“Indeed, the medicine dance, though an intrusive religious form, may be considered as an elevating and enlightening religion in comparison with the hanmdepi.”[113]

THE MINIWATU.

§ 114. The Teton Dakota tell of the Miniwatu, Wamnitu,[114] and Mini waśiću, all of which are probably names for the same class of monsters, the last meaning “Water God or Guardian Spirit.” These powers are said to be horned water monsters with four legs each. “They make [Pg 441]waves by pushing the water toward the lowlands; therefore, the Indians prefer to encamp on or near the bluffs. They fear to swim the Missouri River on account of the water monsters, who can draw people into their mouths.” Can these be the Unkteḣi, whom the Teton call Uŋkćeġila?

§ 115. “Long ago,” according to Bushotter, “the people saw a strange thing in the Missouri River. At night there was some red object, shining like fire, making the water roar as it passed upstream. Should any one see the monster by daylight he became crazy soon after, writhing as with pain, and dying. One man who said that he saw the monster described it thus: ‘It has red hair all over, and one eye. A horn is in the middle of its forehead, and its body resembles that of a buffalo.’[115] Its backbone is like a cross-cut saw, being flat and notched like a saw or cog wheel. When one sees it he gets bewildered, and his eyes close at once. He is crazy for a day, and then he dies. The Teton think that this matter is still in the river, and they call it the Miniwatu or water monster. They think that it causes the ice on the river to break up in the spring of the year.”[116]

The Teton say that the bones of the Uŋkćeġila are now found in the bluffs of Nebraska and Dakota.

THE WAKIᴺYAᴺ (WAKIŊYAŊ), OR THUNDER-BEINGS.

§ 116. The name signifies the flying ones, from kinyan, to fly. The thunder is the sound of their voices. The lightning is the missile or tonwan of the winged monsters, who live and fly through the heavens shielded from mortal vision by thick clouds. By some of the wakan men it is said that there are four varieties of the form of their external manifestation. In essence, however they are but one. One of the varieties is black, with a long beak, and has four joints in his wing. Another is yellow, without any beak at all; with wings like the first, except that he has six quills in each wing. The third is scarlet, and remarkable chiefly for having eight joints in each of its enormous pinions. The fourth is blue and globular in form, and it is destitute of both eyes and ears. Immediately over the places where the eyes should be there is a semicircular line of lightning resembling an inverted half moon from beneath which project downward two chains of lightning diverging from each other in zigzag lines as they descend. Two plumes like soft down, coming out near the roots of the descending chains of lightning, serve for wings.[117]

These thunderers, of course, are of terrific proportions. They created the wild rice and a variety of prairie grass, the seed of which bears some resemblance to that of the rice. At the western extremity of the [Pg 442]earth, which is supposed to be a circular plain surrounded by water, is a high mountain, on the summit of which is a beautiful mound. On this mound is the dwelling of the Wakinyan gods. The dwelling opens toward each of the four quarters of the earth, and at each doorway is stationed a sentinel. A butterfly stands at the east entrance, a bear at the west, a reindeer [sic, probably intended for a deer.—J. O. D.] at the north, and a beaver at the south [the beaver seems out of place here as a servant of the Wakinyan gods, for, judging from analogy, he ought to be the servant of the Unkteḣi (see § 108)—J. O. D.].

Except the head, each of these wakan sentinels is enveloped in scarlet down of the most extraordinary beauty.[118]

§ 117. The Teton texts of Bushotter state the belief that “some of these ancient people still dwell in the clouds. They have large curved beaks resembling bison humps, their voices are loud, they do not open their eyes except when they make lightning, hence the archaic Teton name for the lightning, Wakinyan tunwanpi, “The thunder-beings open their eyes.” They are armed with arrows and “maza wakan” or “mysterious irons” (not “guns”), the latter being of different kinds. Kaŋġitame, stones resembling coal, are found in the Bad Lands, and they are said to be the missiles of the Thunderers. When these gods so desire they kill various mysterious beings and objects, as well as human beings that are mysterious. Their ancient foes were the giant rattlesnakes and the prehistoric water monsters (Uŋkćeġila: see §§ 108, 114, 115).

§ 118. Long ago the Teton encamped by a deep lake whose shore was inclosed by very high cliffs. They noticed that at night, even when there was no breeze, the water in the middle of the lake was constantly roaring. When one gazed in that direction, he saw a huge eye as bright as the sun, which caused him to vomit something resembling black earth moistened with water, and death soon followed. That very night the Thunderers came, and the crashing sounds were so terrible that many people fainted. The next morning the shore was covered with the bodies of all kinds of fish, some of which were larger than men, and there were also some huge serpents. The water monster which the Thunderers had fought resembled a rattlesnake, but he had short legs and rusty-yellow fur.

§ 119. The Thunderers are represented as cruel and destructive in disposition. They are ever on the war path. A mortal hatred exists between them and the family of the Unkteḣi. Neither has power to resist the tonwan of the other if it strikes him. Their attacks are never open, and neither is safe except he eludes the vigilance of the other. The Wakinyan, in turn, are often surprised and killed by the Unkteḣi. Many stories are told of the combats of these gods. Mr. Pond once listened to the relation, by an eyewitness (as he called himself), of a story in substance as follows: A Wakinyan measuring 25 to 30 yards[Pg 443] between the tips of his wings was killed and fell on the bank of the Blue Earth river (Minnesota).

From the Wakinyan the Dakota have received their war implements, the spear and tomahawk, and many of the pigments, which, if properly applied, will shield them from the weapons of their enemies.[119]

§ 120. When a person dreams of the Thunderers, it is a sign that he and they must fight. The Wakinyan are not the only gods of war; there are also the Takuckaⁿckaⁿ (Takuśkanśkan) and the Armor gods. (See §§ 122-3, 127-9.)

Of the circle dance, Riggs says (in Amer. Antiq., II, 267): “They cut an image of the great bird from bark and suspend it at the top of the central pole, which is shot to pieces at the close of the dance.” (He probably means that the image of the great bird, a Thunder bird, is shot to pieces, not the pole.) Sacrifices are made to the Wakinyan and songs are sung both to the Wakinyan and the Unkteḣi.

§ 121. There seems to be some connection between the Heyoka gods and the Wakinyan; but it is not plain. The Heyoka god uses a small Wakinyan god as his drumstick. (See § 218.) The Wakinyan songs are sung by members of the Heyoka dancing order.

Smet was told that the Dakota—

Pretend that the thunder is an enormous bird, and that the muffled sound of the distant thunder is caused by a countless number of young (thunder) birds. The great bird, they say, gives the first sound, and the young ones repeat it; this is the cause of the reverberations. The Sioux declare that the young thunderers do all the mischief, like giddy youth who will not listen to good advice; but the old thunderer or big bird is wise and excellent; he never kills or injures any one.[120]

Next to the Sun, according to Smet, Thunder is the great deity of the Assiniboin. Every spring, at the first peal of thunder, they offer sacrifices to the Wakinyan.[121]

The Assiniboin, according to Maximilian, ascribed the thunder to an enormous bird.[122]

THE ARMOR GODS.

§ 122. As each young man comes to maturity a tutelar divinity, sometimes called “Waśićuŋ” (see § 236), is assigned to him. It is supposed to reside in the consecrated armor then given to him, consisting of a spear, an arrow, and a small bundle of paint. It is the spirit of some bird or animal, as the wolf, beaver, loon, or eagle. He must not kill this animal, but hold it ever sacred, or at least until he has proved his manhood by killing an enemy. Frequently the young man forms an image of this sacred animal and carries it about with him, regarding it as having a direct influence upon his everyday life and ultimate destiny. Parkman says (in his “Jesuits in North America,” p. LXXI, [Pg 444]note) that the knowledge of this guardian spirit comes through dreams at the initiatory fast. If this is ever true among the Dakota, it is not the rule. This knowledge is communicated by the “war prophet.”[123] (See §§ 120, 127, 129, 305, etc.)

Ashley tells us that among the Sisseton and Wahpeton Dakota the warrior, as such, was forbidden by custom of law to eat the tongue, head, or heart of many beasts. There were other animals of which the heads might be eaten, but not the tongues. A warrior about to go on the war path could not have intercourse with women, but must go through the purification of the inipi or sweat bath, which lasts four days. A married warrior could not touch his own weapons until he had thus purified himself.[124]

§ 123. The Armor god and the Spirit of the mystery sack are sometimes spoken of as if they were individual and separate divinities; but they seem rather to be the god-power which is put into the armor and sack by consecration. They should be regarded as the indwelling of the Unkteḣi or of the Takuśkanśkan. A young man’s war weapons are wakan and must not be touched by a woman. A man prays to his armor in the day of battle. In the consecration of these weapons of war and the hunt a young man comes under certain taboo restrictions. Certain parts of an animal are sacred and must not be eaten until he has killed an enemy.[125]

THE WAR PROPHET.

§ 124. The war prophet has been referred to. In this capacity the wakan man is a necessity. Every male Dakota 16 years old and upward is a soldier, and is formally and mysteriously enlisted into the service of the war prophet. From him he receives the implements of war, carefully constructed after models furnished from the armory of the gods, painted after a divine prescription, and charged with a missive virtue—the tonwan—of the divinities. From him he also receives those paints which serve as an armature for the body. To obtain these necessary articles the proud applicant is required for a time to abuse himself and serve him, while he goes through a series of painful and exhausting performances which are necessary on his part to enlist the favorable notice of the gods. These performances consist chiefly of vapor baths, fastings, chants, prayers, and nightly vigils. The spear and the tomahawk being prepared and consecrated, the person who is to receive them approaches the wakan man and presents a pipe to him. He asks a favor, in substance as follows: “Pity thou me, poor and helpless, a woman, and confer on me the ability to perform manly deeds.” The prophet gives him the weapons and tells him not to forget his vows to the gods when he returns in triumph, a man. The weapons are carefully preserved by the warrior. They are wrapped in cloth, together[Pg 445] with the sacred pigments. In fair weather they are laid outside of the lodge every day. They must never be touched by an adult female.[126]

§ 125. Lynd’s account is slightly different, though in substantial accord with the preceding one:

When a youth arrives at the age proper for going on the warpath he first purifies himself by fasting and the inipi or steam bath for three days, and then goes, with tears in his eyes, to some wakan man whose influence is undoubted, and prays that he will present him with the wotawe or consecrated armor. This wakan man is usually some old and experienced zuya wakan or sacred war leader. After a time the armor is presented to the young man, but until it is so presented he must fast and continue his purifications incessantly. It is a singular fact that nothing but the spear of this armor is ever used in battle, though it is always carried when the owner accompanies a war party. At the same time that the old man presents the armor he tells the youth to what animal it is dedicated, and enjoins upon him to hold that animal wakan. He must never harm or kill it, even though starvation threaten him. At all times and under all circumstances the taboo or wohduze is upon it, until by slaying numerous enemies it is gradually removed. By some the animal is held sacred during life, the taboo being voluntarily retained.[127] (See §§ 101, 127.)

THE SPIRITS OF THE MYSTERY SACKS.

§ 126. These are similar to the armor gods, in that they are divinities who act as guardian spirits. Each of these powers is appropriated by a single individual, protecting and aiding him, and receiving his worship. These spirits are conferred at the time of initiation into the order of the Mystery Dance, and of course are confined to the members of that order.[128] Each spirit of the mystery sack is not a separate god, but a wakan power derived from the Unkteḣi, according to a later statement of Riggs.[129]

TAKUŚKAŊŚKAŊ, THE MOVING DEITY.

§ 127. This is a form of the wakan which jugglers, so-called mystery men, and war prophets invoke. In their estimation he is the most powerful of their gods; the one most to be feared and propitiated, since, more than all others, he influences human weal and woe. He is supposed to live in the four winds, and the four black spirits of night do his bidding. The consecrated spear and tomahawk (see § 124) are its weapons. The buzzard, raven, fox, wolf, and other animals are its lieutenants, to produce disease and death.[130] (Compare this with some of the pictographs on the war chart of the Kansa tribe: Fig. 4, Wind songs; the connection between the winds and war is shown in § 33. Fig. 8, Deer songs. Fig. 9, an Elk song. Fig. 10, seven songs of the Wakanda who makes night songs. Fig. 11, five songs of the Big Rock. This is a rough red rock near Topeka, Kans. “This rock has a hard body, like that of a wakanda. May you walk like it.” Fig. 12, Wolf songs. The[Pg 446] wolf howls at night. Fig. 13, Moon songs. Fig. 14, Crow songs. The crow flies around a dead body which it wishes to devour. Fig. 18, Shade songs. There is a Wakanda who makes shade. Fig. 20, song of the Small Rock. Fig. 22, songs of the young Moon. Fig. 23, songs of the Buffalo Bull. Fig. 27, Owl songs. The owl hoots at night.[131])

§ 128. Miss Fletcher has given us a very interesting account of “The Religious Ceremony of the Four Winds or Quarters, as observed by the Santee Sioux.” “Among the Santee (Sioux) Indians the Four Winds are symbolized by the raven and a small black stone, less than a hen’s egg in size.” “An intelligent Santee said to me: ‘The worship of the Four Winds is the most difficult to explain for it is the most complicated.’ The Four Winds are sent by the ‘Something that Moves.’”[132] There is a “Something that Moves” at each of the four directions or quarters. The winds are, therefore, the messengers or exponents of the powers which remain at the four quarters. These four quarters are spoken of as upholding the earth,[133] and are connected with thunder and lightning as well as the wind.[134]   *  *  *  

“My informant went on to tell me that the spirits of the four winds were not one, but twelve, and they are spoken of as twelve.”[135] (See § 42.)

§ 129. In Tah-koo Wah-kon, pp. 64, 65, Riggs says:

This god is too subtle in essence to be perceived by the senses, and is as subtle in disposition. He is present everywhere. He exerts a controlling influence over instinct, intellect, and passion. He can rob a man of the use of his rational faculties, and inspire a beast with intelligence, so that the hunter will wander idiot-like, while the game on which he hoped to feast his family at night escapes with perfect ease. Or, if he please, the god can reverse his influence. He is much gratified to see men in trouble, and is particularly glad when they die in battle or otherwise. Passionate and capricious in the highest degree, it is very difficult to retain his favor. His symbol and supposed residence is the bowlder (see Big Rock and Small Rock, § 127), as it is also of another god, the Tunkan.

Pond assigns to him the armor feast and inipi or vapor bath (called steam or sweat bath). He says:[136]

The armor feast is of ordinary occurrence when the provisions are of sufficient abundance to support it, in which the warriors assemble and exhibit the sacred implements of war, to which they burn incense around the smoking sacrifice.

§ 130. In October, 1881, the late S. D. Hinman read a paper before the Anthropological Society of Washington, entitled “The Stone God or [Pg 447]Oracle of the Pute-temni band of Hunkpati Dakotas.” He said that this oracle had been seen by him while on an expedition with some Dakotas across the James River valley in Dakota Territory. A Hunkpati man of the party gave the history of the stone and an account of its miraculous movement from the Sacred Hill to the old dirt lodge village. This oracle was called the Takuśkaŋśkaŋ.

§ 131. But the Takuśkaŋśkaŋ assumed other shapes. Said Bushotter, in one of his Teton texts:

The Lakotas regard certain small stones or pebbles as mysterious, and it is said that in former days a man had one as his helper or servant. There are two kinds of these mysterious stones (i.e., pebbles, not rocks). One is white, resembling ice or glass (i.e., is probably translucent; compare the translucent pebbles of the Iⁿ-ʞugȼi order of the Omaha, see Om. Soc., p. 346); the other resembles ordinary stones. It is said that one of them once entered a lodge and struck a man, and people spoke of the stones sending in rattles through the smoke hole of a lodge. When anything was missed in the village the people appealed to the stones for aid, and the owner of one of the stones boiled food for a mystery feast, to which the people came. Then they told the stone of their loss and the stone helped them. It is said that the stones brought back different messages. If anyone stole horses the stones always revealed his name. Once the Omahas came to steal horses, but the stones knew about them and disappointed their secret plans; so that the Lakotas learned to prize the stones, and they decorated them with paint, wrapped them up, and hung a bunch of medicine with each one.

It is very probable that the Assiniboin also worshipped the Takuśkaŋśkaŋ; for they reverenced the four winds, as Smet tells us.[137]

TUNKAN OE INYAN, THE STONE GOD OR LINGAM.

§ 132. It has been said by Lynd[138] that the western tribes (probably the Teton, Yanktonai, Yankton, etc.), neglect the Unkteḣi, and pay their main devotion to Tunkan or Invan, answering to the Hindoo Lingam.

Tunkan, the Dakotas say, is the god that dwells in stones and rocks, and is the oldest god. If asked why he is considered the oldest, they will tell you because he is the hardest—an Indian’s reason. The usual form of the stone employed in worship is round, and it is about the size of the human head. The devout Dakota paints this Tunkan red, putting colored swan’s down upon it, and then he falls down and worships the god that is supposed to dwell in it or hover near it.[139] The Tunkan is painted red (see § 136) as a sign of active worship.[140] In cases of extremity I have ever noticed that they appeal to their Tunkan or stone god, first and last, and they do this even after the ceremonies of the medicine dance have been gone through with. All Sioux agree in saying that the Tunkan is the main recipient of their prayers; and among the Tetons, Mandans, Yanktons, and Western Dakotas they pray to that and the spirit of the buffalo almost entirely.[141]

§ 133. Riggs says:[142]

“The Inyan or Toon-kan is the symbol of the greatest force or power in the dry land. And these came to be the most common objects of worship. Large bowlders were selected and adorned with red and green (sic) paint, whither the devout [Pg 448]Dakota might go to pray and offer his sacrifice. And smaller stones were often found, set up on end and properly painted, around which lay eagles’ feathers, tobacco, and red cloth. Once I saw a small dog that had been recently sacrificed. In all their incantations and dances, notably in the circle dance, the painted stone is the god supplicated and worshipped with fear and trembling.”

§ 134. Long tells of a gigantic stone figure resembling a human being, which he found on the bank of Kickapoo Creek. The Indians made offerings to it of tobacco and other objects.[143]

IŊYAŊ ŚA.

§ 135. Rev. Horace C. Hovey says:[144]

“It was the custom of the Dakotas to worship bowlders when in perplexity and distress. Clearing a spot from grass and brush they would roll a bowlder on it, streak it with paint, deck it with feathers and flowers, and then pray to it for needed help or deliverance. Usually when such a stone had served its purpose its sacredness was gone. But the peculiarity of the stone now described is that from generation to generation it was a shrine to which pilgrimages and offerings were made. Its Indian name, ‘Eyah Shah,’ simply means the ‘Red Rock,’ and is the same term by which they designate catlinite, or the red pipe clay. The rock itself is not naturally red, being merely a hard specimen of granite, symmetrical in shape, and about 5 feet long by 3 feet thick. The Indians also called it ‘waukon’ (mystery) and speculated as to its origin.  *  *  *  The particular clan that claimed this rude altar was known as the Mendewakantons. Although being but 2 miles below the village of the Kaposias, it was to some extent resorted to by them likewise.[145] The hunting ground of the clan was up the St. Croix, and invariably before starting they would lay an offering on Eyah Shah. Twice a year the clan would meet more formally, when they would paint the stone with vermilion, or, as some say, with blood, then trim it with flowers and feathers, and dance around it before sunrise with chants and prayers. Their last visit was in 1862, prior to the massacre that occurred in August of that year. Since that date, the stripes were renewed three years ago. I counted the stripes and found them twelve in number, each about 2 inches wide, with intervening spaces from 2 to 6 inches wide. By the compass, Eyah Shah lies exactly north and south. It is twelve paces from the main bank of the Mississippi, at a point 6 miles below St. Paul. The north end is adorned by a rude representation of the sun with fifteen rays.”

§ 136. Bushotter writes thus:

“Sometimes a stone, painted red all over, is laid within the lodge and hair is offered to it. In cases of sickness they pray to the stone, offering to it tobacco or various kinds of good things, and they think that the stone hears them when they sacrifice to it. As the steam arose when they made a fire on a stone, the Dakotas concluded that stones had life, the steam being their breath, and that it was impossible to kill them.”

MATO TIPI.

FIG. 188.—Bear Butte, South Dakota. (Copyright by Grabill, 1890.)

§ 137. Eight miles from Fort Meade, S. Dakota, is Mato tipi, Grizzly bear Lodge, known to the white people as Bear Butte. It can be seen from a distance of a hundred miles. Of this landmark Bushotter writes thus:

“The Teton used to camp at a flat-topped mountain, and pray to it. This mountain[Pg 449] had many large rocks on it, and a pine forest at the summit. The children prayed to the rocks as if to their guardian spirits, and then placed some of the smaller ones between the branches of the pine trees. I was caused to put a stone up a tree. Some trees had as many as seven stones apiece. No child repeated the ceremony of putting a stone up in the tree; but on subsequent visits to the Butte he or she wailed for the dead, of whom the stones were tokens.” (See § 304.)

THE SUN AND MOON.

§ 138. The sun as well as the moon is called “wi” by the Dakota and Assiniboin tribes. In order to distinguish between the two bodies, the former is called aŋpetu wi, day moon, and the latter, haŋhepi wi or haŋyetu wi, night moon. The corresponding term in Ȼegiha is miⁿ, which is applied to both sun and moon, though the latter is sometimes called niaⁿba. “The moon is worshiped rather as the representative of the sun, than separately. Thus, in the sun dance, which is held in the full of the moon, the dancers at night fix their eyes on her.”[146]

§ 139. According to Smet[147]—

The sun is worshiped by the greater number of the Indian tribes as the author of light and heat. The Assiniboins consider it likewise to be the favorite residence of the Master of Life. They evidence a great respect and veneration for the sun, but rarely address it. On great occasions, they offer it their prayers, but only in a low tone. Whenever they light the calumet, they offer the sun the first whiffs of its smoke.

This last must refer to what Smet describes on p. 136 as the great “festival lasting several days,” during which the “high priest” offers the calumet to “the Great Spirit, to the sun, to each of the four cardinal points, to the water, and to the land, with words analogous to the benefits which they obtain from each.

[Pg 450]

§ 140. Bushotter, in his Teton text, says:

They prayed to the sun, and they thought that with his yellow eye he saw all things, and that when he desired he went under the ground.

Riggs states in Tah-koo Wah-kon (p. 69):

Although as a divinity, the sun is not represented as a malignant being, yet the worship given him is the most dreadful which the Dakotas offer. Aside from the sun dance, there is another proof of the divine character ascribed to the sun in the oath taken by some of the Dakotas: “As the sun hears me, this is so.”

THE SUN DANCE.

§ 141. Pond[148] gave an account of the sun dance obtained from Riggs, in which occurs the following: “The ceremonies of the sun dance commence in the evening. I have been under the impression that the time of the full moon was selected, but I am now (1867) informed that it is not essential.” Neither Capt. Bourke (§§ 197-210) nor Bushotter speaks of the time of the full moon. In Miss Fletcher’s account of the Oglala sun dance of 1882,[149] she says: “The festival generally occurs in the latter part of June or early in July and lasts about six days. The time is fixed by the budding of the Artemisia ludoviciana.” (See §§ 138, 150.)

§ 142. Lynd writes:[150]

The wiwanyag wacipi, or worship of the sun as a divinity, is evidently one of the most radical bases of Dakota religion. It has a subordinate origin in the wihanmnapi, or dreaming, and is intimately connected with the hanmdepi, or vision hunting. This most ancient of all worships, though it is of very frequent occurrence among the Dakotas, does not take place at stated intervals, as among the old nations of the East, nor does the whole tribe participate in the ceremonies. It is performed by one person alone, such of his relatives and friends assisting in the ceremonies as may deem fit or as he may designate. Preparatory to this, as to all the other sacred ceremonies of the Dakotas, are fasting and purification. The dance commences with the rising of the sun and continues for three days, or until such time as the dreaming worshiper shall receive a vision from the spirit or divinity of the sun. He faces the sun constantly, turning as it turns, and keeping up a constant blowing with a wooden whistle. A rude drum is beaten at intervals, to which he keeps time with his feet, raising one after the other, and bending his body towards the sun. Short intervals of rest are given during the dance. The mind of the worshiper is fixed intently upon some great desire that he has, and is, as it were, isolated from the body. In this state the dancer is said to receive revelations from the sun, and to hold direct intercourse with that deity. If the worshiper of this luminary, however, should fail to receive the desired revelation before the close of the ceremonies, then self-sacrifice is resorted to, and the ceremonies of the hanmdepi become a part of the worship of the sun.

A DAKOTA’S ACCOUNT OF THE SUN DANCE.

§ 143. Several accounts of the sun dance have been published within the past twenty years, but they have, without exception, been written by white persons. The following differs in one respect from all which have preceded it; it was written in the Teton dialect of the Dakota, by [Pg 451]George Bushotter, a Teton. As he did not furnish his description of the dance in a single text, but in several, which were written on different occasions, it devolved on the present writer to undertake an arrangement of the material after translating it. The accompanying illustrations were made by Mr. Bushotter.

§ 144. Object of the sun dance.—The Dakota name for the sun dance is “Wi waⁿ-yañg wa-tci-pi (Wi waŋyaŋg waćipi),” literally, “Sun looking-at they-dance.” The following are assigned as the reasons for celebrating this dance: During any winter when the people suffer from famine or an epidemic, or when they wish to kill any enemy, or they desire horses or an abundance of fruits and vegetables during the coming summer, different Indians pray mentally to the sun, and each one says, “Well, I will pray to Wakantanka early in the summer.” Throughout the winter all those men who have made such vows take frequent baths in sweat lodges. Each of these devotees or candidates invites persons to a feast, on which occasion he joins his guests in drinking great quantities of various kinds of herb teas. Then the host notifies the guests of his vow, and from that time forward the people treat him with great respect.

§ 145. Rules observed by households.—The members of the households of the devotees always abstain from loud talking and from bad acts of various kinds. The following rules must be observed in the lodge of each devotee: A piece of the soil is cut off between the back of the lodge and the fireplace, and when virgin earth is reached vermilion is scattered over the exposed place. When the men smoke their pipes and have burned out all of the tobacco in their pipe bowls, they must not throw away the ashes as they would common refuse; they must be careful to empty the ashes on the exposed earth at the back of the lodge. No one ventures to step on that virgin earth, and not even a hand is ever stretched toward it. Only the man who expects to participate in the sun-dance can empty the ashes there, and after so doing he returns each pipe to its owner.

§ 146. The “U-ma-ne.”—“The mellowed earth space, U-ma-ne in Dakota, and called by some peculiar names in other tribes, has never been absent from any religions exercise I have yet seen or learned of from the Indians. It represents the unappropriated life or power of the earth, hence man may obtain it. The square or oblong, with the four lines standing out, is invariably interpreted to mean the earth or land with the four winds standing toward it. The cross, whether diagonal or upright, always symbolizes the four winds or four quarters.”[151]

FIG. 189.—The “U-ma-ne” symbol.

Miss Fletcher uses this term, “U-ma-ne,” to denote two things: the mellowed earth space (probably answering to the u-jé-ʇi of the Omaha and Ponka) and the symbol of the earth and the four winds made within that mellowed earth space. A sketch of the latter symbol is shown in Fig. 189. (See §§ 112, 155, etc.; also Contr. N. A. Ethn., Vol. VI,—471-475.)

[Pg 452]

§ 147. Rules observed by the devotee.—During the time of preparation the devotee goes hunting, and if he kills a deer or buffalo he cuts up the body in a “wakan” manner. He skins it, but leaves the horns attached to the skull. He reddens the skin all over, and in the rear of the lodge, in the open air, he prepares a bed of wild sage (Artemisia), on which he lays the skull. He erects a post, on which he hangs a tobacco pouch and a robe that is to be offered as a sacrifice. When the devotee takes a meal everything which he touches must be perfectly clean. He uses a new knife, which no one else dares to handle. Whatever he eats must be prepared in the best possible manner by the other members of the household. They make for him a new pipe ornamented with porcupine work, a new tobacco pouch, and a stick for pushing the tobacco down into the bowl, both ornamented in like manner.

§ 148. The devotee must not go swimming, but he can enter the sweat-lodge. There he rubs his body all over with wild sage; he cannot use calico or cotton for that purpose. No unclean person of either sex must go near him. The devotee is prohibited from fighting, even should the camp be attacked. He must not act hastily, but at all times must he proceed leisurely. He has his regular periods for crying and praying.[152]

§ 149. All his female kindred make many pairs of moccasins and collect money and an abundance of all kinds of goods, in order to give presents to poor people at the time of the sun dance. Then they can make gifts to whomsoever they please, and on that account they will win the right to have a child’s ears pierced. The goods or horses, on account of which the child’s ears are to be pierced, are reserved for that occasion at some other place. The man whose office it will be to pierce the children’s ears has to be notified in advance that his services will be required. (See § 205.)

TRIBES INVITED TO THE SUN-DANCE.

§ 150. When the devotees have performed all the preliminary duties required of them, messages are sent to all the neighboring tribes, i. e., the Omaha, Pawnee Loup, Cheyenne, Ree, Hidatsa, Blackfeet, Nez Percé, Winnebago, Yankton, and Santee. The latter part of June is fixed upon as the time for the dance. (See §§ 138, 141.) The visitors from the different nations begin to come together in the spring, each visiting tribe forming its separate camp. Though some of the visitors are hereditary enemies, it matters not during the sun-dance; they visit one another; they shake hands and form alliances. In this manner several weeks are spent very pleasantly.

DISCIPLINE MAINTAINED.

§ 151. Policemen are appointed, and a crier proclaims to each lodge that at a specified place there is a broad and pleasant prairie where[Pg 453] all are expected to pitch their tents. The overseers or masters of ceremonies have guns, and their orders are obeyed; for if one disobeys his horses and dogs are killed by the policemen. This punishment is called akićita wićaktepi, or, in common parlance, “soldier-killing.”

All who join the camp must erect the upright (or conical) tents, as no low rush or mat tents, such as are found among the Osage and Winnebago, are allowed in the camp circle.

CAMPING CIRCLE FORMED.

§ 152. At length orders are given for all the people to pitch their tents in the form of a tribal circle, with an opening to the north.[153] (See Pl. XLV.) It takes several days to accomplish this, and then all the men and youths are required to take spades and go carefully over the whole area within the circle and fill up all the holes and uneven places which might cause the horses to stumble and fall.

MEN SELECTED TO SEEK THE MYSTERY TREE.

§ 153. Though Bushotter has written that this work requires several days, it is probable, judging from what follows in his manuscript, that only two days are required for such work. For he continues thus:

On the third day some men are selected to go in search of the Ćan-wakan or Mystery Tree, out of which they are to form the sun pole.[154] These men must be selected from those who are known to be brave, men acquainted with the war path, men who have overcome difficulties, men who have been wounded in battle, men of considerable experience.

§ 154. The men selected to fell the mystery tree ride very swift horses, and they decorate their horses and attire themselves just as if they were going to battle. They put on their feather war bonnets. They race their horses to a hill and then back again. In former days it was customary on such occasions for any women who had lost children during some previous attack on the camp, to wail often as they ran towards the mounted men, and to sing at intervals as they went. But that is not the custom at the present day. Three times do the mounted men tell of their brave deeds in imitation of the warriors of the olden times, and then they undertake to represent their own deeds in pantomime.

§ 155. On the fourth day, the selected men go to search for the mystery tree. They return to camp together, and if they have found a suitable tree, they cut out pieces of the soil within the camping circle, going down to virgin earth. (See § 146.) This exposed earth extends over a considerable area. On it they place a species of sweet-smelling [Pg 454]grass (a trailing variety) and wild sage, on which they lay the buffalo skull.

TENT OF PREPARATION.

§ 156. After this there is set up within the camping circle a good tent known as the tent of preparation.[155] When the managers wish to set up the tent of preparation, they borrow tent skins here and there. Part of these tent skins they use for covering the smoke hole, and part were used as curtains, for when they decorate the candidates they use the curtains for shutting them in from the gaze of the people and when they finish painting them they throw down the curtains.

In the back part of this tent of preparation are placed the buffalo skulls, one for each candidate. A new knife which has never been used is exposed to smoke. A new ax, too, is reddened and smoked.

§ 157. Wild sage (Artemisia) is used in various ways prior to and during the sun dance. Some of it they spread on the ground to serve as couches, and with some they wipe the tears from their faces. They fumigate with the plant known as “ćaŋ śilśilya,” or else they use “walipe waśtema,” sweet-smelling leaves. Day after day they fumigate themselves with “waćaŋġa,” a sweet-smelling grass. They hold every object which they use over the smoke of one of these grasses. They wear a kind of medicine on their necks, and that keeps them from being hungry or thirsty, for occasionally they chew a small quantity of it. Or if they tie some of this medicine to their feet they do not get weary so soon.[156]

§ 158. When the tent of preparation is erected, there are provided for it new tent pins, new sticks for fastening the tent skins together above the entrance, and new poles for pushing out the flaps beside the smoke hole. These objects and all others, which had to be used, are brought into the tent of preparation and fumigated over a fire into which the medicine has been dropped. By this time another day has been spent. Now all the candidates assemble in the tent of preparation, each one wearing a buffalo robe with the hair outside. One who acts as leader sits in the place of honor at the back part of the tent, and the others sit on either side of him around the fireplace. They smoke their pipes. When night comes they select one of the songs of the sun dance, in order to rehearse it. Certain men have been chosen as singers of the dancing songs, and, when one set of them rest, there are others to take their places. The drummers beat the drum rapidly, but softly (as the Teton call it, kpaŋkpaŋyela, the act of several drummers hitting in quick succession).

Bureau of Ethnology.	Eleventh Annual Report. Plate XLV
GAST LITH. CO.
CAMPING CIRCLE AT THE TIME OF THE SUN-DANCE.

Three times do they beat the drums in that manner, and then they beat it rapidly, as at the beginning of the sun dance. At this juncture, [Pg 455]as many as have flutes—made of the bones of eagles’ wings, ornamented with porcupine quills, and hung around their necks, with cords similarly ornamented, with some eagle down at the tip ends of the flutes—blow them often and forcibly as they dance. While the drum is beaten three times in succession (kpaŋkpaŋyela, as has been described), all the candidates cry aloud (ćeya), but when it is beaten the fourth time, they cry or wail no longer, but dance and blow their flutes or whistles.

FIG. 190.—Eaglewing flute. (From original, loaned by Capt. J. G. Bourke, U. S. A.)

§ 159. When the candidates take their seats in the tent of preparation, they select a man to fill the pipe with tobacco. When they wish to smoke, this man passes along the line of candidates. He holds the pipe with the mouthpiece toward each man, who smokes without grasping the pipe stem.[157]

When the candidates are allowed to eat, the attendant feeds them. No one can be loquacious within the tent of preparation. If a dog or person approaches the tent, the offender is chased away before he can reach it. No spectators are allowed to enter the tent. And this regulation is enforced by blows, whenever anyone attempts to violate it.

EXPEDITION TO THE MYSTERY TREE.

§ 160. The next morning, which is that of the fifth day, they prepare to go after the tree that is to serve as the sun pole.[158] The married and single men, the boys, and even the women, are all ordered to go horseback. Whoever is able to move rapidly accompanies the party. When the chosen persons go to fell the mystery tree they rush on it as they would upon a real enemy, just as tradition relates that the Omaha and Ponka rushed on their sacred tree. (See § 42.)[159] Then they turn quickly and run from it until they arrive at the other side of the hill (nearest to the mystery tree), after which they return to the tree.[160] They tie leaves together very tightly, making a mark of the bundle, assaulting it in turn as a foe.

§ 161. The tree is reached by noon. The persons chosen to fell it whisper to one another as they assemble around it. They approach some one who has a child, and take hold of him. Then they bring robes and other goods which they spread on the ground, and on the pile they seat the child, who is sometimes a small girl, or even a large one.

[Pg 456]

FELLING THE TREE.

§ 162. Each of the chosen men takes his turn in striking the tree. Every one must first tell his exploits, then he brandishes the ax three times without striking a blow, after which he strikes the tree once, and only once, making a gash. He leaves the ax sticking in the tree, whence it is removed by the next man. He who leaves the ax in the tree is by this act considered to make a present of a horse to some one. As soon as he gives the blow, his father (or some near kinsman) approaches and hands him a stick, whereupon the young man returns it, asking him to give it to such a one, calling him by name. For instance, let us suppose that a young man, Mato ćuwi maza, Grizzly bear with an Iron Side, requests that his stick be given to Psića waŋkantuya, or Leaping High. The old man who is employed as the crier goes to the camp and sings thus: “Mato ćuwi maza í-ya-ha-he+! Mato ćuwi maza í-ya-ha-he+!”. The last word is a sign of a brave deed on the part of the donor, and it is so understood by every one. On reaching the tent of the other man, the crier says, “Psića waŋkantuya śuŋkawakaŋ waŋ hiyo u ye+! Mato ćuwi maza ćaŋ-wakaŋ kaksa ȼa taśuŋke waŋ hiyo u ye+!” i. e., “O Leaping High, a horse is brought to you! A horse is brought to you because Mato ćuwi maza has given a blow to the mystery tree!” On hearing this, Psića waŋkantuya says, “Há-ye,” or “Thanks!” as he extends his hands with the palms towards the crier; and he brings them down toward the ground and takes the stick representing the horse. Then the crier passes along around the circle, singing the praises of the donor, and naming the man who has received the present.

§ 163. After all the chosen men have told of their deeds, and have performed their parts, the women select a man to speak of what generous things they have done, and when he has spoken, the larger women who are able to fell trees rise to their feet, and take their turns in giving one blow apiece to the tree. By the time that all the women have struck the tree it falls, and all present shout and sing. Many presents are made, and some of the people wail, making the entire forest echo their voices. Then those men who are selected for that purpose cut off all the limbs of the tree except the highest one, and they do not disturb the tree top. Wherever a branch is cut off they rub red paint on the wound.

§ 164. They make a bundle of some wood in imitation of that for which they have prayed, and hang it crosswise from the fork of the tree. Above the bundle they suspend a scarlet blanket, a buffalo robe or a weasel skin, and under the bundle they fasten two pieces of dried buffalo hide, one being cut in the shape of a buffalo, and the other in that of a man.

Though Bushotter did not state the circumstance, it is remarkable that both the figures have the membrum virile rigid. The author learned about this from two trustworthy persons, who obtained all the para[Pg 457]phernalia of the sun dance, and one of them, Capt. John G. Bourke, U. S. Army, showed him the figures of the man and buffalo used at the sun dance at Red Cloud Agency, in 1882. In the former figure, the lingam is of abnormal size. The connection between the phallic cult and the sun is obvious to the student. (See §§ 19, 132, 146, 155, 169, 170, 176).

THE TREE TAKEN TO CAMP.

§ 165. No one of the company dare to touch the sun pole as they take it to the camp. Before wagons were available, they made a horse carry most of the weight of the pole, part of it being on one side of him and part on the other, while the wakaŋ men chosen for the purpose walked on both sides of the horse in order to support the ends of the pole. (See § 317.) At the present day, a wagon is used for transporting the sun pole to the camp.[161] While they are on the way no person dares to go in advance of the pole, for whoever violates the law is in danger of being thrown from his horse and having his neck broken.

The married men and youths carry leaf shields on their backs, and some of the riders make their horses race as far as they are able. Any member of the party can appropriate the small branches which have been cut from the mystery tree.

When they reach the camp circle, all of the party who carry branches and leaves drop them in the places where they intend erecting their respective tents.

§ 166. Judging from Mr. Bushotter’s first text, the tents are not pitched when the people return with the sun pole. But as soon as they lay the pole in the place where it is to be erected, the tents are pitched again. Then all the objects that are to be attached to the sun pole are tied to it, and some of the men take leather straps, such as the women use when they carry wood and other burdens, and fasten them to the sun pole in order to raise it into position.

RAISING THE SUN POLE.

§ 167. This raising of the sun pole seems to be symbolic of the four winds, the tatúye tópa, or “the four quarters of the heavens,” as Dr. Riggs translates the Dakota term. Those who assist in raising the sun pole must be men who have distinguished themselves. They raise the pole a short distance from the ground, and then they shout, making an indistinct sound; they rest awhile and pull it a little higher, shouting again; resting a second time, they renew their efforts, pulling it higher still. They shout the third time, rest again, and at the fourth pull the pole is perpendicular. Then the men around the camping circle fire guns, making the horses flee. Those who raised the pole have a new spade, and they use it one after another in throwing a sufficient quantity of earth around the base of the pole, pressing the earth down firmly in order to steady the pole.

[Pg 458]

BUILDING OF DANCING LODGE.

§ 168. Next follows the building of the dancing lodge. (See Pl. XLVI. and § 317.) Forked posts are set in the ground in two concentric circles. Those posts forming the circle nearer the sun pole are a few feet higher than the posts in the outer circle, thus making a slant sufficient for a roof. From the inner circle of posts to the sun pole there is no roof, as the dancers who stand near the pole must see the sun and moon. From each forked post to the next one in the same circle is laid a tent pole; and on the two series of these horizontal tent-poles are placed the saplings or poles forming the roof. In constructing the wall of the dancing lodge they use the leaf shields, and probably some poles or branches of trees, the shields and leaves stuck in the wall here and there, in no regular order, leaving interstices through which the spectators can peep at the dancers. A very wide entrance is made, through which can be taken a horse, as well as the numerous offerings brought to be given away to the poor. Then they smoke the pipe, as in that manner they think that they can induce their Great Mysterious One to smoke.

§ 169. All having been made ready, the aged men and the chief men of the camp kick off their leggins and moccasins, and as many as have pistols take them to the dancing lodge, around the interior of which they perform a dance. As they pass around the sun pole, all shoot at once at the objects suspended from the pole (§ 164), knocking them aside suddenly. Leaving the dancing lodge, they dance around the interior of the camping circle till they reach their respective tents.

THE UUȻITA.

§ 170. This is followed by the “uuȼita.” Each man ties up the tail of his horse and dresses himself in his best attire. When they are ready, they proceed two abreast around the interior of the camping circle, shooting into the ground as they pass along, and filling the entire area with smoke. There are so many of them that they extend almost around the entire circle. If any of the riders are thrown from their horses as they dash along, the others pay no attention to them, but step over them, regarding nothing but the center of the camping circle. (See Pl. XLV.)

§ 171. By this time it is nearly sunset. The young men and young women mount horses and proceed in pairs, a young man beside a young woman, singing as they pass slowly around the circle. The young men sing first, and the young women respond, acting as a chorus. That night the tent of preparation is again erected. The candidates dance there. The people gaze towards that tent, for it is rumored that the candidates will march forth from it.

Bureau of Ethnology.	Eleventh Annual Report. Plate XLVI
GAST LITH. CO.
THE DANCING LODGE.

DECORATION OF CANDIDATES OR DEVOTEES.

§ 172. The candidates spend the night in decorating themselves. Each one wears a fine scarlet blanket arranged as a skirt and with a good[Pg 459] belt fastened around his waist. From the waist up he is nude, and on his chest he paints some design. Sometimes the design is a sunflower. A man can paint the designs referring to the brave deeds of his father, his mother’s brother, or of some other kinsman, if he himself has done nothing worthy of commemoration. If a man has killed an animal, he can paint the sign of the animal on his chest, and some hold between their lips the tails of animals, signifying that they have scalped their enemies. Others show by their designs that they have stolen horses from enemies.

§ 173. Each one allows his hair to hang loosely down his back. Some wear head-dresses consisting of the skins of buffalo heads with the horns attached. Others wear eagle war-bonnets. Each candidate wears a buffalo robe with the thick hair outside. He fills his pipe, which is a new one ornamented with porcupine work, and he holds it with the stem pointing in front of him. Thus do all the candidates appear as they come out of the tent of preparation. As they march to the dancing lodge the leader goes first, the others march abreast after him. He who acts as leader carries a buffalo skull painted red. All cry as they march, and on the way they are joined by a woman who takes the place of her “hakata,” or cousin; and sometimes they are joined by a horse that is highly prized by his owner.

OFFERINGS OF CANDIDATES.

§ 174. The first time that they emerge from the tent where they sleep they march around it four times, and they make offerings of four blankets, which they suspend from as many posts set up in the form of a square within which the tent is erected. When they proceed from the tent of preparation to the dancing lodge, one of their servants sets up sticks at intervals, forming a straight line from the tent of preparation to the dancing lodge, and on these sticks he places their offerings of blankets and tobacco pouches. After the gifts are thus suspended, none of the spectators can cross the line of sticks.

FIG. 191.—The tent of preparation and the dancing lodge.

§ 175. Capt. J. G. Bourke has a wand that was used by one of the heralds, or criers, during the sun dance. It was about 5 feet long, and was decorated with beadwork and a tuft of horse hair at the superior extremity. Whenever the crier raised this wand the people fell back, leaving an open space of the required area.

[Pg 460]

CEREMONIES AT THE DANCING LODGE.

§ 176. On reaching the dancing lodge, the candidates pass slowly around the exterior, starting at the left side of the lodge and turning towards the right. They do this four times and then enter the lodge. They stretch their hands towards the four quarters of the heavens as they walk around the interior of the lodge. They sit down at the back part of the lodge, and then they sing.

Between them and the pole they cut out the soil in the shape of a half-moon, going down to virgin earth, and on this bare spot they place all the buffalo skulls. After this they paint themselves anew with red paint, on completing which they are lifted to their feet by their attendants. Again they walk around the interior of the lodge, stretching out their hands towards the four quarters of the heavens.

§ 177. A song of the sun dance is started by one of the candidates, and the others join him, one after another, until all are singing. Meanwhile the men who have been selected for the purpose redden their entire hands, and it devolves on them to dance without touching anything, such as the withes connected with the sun pole or the buffalo skulls; all that they are required to do is to extend their hands towards the sun, with the palms turned from them.

At this time all the candidates are raised again to their feet, and brought to the back part of the lodge, where they are placed in a row. They soon begin to cry, and they are joined by the woman who has taken the place of her elder brother.

§ 178. It is customary, when a man is too poor to take part himself in the sun dance, for a female relation to take his place, if such a woman pities him. She suffers as the male candidates do, except in one respect—her flesh is not scarified. This woman wears a buckskin skirt, and she lets her hair fall loosely down her back. She carries the pipe of her brother or kinsman in whose place she is dancing.

§ 179. As the drums beat, the candidates dance and blow their flutes. The woman stands, dancing slowly, with her head bent downward, but with shoulders erect, and she is shaking her head and body by bending her knees often without raising her feet from the ground. She abstains from food and drink, just as her brother or kinsman would have done had he participated in the dance. In fact, all the candidates have to fast from the time that the sun pole is cut, and from that time they cry and dance at intervals.

§ 180. If the owner of a horse decides that his steed must take part in the dance, he ties the horse to one of the thongs fastened to the sun pole, and stands near the animal. Whenever he wishes he approaches the horse, takes him by the lower jaw as he stands and cries, and then he, too, joins in the dance. This horse is decorated in the finest manner; he is painted red, his tail is rolled up into a bundle and tied together, and he wears feathers in the tail and forelock.

§ 181. Candidates scarified. When the time comes for scarifying the [Pg 461]candidates,[162] if one wishes to dance in the manner about to be described, he is made to stand between four posts arranged in the form of a square, and his flesh on his back being scarified in two places, thongs are run through them and fastened to them and to the posts behind him. His chest is also scarified in two places, thongs are inserted and tied, and then fastened to the two posts in front of him (see Pl. XLVII, 1, Okaśka naźin, or “He stands fastened to” or “within”). Bushotter says nothing about the skewers used in torturing the dancers; but Capt. Bourke obtained three ornamental ones which had been run through the wounds of some of the devotees, in order to be stained with blood and kept thereafter as souvenirs of the bravery of the dancers. Besides these were the regular skewers which were thrust horizontally through the flesh; and to the ends of these skewers were fastened the thongs that were secured by the opposite ends to the sun pole. The last dance allowed by the Government was in 1883, and it would be difficult now to find any of these skewers. (See § 204.)

Bureau of Ethnology.	Eleventh Annual Report. Plate XLVII
GAST LITH. CO.
1. PTEPA KIN WACI.—2. OKASKA NAZIN.

Another man has his back scarified and a thong inserted, from which a buffalo skull is suspended, as shown in Pl. XLVII, 2, Pte-pa ḳin waći, or “He dances carrying a buffalo skull on his back.” He dances thus, thinking that the weight of the skull will soon cause the thong to break through the flesh. The blood runs in stripes down his back.

§ 182. Another man decides to be fastened to the sun pole. For the use of such dancers there are eight leather thongs hanging down from the pole, being fastened to the pole at a point about midway from the top. For each man tied to the pole it is the rule to take two of the thongs and run them through his flesh after the holes are made with the knife (see Pl. XLVIII). After the thongs are fastened to him, the dancer is required to look upward. When the candidate is a short man, his back is scarified and his attendants push him up high enough from the ground for the thongs to be inserted and tied. In this case the weight of the man stretches the skin where the thongs are tied, and for a long time he remains there without falling (see Pl. XLIX).

§ 183. A very long time ago it happened that the friends of such a short man pitied him, so they gave a horse to another man, whom they directed to release their friend by pulling at the thongs until they broke out. So the other man approached the dancer, telling of his own deeds. He grasped the short man around the body, threw himself violently to the ground, breaking off the thong, which flew upward, and bringing the short man to the ground. Then the kindred of the short man brought presents of calico or moccasins and another horse, with other property, and they made the old women of the camp scramble for the possession of the gifts. The horse was given away by the act called “Kaḣol yeyapi,” or “They threw it off suddenly.” The father of the dancer stood at the entrance of his tent, holding a stick in his hand. He threw the stick into the air, and the bystanders struggled for[Pg 462] its possession. Whoever grasped the stick, and succeeded in holding it, won the horse. If a forked stick is thrown up and caught it entitles the holder to a mare and her colt.

§ 184. When a young man has his flesh pierced for him, if he is beloved by his female relations, they furnish him with many objects decorated with porcupine quills, and these objects are suspended from the pierced places of his flesh, this being considered as a mark of respect shown by the women to their kinsman. Very often the women by such acts deprive themselves of all their property.

§ 185. Pieces of flesh offered.—When the candidates have their flesh pierced for the insertion of the thongs, a number of men who do not intend to dance approach the sun pole and take seats near it. With a new knife small pieces of flesh are cut out in a row from the shoulders of each of these men, who hold up the pieces of their own flesh, showing them to the pole. They also cover the base of the pole with earth. If some of the women desire to offer pieces of their flesh, they come and do so.

§ 186. Very soon after this the people who are outside of the dancing lodge sing a song in praise of the devotees of all kinds, and the old women are walking about with their clothing and hair in disorder, the garments flapping up and down as they dance. The attendants hold the pipes for the candidates to smoke, and they decorate them anew. After they decorate them, the dancing is resumed. By this time it is past noon, so the girls and boys whose ears are to be pierced are collected in one place, and presents are given to all the poor people.[163] After the children’s ears have been pierced, the attendants make the candidates rise again and continue the dance.

§ 187. Torture of owner of horse.—The man whose horse has taken part in the dance is tied to the tail of his horse, and his chest is pierced in two places and fastened by thongs to the sun pole. Some of the attendants whip the horse several times, making him dart away from the pole, thereby releasing the man, as the thongs are broken by the sudden strain (see § 29).

§ 188. The devotees dance through the night, and when it is nearly midnight they rest. Beginning at the left side of the dancing lodge, every devotee stops and cries at each post until he makes the circuit of the lodge. By this time it is midnight, so the attendants make them face about and stand looking towards the east, just as in the afternoon they had made them face the west.

Bureau of Ethnology.	Eleventh Annual Report. Plate XLVIII
GAST LITH. CO.
THE SUN-DANCE.

END OF THE DANCE.

§ 189. At sunrise they stop dancing and they leave the dancing lodge. As they come forth, they pass out by the right side, and march four times around the exterior of the lodge. After which they proceed [Pg 463]directly to the lodge of preparation, around which they march four times prior to entering it.

§ 190. When the devotees emerge from the dancing lodge, one of their attendants places more gifts on the line of sticks between the two lodges, and after the procession has moved on there is considerable disputing among the small boys of the camp for the possession of the gifts.

§ 191. After leaving the lodge of preparation, the exhausted devotees are taken back to their own tents, where each one is given four sips of water and a small piece of food, and by the time that he gets accustomed to food after his long fast, he eats what he pleases, enters the sweat lodge, rubs himself with the wild sage, and thenceforward he is regarded as having performed his vow.

§ 192. The spectators scramble for the possession of the blankets and long pieces of calico left as sacrifices at the dancing lodge, and some of them climb to the top of the sun pole and remove the objects fastened there. The sun pole is allowed to remain in its place. The author saw a sun pole at Ponka Agency, then in Dakota, in 1871. It had been there for some time, and it remained till it was blown down by a high wind.

At the conclusion of the dance the camp breaks up and the visitors return to their respective homes.

§ 193. All who participate in the dance must act according to rule for if one slights part of the rites they think that he is in great danger. The men selected as overseers or managers are the persons who act as the attendants of the candidates.

The candidates think that all their devotions are pleasing to the sun. As they dance, they pray mentally, “Please pity me! Bring to pass all the things which I desire!”

INTRUSIVE DANCES.

§ 194. During the sun dance, other dances—intrusive dances, as Lynd terms them—are going on in the camp. Among these are the following: The Mandan dance, performed by the Ćaŋte ṭiŋza okolakićiye, or the Society of the Stout-hearted Ones; the Wakaŋ waćipi or mystery dance, the Peźi mignaka waćipi or the dance of those wearing grass in their belts, the ghost dance, the buffalo dance, and the Omaha kiyotag a-i, popularly called the grass dance.

§ 195. When a man joins the Mandan dance as a leader, he wears a feather headdress of owl feathers, a scarf, called “Waŋźi-ićaśke,” is worn around his neck and hangs down his back, and he carries a pipe, a bow, and arrows. In the Peźi mignaka waćipi, both young men and young women take part. All these dances are held outside the lodge of the sun dance, within which lodge only the one dance can be performed. The grass dance is named after the Omaha tribe. As many men as are able to participate in that dance march abreast until they reach the camp of some gens, where they sit[Pg 464] down facing the people whom they visit, hence the name, meaning, “the Omaha reach there and sit down.” Then the visitors sing while a noise is made by hitting the ground with sticks, etc. The singers and dancers sit looking at the tents of the gens that they have visited, and remain so until property and food are brought out and given to them. Then they arise and probably dance. They think that if they ask Wakantanka for anything after the conclusion of the sun dance they will receive it. So they call on him in different songs, thus: “O Wakantanka, please pity me! Let me have many horses!” Or, “O Wakantanka, please pity me! Let there be plenty of fruits and vegetables!” Or, “O Wakantanka, please pity me! Let me live a long time!”

§ 196. During the sun dance they sing about some old woman, calling her by name. They can sing about any old woman on such an occasion.

One of these songs has been given by Mr. Bushotter, but the writer must content himself in giving the words without the music.

That is: “Old woman, you who have been mentioned, whither are you going? When they scrambled for the stick representing a horse, of course you were on hand! How brave you are!”

They sing this in a high key, and when they cease suddenly, they call out, “Ho´wo! Ho´wo! E´-ya-ha-he+! E´-ya-ha-he+!” “Come on! Come on! How brave you are! How brave you are!” When they have said this repeatedly an old woman enters the circle, making them laugh by her singing and dancing.

Thus ends the Bushotter account of the sun dance, which was read at a meeting of the Anthropological Society of Washington, May 6, 1890.

CAPT. BOURKE ON THE SUN-DANCE.

§ 197. After the reading of the paper, Capt. John G. Bourke, U.S. Army, remarked that he had seen the sun dance of the Dakota several times, and once had enjoyed excellent opportunities of taking notes of all that occurred under the superintendence of Red Cloud and other medicine men of prominence. Capt. Bourke kindly furnished the author with the following abstract of his remarks on this subject:

In June, 1881, at the Red Cloud Agency, Dakota, there were some twenty-eight who went through the ordeal, one of the number being Pretty Enemy, a young woman who had escaped with her husband from the band of Sitting Bull in British North America, and who was going through the dance as a sign of grateful acknowledgment to the spirits.

The description of the dance given in the account of Bushotter tallies closely with that which took place at the Red Cloud ceremony, with a few very immaterial exceptions due no doubt to local causes.

Bureau of Ethnology.	Eleventh Annual Report. Plate XLIX
GAST LITH. CO.
A SUSPENDED DEVOTEE.

§ 198. At Red Cloud, for example, there was not a separate buffalo head for each Indian; there were not more than two, and with them, being placed erect and leaning against a frame-work made for the purpose, several elaborately decorated pipes, [Pg 465]beautiful in all that porcupine quills, beads, and horsehair could supply. Buffaloes had at that time disappeared from the face of the country within reach of that agency, and there was also an increasing difficulty in the matter of procuring the pipestone from the old quarries over on the Missouri River [sic].[164]

§ 199. First, in regard to securing the sacred tree, after the same had been designated by the advance party sent out to look for it. The medicine men proclaimed to the young warriors that all they were now to do was just the same as if they were going out to war. When the signal was given, the whole party dashed off at full speed on their ponies, and as soon as we arrived at the tree, there was no small amount of singing, as well as of presents given to the poor.

Next, a band of young men stepped to the front, and each in succession told the story of his prowess, each reference to the killing or wounding of an enemy, or to striking coup, being corroborated by thumping on the skin which served the medicine men as a drum.

§ 200. The first young man approached the sacred tree, swung his brand-new ax, and cut one gash on the east side; the second followed precisely the same program on the south side; the third, on the west side, and the fourth, on the north side, each cutting one gash and no more.

§ 201. They were succeeded by a young maiden, against whose personal character, it was asserted, not a breath of insinuation could be brought, and she was decked in all the finery of a long robe of white antelope skin almost completely covered with elks’ teeth, as well as with beads. She seized the ax, and, with a few well-directed blows, brought the tree to the ground.

§ 202. In carrying the tree to the camp it was placed upon skids, no one being allowed to place a hand upon the tree itself. Upon reaching the summit of the knoll nearest the camp the tree was left in charge of its immediate attendants while the rest of the assemblage charged at full speed upon the camp itself.

§ 203. When the tree had been erected in place, it was noticed that each of those who were to endure the torture had been provided with an esquire, while there was also a force of men, armed with guns to preserve order, criers to make proclamations, and heralds and water-carriers armed with long staves tipped with bead-work and horse-hair. These water-carriers did not carry water for the men attached to the tree, they were not allowed to drink, but if they happened to faint away the medicine men would take a mouthful of water apiece and spray it upon the body of the patient, producing coldness by the evaporation of the water.

§ 204. All the Indians on that occasion were attached to the tree itself by long ropes of hair or by thongs, fastened to skewers run horizontally under the flesh. (See § 181.)

§ 205. The young woman, Pretty Enemy, was not tied up to the tree, but she danced with the others, and had her arms scarified from the shoulders to the elbows. All this scarification was done by a medicine man, who also slit the ear of the babies born since the last sun dance.

§ 206. The young men were scarified in the following manner: Their attendants, whom I have called esquires, seized and laid them on a bed of some sagebrush at the foot of the sacred tree. A short address was made by one of the medicine men; then another, taking up as much of the skin of the breast under the nipple of each dancer as could be held between his thumb and forefinger, cut a slit the length of the thumb, and inserted a skewer to which a rope was fastened, the other end of the rope being tied to the tree.

§ 207. The young men placed eagle pipes, as they were called, in their mouths. These pipes were flutes which were made each from one of the bones in an eaglet’s wing. They had to be sounded all the time the young man was dancing. This dancing was done in the manner of a buck jump, the body and legs being stiff and all[Pg 466] movement being upon the tips of the toes. The dancers kept looking at the sun, and either dropped the hands to the sides in the military position of “attention,” with the palms to the front, or else held them upward and outward at an angle of 45 degrees, with the fingers spread apart, and inclined towards the sun.

§ 208. When laid on the couch of sagebrush before spoken of, each young man covered his face with his hands and wailed. I was careful to examine each one, and saw that this wailing was a strictly ceremonial affair unaccompanied by tears.

§ 209. Before approaching the tree the victims were naked, with the exception of blue cloth petticoats and buffalo robes worn with the fur outside, giving them the appearance of monks of the olden time. The buffalo robes were, of course, thrown off when the young men were laid on the sagebrush, preparatory to the scarification. One young man was unable to tear himself loose, and he remained tied up to the tree for an hour and seven minutes by my watch. He fainted four times. The medicine man put into his mouth some of the small red, bitter, salty seeds of the Dulcamara, while the women threw costly robes, blankets, articles of beadwork and quillwork, and others of the skin of the elk and antelope upon the rope attaching him to the tree, in the hope of breaking him loose. The articles thus attached to the rope were taken away by the poor for whom they were given. There was any amount of this giving of presents at all stages of the dance, but especially at this time, and the criers were calling without ceasing, “So and so has done well. He is not afraid to look the poor women and children in the face! Come up some more of you people! Do not be ashamed to give! Let all the people see how generous you are!” or words to that effect. (I had to rely upon my interpreter, who was reputed to be the best and most trustworthy at the agency).

§ 210. One of the prime movers in the organization of this particular dance, Rocky Bear, at the last moment, for some particular reason, decided not to go through the terrible ordeal. He explained his reasons to the tribe, and was excused. He gave presents with a lavish hand, and it was understood that on some subsequent occasion he would finish the dance. There was no sign of dissatisfaction with his course, and everyone seemed to be on the best of terms with him. All through the ceremony there was much singing by the women and drumming by the medicine men, and a feast of stewed dog, which tastes very much like young mutton, was served with boiled wild turnips.

§ 211. By a comparison of the accounts of Miss Fletcher, Capt. Bourke, and Bushotter it will be noticed that while there are several points of disagreement which, as Capt. Bourke remarks, are “due no doubt to local causes,” the accounts are in substantial agreement. Miss Fletcher says that the opening of the camp circle was toward the east; but Bushotter gives it as toward the north. She states that the tent of preparation was erected on the first day after sunset; but Bushotter says it was set up on the fourth day. She represents the selection of the men who go to seek the tree, the departure to fetch the tree, the felling of the tree, the bringing it and setting it up within the camp circle as all taking place on the fourth day. Bushotter states that the men were selected on the third day; they went to seek the tree on the fourth day; they went to fell the tree on the fifth day, and on the same day they brought it to the camp and set it in place. Capt. Bourke saw four men and one girl employed in felling the tree. Miss Fletcher mentions that five men and three girls did this in 1882; but Bushotter recorded that several men and women took part in this performance. The ears of the children were pierced on the fourth day after the raising[Pg 467] of the sun pole, according to Miss Fletcher; but Bushotter says that this did not occur till after the devotees had been scarified and fastened to the pole and posts, on the sixth day. Bushotter agrees with Miss Fletcher in saying that on the sixth day the earth was “mellowed,” the devotees scarified, and they danced with the thongs fastened to the pole, etc., and attached to the skewers running under their flesh.

BERDACHES.

§ 212. These unfortunate beings, who have been referred to as miⁿquga and miⁿquge in Chapter III (§ 30), are called wiŋkta by the Santee and Yankton Dakota, and wiŋkte by the Teton. They dress as women and act in all respects as women do, though they are really men. The terms for sodomy, wiŋktapi and wiŋktepi, are significant, and go to prove that the berdaches should not be called hermaphrodites. It is probable that the Dakota regard the moon as influencing these people. (See § 353.)

ASTRONOMICAL LORE.

§ 213. Ho-ke-wiŋ-la is a man who stands in the moon with outstretched arms. His name is said to mean Turtle Man. When the Teton see a short man with a large body and legs they generally call him “Ho-ke-la,” after the man in the moon.

The Teton do not like to gaze at the moon, because at some past time a woman, who was carrying a child on her back, gazed a long time at the moon, till she became very weak and fell senseless.

No Teton dare look at the stars and count even “one” mentally. For one is sure to die if he begin to count the stars and desist before finishing. They are also afraid to point at a rainbow with the index finger, though they can point at it with the lips or elbow. Should one forget, and point with the index finger, the bystanders laugh at him, saying, “By and by, O friend, when your finger becomes large and round, let us have it for a ball bat.”

DAY AND NIGHT.

§ 214. One of Bushotter’s Teton texts reads thus:

Indians are often singing “The day and night are mysterious” or “wakaŋ.” They do so for the following reasons: While the day lasts a man is able to do many wonderful things at different times, and he kills so many animals, including men, and sometimes he receives presents, and besides he is able to see all things. But he does not fully understand what the day is, nor does he know what makes the light. Though the man can do various things during the day, he does not know who makes or causes the light. Therefore he believes that it was not made by hand, i.e., that no human being makes the day give light. Therefore the Indians say that the day is “wakaŋ.” They do not know who causes all these things, yet they know that there is some one thing having power, and that this thing does it. In their opinion, that is the sun. So they pray to the sun; and they respect both the day and the sun, making them “wakaŋ.” On that account they usually sing some songs about them. Then they say that the night is “wakaŋ.” When it is night, there are ghosts and many fearful objects, so they regard the night as “wakaŋ,” and pray to it.

[Pg 468]

THE DAWN.

§ 215. When Bushotter’s younger brother was sick on one occasion he was made to pray to Anpao, The Dawn. The tent skins were thrown back from the entrance and the sick boy was held up with the palms of his hands extended towards the light, while he repeated this prayer: “Wakaŋ´taŋka, uŋ´śimála yé! Téhaŋ wauŋ´ kte,” i. e., “O Great Mysterious One, please pity me! Let me live a long time!” Then the patient was laid back on his couch. While the sick boy prayed a blanket was held up, and the next morning it was hung from the top of the tent. When the invalid recovered the blanket and a tobacco pouch were taken to a hill and left there as sacrifices. The boy got well, and the people believed that some mysterious power had cured him.

WEATHER SPIRIT.

§ 216. The Teton say that a giant, called Waziya, knows when there is to be a change of weather. When he travels his footprints are large enough for several Indians to stand while they are abreast; and his strides are far apart, for at one step he can go over a hill. When it is cold the people say, “Waziya has returned.” They used to pray to him, but when they found that he did not heed them they desisted. When warm weather is to follow Waziya wraps himself in a thick robe, and when it is to be cold he goes nude. The members of the Heyoka or Anti-natural Society love the acts of Waziya; so they imitate him in always saying or doing the opposite of what might be expected under the circumstances. Riggs says,[165] “Waziya, the god of the north, and Itokaga, the god of the south, are ever in conflict and each in turn is victorious.”

HEYOKA.

§ 217. Waziya and Heyoka are not fully differentiated. Heyoka, according to Riggs,[166] is “the antinatural god.” He is said to exist in four varieties, all of which have the forms of small men, but all their desires and experiences are contrary to nature. In the winter they stand on the open prairie without clothing; in the summer they sit on knolls wrapped in buffalo robes, and yet they are freezing. Each of them has in his hands and on his shoulders a bow and arrows, rattles, and a drum. All these are surcharged with lightning, and his drumstick is a little Wakinyan. The high mounds of the prairies are the places of his abode. He presides over the land of dreams, and that is why dreams are so fantastic.

§ 218. In speaking of the Heyoka gods, Pond says:[167]

Like the Wakinyan, there are four varieties of them, all of which assume in substance the human form, but it would be unnecessarily tedious to note the differences [Pg 469]of form, especially as the differences are unimportant. They are said to be armed with the bow and arrows, and with deer-hoof rattles, which things are charged with electricity. One of the varieties carries a drum, which is also charged with the same fluid. For a drumstick he holds a small Wakinyan god by the tail, striking on the drum with the beak of the god. This would seem to us to be an unfortunate position for a god, but it must be remembered that it is “wakan,” and the more absurd a thing is, the more “wakan.”

§ 219. One of these gods in some respects answers to the whirlwind zephyr of Greek mythology. It is the gentle whirlwind which is sometimes visible in the delicate waving of the tall grass of the prairie.[168]

By virtue of their medicine and tonwan powers the Heyoka render aid to such men as revere them, in the chase, or by inflicting and healing diseases, especially those resulting from the gratification of their libidinous passions.

HEYOKA FEAST.

§ 220. Lynd gives an account of the Heyoka feast. He says:[169]

They assemble in a lodge, wearing tall, conical hats, being nearly naked, and painted in a strange style. Upon the fire is placed a huge kettle full of meat, and they remain seated around the fire smoking until the water in the kettle begins to boil, which is the signal for the dance to begin. They dance and sing around it excitedly, plunging their hands into the boiling water, and seizing large pieces of hot meat, which they devour at once. The scalding water is thrown over their backs and legs, at which they never wince, complaining that it is cold. Their skin is first deadened, as I am creditably informed, by rubbing with a certain grass; and they do not in reality experience any uneasiness from the boiling water—a fact which gives their performances great mystery in the eyes of the uninitiated.

§ 221. Dr. Brinton has confounded the Heyoka with the Wakinyan. The two are distinct classes of powers, though there is some connection between them, as may be inferred from the following stories in the Bushotter collection.

§ 222. No Indian belonging to the Heyoka Society ever tells of his own personal mystery. Such things are “wakaŋ,” and not even one man can be induced to sing the Heyoka songs upon an ordinary occasion; because if they sing one of those songs except at the proper time they say that the Thunder-beings would kill the entire households of the offenders. Therefore they object to singing the Heyoka songs and they do not like to speak about them.

STORY OF A HEYOKA MAN.

§ 223. It is said that the people of the olden times knew when they were about to die, and they used to dream about their deaths and how they would be when the time drew near. One of those men said, “When the first thunder is heard next spring, I and my horse shall die.”

For that reason his kindred were weeping from time to time, this man who had dreamed of his death decorated the legs of his horse by moistening light gray clay and drawing zigzag lines down the legs. In like manner he decorated the neck and back of the horse, and he made similar [Pg 470]lines on his own arms. Then he would walk about the prairie near the camp, singing and holding a pipe with the stem pointing toward the sky.

When the leaves opened out in the following spring, the first thundercloud was seen. Then the man said, “Ho, this is the day on which I am to die!” So he tied up his horse’s tail in a rounded form, put a piece of scarlet blanket around the animal’s neck, and spread a fine blanket over his back, as a saddlecloth, with the ends trailing along the ground. He painted himself and his horse just as he had been doing formerly, and, taking the pipe, he walked round and round at some distance from the camp, pointing the pipestem towards the clouds as he sang the Heyoka songs. The following is given as a song of the human Heyoka man, but it is said to have been sung originally by the mysterious and superhuman Heyoka in the thundercloud:

Ko-la, o-ya-te kin, ko-la, wan-ni-yaŋg u-pe e-ye he+!
Ko-la, o-ya-te, kin, ko-la, wan-ni-yaŋg u-pe e-ye he+!
Ko-la, lo-waŋ hi-bu we!
Ko-la, će-ya hi-bu we!
O-ya-te waŋ-ma-ya-ka-pi ye.
He-he-he!
Ta-muŋ-ka śni ḳuŋ e-ye-ye he+!

In this song, “oyate” means the Thunder-beings; “kola,” the Heyoka men here on earth, whom the Thunder-beings threatened to kill; “oyate waŋmayakapi,” ordinary Indians who are not wakan; “He-he-he! tamuŋka śni ḳuŋ,” i. e., “Alas! I hate to leave them (living Indians),” means that the singer expects to be killed by the Thunder-beings.

The whole song may be rendered freely thus:

My friends, the people are coming to see you!
My friends, the people are coming to see you!
My friends, he sings as he comes hither!
My friends, he cries as he comes hither!
You people on earth behold me while you may!
Alas! alas! alas!
I hate to leave my own people!

On the day referred to the Heyoka man had not been absent very long from the camp when a high wind arose, and the rain was so plentiful that a person could not see very far. Then the Thunder-beings looked (i. e., there was lightning) and they roared; but still the man and his horse continued walking about over there in sight of the camp. By and by there was a very sudden sound as if the trees had been struck, and all the people were much frightened, and they thought that the Thunder-beings had killed them. Some of the women and children fainted from fear, and the men sat holding them up. Some of the people thought that they saw many stars, and there seemed to be the sound, “Tuŋ+!” in the ears of each person.

When the storm had lasted a long time, the Thunder-beings were departing slowly, amid considerable loud roaring. When it was all over the people ventured forth from their lodges. Behold, the man and his[Pg 471] horse had been killed by the Thunder-beings, so his relations were crying ere they reached the scene of the disaster.

The horse had been burnt in the very places where the man had decorated him, and his sinews had been shriveled by the heat, so he lay with each limb stretched out stiff. The man, too, had been burnt in the very places where he had painted himself. The grass all around appeared as if the Thunder-beings had dragged each body along, for it was pushed partly down on all sides. So the people reached there and beheld the bodies.

As the men in former days used to know events beforehand, as has just been told, it has long been the rule for no one to reveal his personal mystery, which he regards as “wakan.”

HEYOKA WOMEN.

§ 224. Bushotter gave the following account of a female Heyoka who was killed by lightning:

A certain woman whom I saw after she had been killed by lightning belonged to the Heyoka Society. When she walked, she carried a pipe with the mouthpiece pointing upward, as she thought that the Thunder-beings would put the mouthpiece into their mouths, though the act would immediately cause her death.

§ 225. “Women used to dream about the Thunder-beings, just as the men did, and in those dreams the Heyoka man or woman made promises to the Thunder-beings. If the dreamers kept their promises, it was thought that the Thunder-beings helped them to obtain whatever things they desired; but if they broke their promises, they were sure to be killed by the Thunder-beings during some storm. For this reason the Heyoka members worshiped the Thunder-beings, whom they honored, speaking of them as wakan.”

§ 226. Some of the women sing, and some do not; but all let their hair hang loosely down their backs, and their dresses consist of a kind of cloth or a robe sewed down the middle of the back. Sometimes the cloth is all blue, at other times half is red and half is blue. Some times there is beadwork on the dress. Even the Heyoka women wear the long red cloth trailing on the ground before and behind them, in imitation of the young dandies of the tribe.

IYA, THE GOD OF GLUTTONY.

§ 227. Lynd speaks of the “vindictive Iya” as driving the hunters “back from the hunt to the desolation of their lodges”.[170]

And Riggs has written:[171]

A people who feast themselves so abundantly as the Dakotas do, when food is plenty, would necessarily imagine a god of gluttony. He is represented as extremely ugly, and is called E-ya. He has the power to twist and distort the human face, and the women still their crying children by telling them that the E-ya will catch them.

IKTO, IKTOMI, OR UNKTOMI.

§ 228. Ikto or Iktomi (in the Teton dialect) or Unktomi (in the Santee) [Pg 472]are the names now given to the spider by the Dakota; but the names once belonged to a mythical character, who resembles in many respects the Ictinike of the Omaha and Ponka, and the Ictciñke of the Iowa, Oto, and Missouri tribes. “Ikto,” say the Teton, “was the first being who attained maturity in this world. He is more cunning than human beings. He it was who named all people and animals, and he was the first to use human speech. Some call him the Waunća or Mocker, a name now applied to the monkey.[172] If we see any peculiar animals at any place, we knew that Iktomi made them so. All the animals are his kindred, and they are obliged to act just as he commanded them at the beginning.”

§ 229. In enumerating the powers that delight in working ill to the Indians, Lynd mentions Unktomi thus:

“The ubiquitous Unktomi tortures the Indians in their hunger by bringing herds of buffaloes near the camp, which they no sooner start to pursue than he drives away by means of a black wolf and a white crow.”[173]

§ 230. Though Ikto was very cunning, he was sometimes deceived by other beings. One day he caught the rabbit, and the latter was about to fare hard, when a thought occurred to him. He persuaded his captor to release him on condition that he taught Ikto one of his magic arts. Said the rabbit, “Elder brother, if you wish snow to fall at any time, take some hair such as this (pulling out some rabbit fur) and blow it in all directions, and there will be a blizzard.” The rabbit then made a deep snow in this manner, though the leaves were still green. This surprised Ikto, who thought that he had learned a wonderful accomplishment. But the foolish fellow did not know that rabbit fur was necessary, and when he tried to make snow by blowing his own hair, he was disappointed.

§ 231. On another occasion, Ikto reached a stream which he could not ford. So he stood on the bank and sang thus:

DAMN	Tó-kin	ko-wá-ka-tan	ma-ká-ni,	e-chin´chin	na-wá-zhin!
	I stand,	thinking often,	Oh that I	might reach	the other side!

Presently a long object passed, swimming against the current. When it reached him it said, “I will take you across, but you must not lift your head above the water. Should you notice even a small cloud warn me at once, as I must go under the water.” Ikto was then told to give the warning thus: “Younger brother, your grandfather is coming.” Before the other bank was reached Ikto gave the warning, and so sudden was the commotion that Ikto became unconscious. On recovering, he found that the thunder was roaring, and the water was dashing high, but the monster had disappeared.

[Pg 473]

It is shown in the section on Spider lore (§ 249) how the name Iktomi has been transferred from the mythical character to the insect, who, in turn, is invoked as “grandfather.”

ĆAŊOTIDAŊ AND HOḢNOĠIĆA.

§ 232. These powers have been scarcely differentiated; and some writers speak of them as identical. They seem to have been of the nature of bogies or boggarts. Says Lynd:[174]

Ćaŋotidaŋ draws the hungry hunters to the depths of the wood by imitating the voices of animals, or by the nefarious “Cico! cico!” (i. e., I invite you to a feast! I invite you to a feast!) when he scares them out of their senses by showing himself to them.

On the same page he distinguishes between the Ćaŋotidaŋ and the Oḣnoġića thus:

“The stray lodge becomes the delight of the wild Ohnogica,” implying that such lodges were haunted by this spirit for the purpose of frightening any unwary traveler who ventured there without a companion.

In Tah-koo Wah-kon (p. 75, note), Riggs speaks of the “Chan-o-te-dan or Hoh-no-ge-cha. The former is a fabulous creature, dwelling usually in the woods as the name indicates. The latter name would seem to give it a place by the door of the tent.” With this we may compare the Omaha invocation, “O thou who standest at the right side of the entrance! Here is tobacco!” (§ 40). The name also reminds us of “The Dweller upon the Threshold” in Bulwer’s “Zanoni.”

Riggs, in his “Theogony of the Sioux,” p. 270, writes thus of the “Chan-o-te-na”:

This means, Dweller in the woods. Sometimes he is called Oh-no-ge-cha, which would seem to assign him to a place in the tent. Whether these are one and the same, or two, is a question in dispute. But they are harmless household gods. The Chan-o-te-na is represented as a little child, only it has a tail. Many Indian men affirm that they have seen it, not only in night dreams, but in day visions.

The name Hoḣnoġića or Oḣnoġića is called by the Teton, Uŋgnaġićala, which is the name of the screech-owl. As the Ponka Indaȼiñga dwells in the forest, and is said to resemble an owl, he must be identical with the Dakota Ćaŋotidaŋ or Uŋgnaġićala. (See § 38.)

ANŬŊG-ITE.

§ 233. Wonderful stories of beings with two faces are found among the Dakota as well as among the Omaha. Lynd[175] states the belief of the Dakota (i. e., those speaking the Santee dialect) that “women with child are but torturing sports for the vengeful Anog-ite.”

In the Omaha legend of Two Faces and the Twins[176] the pregnant mother of the Twins died as soon as she had gazed at Two Faces. In the Teton legend of He-who-Has-a-Sword and Ha-ke-la, the latter is said to have met a giant, Anuŋg-ite, or Two Faces, who pretended to be an Indian woman nursing an infant. The infant had been stolen [Pg 474]from its parents by the Anuŋg-ite, who drew a rose brush across its face to make it cry. As soon as this was done the Two Faces said, in a woman’s voice, “A-wo! A-wo! A-wo!” that being the expression used by Teton women when they wish to soothe crying infants.

§ 234. The Indians used to hear an Anuŋg-ite or Two Faces pass along kicking the ground. When he kicked the ground with one foot bells used to ring and an owl hooted, and when he kicked with the other it seemed as if a buffalo bull was there, snorting as he does when about to charge. At the next step a chickadee was heard, and when he moved the other foot he made all kinds of animals cry out. The Indians had heard this Anuŋg-ite and were afraid of him. Now and then when a man who thought himself strong was alone when he met the Anuŋg-ite the latter surprised him by catching him and throwing him into one of his ears. These ears were so large that each could hold three men. No person knew where the Anuŋg-ite made his abode, and no one cared to follow him; no one dared to go out of doors at night. Now, there was an old man and his wife who had a lodge to themselves, and their only child was a willful boy. One night he was particularly ill-behaved, and when his mother told him to do something he disobeyed her. So she said: “I will put you out of the lodge and the Anuŋg-ite will toss you into his ear.” She did not believe this, and merely said it to frighten her son into obedience. Finding him heedless, she seized his arm and, though he began to cry, pushed him out of the lodge and fastened the entrance securely. The poor boy ran crying around the lodge, but soon there was silence. The mother in turn began to cry, and went to seek him, but she did not find him outside the lodge. The next morning she and her husband, weeping, went to seek him among the people in the neighboring camp, asking every one about him, but no one had seen him. So they returned to their lodge, and they wept many days for their son. One night the mother was weeping. Suddenly she heard some one say, “Hiⁿ! hiⁿ! You said to me: Ghost, take that one. Hiⁿ! hⁿ!” This was said often, and she noticed a rattling of small bells as the being walked along. Just then she said: “Husband, I think now that a ghost has taken my son.” The husband said: “Yes; you gave the boy to the ghost, and, of course, the ghost took him. Why should you complain? It serves you right.” Then the mother cried aloud, so that her voice might have been heard at a distance. Then said she: “Husband, to-morrow night I will lie hid by the wood-pile, and if the ghost comes I will have a knife in my hand, and after I catch it by the leg I will call to you. Be ready to come at once. You must aid me, and I will recover my son, because I know that he threw him into his ear.” So the next night she lay in wait for the monster. By and by something was coming, crying out “Hiⁿ!” and making all kinds of birds and animals cry out as it walked. She saw a very large being come and stand by the lodge. He was very tall, his head being above the smoke-hole, down which he peeped into the lodge. Suddenly the mother[Pg 475] called to her husband, and seized one leg of the monster with both hands. Then she and her husband gashed the legs in many places, and, after tying a thong to one leg, they pulled down the monster and bound him securely. They guarded him till it was day. Then they beheld a hideous monster covered with thick hair, except on his faces. They split his ears with a knife, and within one they found their long-lost son, who was very lean and unable to speak. He had a thick coat of long hair on him from his legs up to his head, but his head and face were smooth. And he would have become an Anuŋg-ite had he not been rescued. He did not survive very long. After the parents had taken their son from the ear of the monster they put many sticks of wood on a fire, and on this they laid the monster. He soon was in flames, and they stood looking on. Many things were sent flying out of the fire in all directions, just like sparks. These were porcupine quills, bags, all kinds of feathers, arrows, pipes, birds, axes, war-clubs, flints, stones for sharpening knives, stone balls resembling billiard balls, necklaces of tuki shells, flints for striking tinder, flint hide-scrapers, whips, tobacco-pouches, all kinds of beads, etc.[177]

PENATES.

§ 235. It has been supposed that the Dakotas had no penates or household gods; but according to Riggs,[178] “such have come into the possession of the missionaries. One of these images is that of a little man, and is inclosed in a cylindrical wooden case, and enveloped in sacred swan’s down.”

GUARDIAN SPIRITS.

§ 236. Each Teton may have his special guardian spirit. If such spirits are remembered they confer great power on their favorites. The latter may be surrounded by foes and yet escape, either by receiving great strength, enabling them to scatter their enemies, or by being made invisible, disappearing like a ghost or the wind. Sometimes it is said that one is rescued by being turned into a small bird that flies off in safety. (See §§ 122, 325.) This refers to those who “ihaŋbla” (have intercourse with spirits) or who have guardian spirits (tawaśićuŋpi) as servants. Bushotter’s stepfather has a guardian spirit who enabled him to tell about lost animals, etc., and bad deeds, even when the latter were committed in secret. So Bushotter and the other children of the household were afraid to do wrong after they had been detected several times by the aid of the guardian spirit.

BELIEFS ABOUT THE BUFFALO.

§ 237. In several of the Siouan tribes the buffalo is considered a [Pg 476]“grandfather.” He figures in the traditions of the Osage.[179] Gentes and sub gentes are named after him. His image plays an important part in the sun dance (§ 164).

§ 238. Miss Fletcher[180] mentions a prayer used during the White Buffalo Festival of the Hunkpapa Dakota, in which are remembered the “powers of the earth, wind, sun, water, and the buffalo.” And in her article on “The Shadow or Ghost Lodge; a Ceremony of the Ogallala Sioux,” she states that 2 yards of red cloth are (were) “lifted and offered to the buffalo, with a prayer that good may (might) be granted to the father” (i. e., of the dead child) “during the period of the lodge-keeping.”[181]

§ 239. In her article on the “Elk Mystery of the Ogallala Sioux”[182] is given an important note:

Among the Santees in past times, a man who should dream of buffalo must announce it in the following manner: He takes the head of a buffalo he has killed, carefully removes the skin, preserving it as nearly whole as possible, and throws away the skull and the flesh. He then restores the skin to its natural shape and lets it cure. When this has taken place, a few feet square of earth is set apart at the back of the lodge, the sods cut off, and the exposed earth made fine. This is the “U-ma-ne.” Upon this earth a new blanket, formerly a robe, is spread. The blanket or robe must not belong to a woman. The buffalo head is placed in the center of the blanket, and one side of the head (is) painted blue, and the other (side) red. Upon the blue side, tufts of white swan’s down are tied to the hair of the head. Sometimes small eagle feathers are substituted, and, very rarely, large feathers. Upon the red side, tufts of down-colored red are similarly tied. These decorations look like “a woman’s sunbonnet,” as they cover the head and fall to the shoulders. The pipe is only filled and presented to the head. The feast kettle is hung over the fire. When all is in readiness, the man who prepared the head thus addresses it: “Grandfather! Venerable man! Your children have made this feast for you. May the food thus taken cause them to live, and bring them good fortune.” An Indian of remarkable intelligence, whose father before him had been a priest of the higher class, explained that in some religious festivals the buffalo and the earth were spoken of as one, and (were) so regarded. “Therefore if any one should revile or ridicule the buffalo, ever so softly, the earth would hear and tell the buffalo, and he would kill the man.”

Bushotter furnished two articles on the buffalo, translations of which are appended.

ORIGIN OF THE BUFFALO.

§ 240. The buffalo originated under the earth. It is said that in the olden times, a man who was journeying came to a hill where there were many holes in the ground. He explored them, and when he had gone within one of them, he found plenty of buffalo chips, and buffalo tracks were on all sides; and here and there he found buffalo hair which had come out when the animals rubbed against the walls. These animals were the real buffalo, who dwelt underground, and some of them came up to this earth and increased here to many herds. These buffalo had many earth lodges, and there[Pg 477] they raised their children. They did many strange things. Therefore when a man can hardly be wounded by a foe, the people believe that the former has seen the buffalo in dreams or visions, and on that account has received mysterious help from those animals. All such men who dream of the buffalo, act like them and dance the buffalo (bull) dance. And the man who acts the buffalo is said to have a real buffalo inside him, and a chrysalis lies within the flat part of the body near the shoulder-blade; on account of which the man is hard to kill; no matter how often they wound him, he does not die. As the people know that the buffalo live in earth lodges, they never dance the buffalo dance in vain.

THE TATAŊGNAŚKIŊYAŊ OR MYTHIC BUFFALO.

§ 241. It is said that a mythic buffalo once attacked a party of Indians, killing one of them. The others fled and climbed a tree, at which the buffalo rushed many times, knocking off piece after piece of the tree with his horns till very little of it was left. Then one of the Indians lighted some tinder and threw it far off into the tall grass, scorching the buffalo’s eyes, and seriously injuring his horns, causing the hard part of the latter to slip off, so that the animal could no longer gore any one. But as he was still dangerous, one of the men determined to fight him at the risk of his own life, and so he slipped down from the tree, armed with a bow and some arrows. He finally gave the buffalo a mortal wound. Then all the men came down the tree and cut up the buffalo after flaying him. They were about to carry off the body of their dead comrade in a robe, when they were obliged to climb a tree again because another mythic buffalo had appeared. He did not attack them, but went four times around the body of the slain man. Then he stopped and said, “Arise to your feet.” All at once, the dead man came to life. The buffalo addressed him, saying, “Hereafter you shall be mysterious, and the sun, moon, four winds, day and night shall be your servants.” It was so. He could assume the shape of a fine plume, which was blown often against a tree, to which it stuck, as it waved repeatedly.

THE BEAR.

§ 242. The Assiniboin address prayers to the bear.[183] They offer it sacrifices of tobacco, belts, and other esteemed objects. They celebrate feasts in its honor, to obtain its favors and to live without accidents. The bear’s head is often preserved in the camp during several days, mounted in some suitable position and adorned with scraps of scarlet cloth, and trimmed with a variety of necklace collars, and colored feathers. Then they offer it the calumet, and ask it that they may be able to kill all the bears they meet, without accident to themselves, in order to anoint themselves with his fine grease and make a banquet of his tender flesh.

THE WOLF.

§ 243. Smet says, “The wolf is more or less honored among the Indians” (i. e. the Assiniboin) “Most of the women refuse to dress its skin for any purpose. The only reason that I could discover for this freak is, that the wolves sometimes go mad, bite those they meet and give them the hydrophobia. It is doubtless to escape this terrible disease and to avoid the destruction of their game, that the Indians make it” (the wolf) “presents, and offer it supplications. In other cases, he is little feared.” The “little medicine wolf” is in great veneration among the Assiniboin. As soon as an Indian hears his barks, he counts the number; he remarks whether his voice is feeble or strong, and from[Pg 478] what point of the compass it proceeds. All these things are regarded as good or bad omens. If the undertakings of the Indians result, as they occasionally do, in success, after hearing the barking of the little wolf, this animal is honored by a grand feast after the return of the party.[184]

§ 244. That some of the Dakota reverenced the wolf is evident from the fact that there is a society, called the Wolf Society, but known among the white people as the Dog Society. That society has many beautiful songs, according to Bushotter, and its membership is confined to young men. All the wolf stories belong to this society. Three of these stories follow this section.

§ 245. The man who met the ghost woman after fleeing from the two ghost men[185] encountered a wolf, who pitied him and showed him the way to a camp, where he was received and adopted into the tribe. This man always remembered the wolf as a kind animal, and when he killed any game, he threw a portion outside of the camp, as an offering to the wolf.

§ 246. There was once a handsome young Teton, whose wife’s father disliked him and plotted against him. He dug a pit within his lodge, covering it with skins. Then he invited his son-in-law to a feast. The son-in-law met a wolf, whom he saluted, asking him the way to the village. The young man was persuaded to recline on the skins, which gave way, precipitating him into the pit. The father-in-law and his two single daughters covered the skins with earth, and removed their tent elsewhere on the morrow, when all the people started on a journey. After some days, the wolf who had met the man went to the deserted camping place in search of food. On reaching the place where the accident (?) had happened, he heard a human cry. So he dug away the earth, removed the skins, and found the man, whom he recognized. The wolf pitied him, and said, “As you did not kill me when we met, you shall now be saved.” So he howled, and very soon many wolves appeared. They found a lariat, which they lowered into the pit, and by grasping the other end with their teeth, they pulled the man up. He was very grateful, promising never to harm a wolf. Just then a weeping woman appeared, gazing in surprise at the man, as he was very thin, looking like a ghost. She was his wife, and her heart was soon made glad when he told her of his rescue.

§ 247. Once upon time a man found a wolf den, into which he dug to get the cubs. The mother came, barking, and she finally said to him, “Pity my children;” but he paid no attention to her. So she ran for her husband, who soon appeared. Still the man persevered. Then the wolf sang a beautiful song, “O man, pity my children, and I will instruct you in one of my arts.” He ended with a howl, causing a fog. When the wolf howled again the fog disappeared. Then the man thought, “These animals have mysterious gifts,” and he tore up his red [Pg 479] blanket into small pieces, which he put as necklaces on the cubs, whom he painted with Indian red, restoring them to their place in the den. Then the grateful father exclaimed, “When you go to war hereafter, I will accompany you, and bring to pass whatever you wish.” So they parted as friends. In the course of time the man went on the war path. As he came in sight of a village of the enemy, a large wolf met him, saying, “By and by I will sing and you shall steal their horses when they least suspect danger.” So they stopped on a hill close to the village, and the wolf sang. After this he howled, making a high wind arise. The horses fled to the forest, many stopping on the hillside. When the wolf had howled again, the wind died away, and a mist arose; so the man took as many horses as he pleased.

HORSES.

§ 248. These are well named “Cŭñka wakaⁿ (Śuŋka wakaŋ)” for they are indeed wakaŋ. Consequently the Dakota have the Cŭñg olowaⁿ (Śuŋg olowaŋ) or Horse Songs, and they pray to the horses (ćewićakiyapi). If any one paints a horse in a wakaŋ manner, when he has no right to do so, he is sure to pay the penalty: he will encounter misfortune of some sort, or he will fall ill, or he will be slain by a foe, or he will have his neck broken by being thrown from a horse.

SPIDERS.

§ 249. The Teton pray to gray spiders, and to those with yellow legs. When a person goes on a journey and a spider passes, one does not kill it in silence. For should one let it escape, or kill it without prayer, bad consequences must ensue. In the latter case, another spider would avenge the death of his relation. To avoid any such misfortune, when the spider is encountered, the person must say to it, “Iktómi Tuŋkaŋśila, Waʞiŋyaŋ niktepe lo,” i. e., “O Grandfather Spider, the Thunder-beings kill you!” The spider is crushed at once, and his spirit believes what has been told him. His spirit probably tells this to the other spiders, but they can not harm the Thunder-beings. If one thus addresses a spider as he kills it, he will never be bitten by other spiders.

§ 231. One of the Dakota myths tells how Unktomi killed himself, causing his limbs to shrivel up till they assumed the appearance of spiders’ limbs.

SNAKE LORE.

§ 250. Some Dakota will not kill snakes by hitting them. He who violates the law in this respect will dream horrible dreams about various kinds of snakes; and occasionally it happens that such a man has a horse bitten by a snake. The Siŋteḣla taŋka, or the Ancient of Rattlesnakes, was one of the enemies of the Thunder-beings.

“There are some things about which it is most unlucky to dream. [Pg 480] Snakes are said to be terrible; they seek to enter a man’s ears, nose, or mouth” (i.e., in the dream); “and should one succeed, it is a sure sign of death. ‘No good comes from snakes.’”[186]

THE DOUBLE WOMAN.

§ 251. In the olden times there was what they called “Wiŋyaŋ nuŋ-papi-ka,” or the The Double Woman, consisting of two very tall females who were probably connected by a membrane. They wore horned headdresses decorated with feathers, and bunches of feathers hung from the right shoulder of one and from the left shoulder of the other. Instead of heel tags, each female had a turtle trailing from the heel or quarter of one moccasin, and a feather from that of the other. In the sketch as given by Bushotter there is a pale blue stripe around the bottom of each skirt, and half of each trailing feather is of that color. Each body, above the top of the blanket, is painted with blue dots on a yellow ground. There is a blue stripe across the right shoulder of the woman on the right, and one across the left shoulder of the other woman, each stripe curving downward towards the opposite side. (See Pl. L.)

They dwelt in a lodge on a very high black cliff. They were always laughing immoderately, as if they were strangers to sorrow. On pleasant evenings they stood on a hill, where they amused themselves by swinging. Should any Indian see them, when he reached home he vomited something resembling black earth, and died suddenly. These women were skillful dancers, and they used to reflect rays of light by means of their mirror, just as the young Indian men do in sport. They jumped many times and sang this song:

Će´-paŋ-śi	ku- wa´-  ni-to´	Tu´-wa	le´-ći	śi´-na	mi´-ćo-ze´.

“Cousin, please come over here! Some one waves a robe over in this direction at me. Ha! ha! ha!” Then they walked about. No one knew from what quarter the Double Woman was coming, and how the two lived was a mystery. There are many tall women found now among different Indian tribes who imitate the behavior of the Double Woman.

John Bruyier and other Teton at Hampton, Va., regard this story of the Double Woman as manufactured by Bushotter. But this character figures in two Santee myths in Rev. S. R. Riggs’s collection, about to be published by the Bureau of Ethnology.[187] (See § 394.)

BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY	ELEVENTH ANNUAL REPORT  PL. L
THE DOUBLE WOMAN.

DEER WOMEN.

§ 252. Deer women of the Teton resemble the Wolf women of the Pawnee. Both tempt unwary youths whom they encounter away from [Pg 481]the camp in solitary places. Should a youth yield to the woman’s solicitations the result will be a sad one. As soon as he leaves her she will resume her natural shape. The youth will appear as if drunk or insane, and he will reach home with difficulty. His health will become impaired, and he will soon die. So now the hunters avoid any female that they see on the way. They hate the Deer women. The Deer women never speak, but in all other respects they resemble Indian women.

DWARFS OR ELVES.

§ 253. Dwarfs or elves are probably referred to in the following;

This [i. e. the object sought by Lewis and Clarke’s party] was a large mound in the midst of the plain, about N. 20° W. from the mouth of Whitestone River, from which it is 9 miles distant. The base of the mound is a regular parallelogram, the longest side being about 300 yards, the shorter 60 or 70; from the longest side it rises with a steep ascent from the north and south to the height of 65 or 70 feet, leaving on the top a level plain of 12 feet in breadth and 90 in length. The north and south extremities are connected by two oval borders, which serve as new bases, and divide the whole side into three steep but regular gradations from the plain. The only thing characteristic in this hill is its extreme symmetry, and this, together with its being wholly detached from the other hills, which are at the distance of 8 or 9 miles, would induce a belief that it was artificial; but as the earth and loose pebbles which compose it are arranged exactly like the steep grounds on the borders of the creek, we concluded from this similarity of texture that it might be natural. But the Indians have made it a great article of their superstition; it is called the Mountain of the Little People, or Little Spirits, and they believe that it is the abode of little devils in the human form, of about 18 inches high, and with remarkably large heads; they are armed with sharp arrows, with which they are very skillful, and are always on the watch to kill those who should have the hardihood to approach their residence. The tradition is that many have suffered from these little evil spirits, and, among others, three Maha Indians fell a sacrifice to them a few years since. This has inspired all the neighboring nations, Sioux, Mahas, and Ottoes, with such terror that no consideration could tempt them to visit the hill.[188]

BOGS.

§ 254. Bogs are very mysterious. There are various strange objects covered with thick hair which remain at the bottom of a bog. These objects have no eyes, but they are able to devour anything, and from their bodies water is ever flowing. When one of these beings wishes, he abandons his abode and reclines under ground at another place; then there is no water issuing from the place where he used to lie, but a spring gushes forth from the new resting place. The water of this spring is warm in winter, but as cold as ice in summer, and before one dares to drink of it he prays to the water, as he does not wish to bring illness on himself by his irreverence. In the olden days one of these strange beings was pulled up out of a bog and carried to the camp, where a special tent was erected for him. But water flowed all around him, which drowned almost all of the people. Then the survivors[Pg 482] offered him food, which he held as he sat motionless, gazing at them. The food disappeared before the spectators were aware of it, though they did not see the being eat it.

TREES.

§ 255. The Dakota prayed to trees, because it was reported that in former days a tree had sung at intervals. A man claimed to have witnessed this, and from that time they have been regarded as mysterious.

CUSTOMS RELATING TO CHILDHOOD.

§ 256. The Teton sing on account of the unborn child, and set up a pole inside the lodge, at the part opposite the entrance, fastening eagles’ down to the top of the pole, just as they do when a boy has advanced toward manhood.

§ 257. Soon after birth they paint the face of the infant, whether it be a boy or a girl, with vermilion, in the “Huŋka” style.[189] Should they neglect to do this, it is said that the infant would become blear-eyed or it would suffer from some kind of sickness.

§ 258. When the navel string is cut, a small bag is made of deerskin, cut in the shape of a small tortoise, known as patkaśala. In this bag is placed a piece of the navel string and sweet-smelling leaves, with which the bag is filled. The infant has to carry this bag on its back. Part of the navel string is buried, and when the child is large enough to get into mischief they say, “He is hunting for his navel string.”

§ 259. Prior to the naming of the infant is the ceremony of the transfer of character. Should the infant be a boy, a brave and good-tempered man, chosen beforehand, takes the infant in his arms and breathes into his mouth, thereby communicating his own disposition to the infant, who will grow up to be a brave and good-natured man. It is thought that such an infant will not cry as much as infants that have not been thus favored. Should the infant be a girl, it is put into the arms of a good woman, who breathes into its mouth.

§ 260. Twins are a mystery to the Teton, who believe that they are of superhuman origin, and must come from Twin-land. As they are not human beings, they must be treated very politely and tenderly, lest they should become offended and die in order to return to Twin-land.

In his MS. Teton vocabulary, sent to the Bureau of Ethnology in July, 1890, Dr. J. M. Woodburn, Jr., recently physician at Rosebud Agency, S. Dak., makes the following statement which seems worthy of notice: “Twins are lucky as regards themselves only; the mother is looked upon as unfortunate. The twins may die, but they are sure to be born again into separate families. No ordinary human being can recognize them as twins after the new births; but twins themselves[Pg 483] are able each to recognize the other as his fellow-twin in a previous state of existence. Medicine men often claim that their supernatural powers are due to a previous existence as twins.” (See §§ 267, 287.)

§ 261. When a child is able to walk, they say that “He kicks out the teeth of his elder brother” (or “sister,” as the case may be). The teeth of the elder child which have been shed, probably the first set, are buried under the entrance to the lodge so that other teeth may come in their place. Whoever steps over the spot where the teeth have been buried will soon have other teeth in his mouth.

PUBERTY.

§ 262. Among the Oglala Dakota, according to Miss Fletcher,[190] the rites incident to the puberty of girls take place on the fourth day of the sun-dance festival. In a note on page 260 of the Peabody Museum Report, vol. III, the same authority says:

Through the kindness of Rev. A. L. Riggs I learn that among the bands of Eastern Sioux living near Fort Sully, Dak., a feast, called the reappearance of the White Buffalo Skin, is held for the consecration of a girl on her arriving at puberty. The feast is sacred and costly, and not everyone can afford it. Those who have once made the feast become the privileged guests at every such feast, occupy the feast tent, and are served first. A prominent feature in the feast is the feeding of these privileged persons, and the girl in whose honor the feast is given, with choke cherries, as the choicest rarity to be had in the winter. The feast can be held at any time. Bull berries, or, as the Dakotas call them, “rabbits’ noses,” may be substituted, or finely pounded meat mixed with fat, in case no berries are to be had. In the ceremony, a few of the cherries are taken in a spoon and held over the sacred smoke, then fed to the girl. The spoon is filled anew, incensed as each person is fed. As each one is given the cherries, he is addressed thus: “Wi-ća-śa-ya-ta-pi wo-yu-te de ya-tiŋ kte,”

[Transcriber’s note: the second hyphen in “wo-yu-te” was at the end of a line; the word may be “wo-yute”.]

i.e., “You will eat this chief’s food.” The eaters are not chiefs; they only partake of chiefs’ food.

§ 263. Initiation to manhood took place in one of two ways: (1) By the wohduze ceremony, or, (2) by the bear dance, as witnessed by Long.

The former has been referred to in §§ 122-125 of this article; the latter has been described by Long[191] as

a ceremony which they are in the habit of performing when any young man wishes to bring himself into particular notice, and it is considered a kind of initiation into the state of manhood. There is a kind of flag made of fawn skin dressed with the hair on, suspended upon a pole. Upon the flesh side of it are drawn certain figures indicative of the dream which it is necessary the young man should have dreamed before he can be considered a proper candidate for this kind of initiation. With this flag a pipe is suspended by way of sacrifice. Two arrows are stuck up at the foot of the pole, and fragments of painted feathers, etc., are strewed upon the ground near it. These pertain to the religious rites attending the ceremony, bewailing and self-mortification. The young man who has had the dream acts the bear in this dance, and is hunted by the other young men; but the same man can not act the bear more than once in consequence of his dreams.

§ 264. Miss Fletcher says:[192]

[Pg 484]

The maturity of the sexes is a period of serious and religious experiences which are preparatory by their character for the entrance of the youth or maiden into the religious and secular responsibilities of life, both individual and tribal. Among the tribes which hold especial public ceremonies announcing the maturity of a girl, these rights are held not far from the actual time of puberty, and indicate the close of childhood and entrance of the person into the social status of womanhood. The public festival has, however, been preceded by private religious rites. With young men the religious training precedes and follows puberty, and the entrance is publicly announced by the youth joining in the dangers and duties of tribal life. According to the old customs, a young man did not take a wife until he had proved his prowess, and thus became enrolled among the manly element, or braves, as they are sometimes spoken of. The initial fasts of warriors have been mistaken sometimes for ceremonials of puberty.

GHOST LORE AND THE FUTURE LIFE.

MEANING OF WANAĠI.

§ 265. The word “wa-na-ġi” means more than “apparition.” The living man is supposed to have one, two, or more “wanaġi,” one of which after death remains at the grave and another goes to the place of the departed. The writer has been told that for many years no Yankton Dakota would consent to have his picture taken lest one of his “wanaġi” should remain in the picture, instead of going after death to the spirit land. The Teton Dakota apply the name of “ghost” or “shadow” to the lock of hair cut from the forehead of the deceased and kept for some time by the parents; and till that lock is buried the deceased is supposed to retain his usual place in the household circle.

§ 266. Lynd[193] says that to the human body the Dakota give four spirits:

The first is supposed to be a spirit of the body, which dies with the body. The second is a spirit which always remains with or near the body. Another is the soul which accounts for the deeds of the body, and is supposed by some to go to the south, by others to the west, after the death of the body. The fourth always lingers with the small bundle of the hair of the deceased, kept by the relatives until they have a chance to throw it into the enemy’s country, when it becomes a roving spirit, bringing death and disease to the enemy in whose country it remains. From this belief arose the practice of wearing four scalp feathers for each enemy slain in battle, one for each spirit.

§ 267. “Some Sioux claim a fifth scalp feather, averring that there is a fifth spirit, which enters the body of some animal or child after death. As far as I am aware, this belief is not general, though they differ in their accounts of the spirits of man, even in number.

Some of these metempsychosists go so far as to aver that they have distinct recollections of a former state of existence and of the passage into this. The belief, as before stated, does not appear to be general.” (See §§ 260, 287.)

§ 268. With regard to the place of abode of the four spirits of each man—though they believe that the true soul which goes south or west[Pg 485] is immortal—they have no idea, nor do they appear to have any particular care as to what may become of them after death. It may be remarked, that the happy hunting grounds, supposed to belong to every Indian’s future, are no part of the Dakota creed—though individual Dakota may have learned something like it from the white men among them.

ASSINNIBOIN BELIEFS ABOUT THE DEAD.

§ 269. The Assinniboin “believe that the dead migrate toward the south,[194] where the climate is mild, the game abundant, and the rivers well stocked with fish. Their hell is the reverse of this picture; its unfortunate inmates dwell in perpetual snow and ice and in the complete deprivation of all things. There are, however, many among them who think that death is the cessation of life and action and that there is naught beyond it.[195]

“The Assinniboine believe that their dead go to a country in the south, where the good and brave find women and buffaloes, while the wicked or cowardly are confined on an island, where they are destitute of all the pleasures of life. The corpses of brave men are not deposited in trees, but on the ground, as they will help themselves, and they are covered with wood and stones to protect them from the wolves.”[196]

GHOSTS NOT ALWAYS VISIBLE.

§ 270. The ghosts of the departed are not always visible to the living. Sometimes they are heard but not seen, though in the lodge with a mortal. Occasionally they become materialized, taking living husbands or wives, eating, drinking, and smoking, just as if they were ordinary human beings.

DEATH AND BURIAL LORE.

§ 271. As ghosts visit the sick at night it is customary to drive them away by making a smoke from cedar wood, or else cedar is laid outside the lodge. Sometimes a piece of cedar is fastened up at the smoke-hole. (See § 42.) One Teton story shows how a female ghost disliked a bad odor and fled from it. When they hear a ghost whistling, some one leaves the lodge and fires a gun. Before death the lodge is surrounded by ghosts of deceased kindred that are visible to the dying person.

All the dead man’s possessions are buried with him; his body is dressed in good clothing. The favorite horse is decorated and saddled, and to this day various articles belonging to the deceased are fastened to him. The horse is shot and part of his tail is cut off and laid near the head of the burial scaffold, as it is thought that in such a case the [Pg 486]ghost can ride the ghost of the horse and use all the articles carried by that animal.

§ 272. Why the Teton stopped burying in the ground.—Long ago the people buried some men on a hill and then removed camp to another place. Many winters afterwards a man visited this burial place, but all traces of the graves had disappeared. So many men came and dug far down into the hill. By and by one said, “A road lies here.” So they dug in that direction and made a fire underground. And there they found a tunnel large enough for men to walk in by stooping, with many similar intersecting ones. They followed the main one and finally came to a place whither a strange animal, the Waḣaŋksića, had dragged the corpses. For this reason the Lakota became unwilling to lay their dead in the ground, so they began to bury on scaffolds which could not be reached by beasts of prey. At the present day the Teton gives three reasons for not burying in the ground: (1) Animals or persons might walk over the graves; (2) the dead might lie in mud and water after rain or snow; (3) wolves might dig up the bodies and devour them.

§ 273. Importance of tattooing.—In order that the ghost may travel the ghost road in safety it is necessary for each Lakota during his life to be tattooed either in the middle of the forehead or on the wrists. In that event his spirit will go directly to the “Many Lodges.” The other spirit road is said to be short, and the foolish one who travels it never reaches the “Many Lodges.” An old woman sits in the road and she examines each ghost that passes. If she can not find the tattoo marks on the forehead, wrists, or chin, the unhappy ghost is pushed from a cloud or cliff and falls to this world. Such is the lot of the ghosts that wander o’er the earth. They can never travel the spirit road again; so they go about whistling, with no fixed abode.

§ 274. If a quiet and well-behaved person dies his ghost is apt to be restless and cause trouble, but the ghost of a bad person who dies a natural death is never feared. The ghost of a murdered person is always dangerous.

§ 275. If a ghost calls to a loved one and the latter answers, he or she is sure to die soon after. If some one is heard weeping outside of a lodge, it is a sign that a person dwelling in that lodge is doomed to die. If a sister dies, she has a strong desire to return and carry off a beloved brother. So in the event of a death in the family a gun is fired or medicine is thrown on a fire to raise a smoke. If one who is alone encounters a ghost, the latter will be apt to pull his mouth and eyes until they are crooked. This danger is encountered only by one who has dreamed of a ghost. He who has been harmed by a ghost always faints, and it is long before he revives. Mothers scare bad children by saying, “Well, wait a bit and I will tell a ghost to come and carry you off.” Some one who has dreamed of ghosts will draw one on a skin, etc., to frighten the children. Such a person is said to[Pg 487] draw his own ghost just as he will appear in future. No one else dares to draw a ghost. (See § 299.)

CEREMONIES AT THE GHOST LODGE.[197]

§ 276. When a son dies the parents with a knife cut off some hair from the top of the head, just above the forehead, placing the hair in a deerskin cover. Then they set up three poles, fastened together at the top and forming a sort of tripod. A cord hung over the top of these holds up the white deerskin pack containing the hair of the deceased. This hair is called the ghost or shade (or wa-na-ġi) of the dead person. The deerskin pack hangs horizontally from the poles and the skin is worked with porcupine quills in many lines, and here and there are various kinds of red and blue circular figures sewed on it. All the sod had been cut away from the ground beneath the pack, and on this bare or virgin earth they put a bowl and a drinking vessel, each ornamented with porcupine work. Three times a day do they remember the ghost, for whom they put the choicest food in the bowl and water in the drinking vessel. Every article is handled carefully, being exposed to the smoke of sweet-smelling herbs. The pack said to contain the ghost is put in the ghost lodge with the knife which he used during life.

FIG. 192.—The ghost lodge.

The Indians always have observed the custom of smoking pipes and eating while sitting in the ghost lodge. At the back of the lodge they prepare a seat and in the middle they set up two poles similar to those erected outside the entrance to the tents. Before they eat in the lodge, they sacrifice part of the food. Whenever they move the camp or single tent from one place to another all these sacred objects are packed and carried on a horse kept for this special purpose. This horse is called “Wanaġi taśuŋkewakaŋ,” i.e., “The ghost’s horse.” This horse has his tail and mane cut off short; the hair on the body is shaved very close; his body is rubbed all over with yellow clay. Some one then rubs paint on the fingers, touching the rump gently several times, as well as the forehead and around the neck and breast. A feather is tied to the end of the tail. On his back they place a saddlecloth and a saddle, each ornamented with porcupine quills. The horse must mourn—i.e., keep his hair short—as long as the ghost remains unburied; but as soon as the hair is removed from the pack and buried the horse’s hair is allowed to grow long again. As soon as the people stop[Pg 488] to encamp the ghost lodge is set up before any of the others. The articles which are kept there remain for a specified time, perhaps for several years, during which period certain ceremonies are performed. At the end of the allotted time comes the ghost feast, the Waéćŭŋpi or Wakíćaġápi, when the ghost pack is opened and the ghost taken out and buried. Then all the people assemble, setting up their tents near the ghost lodge. The kindred of the deceased weep and bring food to the place. All this food has been boiled. They set up in the ground some forked sticks, such as are used for digging wild turnips, and straight poles are laid along the forked sticks. On the poles are hung moccasins, and in the space between the forked sticks are piled blankets, buffalo robes, calico, untanned skin bags, tanned bags, porcupine quills, wild turnips, and fruits.[198] These are distributed by women, and the people spend the time pleasantly. They also give presents to the young women. If the deceased was a male and a member of an order of young men, all who belong to it are invited to a feast (there was a similar custom among the Ponka, in 1872), where they sing songs. When they stop singing they sit with bodies erect, but with bent head and stooping shoulders. Then the parents of the dead youth enter the lodge, weeping as they pass around the circle, and each one places both hands on the head of each guest, because the son, who regarded the men as his friends, is no longer present. If the deceased is a female, only the women assemble, except some men who lead the singing. If horses take part in the ceremonies, their manes and tails are shaved short, and they, too, receive gifts. Here and there one of the kindred of the deceased gives away all his property, and then the bag is opened and the hair or ghost is taken out and buried. From this time the parting with his parents is absolute. They think that, until the hair is buried, the deceased is really present with the household, and that when this burial takes place he dies a second time. After this burial the kindred put on their usual clothing, and while they weep for the dead at intervals they are at liberty to anoint and decorate themselves according to fancy.

Another account of Bushotter states that when they prepare for the ghost feast they redden the sack containing the hair and hang the war bonnet of feathers on the three poles at right angles with the ghost sack. They wish to remember his deeds in war, so they also stick one end of his war spear in the ground, with its top leaning against the tops of the three poles. His shield is suspended from one of the poles. The three pipes on the shield in a colored sketch prepared by Bushotter denote that on so many expeditions the deceased warrior carried a war pipe. The red stripes declare how many of the enemy were wounded by him, and the human heads show the number of foes that he killed. The half-moon means that he shouted at his foes on a certain night. Once he threw[Pg 489] aside his arms and engaged in a hand-to-hand struggle with a foe; this is shown by the human hand. The horse-tracks indicate that he ran off with so many horses. If his name was Black Hawk, for instance, a black hawk was painted in the middle of his shield.

All these things are arranged before they open the bag containing the hair. Then they enter the lodge, and there they open all the things that they have brought. The kindred of the deceased are the only ones to enter the lodge, and when they see the hair taken from the sack they scream suddenly for a minute or two. It is at this time that they distribute the gifts. Food has been boiled in many kettles, and is now divided among the people not the kindred of the deceased, who are scattered around the ghost lodge, and some food is usually given to the young men of the order to which the deceased belonged.

A woman who attends to collecting the food, calico, bags, clothing, etc., turns to the four posts of the scaffold in succession, and utters one of the following sayings or prayers at each post: “If the ghosts eat this, may I live long!” or “May the ghosts eat this, and I obtain many horses!” or “If my nephew (or niece) eats this, may someone give me many presents!” This woman is careful to put the best part of the food on the bowl or dish, under the scaffold near the head of the corpse.[199] Should any one eat before the food has been put aside for the ghost, all the ghosts become angry with him, and they are sure to punish him; they will make him drop his food just before it reaches his mouth, or they will spill the water when he tries to drink, and sometimes they cause a man to gash himself with a knife.

GOOD AND BAD GHOSTS.

§ 277. Some ghosts are beneficent, but most of them are maleficent. They know all things, even the thoughts of living people. They are glad when the wind blows. Bushotter’s younger brother was crazy at one time, and a doctor or peźuta wićaśa said that the sickness had been caused by a ghost.

INTERCOURSE WITH GHOSTS.

§ 278. Lynd says: The belief in the powers of some Dakotas to call up and converse with the spirits of the dead is strong in some, though not general. They frequently make feasts to those spirits and elicit information from them of distant friends and relatives. Assembling at night in a lodge, they smoke, put out the fire, and then, drawing their blankets over their heads, remain singing in unison in a low key until the spirit gives them a picture. This they pretend the spirit does; and many a hair-erecting tale is told of the spirit’s power to reveal, and the after confirmation.[200]

GHOST STORIES.

A few ghost stories of the Teton collection will now be given.

[Pg 490]

§ 279. The ghost husband.—A young Lakota died just before marrying a young girl whom he loved. The girl mourned his death, so she cut her hair here and there with a dull knife, and gashed her limbs, just as if she had been an old woman. The ghost returned and took her for his wife. Whenever the tribe camped for the night the ghost’s wife pitched her tent at some distance from the others, and when the people removed their camp the woman and her husband kept some distance behind the main body. The ghost always told the woman what to do; and he brought game to her regularly, which the wife gave to the people in exchange for other articles. The people could neither see nor hear the ghost, but they heard his wife address him. He always sent word to the tribe when there was to be a high wind or heavy rain. He could read the thoughts of his wife, so that she need not speak a word to him, and when she felt a desire for anything he soon obtained it for her.

§ 280. The solitary traveler.—Once a solitary traveler was overtaken by a tremendous thunderstorm near a forest. So he remained there for the night. After dark he noticed a light in the woods, and when he reached the spot, behold, there was a sweat lodge, in which were two persons talking. One said, “Friend, some one has come and stands without. Let us invite him to share our food.” The listener fled suddenly, as they were ghosts, and they pursued him. Though he looked behind now and then, he could not see them; so he ran with all his might towards a hill, and escaped from them. As he was ascending a divide of the Bad Lands, all at once he heard the cry of a woman. He was very glad to have company for the rest of the journey; but no sooner had he thought about the woman than she appeared by his side, saying, “I have come because you have just wished to have my company.” This frightened the man, but the ghost woman said, “Do not fear me, else you will never see me again.” So they went on silently till daybreak. Then the man looked at her, but her legs could not be seen, though she was walking without any apparent effort. Then the man thought, “What if she should choke me?” Immediately the woman disappeared like the wind. (See § 245).

§ 281. The ghost on the hill.—One day, when the people were hunting the buffalo, a strange man appeared on a hill. He wore a winter robe, with the hair outside. When he was descending the hill the people became alarmed, but he continued to advance. The young men rushed to meet him, taking bows and arrows. They could not see his face. They tried to shoot him, but each arrow passed by him on one side or the other. So they finally fled, as he was a ghost.

§ 282. The Indian who wrestled with a ghost.—A young man went alone on the warpath. At length he reached a wilderness, encountering many difficulties, which did not deter him from his undertaking. One day, as he was going along, he heard a voice, and he thought, “I shall have company.” As he was approaching a forest he heard some one halloo. Behold, it was an owl. By and by he drew near another[Pg 491] forest, and as night was coming on he had to rest there. At the edge of the forest he lay down in the open air. At midnight he was aroused by the voice of a woman, who was wailing, “My son! my son!” Still he remained where he was, and continued putting wood on the fire. He lay with his back to the fire, placing his flint-lock gun in readiness before him. He tore a hole in his blanket large enough to peep through.

Soon he heard the twigs break under the feet of one approaching, so he peeped without rising. Behold, a woman of the olden days was coming. She wore a skin dress with long fringe. A buffalo robe was fastened around her at the waist. Her necklace was composed of very large beads, and her leggins were covered with beads or porcupine work. Her robe was drawn over her head, and she was snuffling as she came. The man lay with his legs stretched out, and she stood by him. She took him by one foot, which she raised very slowly. When she let it go it fell with a thud, as if he was dead. She raised it a second and third time. Still the man did not move himself. Then the woman pulled a very rusty knife from the front of her belt, seized his foot suddenly, and was apparently about to lift it and gash it, when up sprang the man, saying, “What are you doing?” Without waiting for a reply he shot at her suddenly, and away she went, screaming “Yuŋ! yuŋ! yuŋ! yuŋ! yuŋ! yuŋ!” Then she plunged into the forest and was seen no more.

Once again the man covered his head with his blanket, but he did not sleep. When day came he raised his eyes, and, behold, he saw a human burial scaffold, with the blankets, etc., ragged and dangling. He thought, “Is this the ghost that came to me?” On another occasion he came to a forest where he had to remain for the night. He started a fire, by which he sat. Suddenly he heard some one making the woods ring as he sang. The man shouted to the singer, but the latter paid no attention to him. The man had a small quantity of wasna (grease mixed with pounded dried buffalo meat and wild cherries) and plenty of tobacco. So when the singer, who was a male ghost, came to him and asked him for food, the man replied, “I have nothing whatever;” but the ghost said, “Not so; I know that you have some wasna.” Then the man gave some of it to the ghost and filled the pipe for him. After the meal, when the ghost took the pipe and held it by the stem, the man saw that his hand had no flesh, being nothing but bones. As the ghost’s robe had dropped from his shoulders to his waist all his ribs were visible, there being no flesh on them. Though the ghost did not open his lips as he smoked, the smoke was pouring out through his ribs. When he finished smoking the ghost said to the man, “Ho! we must wrestle together. If you can throw me, you shall kill a foe without hindrance, and steal some horses.” The young man agreed to the proposition; but before beginning he gathered plenty of brush around the fire, on which he put an armful. Then the ghost rushed at the man, seizing him with his bony[Pg 492] hands, which pained the man, but this mattered not. He tried to push off the ghost, whose legs were very powerful. When the ghost was brought near the fire, he became weak, but when he managed to pull the man towards the darkness, he became very strong. As the fire got low the strength of the ghost increased. Just as the man began to grow weary the day broke. Then the struggle was renewed. As they drew near the fire the man made a desperate effort, and with his foot he pushed a firebrand suddenly into the fire. As the fire blazed again, the ghost fell just as if he was coming to pieces. So the man won, and the ghost’s prophecy was fulfilled; he subsequently killed a foe, and stole some horses. For that reason people have believed whatever the ghosts have said.

§ 283. The man who shot a ghost.—In the olden time a man was traveling alone, and in a forest he killed several rabbits. After sunset he was in the midst of the forest, so he made a fire, as he had to spend the night there. He thought thus: “Should I encounter any danger by and by, I have this gun, and I am a man who ought not to regard anything.” He cooked a rabbit and satisfied his hunger. Just then he heard many voices, and they were talking about their own affairs, but the man could see nobody. So he thought, “It seems that now at length I have encountered ghosts.” Then he went and lay under a fallen tree, which was at a great distance from the fire. He loaded his gun with powder only, as he knew by this time that they were really ghosts. They came round about him and whistled, “Hyu, hyu, hyu!” “He has gone yonder,” said one of the ghosts. They came and stood around the man, just as people do when they hunt rabbits. The man lay flat beneath the fallen tree, and one ghost came and climbed on the trunk of that tree. Suddenly the ghost gave the cry uttered on hitting an enemy, “Aⁿ-he!” and he kicked the man on the back. But before the ghost could get away, the man shot at him and wounded him in the legs; so the ghost gave the male cry of pain, “Au! au! au!” And finally he went off crying as females do, “Yuŋ! yuŋ! yuŋ!” And the other ghosts said to him; “Where did he shoot?” And the wounded one said: “He shot me through the head and I have come apart.” Then the other ghosts were wailing on the hillside. The man decided to go to the place where they were wailing. So, as the day had come, he went thither, and found some graves, one of which a wolf had dug into so that the bones were visible, and there was a wound in the skull.

ASSINNIBOIN BELIEFS ABOUT GHOSTS.

§ 284. Smet says:[201]

The belief in ghosts is very profound, and common to all these tribes. Indians have often told me that they have met, seen, and conversed with them, and that they may be heard almost every night in the places where the dead are interred. They say that they speak in a kind of whistling tone. Sometimes they contract the face [of a human being whom they meet] like that of a person in an epileptic fit.[201][Pg 493] The Assinniboines never pronounce the name of Tchatka [i.e., Ćatka, or, Left Hand, a former chief] but with respect. They believe that his shade guards the sacred tree; that he has power to procure them abundance of buffalo and other animals, or to drive the animals from the country. Hence, whenever they pass they offer sacrifices; they present the calumet to the tutelary spirits and manes of Tchatka. He is, according to their calendar, the Wah-kon-tangka par excellence, the greatest man or genius that ever visited their nation.[202]

PRAYERS TO THE DEAD, INCLUDING ANCESTORS.

§ 285. Riggs says[203] that the Dakota pray to the spirits of their deceased relatives. [See §§ 67-71.] And in his account of the Assinniboin, Smet says:

The Assinniboines esteem greatly a religious custom of assembling once or twice a year around the graves of their immediate relatives. These graves are on scaffolds about 7 or 8 feet above the surface of the ground. The Indians call their dead by name and offer to them meats carefully dressed, which they place beside them. The ceremony of burying the dead is terminated with tears, wailings, howlings, and macerations of all present. They tear the hair, gash the legs, and at last they light the calumet, for that is the Alpha and Omega of every rite. They offer it to the shades of the departed and entreat them not to injure the living. During their ceremonious repasts, in their excursions, and even at a great distance from their graves, they send to the dead puffs of tobacco smoke and burn little pieces of meat as a sacrifice to their memory.

§ 286. Before consulting the tutelary spirits [see § 34] or addressing the dead, they begin by kindling the sacred fire. This fire must be struck from a flint, or it must reach them mysteriously by lightning, or in some other way. To light the sacred fire with a common fire would be considered among them as a grave and dangerous transgression.[204]

METAMORPHOSES AND THE TRANSMIGRATION OF SOULS.

§ 287. They believe in transformations, such as are described in Ovid, and they think that many of the stars are men and women translated to the heavens. They believe in the transmigration of souls. Some of the medicine men profess to tell of what occurred to them in bodies previously inhabited for at least six generations back. [See §§ 260, 267.]

EXHORTATIONS TO ABSENT WARRIORS.

§ 288. Among the Teton it has been customary for those remaining at home to make songs about the absent warriors, calling them by name, as if they could hear the speakers. This Dakota custom agrees with what has been recorded of the Omaha.[205]

Bushotter has told of another Teton custom. The kindred of a slain warrior make songs in his honor, and sing them as they mourn for his death.

MYSTERIOUS MEN AND WOMEN.

§ 289. Lynd says:

Certain men profess to have an unusual amount of the wakan or divine principle in them. By it they assume the working of miracles, laying on of hands, curing of the [Pg 494]sick, and many wonderful operations. Some of these persons pretend to a recollection of former states of existence, even naming the particular body in which they formerly lived. Others assert their power over nature, and their faculty of seeing into futurity, and of conversing with the deities. A third class will talk of the particular animals whose bodies they intend to enter when loosed from their present existence [§§ 260, 267, 287]. In endeavoring to sustain these pretensions they occasionally go through performances which are likely to deceive the ignorant throng.[206]

Pond wrote thus of the Dakota wakaŋ men:[207]

They do not spring into existence under ordinary operations of natural laws, but, according to their faith, these men and women (for females, too, are wakan) first arouse to conscious existence in the form of winged seeds, such as the thistle, and are wafted by the  *  *  *  influence of the four winds till they are conducted to the abode of some Taku Wakan, by whom they are received into intimate communion. They remain there till they become acquainted with the character and abilities of the class of gods whose guests they happen to be, and until they have imbibed their spirits, and are acquainted with all the chants, feasts, dances, and rites which the gods deem necessary to impose on men. Thus do some of them pass through a series of inspirations with different classes of divinities, till they are fully wakanized and prepared for human incarnation. They are invested with the invisible wakan powers of the gods, their knowledge and cunning, and their omnipresent influence over mind, instinct, and passions. They are taught to inflict diseases and heal them, discover concealed causes, manufacture implements of war, and impart to them the ton-wan power of the gods; and also the art of making such an application of paints that they will protect from the powers of the enemies. This process of inspiration is called “dreaming of the gods.” Thus prepared and retaining his primitive form, the demi-god rides forth on the wings of the wind over   *  *  *  the earth, till he has carefully observed the characters and usages of the different tribes of men; then, selecting his location, he enters one about to become a mother, and, in due time, makes his appearance among men.  *  *  *  When one of these wakan men dies he returns to the abode of his god, from whom he receives a new inspiration, after which he passes through another incarnation as before, and serves another generation. In this manner they pass through four incarnations,  *  *  *  and then return to their original nothingness.

§ 290. There are different persons who regard themselves as wakaŋ, says Bushotter. Among these are those who practice medicine, those who act as Heyoka, those who boil for the grizzly bear feasts, those who take part in the mystery dance, those who foretell the future, those who detect wrong-doers and find what has been lost or stolen, and those who do various things in a cunning manner. It happens thus to them: A man hears a human voice during the day and he does what the voice directs to be done, or on a certain night a tree converses with him, and the two talk about their own affairs, and what the tree tells him to do, that he does, so he says, or, it orders him to keep some law or custom as long as he lives. Among these superstitious notions are the following: Some men direct the pipe to be handed around the lodge from the left side to the right, and others vice versa. Some men dare not gash a firebrand with a knife; and should a visitor do so heedlessly, they say that he “cuts his finger.” Others will not kill a swallow, lest thunder and hail ensue. Some do not allow a knife to be passed above a kettle.

[Pg 495]

§ 291. The wakan men claim that they are invulnerable. To prove this they assemble at stated intervals, having painted themselves in various styles. Each one has a flute suspended over the chest by a necklace. They wear long breechcloths, and march in single file. Two men armed with bows and arrows rush suddenly towards the waken men and shoot at them; but instead of wounding them they merely bend the arrows! Sometimes the men fire guns at them, but the bullets fall to the ground, and when they are examined they are flattened! No visible mark of a wound can be found on the bodies of these wakan men, though when they were hit by the bullet or arrow blood pours from their mouths. After they wash off the paint from their bodies their flesh becomes tender and is vulnerable. This is the excuse urged when an ordinary person succeeds in wounding a wakan man. It is supposed that the wakan men rub themselves with some kind of medicine known only to themselves, making them invulnerable, and that perhaps the bullets or arrows are rubbed with the medicine prior to the shooting. It is also supposed that the playing of the flute aids in rendering them invulnerable. (See § 306, etc.)

§ 292. Bushotter names two kinds of Dakota doctors—the Mato wapiya, or Grizzly Bear doctor, who is very wakan, and the Peźuta wapiya, or Peźuta wićaśa, the doctor who prescribes roots. The person who practices medicine claims to have had interviews with the spirits, but he never reveals what the spirits have told him, though he says that immediately after the revelation made him by the spirit he begins to act according to its directions. And in some cases of sickness this doctor takes the flesh of the patient into his mouth and makes a sucking sound while inhaling, and from the patient’s side he pretends to remove something. When he has made the sucking sound after taking the flesh into his mouth, or when he has taken blood or something else from the side of the patient, he spits it from his mouth. Then he sees the patient’s mother, whom he tells what is the cause of the disease, and whether the patient will recover or die. Such doctors pretend to have within themselves one of the following: A small red hawk, a common woodpecker, a real buffalo, a rattlesnake, or a grizzly bear. And when one of these doctors kicks on the ground there is heard something within him, singing in a beautiful voice; and so the people believe what the doctors say about diseases.

§ 293. When the doctor has sucked the patient’s flesh a long time without removing anything, he asks a favor of the mysterious being dwelling within himself, and then that being cries out often, and the doctor succeeds in his efforts. It is by the aid of these mysterious beings that the doctors are enabled to practice medicine. In the olden time one of the doctors was very mysterious. Once, when he was practicing, a bowl of water was set down before him. He vomited into the bowl and a water-snake appeared in it. But when the doctor opened his mouth again the snake glided gently into it and disappeared down[Pg 496] his throat. Such exhibitions by the doctors have been observed by the Indians, who are constrained to believe what the doctors claim for themselves. And because they believe that the doctors are very mysterious, the latter are able to gather together many possessions as pay for their services. Therefore the men and women doctors try to excel one another in their skill, as it pays them so well.

§ 294. A “peźuta wicaśa” told Bushotter to say to his step-father that his son, Bushotter’s younger brother, had been made crazy by a ghost. The doctor came and fumigated the patient, and after he felt a little better he sucked at the boy’s chest and drew out some blood. He resumed the operation, and then declared that there was in the boy’s side a flat object resembling a serpent, the removal of which would insure the boy’s recovery. The doctor was promised a horse if he would attend the patient until he cured him. Acting by his directions, Bushotter’s elder brother caught a large catfish, of the species called “howasapa,” and handed it to his step-father, who offered a prayer and marked the fish with a knife on the top of the head. After this the fish was cooked, and the sick boy ate it and recovered his health. It was after this that the same boy was cured by invoking the Dawn and offering sacrifice, as related in § 215.

GOPHER LORE.

§ 295. Scrofulous sores on the neck under the jaw are said to be caused by gophers. These animals can shoot at persons in a magical way with the tip of a species of grass, wounding them very mysteriously, the injured person being unconscious of the harm done till some time has elapsed. The place swells, splits open, and becomes very bad, affecting even the face of the sufferer. Few doctors can cure it. He who can relieve the patient pretends to extract pieces of grass from the neck, and then the person begins to recover. The people are so afraid of gophers that they go around the camp with their hands over their jaws. No one dares to go near a gopher hill except he or she be a mysterious person. Such a one can go near it and even touch it with impunity, as he has different remedies at his command.

CAUSES OF BOILS AND SORES.

§ 296. Whoever gets into the habit of eating the large intestine of cattle, known as the taśiyaka, is sure to “be hit by śiyaka,” i. e., he will have a boil.[208] Śiyaka is the name of the grebe or dabchick, but what connection there is between the bird and the boil has not been learned. The boil will be on some covered part of the body, not on the hands or face. The Teton fear to go outside of their lodges at night lest the cause of boils be blown to them. If a man eats the liver of a female dog, or if a woman eats that of a male dog, the face of the offender will break out in sores.

[Pg 497]

RESULTS OF LYING, STEALING, ETC.

§ 297. Warts betray a bad person, one given to stealing. If the skin of the hard palate peels off, it is said that the person is untruthful. When the Teton doubt a man’s word, they ask him to open his mouth and let them see his hard palate. He who makes a practice of eating the calves of the legs of any species of animal will have a cramp in the muscles of his own legs. When one wishes to extract the marrow from a bone, he takes care not to split the bone in two, lest his own legs should be in frequent pain, or he should become lame.

SECRET SOCIETIES.

§ 298. The Dakota use “ihaŋbla” or “ihaŋmda” as the Omaha and Ponka do “iȼa‘eȼĕ,” to describe the mysterious communications received from the animals and spirits (§§ 8, 43-52).

Among the Siouan family of Indians there are societies, religious in character, which are distinguished by the name of some animal. Each society has a ritual composed of chants and songs to be sung during different parts of the ceremonies, having words describing in simple and direct terms the act which accompanies the music. These musical rituals, it is often claimed, have been received in a mysterious or supernatural manner, and are therefore regarded as possessing a religious power  *  *  *  Some societies admit women to membership, through their own visions, or occasionally by those of their husbands’, but more generally by means of the visions of male relatives.  *  *  *  Membership in these societies is not confined to any particular gens, or grouping of gentes, but depends upon supernatural indications over which the individual has no control. The animal which appears to a man in a vision during his religious fasting determines to which society he must belong.[209]

§ 299. Those having visions or revelations from ghosts are called Wanaġi ihaŋblapi kiŋ. It is such persons who can draw pictures of ghosts with impunity. It is also said that the only persons who have their faces drawn awry by the ghosts are the members of this order. (See § 275.)

§ 300. Bushotter’s step-father belongs to the Tataŋg ihaŋblapi kiŋ, or the Society of those who have Revelations from the Buffalo, answering to the Omaha ┴e iȼa‘eȼĕ-ma (§§ 43, 50). In one of his visions he saw a buffalo with cocklebur down in his hair, so the man subsequently put such down in his own hair in imitation of the buffalo. One night he saw (probably in a vision) a bison going toward the south with a hoop on his head. So the man painted a small hoop red all over and wore it on his head, giving his nephew the name Ćaŋgleśka waŋyaŋg mani, He Walks In-sight-of a Hoop.

§ 301. Some Dakota belong to the Hećiŋśkayapi ihaŋblapi kiŋ, or the Society of those who have Revelations from Goats. Goats are very mysterious, as they walk on cliffs and other high places; and those who dream of goats or have revelations from them imitate their actions. Such men can find their way up and down cliffs, the rocks get soft under[Pg 498] their feet, enabling them to maintain a foothold, but they close up behind them, leaving no trail. Members of the Wakaŋ waćipi, or the Order of the Mystery Dance, commonly called the medicine dance, are also reckoned among the mysterious or “wakaŋ” people (see § 113). One of Bushotter’s texts relates to this order. Another of his articles tells of the Miwatani okolakićiye kiŋ or The Mandan Society, which used to be called Ćaŋte ṭiŋza okolakićiye, or Society of the Stout Hearted Ones. It is now known as Kaŋġi yuha, Keeps the Raven. For a notice of this order, see §§ 194, 195.

§ 302. The report of the Peabody Museum of American Archaeology and Ethnology for 1884 contains an article on the Elk Mystery or Festival of the Oglala, a division of the Teton Dakota (pp. 276-288). Those who have visions of the elk are the Heḣaka ihaŋblapi kiŋ. Bushotter has recorded articles on different societies as follows: Big Belly Society, Iḣoka and Tokala (animal) Societies, Dog Society, Kaṭela or Taniġa iću Society, Grizzly Bear Dance, and Night Dance; but we have no means of learning whether any or all of them are composed of persons who had visions of animals.

FETICHISM.

PUBLIC OR TRIBAL FETICHES.

§ 303. Among these may be included the Bear Butte, referred to in § 137; and any white buffalo hide, such as has been described in “The White Buffalo Festival of the Uncpapas.”[210]

Smet gives a description of a gathering of all the Assiniboin, and a religious festival lasting several days:

Offerings are placed on perches that are fastened to the tops of posts supporting certain buffalo skin lodges. A tall pole is erected in the middle of the circle (it is between 30 and 40 feet high), and to it they fasten the medicine bags, containing the idols, their arrows, quivers, trophies won from their enemies, especially scalps. Men, women, and children join in raising and planting the pole, amid the acclamations of the tribe.[211]

PRIVATE OR PERSONAL FETICHES.

§ 304. Smet also tells us that “A Sioux chief has his war wakaŋ, the colored picture of the Russian general, Diebitsch.”[212] In speaking of the Assinniboin, the same author states:

Each savage who considers himself a chief or warrior possesses what he calls his wah-kon, in which he appears to place all his confidence. This consists of a stuffed bird, a weasel’s skin, or some little bone or the tooth of an animal; sometimes it is a little stone or a fantastical figure, represented by little beads or by a coarsely painted picture. These charms or talismans accompany them on all their expeditions for war or hunting—they never lay them aside. In every difficulty or peril they invoke the protection and assistance of their wah-kon, as though these idols could really preserve [Pg 499]them from all misfortunes. If any accident befalls an idol or charm, if it is broken or lost, it is enough to arrest the most intrepid chief or warrior in his expedition, and make him abandon the most important enterprise in which he may be engaged.[213]

We may also reckon among the personal fetiches the wohduze of each warrior (see the Armor god, §§ 122-5), and perhaps the use of the initipi or sweat lodge, and the wild sage or Artemisia, by each of which personal purification is supposed to be effected.

ORDEALS OR MODES OF SWEARING.

§ 305. While there are no oaths or curses as we have them, the Teton can invoke higher powers. Thus one may say: “The Thunderers hear me” (Waʞiŋ´yaŋ namáḣuŋwe ló, The Flying one really hears me!), and if he is lying the Thunderers or one of their number will be sure to kill him. Sometimes the man will put a knife in his mouth, and then if he lies he will be stuck by a knife thereafter, and death must follow. Or, he will say, “The horse heard me” (Śuŋ´kawakaŋ´ namáḣuŋ we ló), knowing that the penalty for falsehood will be certain death from a horse that will throw him and break his neck. When one says, “The Earth hears me” (Maká kiŋ lé namáḣuŋ we ló), and he lies, he is sure to die miserably in a short time, and his family will also be afflicted.

Smet says:[214]

The objects by which an Assinniboine swears are his gun, the skin of a rattlesnake, a bear’s claw, and the wah-kon that the Indian interrogates. These various articles are placed before him, and he says, “In case my declaration prove false, may my gun fire and kill me, may the serpent bite me, may the bears tear and devour my flesh, and may my wah-kon overwhelm me with misery.” In extraordinary and very important affairs, which demand formal promises, they call upon the Thunder to witness their resolution of accomplishing the articles proposed and accepted.

SORCERY AND JUGGLERY.

§ 306. As among the Omaha and other Siouan tribes, so among the Dakota do we find traces of the practice of sorcery, and there is a special word in the Dakota dictionary: “ḣmuŋġa, to cause sickness or death, as the Dakotas pretend to be able to do, in a supernatural way—to bewitch—kill by enchantment.” The syllable “ḣmuŋ” seems to convey the idea of humming, buzzing, or muttering.

Jugglery or sleight-of-hand performances are resorted to by the mysterious men and women. (See §§ 64-66, 291-4.) Some of these practitioners claim to possess the art of making love-charms, such potions being sold to women who desire to attract particular men of their acquaintance. When a woman obtains such a medicine, she uses it in one of two ways. Sometimes she touches the man on his blanket with the medicine, at others she persuades the man to give her a piece of chewing gum, which she touches with the medicine. Then she seizes him, and he can not escape from her, even should he wish to leave her. So he is obliged to marry her.

[Pg 500]

OMENS.

BODILY OMENS.

§ 307. Ringing in one ear signifies one of two things. Some one will come without his family, and he must be entertained, or you will hear news. The direction whence the person or news will come is shown by the ear that is affected.

If the eye twitches involuntarily some one will weep. If any other part of the body twitches involuntarily some one will hit the person there or he will be stabbed or shot there. If the palm of the hand twitches often he will soon strike some one, or else he will become angry. When a woman has a son sick somewhere, or if he has been killed on the way home, her breasts are often very painful.

If one sneezes once his special friend or fellow, his son or his wife has named him; so the sneezer calls out, “My son.” If he sneezes twice he exclaims, “My son and his mother!”

ANIMAL OMENS.

§ 308. When whip-poor wills sing together at night, saying, “Hohiŋ, hohiŋ,” one says in reply, “No.” Should the birds stop at once it is a sign that the answering person must die soon. But if the birds continue singing the man will live a long time.[215]

The uŋgnaġíćala (gray screech owl) fortells cold weather. When the night is to be very cold this owl cries out, so the Teton say, just as if a person’s teeth chattered. When its cry is heard, all the people wrap themselves in their thickest robes and put plenty of wood on the fires.

The Ski-bi-bi-la is a small gray bird, with a black head, and spotted here and there on the breast. It dwells in the forest, and is said to answer the person who calls to it. When this bird says, “Glí huŋ wó,” i.e., “Has it returned?” the people rejoice, knowing that the spring is near. When a boy hears this bird ask the question, he runs to his mother and learns from her that he must reply, “No; it has not yet returned.” The reason for giving this reply has not been obtained.

When the people first hear the cry of the night hawk in the spring, they begin to talk of going to hunt the buffalo, because when the night hawks return the buffalo have become fat again, and the birds bring the news, for they never cry in vain.

OMENS FROM DREAMS.

§ 309. There are some animals which are esteemed as bringing better fortunes than others. Hawks are lucky. Bears are not so good, as the bear is slow and clumsy, and apt to be wounded; and although savage when cornered, is not as likely as some animals to escape harm. Among some tribes in this family of Indians to dream of the moon is regarded as a grave calamity.[216] See § 30.

[Pg 501]

CHAPTER VI. CULTS OF THE MANDAN, HIDATSA, AND SAPONA.

AUTHORITIES.

§ 310. This chapter contains no original material, but is a compilation made from the following works for the convenience of the reader:

Byrd (Wm.), History of the Dividing line (1729), vol. I. Reprint: Richmond, Va., 1866.
U. S. Geol. and Geogr. Surv., Miscell. Publ., No. 7, 1877: Ethnog. and Philol. of Hidatsa Indians. By Washington Matthews.
James’s Account of Long’s Exped., to Rocky Mountains, Phil., 1823, vol. I.
Lewis and Clarke’s Exped., ed. Allen, Dublin, 1817, vol. I.
The George Catlin Indian Gallery  *  *  *  Thomas Donaldson: Smithson. Rept., 1885, pt. 2, appendix.
Travels in  *  *  *  North America, by Maximilian, Prince of Wied. Trans. by H. Evans Lloyd, London, 1843.

ALLEGED BELIEF IN A GREAT SPIRIT.

§ 311. As among the Dakota, so among the Mandan and Hidatsa, we find that some of the earlier writers assert that the religion of the Indians under consideration “consists in the belief in one Great Spirit.”[217]

But such assertions are closely followed by admissions which explain the mistake of the writer: “Great Spirit” is synonymous with “Great Medicine,” a name applied to everything which they do not comprehend. Among the Mandan, “each individual selects for himself the particular object of his devotion, which is termed his medicine, and is either some visible being, or more commonly some animal.”

THE GREAT MYSTERY A MODERN DEITY.

Matthews states of the Hidatsa:

Many claim that the Great Spirit, or, more properly, the Great Mystery, is a deity of the modern Indian only. I have certainly heard some old and very conservative Minnetarees speak of Mahopa as if they meant thereby an influence or power above all other things, but not attaching to it any ideas of personality. It would now be perhaps impossible to make a just analysis of their original conceptions in this matter.[218]

[Pg 502]

POLYTHEISM.

Instead of believing in one Great Spirit, the Mandan and Hidatsa “believe in a multitude of different beings in the heavenly bodies; offer sacrifices to them; invoke their assistance on every occasion; howl, lament, fast, inflict on themselves acts of penance to propitiate these spirits; and, above all, lay very great stress upon dreams.”[219]

§ 312. The most sacred objects in the eyes of the Crow or Absaroka, a nation closely related to the Hidatsa, are “the sun, the moon, and tobacco,” that is, the leaves of the genuine tobacco (Nicotiana); and all their children wear a small portion of this herb, well wrapped up, round their neck, by way of an amulet.[220]

WORSHIP.

§ 313. Full information respecting worship has not been obtained; but we know that among its accessories are the following: prayer, fasting, and sacrifice. The different writers tell us of petitions offered to the gods for help.

FASTING.

§ 314. When a young Mandan wishes to establish his reputation as a brave man, he fasts for four or seven days, as long as he is able, goes to the bluffs, cries to the Omahank-Numakshi, calls incessantly on the higher powers for aid, and goes home at night to sleep and dream. They fast before taking part in the Okipa, before organizing a war party, etc.[221]

SACRIFICE.

§ 315. Said a Mandan to Lewis and Clarke, “I was lately owner of seventeen horses, but I have offered them all up to my medicine, and am now poor.” He had taken all his horses to the plain, where he turned them loose, committing them to the care of his “medicine,” thus abandoning them forever.[222]

“Around the burial scaffolds of the Mandans were several high poles, with skins and other things hanging on them, as offerings to the lord of life, Omahank-Numakshi, or to the first man, Numank-Machana.”[223]

§ 316. The Okipa.—That form of self-sacrifice called Okipa by the Mandan has been described in detail by Catlin and Maximilian. It differs in some respects from the sun dance of the Dakota and Ponka, as well as from the Daḣpike or Naḣpike of the Hidatsa.[224]

[Pg 503]

§ 317. The Daḣpike.—According to Matthews, the most important ceremony of the Hidatsa is that of—

The Daḣpike or Naḣpike, which formerly took place regularly once a year, but is now celebrated every second or third year only. On the day when it is determined to begin this ceremony, some of the men, dressed and mounted as for a war-party, proceed to the woods. Here they select a tall, forked cottonwood, which they fell, trim, and bark; to this they tie lariats, and, by the aid of horses, drag it to the village. In the procession, the man who has most distinguished himself in battle, mounted on the horse on whose back he has done his bravest deeds, takes the lead; others follow in the order of the military distinction; as they drag the log along, they fire guns at it, strike it with sticks, and shout and sing songs of victory. The log, they say, is symbolical of a conquered enemy, whose body they are bringing into the camp in triumph. [See §§ 28, 42, 160.] When the log is set up, they again go to the woods to procure a quantity of willows. A temporary lodge of green willows is then built around the log, as the medicine lodge, wherein the ceremony is performed [see § 168.] The participants fast four days with food in sight, and, on the fourth day, submit to tortures which vary according to the whim of the sufferer or the advice of the shamans. Some have long strips of skin separated from different parts of their bodies, but not completely detached. Others have large pieces of the integument entirely removed, leaving the muscles exposed. Others have incisions made in their flesh, in which raw-hide strings are inserted; they then attach buffalo-skulls to the strings and run round with these until the strings becomes disengaged by tearing their way out of the flesh. Other have skewers inserted in their breasts, which skewers are secured by raw-hide cords to the central pole, as in the Dakota sun dance; the sufferer then throws himself back until he is released by the skewers tearing out of the flesh. Many other ingenious tortures are devised.[225]

§ 318. In the narrative of Long’s expedition to the Rocky Mountains, we find an account of the latter part of this ceremony, prepared, as Matthews thinks, from the statements of Mr. Dougherty or Mr. Lisa, as the expedition did not go near the Minnetaree country. All the torments there described, and more, are inflicted to this day. That account is as follows:[226]

Annually in the month of July the Minnetarees celebrate their great medicine dance.  *  *  *  On this occasion a considerable quantity of food is prepared.  *  *  *  The devotees then dance and sing to their music at intervals for three or four days together in full view of the victuals without attempting to taste them. But they do not, even at this time, forego their accustomed hospitality. And if a stranger enters, he is invited to eat, though no one partakes with him. On the third or fourth day, the severer  *  *  *  tortures commence.  *  *  *  An individual presents himself before one of the  *  *  *  magi, crying and lamenting, and requests him to cut a fillet of skin from his arm, which he extends for that purpose. The operator thrusts a sharp instrument through the skin near the wrists, then introduces the knife and cuts out a piece of the required length, sometimes extending the cut entirely to the shoulder. Another will request bands of skin to be cut from his arm. A third will have his breast flayed so as to represent a full-moon or crescent. A fourth submits to the removal of concentric arcs of skin from his breast. A fifth prays the operator to remove small pieces of skin from various indicated parts of his body.  *  *  *  An individual requests the operator to pierce a hole through the skin on each of his shoulders, and after passing a long cord through each hole, he repairs to a burial ground at some distance from the village, and selects one [Pg 504]of the bison skulls collected there. To the chosen skull he affixes the ends of his cords, and drags it to the lodge, around which he must go with his burden before he can be released from it. No one is permitted to assist him, neither dare he to put his hands to the cords to alleviate his sufferings. If it should so happen that the horns of the skull get hooked under a root or other obstacle, he must extricate it in the best manner he can by pulling different ways, but he must not touch the cords or the skull with his hands, or in any respect attempt to relieve the strain upon his wound until his complete task is performed.

Some of the penitents have arrows thrust through various muscular parts of their bodies, as through the skin and superficial muscles of the arms, leg, breast, and back.

A devotee caused two arrows to be passed through the muscles of his breast, one on each side near the mammae. To these arrows cords were attached, the opposite ends of which were affixed to the upper part of a post which had been planted in the earth for the purpose. He then threw himself backward into an oblique position, his back within about 2 feet of the ground, so as to depend with the greater part of his weight by the cords. In this situation of agony he chanted and kept time to the music of the gong (sic), until he fainted from long abstinence and suffering. The bystanders then cried out, “Courage! courage!” After a short interval of insensibility, he revived and proceeded with his self-tortures as before, until nature being completely exhausted he again relapsed into insensibility, upon which he was loosed from the cords and carried off amidst the acclamations of the whole assembly.

Another Minnetaree in compliance with a vow he had made, caused a hole to be perforated through the muscles of each shoulder. Through these holes cords were passed, the opposite ends of which were attached as a bridle to a horse which had been penned up three or four days without food or water. In this manner he led the horse to the margin of the river. The horse, of course, endeavored to drink, but it was the province of the Indian to prevent him, and that only by straining at the cords with the muscles of the shoulder, without resorting to the assistance of his hands. And, notwithstanding all the exertions of the horse to drink, his master succeeded in preventing him, and returned with him to his lodge, having accomplished his painful task.

§ 319. In describing the Hidatsa, Prince Maximilian says:[227]

They likewise celebrate the Okippe (which they call Akupehri), but with several deviations. Thus, instead of a so-called ark, a kind of high pole with a fork on it, is planted in the center of the open circle. When the partisans (i. e. war captains) intend to go on some enterprise in May or June, the preparations are combined with the Okippe (i. e., Okipa) of several young men, who wish to obtain the rank of brave. A large medicine lodge is erected open above, with a division in the middle, in which the candidates take their places. Two pits are usually dug in the middle for the partisans, who lie in them four days and four nights, with only a piece of leather around the waist. The first partisan usually chooses the second, who undergoes the ceremony with him. There are always young people enough to submit their bodies to torture, in order to display their courage. They fast four days and nights, which leaves them faint. Many of them begin the tortures on the third day; but the fourth day is that properly set apart for them. To the forked pole of the medicine lodge is fastened a long piece of buffalo hide, with the head hanging down, and to this a strap is fastened. An old man is then chosen, who is to see to the torturing of the candidates, which is executed precisely in the same manner as among the Mandans. The sufferers often faint. They are then taken by the hands, lifted up, and encouraged, and they begin afresh. When they have dragged about the buffalo skull long enough,  *  *  *  a large circle is formed, as among the Mandans, in which they are made to run round till they drop down exhausted, when they are taken to the medicine lodge. [Pg 505]The medicine man receives from one of the spectators the knife with which the operation is to be performed. The partisan is bound to build the medicine lodge.

During the ceremony the spectators eat and smoke; the candidates take nothing, and, like the partisans, are covered all over with white clay. The latter, when they dance during the ceremony, remain near their pits, and then move on the same spot, holding in their hands their medicines, a buffalo tail, a feather, or the like. None but the candidates dance, and the only music is striking a dried buffalo hide with willow rods. There have been instances of fathers subjecting their children, only 6 or 7 years of age, to these tortures. We ourselves saw one suspended by the muscles of the back, after having been compelled to fast four days. No application whatever is subsequently made for the cure of the wounds, which leave large swollen weals, and are much more conspicuous among the Hidatsa than among the Mandan. Most of the Hidatsa have three or four of these weals in parallel semicircular lines almost an inch thick, which cover the entire breast. There are similar transverse and longitudinal lines on the arms.

Referring to Maximilian’s description just given, Matthews observes:

At this time, the Hidatsa call the Mandan ceremony akupi (of which word probably akupehi is an old form); but they apply no such term to their own festival. Maximilian did not spend a summer among those Indians, and, therefore, knew of both ceremonies only from description.[228] If the Minnetaree festival to which he referred was, as is most likely, the Naḣpike, he is, to some extent, in error. The rites resemble one another only in their appalling fasts and tortures. In allegory, they seem to be radically different.

CULT OF THE YONI.

§ 320. An account of the great buffalo medicine feast of the Hidatsa (“instituted by the women”) has been recorded by Maximilian. Prayers are made for success in hunting and in battle. When the feast had continued two hours, the women began to act the part, which bore a slight resemblance to what Herodotus tells of the women in the temple of Mylitta.[229]

When the dance of the half-shorn head was sold by its Mandan possessors, they received in part payment the temporary use of the wives of the purchasers, each woman having the right to choose her consort.[230]

Lewis and Clarke have given accounts of two of the Mandan dances, the buffalo dance and the medicine dance, at the conclusion of which were rites that astonished the travelers, but they were told that in the medicine dance only virgins or young unmarried females took part.[231]

ABSAROKA FEAR OF A WHITE BUFFALO COW.

§ 321. The Absaroka or Crow Nation have a superstitious fear of a white buffalo cow. When a Crow meets one, he addresses the sun in the following words: “I will give her (i. e., the cow) to you.” He then endeavors to kill the animal, but leaves it untouched, and then says to the sun, “Take her, she is yours.” They never use the skin of such a cow, as the Mandan do.[232]

[Pg 506]

MANDAN CULTS.

MANDAN DIVINITIES.

§ 322. According to one of Maximilian’s informants, the Mandan believe in several superior beings. (1) The first is Ohmahank-Numakshi, the Lord of Life. He is the most powerful. He created the earth, man, and every existing object. They believe that he has a tail, and appears sometimes in the form of an aged man and, at others, in that of a young man. (2) Numank-Machana, the First Man, holds the second rank; he was created by the Lord of Life, but is likewise of a divine nature. He resembles Nanabush or Manabozho of the Ojibwa and cognate tribes. (3) Ohmahank-Ohika, the Lord of Evil, is a malignant spirit, who has much influence over men; but he is not as powerful as Ohmahank-Numakshi and Numank-Machana. (4) Rohanka-Tauibanka, who dwells in the planet Venus, protects mankind on earth. The name of the fifth power has not been gained, but he is ever moving, walking over the earth in human form. They call him, “The Lying Prairie Wolf.” (6) Ochkih-Hadda[233] is a spirit that it is difficult to class. They believe that one who dreams of him is sure to die very soon thereafter. This spirit is said to have come once into their villages and taught them many things, but since then he has not appeared. They fear him, offer him sacrifice, and in their villages they have a hideous image representing him.

§ 323. The sun is thought to be the residence of the Lord of Life. In the moon dwells, as they say, the Old Woman who Never Dies. They do not know much about her, but they sacrifice to her as well as to the other spirits. She has six children, three sons and three daughters, who inhabit certain stars. The eldest son is the Day, the second is the Sun, the third is the Night. The eldest daughter is the star that rises in the east, the Morning Star, called, “The Woman Who Wears a Plume.” The second daughter, called “The Striped Gourd,” is a star which revolves the polar star. The third daughter is the Evening Star, which is near the setting sun.[234]

§ 324. The Old Woman who Never Dies.—The cult of this spirit is observed in what Say calls “the corn dance of the Manitaries.” Maximilian declares that Say is quite correct in his account of it, and that the Mandan practice it as well as the Hidatsa.

It is the consecration of the grain to be sown, and is called the corn dance feast of the woman. The Old Woman who Never Dies sends, in the spring, the waterfowl, swans, geese, and ducks, as symbols of the kinds of grain cultivated by the Indians. The wild goose signifies corn; the geese, the gourd, and the duck, beans. It is the old woman who causes these plants to grow, and, therefore, she sends these birds as her representatives. It is seldom that eleven wild geese are found together in the spring; but, if it happens, this is a sign that the crop of corn will be remarkably fine. The Indians keep a large quantity of dried meat in readiness for the time in the spring when the birds arrive, that they may immediately celebrate the[Pg 507] corn feast of the women. They hang the meat before the village on long scaffolds made of poles, three or four rows, one above another, and this, with other articles of value, is considered as an offering to the Old Woman who Never Dies. The elderly women of the village, as representatives of that old woman, assemble about the scaffolds on a certain day, each carrying a stick, to one end of which an ear of corn is fastened. Sitting in a circle, they plant their sticks in the ground before them, and then dance around the scaffolds. Some old men beat the drum and shake the gourd rattles. The corn is not wetted or sprinkled, as many believe, but on the contrary, it is supposed that such a practice would be injurious. While the old women are performing their part, the younger ones come and put some dry pulverized meat into their mouths, for which each young woman receives in return a grain of the consecrated corn, which she eats. Three or four grains of the consecrated corn are put into their dish, and are afterwards carefully mixed with the seed corn, in order to make it yield an abundant crop. The dried meat on the scaffolds is the perquisite of the aged females, as the representatives of the Old Woman who Never Dies. But members of the Dog Society have the privilege of taking some of this meat from the scaffolds without opposition from anybody.

A similar corn feast is held in the autumn, but at that season it is held for the purpose of attracting the herds of buffaloes and of obtaining a large supply of meat. Each woman then carries an entire cornstalk with the ears attached, pulling up the stalk by the roots. They designate the corn as well as the birds by the name of the Old Woman who Never Dies, and call on them saying, “Mother, pity us; do not send the severe cold too soon, lest we do not gain enough meat. Prevent the game from departing, so that we may have something for the winter!”

In autumn, when the birds migrate to the south, or, as the Indians say, return to the Old Woman, they believe that they take with them the dried meat hung on the scaffolds, and they imagine that the Old Woman partakes of it.

The Old Woman who Never Dies has very large patches of corn, kept for her by the great stag and the white-tailed stag. She has, too, many blackbirds which help to guard her property. When she intends to feed these keepers, she summons them, and they fall on the corn, which they devour with greediness. As these corn patches are large, the Old Woman requires many laborers, hence she has the mice, moles, and stags to perform such work for her. The birds which fly from the seashore in the spring represent the Old Woman, who then travels to the north to visit the Old Man who Never Dies, who always resides there. She generally returns to the south in three or four days. In former times the Old Woman’s hut was near the Little Missouri River, where the Indians often visited her. One day twelve Hidatsa went to her, and she set before them a kettle of corn, which was so small that it did not appear sufficient to satisfy the hunger of one of the party. But she told them to eat, and, as soon as the kettle was emptied it was filled again, and all the men had enough.[235]

GUARDIAN SPIRITS.

§ 325. The Mandan undertake nothing without first invoking their guardian spirits, which appear to them in dreams (see § 236). When a man wishes to choose his guardian spirit, he fasts for three or four days, and sometimes longer, retires to a solitary place, does penance, and sometimes sacrifices joints of his fingers. He howls and cries to the Lord of Life, or to the First Man, beseeching him to point out the guardian spirit. He continues in this excited condition until he dreams, and the first animal or other object which appears in the dream is the guardian spirit. Each man has such a spirit. There is on the[Pg 508] prairie a large hill, where they remain motionless many days, lamenting and fasting. Not far from this hill is a cave, into which they creep at night. The choice and adoration of guardian spirits is said to have been taught the people many years ago by the Ochkih-Hadda. It was he who taught them the art of tattooing, and who instituted medicine feasts.[236]

MANDAN BELIEF ABOUT SERPENTS AND GIANTS.

§ 326. The Mandan believe that there is a huge serpent which inhabits a lake three or four days’ journey from their village, and to which they make offerings. The tradition relates how two Mandan youths encountered a giant, who carried them to a village of giants. The latter part, which tells how one of the youths was changed into a huge serpent after killing and eating a serpent, resembles a Winnebago tradition.[237]

THUNDER LORE OF THE MANDAN.

§ 327. The Mandan believe that thunder is produced by the wings of a gigantic bird. When the bird flies softly, as is usually the case, he is not heard; but when he flaps his wings violently, he occasions a roaring noise. This bird is said to have two toes on each foot, one behind and one before. It dwells on the mountains, and builds nests there as large as one of the forts. It preys upon deer and other large animals, the horns of which are heaped up around the nest. The glance of its eyes produces lightning. It breaks through the clouds and makes way for the rain. The isolated and peculiarly loud claps of thunder are produced by a large tortoise which dwells in the clouds.

ASTRONOMICAL LORE.

§ 328. The stars are deceased men. When a child is born a star descends and appears on earth in human form; after death it reascends and appears again as a star in the heavens.

The rainbow is a spirit which accompanies the sun. Many affirm that the northern lights are occasioned by a large assembly of medicine men and distinguished warriors of several northern nations, who boil their prisoners and slain enemies in huge cauldrons.[238]

MYSTERY OBJECTS AND PLACES OF THE MANDAN AND HIDATSA.

§ 329. The mystery rock of the Mandan and Hidatsa is thus described by Lewis and Clarke:[239]

This medicine stone is the great oracle of the Mandans, and whatever it announces is believed with implicit confidence. Every spring and, on some occasions during the summer, a deputation visits the sacred spot, where there is a thick, porous stone 20 feet in circumference, with a smooth surface. Having reached the place, the ceremony of smoking to it is performed by the deputies, who alternately take a whiff[Pg 509] themselves, and then present the pipe to the stone; after which they retire to an adjoining wood for the night, during which it may be safely presumed that all the embassy do not sleep. In the morning they read the destinies of the nation in the white marks on the stone, which those who made them are at no loss to decipher.

The same stone, as worshiped by the Hidatsa, is thus described by James:[240]

The Me-ma-ho-pa or medicine stone  *  *  *  is a large, naked, and insulated rock situated in the midst of a small prairie, about a two days’ journey southwest of the village of that nation. In shape it resembles the steep roof of a house. The Minnetarees resort to it for the purpose of propitiating their Man-ho-pa or Great Spirit by presents, by fasting and lamentation, during the space of from three to five days. An individual who intends to perform this ceremony takes some presents with him,  *  *  *  and also provides a smooth skin upon which hieroglyphics may be drawn, and repairs to the rock accompanied by his friends and the magi. On his arrival he deposits the presents there, and, after smoking to the rock, he washes a portion of its face clean, and retires with his fellow devotees to a specified distance. During the principal part of his stay, he cries aloud to his god to have pity on him, to grant him success in war and hunting, to favor his endeavors to take prisoners, horses, and scalps from the enemy. When the time for his  *  *  *  prayer has elapsed he returns to the rock; his presents are no longer there, and he believes them to have been accepted and carried off by the Man-ho-pa himself. Upon the part of the rock which he had washed he finds certain hieroglyphics traced with white clay, of which he can generally interpret the meaning, particularly when assisted by some of the magi, who are no doubt privy to the whole transaction. These representations are supposed to relate to his future fortune, or to that of his family or nation; he copies them off  *  *  *  upon the skin which he brought with him for that purpose, and returns home to read from them to the people the destiny of himself or them. If a bear be represented with its head directed toward the village, the approach of a war-party or the visitation of some evil is apprehended. If, on the contrary, the tail of the bear be toward the village, nothing but good is anticipated, and they rejoice. They say that an Indian on his return from the rock exhibited  *  *  *  on his  *  *  *  chart the representation of a strange building, as erected near the village. They were all much surprised and did not perfectly comprehend its meaning; but four months afterward the prediction was, as it happened, verified, and a stockade trading house was erected there by the French trader Jessaume.

Matthews refers thus to this “oracle” of the Hidatsa and Mandan:[241]

The famous holy stone or medicine rock (Mihopaś, or Mandan, Mihopiniś)  *  *  *  was some two or three days’ journey from their residence. The Hidatsa now seldom refer to it, and I do not think they ever visit it.

§ 330. According to Maximilian:[242]

The Mandans have many other medicine establishments in the vicinity of their villages, all of which are dedicated to the superior powers.  *  *  *  Of those near Mitutahankuś, one consists of four poles placed in the form of a square; the two foremost have a heap of earth and green turf thrown up round them, and four buffalo skulls laid in a line between them, while twenty-six human skulls are placed in a row from one of the rear poles to the other, and on some of these skulls are painted single red stripes. Behind the whole two knives are stuck into the ground, and a bundle of twigs is fastened at the top of the poles with a kind of comb, or rake, painted red. The Indians repair to such places when they desire to make offerings or petitions;[Pg 510] they howl, lament, and make loud entreaties, often for many days together, to the Omahank-Numakshi. Another “medicine establishment” consisted of a couple of human figures, very clumsily made of skins, fixed on poles, and representing, as was told to Maximilian, the sun and moon, but in his opinion, probably the Omahank-Numakshi and the Old Woman that Never Dies.

§ 331. If a Mandan possesses a “medicine pipe” (i. e., what the Omaha and Ponka call a niniba weawaⁿ) he sometimes decides to adopt a “medicine son.” The young man whom he is to choose appears to him in a dream; but it is necessary that he should be of a good family, or have performed some exploit.[243]

DREAMS.

§ 332. Dreams afford the motives for many of their actions, even for the penances which they impose on themselves. They think that all which appears in their dreams must be true. Before they became acquainted with firearms, a Mandan dreamed of a weapon with which they could kill their enemies at a great distance, and soon after the white men brought them the first gun. In like manner they dreamed of horses before they obtained any. In many cases the guardian spirit is revealed to the fasting youth in a dream. If the Lord of Life makes him dream of a piece of cherry wood or of an animal, it is a good omen. The young men who follow such a dreamer to the battle have great confidence in his guardian spirit or “medicine.”[244]

ORACLES.

§ 333. The Mandan and Hidatsa consider the large gray owl a mystery bird, with whom they pretend to converse and to understand its attitudes and voice. Such owls are often kept alive in lodges, being regarded as soothsayers. They have a similar opinion of eagles.[245]

FETICHES.

§ 334. The skin of a white buffalo cow is an eminent fetich in the estimation of the Mandan and Hidatsa. The hide must be that of a young cow not over 2 years old, and be taken off complete, and tanned, with horns, nose, hoofs, and tail. It is worn on rare occasions.

When the owner wishes to sacrifice such a skin to the Omahank-Numakshi or to the Numank-Machana, he rolls it up, after adding some artemisia or an ear of corn, and then the skin remains suspended on a pole until it decays.[246]

Besides the white buffalo skins hung on tall poles as sacrifices, there were other strange objects hung on tall poles near the villages of the Mandan and Hidatsa. These figures were composed of skin, grass, and twigs, which seemed to represent the sun, moon, and perhaps the Omahank-Numakshi and the Numank-Machana. The Indians resorted to them when they wished to petition for anything, and sometimes howled for days and weeks together.[247]

For a reference to trees and stones, see § 348.

[Pg 511]

“Charata-Numakshi (the Chief of Wolves),” a Mandan, had a painted buffalo dress, which was his fetich. He valued it highly as a souvenir of his brother, who had been shot by the enemy.[248]

FOLK-LORE.

§ 335. When a child is born the father must not bridle a horse, that is, he must not fasten a lariat to the horse’s lower jaw, otherwise the infant would die in convulsions. Should the wife be enceinte when the husband bridled the horse ill luck would be sure to follow, frequently in the form of a failure to kill any game. If an Indian in such cases wounds a buffalo without being able to kill it quickly, he tries to take the buffalo’s heart home and makes his wife shoot an arrow through it; then again he feels confidence in his weapons that they will kill speedily.

The Indians affirm that a pregnant woman is very lucky at a game resembling billiards. If a woman passes between several Mandan who are smoking together it is a bad omen. Should a woman recline on the ground between men who are smoking a piece of wood is laid across her to serve as a means of communication between the men.

The strongest man now living among the Mandan, who has been the victor in several wrestling matches with the white people, always takes hold of his pipe by the head, for were he to touch another part of it the blood would suddenly rush from his nostrils. As soon as he bleeds in this manner he empties his pipe, throwing the contents into the fire, where it explodes like gunpowder, and the bleeding stops immediately. They say that nobody can touch this man’s face without bleeding at nose and mouth.

A certain Mandan affirms that whenever another offers him a pipe to smoke, out of civility, his mouth becomes full of worms, which he throws into the fire by handfuls.

Among the Hidatsa, when a certain man smoked very slowly no person in the lodge was allowed to speak nor to move a single limb, except to grasp the pipe. Neither women, children, nor dogs were allowed to remain in the hut while the man was smoking, and some one was always placed as a guard at the entrance. If, however, there were just seven persons present to smoke none of these precautions were observed. When the particular man cleared his pipe and shook the ashes into the fire it blazed up, perhaps because he had put into the pipe some gunpowder or similar combustible. When any person had a painful or diseased place this same man put his pipe upon it and smoked. On such occasions he did not swallow the smoke, as is the Indian custom, but he affirmed that he could extract the disease by his smoking, and he pretended to seize it in his hand and to throw into the fire.[249]

SORCERY.

§ 336. They believe that a person whom they dislike must die, if [Pg 512]they make a figure of wood or clay, substituting for the heart an awl, a needle, or a porcupine quill, and bury the image at the foot of one of their “medicine poles.”[250]

JUGGLERY.

§ 337. The “medicine of one man consists in making a snow ball, which he rolls a long time between his hands, so that at length it becomes hard and is changed into a white stone, which, when struck, emits a fire. Many persons, even whites, pretended they had seen this, and they can not be convinced to the contrary. The same man pretends that, during a dance, he plucked white feathers from a certain small bird, which he rolled between his hands, and formed of them in a short time a similar white stone.  *  *  *  A great many Mandan and Hidatsa believe that they have wild animals in their bodies; one, for instance, affirmed that he had a buffalo calf, the kicking of which he often felt; others said that they had tortoises, frogs, lizards, birds, etc.   *  *  *  Among the Hidatsa were seen medicine dances of the women, where one claimed to have an ear of corn in her body, which she ejected from her mouth during the dance, and then ate, after it had been mixed with Artemisia.  *  *  *  Another female dancer caused blood to gush from her mouth at will.”[251]

GHOST LORE.

§ 338. The Mandan believe that each person has several spirits dwelling within him; one of which is black, another brown, and a third light-colored, the last alone returning to the Lord of Life. They think that after death they go to the south, to several villages which are visited by the gods; that their existence there is dependent on their course of life while in this world; that the brave and kind-hearted carry on the same occupation, eat similar food, have wives, and enjoy the pleasures of war and the chase. Some of the Mandan are said not to believe all these particulars, but to suppose that after death their spirits will dwell in the sun or in certain stars.

THE FUTURE LIFE.

§ 339. The Mandan belief in a future state is connected with the tradition of their origin: The whole nation resided in one large village under ground, near a subterraneous lake. Some of the people climbed up to this earth by means of a grape-vine, which broke when a corpulent woman essayed to climb it. Therefore the rest of the people remained in the subterranean village. When the Mandan die they expect to return to the original seats of their forefathers, the good reaching the ancient village by means of the lake, which the burden of the sins of the wicked will not enable them to cross.[252] The concluding clause of the [Pg 513]last sentence can hardly be of Indian origin; it is very probably due to white influence.

FOUR AS A MYSTIC NUMBER AMONG THE MANDAN.

§ 340. According to Catlin:[253]

The Okipa invariably lasts four days; four men are selected by the first man to cleanse out and prepare the mystic lodge for the occasion; one of these men is called from the north part of the village, another from the east, a third from the south, and the fourth from the west (see § 373). The four sacks of water, in the forms of large tortoises, resting on the floor of the lodge, seem to typify the four cardinal points. The four buffalo skulls and as many human skulls on the floor of the lodge, the four couples of dancers in the buffalo dance and the four intervening dancers in the same dance, deserve our study. The buffalo dance in front of the mystic lodge, repeated on the four days, is danced four times on the first day, eight times on the second, twelve times on the third, and sixteen times on the fourth. There are four sacrifices of black and blue cloths erected over the entrance of the mystic lodge. The visits of the Evil Spirit were paid to four of the buffalo in the buffalo dance. In every instance the young man who submitted to torture in the Okipa had four splints or skewers run through the flesh on his leg, four through his arms, and four through his body.

HIDATSA CULTS.

HIDATSA DIVINITIES.

§ 341. The Hidatsa believe in the Man who Never Dies, or Lord of Life, Ehsicka-Wahaddish,[254] literally, the first man, who dwells in the Rocky Mountains. He made all things. Another being whom they venerate is called the Grandmother. She roams over the earth. She had some share in creation, though an inferior one, for she created the toad and the sand-rat. She gave the Hidatsa two kettles, which they still preserve as a sacred treasure and employ as charms or fetiches on certain occasions. She directed the ancestors of the present Indians to preserve the kettles and to remember the great waters, whence came all the animals dancing. The red-shouldered oriole (Psaracolius phoeniceus) came at that time out of the water, as well as the other birds which still sing along the banks of rivers. The Hidatsa, therefore, look on all these birds as “medicine” for their corn patches, and attend to their songs. When these birds sing the Hidatsa, remembering the direction of the Grandmother, fill the two kettles with water, dance and bathe, in order to commemorate the great flood. When their fields are threatened with a great drought they celebrate a “medicine” feast with the two kettles, as they beg for rain. The shamans are still paid, on such occasions, to sing for four days together in the huts, while the kettles remain full of water.

§ 342. The sun, or as they term it, “the sun of the day,” is a great power. They do not know what it really is, but when they are about to undertake some enterprise they sacrifice to it and also to the moon, [Pg 514]which they call “the sun of the night.” The morning star, Venus, they regard as the child of the moon, and they account it as a great power. They affirm that it was originally a Hidatsa, being the grandson of the Old Woman who Never Dies.[255]

§ 343. Matthews[256] found that the object of the greatest reverence among the Hidatsa was, perhaps, the Itsika-mahidiś, the First Made, or First in Existence. They assert that he made all things, the stars, sun, the earth, the first representatives of each species of animals and plants, but that no one made him. He also, they say, instructed the forefathers of the tribes in all the ceremonies and mysteries now known to them. They sometimes designate him as Itaka-te-taś, or Old Man Immortal.

ANIMISM.

§ 344. If we use the term worship in its most extended sense it may be said that  *  *  *  (the Hidatsa) worship everything in nature. Not man alone, but the sun, the moon, the stars, all the lower animals, all trees and plants, rivers and lakes, many bowlders and other separated rocks, even some hills and buttes which stand alone—in short, everything not made by human hands, which has an independent being, or can be individualized, possesses a spirit, or, more properly, a shade.

To these shades some respect or consideration is due, but not equally to all. For instance, the shade of the cottonwood, the greatest tree of the Upper Missouri Valley, is supposed to possess an intelligence which may, if properly approached, assist them in certain undertakings; but the shades of shrubs and grasses are of little importance. When the Missouri, in its spring-time freshets, cuts down its bank and sweeps some tall tree into its current, it is said that the spirit of the tree cries while the roots yet cling to the land and until the tree falls into the water. Formerly it was considered wrong to cut down one of these great trees, and, when large logs were needed, only such as were found fallen were used; and to-day some of the more credulous old men declare that many of the misfortunes of the people are the result of their modern disregard for the rights of the living cottonwood. The sun is held in great veneration, and many valuable sacrifices are made to it.[257]

WORSHIP OF THE ELEMENTS, ETC.

§ 345. This is in substantial accord with what Maximilian was told, as will be seen from the following:

In the sweat bath the shaman, after cutting off a joint of the devotee’s fingers, takes a willow twig, goes to the dishes containing food, dips the twig in each and throws a part of the contents in the direction of the four winds, as offerings to the Lord of Life, the fire, and the divers superhuman powers.[258]

SERPENT WORSHIP.

§ 346. The Hidatsa make occasional offerings to the great serpent that dwells in the Missouri River by placing poles in the river and [Pg 515]attaching to them sundry robes or colored blankets. The tradition of this great serpent resembles the Mandan tradition, but with some differences.[259]

§ 347. Daimonism.—The Hidatsa believe neither a hell nor in a devil, but believe that there are one or more evil genii, in female shape, who inhabit this earth, and may harm the Indian in this life, but possess no power beyond the grave. Such a power or powers they call Mahopa-miiś. The Mahopa-miiś dwells in the woods and delights in doing evil. She is supposed to strangle such children as, through parental ignorance or carelessness, are smothered in bed.[260]

FETICHES.

§ 348. Among the fetiches of the Hidatsa are the skins of every kind, of fox and wolf, especially the latter; and, therefore, when they go to war, they always wear the stripe off the back of a wolf skin, with the tail hanging down the shoulders. They make a slit in the skin through which the warrior puts his head, so that the skin of the wolf’s head hangs down upon his breast.

Tribal fetiches.—Buffalo heads also are fetiches. In one of their villages they preserved the neck bones of the buffalo, as do the Crow or Absaroka, and this is done with a view to prevent the buffalo herds from removing to too great a distance from them. At times they perform the following ceremony with these bones: They take a potsherd with live coals, throw sweet-smelling grass upon it, and fumigate the bones with the smoke.

There are certain trees and stones which are fetiches, as among the Mandan. At such places they offer red cloth, red paint, and other articles to the superhuman powers.[261] (See § 334.)

In the principal Hidatsa village, when Maximilian visited it, was a long pole set up, on which was a figure of a woman, doubtless representing the Grandmother, who first gave them kettles. A bundle of brushwood was hung on the pole, to which were attached the leathern dress and leggins of a woman. The head of the figure was made of Artemisia, and on it was a cap of feathers.[262]

§ 349. Personal fetiches.—Matthews uses the term amulet instead of personal fetich, in speaking of the Hidatsa:

Every man in this tribe, as in all neighboring tribes, has his personal medicine, which is usually some animal. On all war parties, and often on hunts and other excursions, he carries the head, claws, stuffed skin, or other representative of his medicine with him, and seems to regard it in much the same light that Europeans in former days regarded—and in some cases still regard—protective charms. To insure the fleetness of some promising young colt, they tie to the colt’s neck a small piece of [Pg 516]deer or antelope horn. The rodent teeth of the beaver are regarded as potent charms, and are worn by little girls on their necks to make them industrious.[263]

The “Medicine Rock” of the Mandan and Hidatsa has been described in § 329.

§ 350. Oracles.—Matthews speaks of another oracle, to which the Hidatsa now often refer, the Makadistati, or house of infants, a cavern near Knife River, which they supposed extended far into the earth, but whose entrance was only a span wide. It was resorted to by the childless husband or the barren wife. There are those among them who imagine that in some way or other their children come from the Makadistati; and marks of contusion on an infant, arising from tight swaddling or other causes, are gravely attributed to kicks received from his former comrades when he was ejected from his subterranean home.[264]

§ 351. James says:

At the distance of the journey of one day and a half from Knife Creek  *  *  *  are two conical hills, separated by about the distance of a mile. One of these hills was supposed to impart a prolific virtue to such squaws as resorted to it for the purpose of lamenting their barrenness. A person one day walking near the other hill, fancied he observed on the top of it two very small children. Thinking that they had strayed from the village, he ran towards them to induce them to return home, but they immediately fled from him.  *  *  *  and in a short time they eluded his sight. Returning to the village, the relation of his story excited much interest, and an Indian set out the next day, mounted on a fleet horse, to take the little strangers. On the approach of this person to the hill he also saw the children, who ran away as before, and though he tried to overtake them by lashing the horse to his utmost swiftness, the children left him far behind. These children are no longer to be seen, and the hill once of such singular efficacy in rendering the human species prolific has lost this remarkable property.[265]

Matthews[266] says that this account seems to refer to the Makadistati, but, if such is the case, he believes that the account is incorrect in some respects.

DREAMS.

§ 352. The Hidatsa have much faith in dreams, but usually regard as oracular only those which come after prayer, sacrifice, and fasting.[267]

BERDACHES.

§ 353. The French Canadians call those men berdaches who dress in women’s clothing and perform the duties usually allotted to women in an Indian camp. By most whites these berdaches are incorrectly supposed to be hermaphrodites. They are called miati by the Hidatsa, from mia, a woman, and the ending, ti, to feel an involuntary inclination, [Pg 517]i. e., to be impelled against his will to act the woman. See the Omaha miⁿquga, the Kansa miⁿquge, and the Dakota wiŋkta and wiŋkte (§§ 30, 212.)

ASTRONOMICAL LORE.

§ 354. Ursa major is said to be an ermine, the several stars of that constellation indicating, in their opinion, the burrow, the head, the feet, and the tail of that animal. They call the milky way the “ashy way.”

They think that thunder is caused by the flapping of the wings of the large bird, which causes rain, and that the lightning is the glance of his eye when he seeks prey.

They call the rainbow, “the cap of the water,” or “the cap of the rain.” Once, say they, an Indian caught in the autumn a red bird that had mocked him, releasing it after binding its feet together with a fish line. The bird saw a hare and pounced upon it, but the hare crept into the skull of a buffalo lying on the prairie, and as the line hanging from the bird’s claws formed a semicircle, they imagine that the rainbow is still caused by that occurrence.[268]

FOOD LORE.

§ 355. They have queer notions respecting the effects of different articles of diet; thus: an expectant mother believes that if she eats a part of a mole or shrew, her child will have small eyes; that if she eats a piece of porcupine, her child will be inclined to sleep too much when it grows up; that if she partakes of the flesh of the turtle, her offspring will be slow or lazy, etc.; but they do not suppose that such articles of food affect the immediate consumer.

FOUR SOULS IN EACH HUMAN BEING.

§ 356. “It is believed by some of the Hidatsa that every human being has four souls in one. They account for the phenomena of gradual death where the extremities are apparently dead while consciousness remains, by supposing the four souls to depart, one after another, at different times. When dissolution is complete, they say that all the souls are gone, and have joined together again outside of the body. I have heard a Minnetaree quietly discussing this doctrine with an Assinneboine, who believed in only one soul to each body.”[269]

SORCERY.

§ 357. “They have faith in witchcraft, and think that a sorcerer may injure a person, no matter how far distant, by acts upon an effigy or upon a lock of the victim’s hair.”[270]

[Pg 518]

DISPOSAL OF THE DEAD.

§ 358. The Hidatsa always lay their dead upon scaffolds. As the Lord of Life is displeased when they quarrel and kill one another, those who do so are buried in the earth, that they may be no longer seen. In this case a buffalo head is laid on the grave, that the herds of buffalo may not keep away, for, if they were to smell the wicked, they might remove and never return. The good are laid upon scaffolds, that they may be seen by the Lord of Life.[271]

The Crows have no fear of death, but they have a horror of being buried in the ground.[272]

HIDATSA BELIEF AS TO FUTURE EXISTENCE.

§ 359. They think that after death they will be restored to the mansions of their ancestors under ground, from which they are intercepted by a large and rapid watercourse. Over this river, which may be compared to the Styx of the ancients, they are obliged to pass on a very narrow footway. Those Indians who have been useful to the nation, such as brave warriors or good hunters, pass over with ease and arrive safely at A-pah-he, or ancient village. But the worthless Indians slip off from the bridge or footway into the stream which   *  *  *  hurries them into oblivion.[273]

Their faith concerning a future life is this: When a Hidatsa dies his shade lingers four nights around the camp or village in which he died, and then goes to the lodge of his departed kindred in the Village of the Dead. When he has arrived there, he is rewarded for his valor, self-denial, and ambition on earth by receiving the same regard in the one place as in the other; for there, as here, the brave man is honored and the coward despised. Some say that the ghosts of those who commit suicide occupy a separate part of the village, but that their condition differs in no wise from that of the others. In the next world, human shades hunt and live on the shades of the buffalo and other animals that have here died. There too there are four seasons, but they come in an inverse order to the terrestrial seasons. During the four nights that the ghost is supposed to linger near his former dwelling, those who disliked or feared the deceased, and do not wish a visit from the shade, scorch with red coals a pair of moccasins, which they leave at the door of the lodge. The smell of the burning leather, they claim, keeps the ghost out; but the true friends of the dead man take no such precautions.  *  *  *  They believe in the existence and advisability of human and other ghosts, yet they seem to have no terror of graveyards and but little of mortuary remains. You may frighten children after nightfall by shouting noḣidaḣi (ghost), but will not scare the aged.[274]

SAPONA CULTS.

§ 359½. The following account of the religion of the Sapona, a tribe related to the Tutelo, was given in 1729 by Col. William Byrd, of Westover, Va.[275] While much of it appears to be the white man’s amplification [Pg 519]of the Indian’s narrative, it is plain that the account contains a few aboriginal beliefs. For this reason, and because it is the only known account of the Sapona religion, it is now given in full:

“In the evening we examined our friend Bearskin concerning the religion of his country, and he explained it to us, without any of that reserve to which his nation is subject. He told us he believed there was one supreme God, who had several subaltern deities under him. And that this Master-God made the world a long time ago. That He told the sun, the moon and stars their business in the beginning, which they, with good looking after, have faithfully perform’d ever since. That the same Power that made all things at first has taken care to keep them in the same method and motion ever since. He believed God had form’d many worlds before He form’d this, but that those worlds either grew old or ruinous, or were destroy’d for the dishonesty of the inhabitants. That God is very just and very good—ever well pleas’d with those men who possess those God-like qualities. That He takes good people under His safe protection, makes them very rich, fills their bellies plentifully, preserves them from sickness and from being surpriz’d or overcome by their enemies. But all such as tell lies and cheat  *  *  *  He never fails to punish with sickness, poverty and hunger, and after all that, suffers them to be knockt on the head and scalpt by those that fight against them. He believed that after death both good and bad people are conducted by a strong guard into a great road, in which departed souls travel together for some time till, at a certain distance this road forks into two paths[276], the one extremely levil, the other stony and mountainous. Here the good are parted from the bad by a flash of lightning, the first being hurry’d away to the right, the other to the left. The right hand road leads to a charming warm country, where the spring is everlasting, and every month is May; and as the year is always in its youth, so are the people, and particularly the women are bright as the stars, and never scold. That in this happy climate there are deer, turkeys, elk, and buffaloes innumerable, perpetually fat and gentle, while the trees are loaded with delicious fruit quite throughout the four seasons. That the soil brings forth corn spontaneously, without the curse of labour, and so very wholesome, that none who have the happiness to eat of it are ever sick, grow old or dy. Near the entrance into this blessed land sits a venerable old man on a mat richly woven, who examins strictly all that are brought before him, and if they have behav’d well, the guards are order’d to open the crystal gate and let them enter the land of delights. The left hand path is very rugged and uneven, leading to a dark and barren country, where it is always winter. The ground is the whole year round cover’d with snow, and nothing is seen upon the trees but icicles. All the people are hungry, yet have not a morsel to eat except a bitter kind of potato, that gives them the dry-gripes, and fills their whole body with loathsome ulcers, that stink and are insupportably painful. Here all the women are old and ugly, having claws like a panther, with which they fly upon the men that slight their passion. For it seems these haggard old furies are intolerably fond, and expect a vast amount of cherishing. They talk much, and exceedingly shrill, giving exquisite pain to the drum of the ear, which in that place of torment is so tender, that every sharp note wounds it to the quick. At the end of this path sits a dreadful old woman on a monstrous toadstool, whose head is cover’d with rattlesnakes instead of tresses, with glaring white eyes, that strike a terror unspeakable into all that behold her. This hag pronounces sentence of woe upon all the miserable wretches that hold up their hands at her tribunal. After this they are deliver’d over to huge turkey-buzzards like harpys, that fly away with them to the place above mentioned. Here, after they have been tormented a certain number of years, according to their several degrees of guilt, they are again driven back into this world, to try if they will mend their manners, and merit a place next time in the regions of bliss.”

[Pg 520]

CHAPTER VII. CONCLUDING REMARKS.

PEET ON INDIAN RELIGIONS.

§ 360. In the Journal of the Victoria Institute of Great Britain for 1888,[277] is an article containing the following statements, which were not seen by the writer until he had completed the preceding chapters of this paper.

Referring to Mr. Eells, the Nez Percé missionary, and to Mr. Williams, who has been laboring among the Chippewas, Mr. Peet observes:[278]

There are four or five points on which both missionaries seem to be agreed  *  *  *  These four doctrines—the existence of God, immortality of the soul, the sinfulness of man, and the necessity of sacrifice—seem to have been held in various modified forms by all the tribes in North America.

On the next page[279] he gives a classification of native religions, by which he means those of America. He says that these religions may be divided by geographical districts into several classes:

(1) Shamanism, by which he seems to mean the worship of the wakan men and women. “Among the Eskimos, Aleuts, and other hyperborean nations, who subsist chiefly by fishing.” (2) Animism, by which he probably means the worship of “souls” or “shades,” including ghosts, as every object, whether animate or inanimate, is thought to have a “shade.” This belief, he says, is found in its highest stage among tribes that formerly dwelt in British North America, between Hudsons Bay and the Great Lakes. These tribes subsist by hunting. (3) Animal worship, practiced by a class partly hunters, partly farmers, dwelling, say, between 35° and 48° N. lat. (4) Sun worship, the cult of the tribes south of 35° N. lat., and extending to the Gulf of Mexico. (5) Elemental worship, which he defines as “the worship of rain, lightning, the god of war and death,” found in Mexico and New Mexico. (6) Anthropomorphism, a religion which gave human attributes to the divinities, but assigned to them supernatural powers. This prevailed in Central America.

[Pg 521]

THE AUTHOR’S REPLY.

§ 361. But what do we find prevalent among the tribes under consideration in this paper?

I. Idea of God.—The Siouan tribes considered in this paper were not monotheists (§§ 26, 94, 95, 311). The statement recorded in § 21 about a crude belief in a Supreme Being, which the Omaha called Wakanda, was accepted by the author as the belief of his informants; but we must remember that the Omaha tribe has been in a transition state for many years, certainly since 1855, and possibly since the days of Maj. Long’s visits to them. (2) That these Indians believed in a Great Spirit who was supreme over all other superhuman powers needs more evidence. The only assertion of such a belief which the author has gained was obtained from an Omaha (see § 22), but this assertion was denied by two other members of that tribe. (3) In those cases alleged as proving a belief in one Great Spirit, a closer study of the language employed reveals the fact that a generic term has been used instead of a specific one, and, in almost every instance, the writer who tells of one Great Spirit supplements his account by relating what he has learned about beliefs in many gods or spirits. (4) These tribes had cults of many powers; everything animate and inanimate was regarded as having a “shade.”

II. Belief in immortality.—The author finds no traces of a belief in the immortality of human beings. Even the gods of the Dakota were regarded as being mortal, for they could be killed by one another (§ 94). They were male and female; they married and died, and were succeeded by their children. But if for “immortality” we substitute “continuous existence as shades or ghosts” there will be no difficulty in showing that the Siouan tribes referred to held such a belief respecting mankind, and that they very probably entertained it in a crude form prior to the advent of the white race to this continent (§§ 67-71, 91, 338).

III. Idea of sin.—The scriptural idea of sin seems to be wanting among these tribes. There have been recorded by the author and others many acts which were deemed violations of religious law, but few of them can be compared with what the Bible declares to be sins. It was dangerous to make a false report to the keeper of the sacred tent of war or to the directors of the buffalo hunt, in the estimation of the Omaha, for the offender was sure to be struck by lightning or bitten by a snake or killed by a foe or thrown by a horse or have some other disaster befall him.[280] It was dangerous to break the taboo of any gens or subgens, or to violate any other ancient custom.[281] (See §§ 45, 68, 222, and 286 of this paper.)

IV. Idea of sacrifice.—The idea of sacrifice as atoning for sin has not yet been found by the author among these Siouan tribes. In no [Pg 522]instance of sacrifice recorded in this paper has the author detected any notion of expiation for sin against a just and holy Being. But sacrifice, whether in the form of fasting, self-torture, or the offering of property, was made in order to win the favor of a god, to obtain a temporal advantage (§§ 28, 29, 101, 144, etc.), or to avert the anger of demons, as when the people were suffering from famine or an epidemic (§ 144).

V. Shamanism.—While there have been shamans and various orders of shamans among these tribes, no trace of a worship of shamans as gods has yet been found. On one occasion the author met a Ponka shaman, Cramped Hand, who exclaimed, “I am a wakanda.” But no other Ponka ever said that he or she worshiped Cramped Hand as a wakanda.

VI. The other beliefs named by Dr. Peet have been found, in some tribes, side by side. Animism, or a form of animism, was held by those who worshiped the sun, animals, etc. “Everything had a soul” (§§ 97, 136, 137, 265-288, 344, etc.). Certain animals were worshiped (§§ 24, 43, 78, 92, 326, etc.). The sun was invoked, not only in the sun dance (§§ 139-212), but on other occasions (§§ 28, 43, 73, 312, 323). Stars, too, were regarded as gods (§§ 31, 43). Elemental worship had a wider significance among these tribes than Dr. Peet assigns it (§§ 27, 33-35, 43, 44, 74-77, 363, etc.). And there are traces of anthropomorphism, for some of the gods are in human form (§§ 217, 235); others are supposed to inhale the odor of tobacco smoke, which is pleasant to them; they eat, breathe, use weapons against one another as well as against human beings, and on one occasion an Indian was called on to aid one or the other of two contending gods; they hear, think, marry, die, and are succeeded by their children (§§ 25, 29, 35, 36, 72, 75, 94, 109, 112, 117, 119, 136, 217, 322, etc.).[282]

§ 362. The cults affected the social organization of the tribes that had gentes bearing mystic names (see §§ 57 and 82 of this paper, and Om. Soc., in 3d An. Rept. Bur. Eth., Chap. iii, and pp. 356, 359-361); orders of shamans and other secret societies were intimately associated with them (§§ 43-45, 86, 87, and 89; and Om. Soc., pp. 342-355); personal names still refer to them (§§ 31, 47, 53, 59, 74, 75, and 77; and Om. Soc., pp. 228, 232, 236, 238-244, 246-248, 250, and 251); and almost every act of the daily life of the people was influenced by them (§§ 23, 24, 27, 28-30, 32, 33-36, 39-41, 54, 101, etc.; and Om. Soc., Chap. vi, and pp. 267, 274, 286, 287, 289-291, 293-299, 316, 319-325, 327, 328, 357, 368-370).

CULTS OF THE ELEMENTS.

§ 363. Prior to writing this paper, the author had observed what Dr. Foster stated in his Indian Record and Historical Data respecting the division of the Winnebago tribe into four groups, named after the earth, air, fire, and water, respectively, i.e., Foster claimed that the Winnebago had people named after land animals, others after birds and[Pg 523] the winds, others after the thunder-beings, and others after the Waktceqi or water monsters.[283] (See § 96.)

FIG. 193.—The Ȼatada gentile circle.

During the year 1890 the author obtained from the three principal Ponka chiefs the classification of their gentes by phratries, and the character of the mystic songs peculiar to each phratry.

On comparing this information with that which has been related about the Dakota gods, there seemed to be good reasons for inferring that not only the Dakota tribes, but also the Omaha, Ponka, Winne-bago, and others of the same stock, divided their gods into four classes, those of the earth, wind-makers, fire, and water.

§ 364. Among the Omaha, Iowa, and cognate tribes, we find that when a gens assembled as a whole, for council purposes, they sat around the fire in the order shown in the accompanying diagram, Fig. 193:

Legend.—1, Black Bear subgens; 2, Small Bird subgens; 3, Eagle subgens; 4, Turtle subgens; 5, fireplace; 6, entrance.

Places in the circle were assigned according to kinship; thus, the Black Bear and Small Bird people are spoken of as “sitting on the same side of the fireplace,” as they are full kin, while they are only partially related to those who sit on the other side (Nos. 3 and 4). That the fireplace was sacred, there being traces of a hearth cult, has been shown in §§ 33 and 40. Furthermore, the Ȼatada circle is remarkable not only for its arrangement according to kinship, but for its symbolic character; because the Black Bear people are associated with the ground or earth, as is shown by their personal names; the Small Bird people are Thunder-beings or Fire people; the Eagle subgens consist of “Wind-maker” people; and the Turtle subgens is composed of Water people.

FIG. 194.—The four elements, etc.

§ 365. This suggests another diagram, Fig. 194, in which the author has put the names of four classes of Dakota gods, with what he suspects to be their appropriate colors, R standing for red, B for black, Y for yellow, and Bl for blue.

[Pg 524]

Earth people serve or assist Fire people (§ 35 and perhaps § 36). Do Water people ever serve Wind-maker people (see address to a stream in time of war, § 23)? The Fire powers are hostile to the powers of the Water (§§ 75, 77, 117-119); we have yet to learn whether, in any gens, a subgens named after the Thunder-being sits on the same side of the gentile fireplace with a subgens named after a power of the Water. Is there a warfare going on between the powers of the Earth and the Wind-makers? The Fire powers and Wind-makers are concerned in all kinds of suffering, including war, disease, and death (§§ 117, 119, 127, 129), and there is no hostility existing between them.[284]

The Kaⁿ[s]e gens of the Osage has several names, Wind people, South-wind people, Those who light the pipes (in council), and Fire people.

The powers of the Earth and Water are interested in the preservation of life, and so we may consider them the patrons of peace. “Peace,” in Omaha, Ponka, and ┴ɔiwere, means “The land is good,” and “to make peace” is expressed by “to make the land good.” The words for “water” and “life” are identical in some of the Siouan languages, and they differ but slightly in others.

It is interesting to note what has been said by Mr. Francis La Flesche[285] about water: “Water seems to hold an important place in the practice of this medicine society, even when roots are used for the healing of wounds. The songs say: ‘Water was sent into the wound,’ ‘Water will be sent into his wound,’ etc.” The mystic songs of the doctors of the order of buffalo shamans tell of the pool of water in a buffalo wallow where the wounded one shall be treated.

But we must note some apparent inconsistencies. While the Unkteḣi created the earth and the human race (§ 112), they are believed to feed on human spirits or ghosts; though ghosts are reckoned among the servants of the Unkteḣi! And while the powers of the Fire and Water are enemies, one is surprised to observe that in the war gens of the Omaha as well as in the two war gentes of the Kansa, there is the sacred clam shell as well as the war pipe! (See § 36 and Om. Soc., p. 226.)

THE FOUR QUARTERS.

§ 366. According to the tradition of the Iñke-sabĕ, an Omaha buffalo people, the ancestral buffaloes found the East and South winds bad ones; but the North and West winds were good. From this the author infers that the Omaha associated the East with the Fire powers or the sun, the South[286] with the Air powers, the North with the Earth powers, and the West with the Water powers.

On the other hand, an Iowa man told Mr. Hamilton that the South [Pg 525]wind was a beneficent one, while the Northeast wind was maleficent (§ 74). This variation may have been caused by a difference in the habitats of the tribes referred to.

§ 367. Among the Kansa, Pahaⁿle-gaqli and Aliⁿkawahu, when they invoked the four winds, began at the left (as they were Yata people) with the East wind (Bazaⁿta, Toward the Pines), next they turned to the South wind (Ak’a, whence one of the names of the Kaⁿze gens), then to the West wind (Ak’a jiñga or Ak’uye), and lastly to the North wind (Hnita, Toward the Cold).[287] (See Fig. 195.)

FIG. 195.—Kansa order of invoking the winds, etc.

FIG. 196.—Tsiɔu (Osage) order of placing the four sticks, etc.

It should be noted that those Kansa war captains, Pahaⁿle-gaqli and Aliⁿkawahu, belong to gentes on the left side of the tribal circle. They were facing the South before they began the invocations to the various powers including the four winds. See § 200 for the order (E, S, W, N) observed in felling the tree to be used as a sun pole. The same order was observed by the Dakota “priest” in the ceremonies pertaining to the White Buffalo festival of the Hunkpapa, as related by Miss Fletcher: in placing cherries on the plate, in pouring water on the piles of cherries, in placing tufts of swan’s down on the plate[288], in rotating the plate, in circling the heap of black earth[289], and in giving the four pinches of consecrated meat to the four sons of the owner of the white buffalo hide.[290]

§ 368. The Tciɔu old man of the Osage tribe consecrated each mystic hearth by placing four sticks in the form of a cross, beginning at the west, as shown in Fig. 196, then laying the sticks at the north, east, and south, as he named the four mystic buffaloes (§ 33). This Tsiɔu man belonged to the peace side of his tribe, and he began with the quarters referring to the peace elements. But the Paⁿɥka old man of the same tribe, when he consecrated the mystic fireplaces for his half-tribe, began on the right, with the stick at the east, as shown in Fig. 197. He belonged to the war side of the tribe, though his gens was a peace-making gens!

[Pg 526]

§ 369. The Maⁿyiñka and ṵpaⁿ gentes of the Kansa tribe consecrated the mystic fireplaces for their people; but we have not obtained the particulars of the Kansa ceremony, which probably resembled that in which the T[s]iɔu and Paⁿɥka old men took part.

According to Two Crows and the late Joseph La Flèche, there were four sacred stones in the custody of the Maⁿȼiñka-gaxe or Earth-lodge-makers’ gens of the Omaha: red, black, yellow, and blue.[291]

§ 370. Whenever the Osage warriors came in sight of their village on returning from an expedition against the enemy, they were met outside the village by the principal man of the Kaⁿ[s]e (the Wind or South wind gens.) This Kaⁿ[s]e man walked around the warriors, performing a ceremony as he started from the north, repeating it at each quarter, and ending with the east, as shown in Fig. 198.

FIG. 197.—Paⁿɥka (Osage) order of placing the four sticks, etc.

FIG. 198.—Kaⁿse (Osage) order of circumambulation.]

§ 371. Assuming that we have a correct grouping of the four elements in Fig. 194, it appears that Pahaⁿle-gaqli and Aliⁿkawahu began with the quarters associated with war; that the T[s]iɔu old man began with those referring to peace, and the Paⁿɥka old man with those pertaining to war, and the principal man of the Kaⁿ[s]e gens with those on the peace side.

FIG. 199.—Showing how the Osage prepared the scalp for the dance.

§ 372. In cutting off the under skin from a scalp, the Osage war captain—

stood facing the East  *  *  *  Holding the scalp in one hand, with the other he placed the knife-blade across it, with the point toward the South (see Fig. 199). Then he turned the knife with the point toward the East. Next, with the blade resting on the scalp, the point to the South, he moved the knife backward and forward four times, cutting deeper into the scalp on each occasion. Then he made four similar cuts, but with the point to the East. After this, the flat part of the blade[Pg 527] being on the scalp, its edge was put against one of the four corners made by the previous incisions (1, 2, 3, and 4), beginning with No. 1. He cut under each corner four times, singing a sacred song each time that he changed the position of the knife.  *  *  *  The scalp was stretched and fastened to a bow, which was bent and formed into a hoop. This hoop was tied to a pole, which was carried by the principal kettle-bearer.[292]

Observe that in this ceremony the South and East were the mystic quarters, answering to the “bad winds” of the Iñke-sabĕ tradition.

When the Dakota “priest,” referred to in § 367, wished to rotate the plate containing the cherries and down, he grasped the plate with his right hand (note that the right side of the Osage circle was the war side) between the east and south piles of cherries and his left hand (compare with custom of T[s]iɔu gens of Osage, § 368) held the plate between the west and north piles.[293]

In the Hede-watci, the Omaha women and girls danced from the east to the south, and thence to the west and north, while the men and boys proceeded in a different order, beginning at the west, and dancing toward the north, and thence toward the east and south.[294]

SYMBOLIC COLORS.

§ 373. On the tent of Hupeȼa (Pl. XLIV, E), a black bear man, were represented four kinds of lightning—blue, red, black, and yellow. This was a mystery decoration (§ 45), and if the colors were associated with the four quarters, the powers were probably invoked in the order shown in Fig. 200. (See §§ 340, 369.)

FIG. 200.—Omaha lightnings and the four quarters.

§ 374. Blue is assumed to be the earth symbol for two reasons: (1) In the decorations of those who have had visions of bears, there is a broad blue band, representing the earth, out of which the bear is sometimes depicted as issuing; (2) and, furthermore, the Indians seldom distinguish between blue and green, hence, blue may symbolize grass and other vegetation, springing from the earth. In apparent contradiction of this use of blue, we are told by Lynd that “the Tunkan is painted red as a sign of active worship” (see § 132), and by Riggs (§ 133) that large bowlders were adorned with red and green paint, though the use of the two colors may have depended on a composite cult. In this connection attention is called to the battle standards represented on the tent of Ԁejequta, an Omaha. These painted standards had red and blue stripes, denoting the stripes of [Pg 528]Indian cloth, sometimes used instead of feathers on the real standards. The latter were carried by the leaders of war parties, and each standard could be used on four such expeditions. When the warriors approached the hostile camp, the keeper of the standard removed the scarf of blue and red cloth from the shaft and wore it around his neck as he went to steal horses (see Pl. XLIV, A, the name Bowlder Thunder-being in § 390, also § 388).

§ 375. Red is known to be the Omaha color for the east. Among the Dakota the spear and tomahawk, the weapons of war, were said to have been given by the Wakinyan, the Thunder-being or Fire power; hence they are painted red (§ 105).

The late Dr. S. R. Riggs informs us that—

In the tiyotipi were placed the bundles of the black and red sticks of the soldiers.[295]

Toward the rear of the tent, but near enough to the fire for convenient use, is a large pipe placed by the symbols of power. These are two bundles of shaved sticks about 6 inches long. The sticks in one bundle are painted black and in the other red. The black bundle represents the real men of the camp—those who have made their mark on the warpath. The red bundle represents the boys and such men as wear no eagle feathers.[296]

They shave out small round sticks all of the same length, and paint them red, and they are given out to the men. These are to constitute the tiyotipi.  *  *  *  Of all the round shaved sticks, some of which were painted black and some painted red, four were especially marked. They are the four chiefs of the tiyotipi that were made.[297]

§ 376. Black is assumed to be the symbolic color for the Takuśkanśkan, the Wind-makers, whose servants are the four winds and the four black spirits of night. Black as a war color is put on the face[298] of the warrior. The Santee Dakota consider the raven (a black bird) and a small black stone, less than a hen’s egg in size, symbols of the four winds or quarters. Among the Teton Dakota, the Takuśkanśkan symbols, are small pebbles of two kinds, one white, and, according to the description, translucent; the other “resembles ordinary pebbles,” probably in being opaque.

§ 377. Yellow is assumed to be the color symbolizing water, the west, and the setting sun. The Dakota, Omaha, Ponka, and ┴ɔiwere tribes have been familiar for years with the color of the water in the Missouri river. In a Yankton Dakota legend[299] recorded by the author it is said that when two mystery men prepared themselves to visit a spirit of the water in order to recover an Indian boy, one of the men painted his entire body black, and the other painted himself yellow (this seems to refer to the south and west, the windmakers and the spirits of the waters).

In certain Omaha tent decorations we find that the tent of a Turtle man (Fig. 161) has a yellow ground. A similar yellow ground on the[Pg 529] tent of Maⁿtcu-naⁿba of the Hañga gens (Fig. 174) may be connected with the tradition that the Hañga gens came originally from beneath the water. Too much stress, however, must not be placed upon the colors of such mystery decorations, as they may be found hereafter to have had another origin. It is conceivable, although we have no means of proving it, that he who had a vision, depicted on his robe and tent not only the colors pertaining to the objects seen in the vision, but also the color peculiar to the eponymic ancestor or power that was the “nikie” (§ 53). As some men were members of more than one order of shamans, their tent and robe decorations may refer to the one order rather than to the other, and sometimes there may be a reference to both orders. The yellow on the top of the tent of Frog, an Ictasanda man, was said to refer to a grizzly bear vision (fide George Miller, an Omaha—see Fig. 177.) But when we compare it with Pl. XLIV, D, showing the tent of a Hañga man, who was a Buffalo shaman as well as a Grizzly Bear shaman, we find that the top of the latter tent has a yellow band (apparently pointing to the Hañga tradition of an aquatic origin), as well as a blue band at the bottom (referring to the grizzly bear vision).

§ 378. From what has been said respecting the figures 194-199, we are led to make the following provisional coördinations:

NOTE.—The names of the Dakota gods are given because we have more information about them, and the exact Omaha equivalent for Takuśkanśkan has not been obtained.

§ 379. Miss Fletcher gave, in 1884, a list of symbolic colors, which differs somewhat from that which the author has suggested in the preceding section. She said:

White, blue, red, and yellow possess different meaning, yet are not very clearly determined by all tribes.[300] Among the Dakotas the following interpretation prevails: White is seldom used artificially; when it occurs in nature, as the white buffalo, deer, rabbit, etc., and on the plumage of birds, it indicates consecration. The sacred feathers and down are always white,[301] the former being taken from the underpart of the eagle’s wing and are soft and downy. This meaning of white holds good with the Omahas, Poncas, etc., and seems to have a wide application among the Indians. Blue represents the winds, the west, the moon, the water, the thunder, and sometimes the lightning.  *  *  *  Red indicates the sun, the stone, the forms of animal and vegetable life, the procreative force. Yellow represents sunlight as distinguished from the fructifying power of the sun.[302]

[Pg 530]

The author has never observed this use of white as a symbolic color. In speaking of albino animals, we infer that to the Siouan mind they are consecrated because they are rare. In fact, Miss Fletcher says:

The white buffalo is rare and generally remains near the center of the herd, which makes it difficult of approach. It is therefore considered as the chief or sacred one of the herd; and it is consequently greatly prized by the Indians.[303]

While the author is convinced of the great value of Miss Fletcher’s investigations, he inquires concerning the veracity of her interpreters. He would like to see more detailed evidence before he accepts as the Dakota classification one which puts in the same category not only the winds and thunder, but also the water, the west, and the moon. He also asks why should the moon be separated from the sun (see § 138), and why should the west be the only quarter symbolized by a color? Besides, the Dakota shamans say that the Thunder-beings are of four colors, black, yellow, scarlet, and blue (see § 116).

In response to the wish of the author, Miss Fletcher has kindly furnished him with the following letter of explanation, received after the rest of the paper had been written:

Consecration as applied to the color white in the article you have quoted needs a few words of explanation.

The almost universal appropriation of white animals to religious ceremonies is unquestionable; whether this selection rests wholly upon the rarity of this color is a little doubtful. The unusual is generally wakan; this feeling, however, is not confined to a color, and although the white buffalo and the white deer are not often met with, other white animals, as the rabbit, are not uncommon, nor are white feathers. It is true these white feathers are often colored for ceremonial uses, but the added colors have their particular meanings, and these do not seem to override the primal signification that the feathers selected to bear these symbolic colors are white. The natural suggestion that a white ground would best serve to set off the added lines may have been in the distant past the simple reason why white feathers were chosen; and this choice adhered to for generations would at last become clothed with a mysterious significance. If this were ever true, this reason for choosing white feathers is not recognized to-day. I have been frequently told, the feathers must be white.

While I should now hesitate to say that white symbolizes consecration, still, after continued study, I find the idea clinging about the color, which, as I said then, is seldom artificially used.

Various symbolic colors are not infrequently placed upon one object, so that the combining of symbols,[304] or even their occasional exchange, does not seem discordant to the Indian mind; this fact among others renders it difficult to draw a hard and fast line about any one color or symbol.

Further research has shown me that green and blue and black are related and that to a degree green and blue are interchangeable. Blue is regarded as a darkened green; that is, green removed from the light, not deepened in hue. Blue, therefore, stands intermediate between green which has the light on it; and blue shaded into black, which has no light on it. In some ceremonies green typifies the earth; in others blue is the symbol. The sky is sometimes represented by green, and again blue is used, while blue darkened to black stands for the destructive elements of the air.[Pg 531] I have found a subtle connection between the elements of earth and air that answers somewhat to the blending of the symbolic colors just spoken of. This connection is revealed in the reciprocal or complementary functions of gentes belonging to these two great divisions represented in the tribal structure, as well as in the reactionary character of the elements themselves as portrayed in the myths and typified in some ceremonies. For instance, the eagle mythically belongs to the air, and is allied to the destructive powers of the element and to wars upon the earth, yet the Eagle gens, although connected with the air division of the gentes, is in some tribes a peace gens. An enemy escaping to the tent of an Eagle man is safe and cannot be molested. In symbols eagle feathers are not only the pride and emblem of the warrior but they are essential in certain ceremonies of amity and peace-making.

A study of the position of gentes belonging to the divisions of earth and air, their tribal and ceremonial duties, together with their mythological significance, shows lines connecting the gentes of the earth with the gentes of the air which are vertical, so to speak, and might be represented as running north and south on the tribal circle, and indicating mediating offices as between contending or opposite forces.

It would occupy too much space to fully set forth my reasons for thinking blue-black to be the symbol of the thunder rather than red and yellow. Although thunder is allied to the four quarters, to the four elemental divisions and partakes of their symbolism, still a study of thunder myths, thunder-names, and the tribal offices of thunder gentes seems to me, at my present understanding of them, to indicate the blue-black as the persistent symbol.

I would not at this date make any unqualified statement giving green, blue, or black as the symbol of the west, the water, or the moon; and although in some instances these colors occur in connection with these objects of reverence, I am now inclined to class these as incidental rather than as representative of the color symbols.

One word regarding red and yellow. Red not only represents the sun and the procreative forces (yet black is sometimes used in the latter), but the color carries with it the idea of hope, the continuation of life. The dawn of the day, the east, is almost without exception in these tribes denoted by red. This red line, forceful, aggressive, yet life giving and hope-inspiring, starts from a war division of the tribal circle and fades into yellow as it passes into an opposite peace division in the west. Red and yellow bear to each other a relation somewhat resembling that of blue and black, only reversed; the red loses its intensity in yellow, the aggressive force symbolized in the red is not expressed in the yellow. If the Indian’s world were arched with his symbolic colors, we should see a brilliant band of red start from the east and fade to yellow in the west; while the green-blue line from the north would deepen to the black of the south. In the first the intense color would rush from war into the mild light of peace; the second bright hue would spring from peace to be lost in the darkness of war. Thus the two hold the tribe within the opposing yet complementary forces which constitute the mystery of the relation between life and death.

I will not go further into this interesting subject nor revert to the revolution of these symbolic colors as throwing light on tribal migrations and history.

Thanking you for this opportunity to modify some of my statements written nine years ago,

I remain, cordially yours,

ALICE C. FLETCHER.

PEABODY MUSEUM,
Cambridge, Mass., January 3, 1891.

In the Word Carrier of November, 1890, published by A. L. Riggs, at Santee Agency, Nebr., is an article on page 30, from Mary C. Collins, who is evidently one of the mission workers. She says: “I went into the sacred tent and talked with Sitting Bull. He sat * * * opposite the tent door. Hands and wrists were painted yellow and green;[Pg 532] face painted red, green, and white.” (Did the four colors refer to the elements?) “As I started toward him he said, ‘Winona,[305] approach me on the left side and shake my left hand with your left hand.’” (Does the gens of Sitting Bull camp on the left side of the tribal circle, occasioning the use of the left in all ceremonies, as among the Tsiɔu gentes of the Osage? Or is the left the war side among the people of Sitting Bull, as among the Kansa? See §§ 33 and 368.)

§ 380. The following are the symbolic colors of the North Carolina Cherokee, the Ojibwa, the Navajo, the Apache, the Zuñi, and the Aztec:

a Mooney, in Jour. Am. Folklore, Vol. III, No. 8, Jan.-Mar., 1890, pp. 49, 50.

b Hoffman, in Am. Anthropologist, July, 1889, pp. 217, 218; from Sicosige, a second-degree Mide of White Earth, Minn.

c Hoffman, in ibid., p. 218; from Ojibwa, a fourth-degree Mide, from another locality.

d Matthews, in 5th An. Rept. Bur. Eth., p. 449.

e Mallery, from Thos. V. Keam’s catalogue of relics of the ancient buildings of the southwest table-lands—quoted in Trans. Anthrop. Soc. of Washington, Vol. III, 141, 1885.

f Gatschet, on Chiricahua Apache sun circle, in Trans. Anthrop. Soc. of Washington, Vol. III, 147, 1885.

g Capt. J. G. Bourke, in a letter to the author, Dec. 4, 1890. In Nov., 1885, he obtained from a San Carlos (Pinal) Apache green as the color for the north.

h Mrs. M. C. Stevenson, in 5th An. Rept. Bur. Eth., p. 548. According to Dr. J. Walter Fowkes the Hopi or Moki have a similar order of colors, the west having green (or blue).

i Kingsborough, Antiquities of Mexico, Vol. VII (fide Capt. J. G. Bourke).

According to Gatschet the Chiricahua Apache call the sun, when in the east, “the black sun,” and a tornado or gust of wind also is called “black.” (See § 378.)

Matthews says that in rare cases white is assigned to the north and black to the east, and that black represents the male and blue the female among the Navajo. (See § 105 of this paper.)

§ 381. The author calls special attention to the colors of the four sacred stones of the Omaha Wolf gens, red, black, yellow, and blue i. e., E., S., W., N.; (see § 369), and to those on the tent of an Omaha Black Bear man (see § 373, and PL. XLIV, E, where the colors are given in the order N., E., S., W.). He has not yet gained the colors for the upper and lower worlds, though the Omaha offer the pipe to the “venerable[Pg 533] man sitting above” and to the “venerable man below lying on his back.” (§ 27.)

In the tradition of the T[s]iɔu wactaʞe gens of the Osage there is an account of the finding of four kinds of rocks, black, blue or green, red, and white. And from the left hind legs of four buffalo bulls there dropped to the ground four ears of corn and four pumpkins.[306] The corn and pumpkin from the first buffalo were red, those from the second were spotted, those from the third were ca[p]e, i.e., dark or distant-black, and those from the fourth were white.

Green, black, white, and gray are the traditional colors of the ancestral wolves, according to the Wolf people of the Winnebago, though for “green” we may substitute “blue,” as the corresponding name for the first son in that gens is Blue Sky. Among the personal names in the Thunder-being subgens of the Winnebago are the four color names, Green Thunder-being, Black Thunder-being, White Thunder-being, and Yellow Thunder-being (instead of Gray). James Alexander, a member of the Wolf gens, said that these four Thunder-being names did not refer to the four quarters. This seems probable, unless white be the Winnebago color for the east and gray or yellow that for the west.

In November, 1893, more than two years after the preceding sentence was written, a Winnebago told the author that among his people white was associated with the north, red with the west, and green with the south. Of these he was certain. He thought that blue was the color for the east, but he was not positive about it.

COLORS IN PERSONAL NAMES.

§ 382. The following shows the color combinations in a list of forty-six objects taken from the census schedules of the Dakota, Hidatsa, and Mandan tribes (U. S. Census of 1880), the lists of Dakota names given in the Fourth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, pp. 175, 177-180, and the list of Winnebago names collected by the author. Blue or green, (chiefly blue), 26; red, 25; black, 31; yellow, 30; scarlet, 38; white, 37; gray, 18; saŋ or distant-white (whitish), 4; rusty-yellow or brown (ġi), 18; spotted, 17; and striped, 8. Objects combined with two colors, 7; with three colors, 7; with four colors, 4; with five colors, 5; with six colors, 5; with seven colors, 6; with eight colors, 6; with nine colors, 5; with ten colors, 1; with all eleven colors, none. It should, however, be remembered that the lists consulted did not contain all the personal names of the Siouan tribes which have been mentioned, and that it is probable there would be found more color combinations if all the census schedules were accessible. We can not say whether each of the colors (including spotted and striped) has a mystic significance in the Siouan mind. Perhaps further study may show that red (śa) and scarlet (duta, luta) have the same symbolic meaning, and rusty-yellow (ġi) may be an equivalent of yellow (zi).

[Pg 534]

THE EARTH POWERS.

§ 383. The Tunkan or bowlder, the Dakota name for the Earth powers, is also called the Lingam by Riggs ( § 132), as if connected with a phallic cult (§§ 164, etc.). The Earth powers (Tunkan) and the Wind-makers (Takuśkanśkan) are said by the Dakota to have a common symbol; but is not the symbol of the Takuśkanśkan a pebble (§ 376)? In the Kansa war chart (see § 127) does the large (red) rock refer to the Earth powers? And does the small rock refer to the Wind-makers? The Earth powers and the Wind-makers seem to be associated in some degree: (a) In the use of the rock symbol (if the Takuśkanśkan symbol be a true rock), and (b) in the use, among the Omaha, of eagle birth names in the social divisions called “Keepers of the pipes.” This latter rests upon the assumption that the Iñke-sabĕ is a buffalo gens which should be regarded as having some connection with the Earth cult. When the Omaha chiefs assembled in council the two sacred pipes were filled by the Ictasanda keeper (a member of a Fire and Water gens); but they were carried around the council lodge by the Iñke-sabĕ and ┴e-[p]a-it‘ajĭ keepers. The Iñke-sabĕ keeper started around the lodge with one of the pipes; when he had gone halfway (i.e., as far as the entrance) the ┴e-[p]a-it‘ajĭ keeper started from the back of the lodge with the other pipe, taking care to keep behind the Iñke-sabĕ keeper just half the circumference of the circle.[307] The ┴e-[p]a-it‘ajĭ man belonged to the Eagle or Wind-makers subgens and the Iñke-sabĕ man to one that we term provisionally an Earth gens. (See Fig. 194.) The Iñke-sabĕ, it is true, have a tradition that they came originally from the water; but the buffalo is specially associated with the earth. Among the Dakota the buffalo and the earth are regarded as one. (§ 239.)

EARTH GENTES.

The Earth gentes, as far as we can judge, are as follows: Iñke-sabĕ and Hañga (?), two Buffalo gentes, and the Wasabe-hit‘ajĭ, a Black bear subgens, among the Omaha; the Wacabe and Makaⁿ (Buffalo gentes,) among the Ponka; the Maⁿyiñka (Earth) and Wasabe (Black bear), of the Kansa; the Earth and Black bear of the Osage; Black bear, and perhaps Wolf, among the Iowa and Oto; Black bear, of the Missouri; and Black bear and Wolf of the Winnebago. The Black bear people of the Winnebago were the only men of that tribe who enforced discipline in time of war and acted as policemen when there was peace. The tradition of the Winnebago Wolf gens names four brothers that were created. The first was green [sic] and was named Blue Sky (referring to day). The second was black, and his name referred to night. The third was white and the fourth was gray. The green, black, and white wolves have remained in their subterranean[Pg 535] abodes. They are never seen by mankind. The gray wolf was the ancestor of all the wolves which are seen above ground. (See § 90.) These four colors are evidently symbolic; but the author has not yet learned whether they have any reference to the four quarters. (See § 75.)

THE FIRE POWERS.

§ 384. Among these were the Thunder-beings and the Sun. The former were usually considered maleficent powers, as distinguished from the Sun, the beneficent Fire power; but occasionally the Thunder-beings were addressed as “grandfathers,” who could be induced to gratify the wishes of the suppliants by granting them success in war (§§ 35, 36). It was probably with reference to the Sun that the East was considered the source of light and life, the West being associated with the taking of life in the chase or on the war path (see § 28). Red among the Omaha is the color symbol of the East, but red is also symbolic of war. The “fire paint” among the T[s]iɔu gentes of the Osage tribe is red. It is applied when the fire prayers are said. Red is a war color among the Dakota, Omaha, Kansa, and Osage. The T[s]iɔu crier received in his left hand a knife with the handle painted red. The Hañʞa crier received in his right hand a hatchet with the handle reddened. On the death of a comrade the surviving Osage removed the bark from a post oak, say, about 5 feet from the ground, painted the blazed tree red, broke four arrows and left them and some paint by the tree.[308] Whenever the author saw Pahaⁿle-gaqli, one of the war chiefs of the Kansa, he noticed that the man’s face was painted red all over. In the middle of the war chart of Pahaⁿle-gaqli was a fire symbol; but the chief feared to represent it in the copy which he made for the author. It probably consisted of the four firebrands placed at right angles and meeting at a common center. The Omaha must have had such a symbol at one time (see § 33). The Osage had it, according to their tradition (see §§ 40, 365). The successful warriors among the Omaha could redden their weapons when they joined in the dance.[309]

The Dakota give the following as the sentinels for the Wakinyan: The deer at the north, the butterfly at the east, the beaver at the south, and the bear at the west (§ 116). If these were arranged to conform to the order of Fig. 194 the bear would be at the north, the beaver at the west, the deer at the east, and the butterfly at the south. But there may be a special order of grouping the servants of each class of powers differing from the order of the four powers themselves. The Dakota wakan men say that the Wakinyan are of four colors, black, yellow, scarlet, and blue (§ 116). The Thunder men of the Omaha legend had hair of different colors, the first having white hair, the second red, the third yellow, and the fourth green hair.[310]

[Pg 536]

FIRE GENTES.

The following appear to be the Fire gentes: Thunder-being people of the Omaha tribe, Elk gens, Small-bird subgens, Deer, and Ictasanda (Reptile and Thunder-being) gentes; the Hisada and Black bear gentes of the Ponka; the Lṵ or Gray hawk people (also called Thunder-being people) of the Kansa tribe, with whom are associated the Deer and Buffalo gentes in the singing of the Thunder songs (§ 36); the [K]ȼŭⁿ[311] or Thunder-being gens, on the Tsiɔu, Buffalo, or Peace side of the Osage tribe (!!), perhaps the Tcexiʇa, a bird gens of the Iowa tribe; part of the Tcexiʇa gens of the Oto and Missouri tribes; and the Wakaⁿtcară or Thunder-being subgens of the Winnebago.

Four Thunder-beings were invoked by the Ictasanda gens (§ 35): Ȼigȼize-maⁿȼiⁿ, Ȼiaⁿba-tigȼe, Ȼiaⁿba-gi-naⁿ, and Gaagigȼedaⁿ. Was each of these supposed to dwell at one of the four quarters?

Among the Osage and Kansa tribes there is a gens known as the Miⁿ k’iⁿ (from miⁿ, the sun, and k’iⁿ, to carry a load on the back), rendered “Sun Carriers.” Some of the Osage insisted that this name referred to the buffalo instead of the sun, as that animal carries a robe or plenty of hair on his back; and they maintained that the Miⁿ k’iⁿ was a buffalo gens. That there is some connection in the Indian mind between the sun and the buffalo is shown in the sun dance, in which the figure of a buffalo bull (§ 164) and buffalo skulls (§§ 147, 173, 176, 177, 181, and 198, and Pl. XLVIII) play important parts.

THE WIND-MAKERS.

§ 385. The Takuśkanśkan of the Dakotas has been described in a previous chapter (§§ 127-131). The Omaha tribe has the order of the Iⁿ-kugȼi or the translucent stone, in which order the Wind-makers were probably invoked. The T[s]iɔu old man addressed the four winds and as many mystic buffaloes when he laid down the four firebrands. And at a similar ceremony the old man of the Paⁿɥka gens addressed the four winds and as many mystic deer (§ 33). The Omaha evidently had a prayer, “Ho, ye four firebrands that meet at a common point!” (§ 40.) With this there may have been addresses to the winds. Four firebrands were used in a Winnebago ceremony (§ 84).

The Iñke-sabĕ (Omaha) belief as to the four winds has been related in § 366.[312] The winds and the sun were associated in the ceremony of raising the sun pole, judging from what Bushotter has written (§ 167). There was also some connection in the Dakota mind between the winds and the buffalo. Compare the figure of the winds on a buffalo skull as described by Miss Fletcher[313] in her account of the sun dance.

[Pg 537]

WIND GENTES.

The following social divisions are assigned to this category: The [K]aⁿze, or Wind people, and the ┴e-[p]a-it‘ajĭ, Touch-not-a-buffalo-skull, or Eagle people, of the Omaha tribe; the Ȼixida and Nika[p]aɔna gentes of the Ponka; the Kaⁿze (Wind or South Wind-people), Qüya (White eagle), Ghost, and perhaps the Large Hañga (Black eagle), among the Kansa; the Kaⁿ[s]e (also called the Wind and South Wind people), and perhaps the Hañʞa utaȼanʇ[s]e (Black eagle) gens of the Osage; the Pigeon and Buffalo gentes of the Iowa and Oto tribes; the Hawk and Momi (Small bird) subgentes of the Missouri tribe; the Eagle and Pigeon, and perhaps the Hawk subgens of the Winnebago Bird gens.

EACH QUARTER RECKONED AS THREE.

Each wind or quarter is reckoned as three by the Dakota[314] and presumably by the Osage (see § 42), making the four quarters equal to twelve. Can there be any reference here to a belief in three worlds, the one in which we live, an upper world, and a world beneath this one? Or were the winds divided into three classes, those close to the ground, those in mid air, and those very high in the air? The Kansa seem to make some such distinction, judging from the names of the divisions of the Kaⁿze or Wind gens of that tribe.

NAMES REFERRING TO OTHER WORLDS.

References to a world supposed to be above that one in which we dwell occur in some of the personal names of the Dakota, in the U. S. Census list of 1880. There we find such names as, Wolf Up-above, Hawk Up-above, Grizzly-bear Up-above, and Buffalo-bull Up-above. Grizzly-bear Up-above should be taken in connection with the tradition of the Black-bear people of the Osage tribe. These people tell how their ancestors descended from the upper world, bringing fire.[315] The tradition of the Wolf people of the Winnebago tribe tells of the creation of their ancestors as wolves in a subterranean world, and of a belief that many wolves remain there still. The Winnebago have, too, the name, Second Earth Person, referring to a waktceqi or watermonster, as the waktceqi are supposed to dwell in the world beneath this one. They call this world The First World, and the subterranean one The Second World.

THE WATER POWERS.

§ 386. The Unkteḣi of the Dakota answers to the Wakandagi of the Omaha and Ponka, and the Waktceqi of the Winnebago. One of the Omaha myths relates to a Wakandagi with seven heads. The Waktceqi have the Loon as a servant, and in this respect they resemble the tyrant [Pg 538]U-twa´-ʞe of the ┴ɔiwere myth. The name utwaʞe is now given to the muskrat. The male Water powers inhabit streams, and the females dwell under the ground, presumably in subterranean streams. According to Winnebago belief, they support the weight of the hills. Some of the Omaha thought that these powers dwelt under the hills (§§ 77, 107). The monsters supposed to inhabit bogs were probably a species of water spirits (§ 254). Streams were invoked as “Wakanda” by the Omaha (§ 23). Though the natural habitat of the buffalo is the surface of the earth, and the Dakota believe the animal to be of subterranean origin, he is of subaquatic origin according to the traditions of the Iñke-sabĕ and Hañga gentes of the Omaha.[316] But no traces of such a belief have been found among the buffalo gentes of cognate tribes. “One day, when the principal man of the people not known as the Waȼigije subgens of the Iñke-sabĕ, was fasting and praying to the sun-god,[317] he saw the ghost of a buffalo, visible from the flank up, arising from a spring.”[318]

WATER PEOPLE.

The Water people among the Omaha are the Turtle subgens, parts (if not all) of the Iñke-sabĕ and Hañga (Buffalo) gentes, and perhaps a part of the Ictasanda gens. Those among the Ponka have not yet been ascertained; but they may be the Wajaje and part of the Hisada. Among the Kansa they are the Turtle people. In the Osage tribe are the Turtle Carriers, Ke ʞatsü (said to be a turtle, but probably a Water-monster), Fish, Beaver, and, perhaps, the Tsewaȼe or Pond Lily people. Among the Iowa and Oto are the Beaver gentes. And the Winnebago have the Water-monster gens.

CAUTIONS AND QUERIES.

§ 387. There are many gentes and subgentes which can not be assigned to any of the four categories of elemental powers for want of evidence. It is unsafe to argue that, because two buffalo gentes of the Omaha claim a subaquatic origin, all buffalo gentes should be regarded as Water people. Certain cautions should be kept in mind.

§ 388. The power of each of the four classes of elemental gods extends beyond its special element. For instance, the Unkteḣi, who rules in the water, has for his servants or allies, the black owl in the forest (Query: Has this any connection with the fire or thunder?), eagles in the air, and serpents in the earth. And the Thunder-beings have as their servants, the bear, whose abode is in the ground, the beaver, who is associated with the water, the butterfly, who lives in the air; and the deer.

§ 389. The servants of a class of elemental gods do not necessarily belong to that element which those gods regulate. Thus, the Black [Pg 539]bear people of the Omaha, an earth people, assist the Elk people in the worship of the Thunder; and among the Kansa, the Buffalo people perform a similar service for the Lṵ or Thunder-being people (§§ 35, 36).

Those who belong to the same phratry, belong to the same social division; but while they “sing the mystery songs together,” they need not be assigned to the same elemental category.

§ 390. As the order of Thunder shamans is composed of those who have had dreams or visions of the sun, moon, stars, Thunder-beings, or some other superterrestial objects or phenomena, may not all superterrestial beings, including those of the “upper world,” be regarded as Thunder-beings by the Indians? (See § 45 and the Thunder-being names in § 393.)

That is to say, may not the eagles, and other birds of the “upper world” be Eagle Thunder-beings, Crow Thunder-beings, etc., though their special element is not the fire but the “wind-makers,” and the grizzly bears who reside under ground in that upper world, have given rise to the personal name, Grizzly-bear Thunder-being? If this be correct, then Bowlder Thunder-being may refer to a bowlder in the upper world, unless the supposition respecting composite names (in § 392) be true.

§ 391. The following appears at first sight to be the proper classification of the subgentes of a Bird gens in a few of the Siouan tribes: Thunder-bird, Eagle, Hawk, and Pigeon. But a study of personal names has led to a modification of this grouping: for we find such names as Eagle Thunder-being, Hawk Thunder-being, and Pigeon Thunder-being, as distinguished from ordinary eagles, hawks, and pigeons. Hence, we may find on further study that in some tribes there are eagle, hawk, and pigeon names for gentes and subgentes whose patron gods are Thunder-beings. For instance, the Lṵ gens of the Kansa tribe has two names for itself, Ledaⁿ nikaciⁿga, Gray hawk People, and Lṵ nikaciⁿga, Thunder-being People.

COMPOSITE NAMES.

§ 392. There are other composite names, most of which are found in the census lists of the Dakota tribes, whose gentes are said to have no animal names, and a few have been obtained from the personal name lists of the Omaha, Ponka, and Kansa, and the census lists of the Mandan, and Hidatsa, that give animal names to some or all of their gentes. In the Winnebago name list no such personal names have been found, though that people has animal names for its gentes.

Each of these composite names may refer to a vision of a composite being, who was subsequently regarded as the guardian spirit of the person who had the dream or vision. Or the bearer of such a name may have had a dream or vision of two distinct powers. In the pictograph of such a name, the powers (or symbols of the two powers) represented in the name are joined (see § 374).

[Pg 540]

§ 393. The following is a list of composite names which may be found to symbolize the four elements. The elements are designated by their respective abbreviations: E for earth, F for fire; A for air, and W for water. The interrogation mark after any name denotes a provisional or conjectural assignment.

• Turtle Grizzly-bear (W + E).
• Grizzly-bear Small-bird (E + A).
• Cloud Grizzly-bear (F? + E).
• Grizzly-bear Buffalo-bull (E + ?).
• Fire Grizzly-bear (F + E).
• Sun Grizzly-bear (F + E).
• Ghost Grizzly-bear (? + E).

• Grizzly-bear Weasel, given as “Weasel Bear” in 4th An. Rept. Bur.

• Eth., Pl. LXIX, No. 174.

• Iron Grizzly-bear (“Iron” is generally denoted by blue in the Dakota pictographs. See § 107.)

• Bald-eagle Grizzly-bear (A? + E).

• Shield Grizzly-bear. (The shield is on the bear’s side, 4th Eth., Pl. LXIII, No. 62.)

• Crow Grizzly-bear.

• Whirlwind Grizzly-bear. (The whirlwind precedes in the pictograph, 4th Eth., Pl. LVIII, No. 77.)

• Hawk Thunder-being.

• Pigeon Thunder-being. (A ┴ɔiwere name—not yet found in Dakota.)

• Buffalo-bull Thunder-being.
• Grizzly-bear Thunder-being (E + F).
• Fire Thunder-being (F + F).
• Elk Thunder-being.
• Pipe Thunder-being. (4th Eth., Pl. LXXI, No. 179, a winged pipe.)
• Cloud Thunder-being.
• Horse Thunder-being.
• Iron Thunder-being. (See § 107.)
• Earth Thunder-being (E + F.)
• Black-Bird Eagle.
• Eagle Hawk. (4th Eth., Pl. LVI, No. 53.)

• Eagle Small-bird. (4th Eth., Pl. LXVI, No. 116.)

• Grizzly-bear Eagle. (4th Eth., Pl. LXIX, No. 170; a bear with an
• eagle’s tail.)

• Horse Eagle. (4th Eth., Pl. LXVIII, No. 153; horse body and eagle’s tail.)

• Dog Eagle. (4th Eth., Pl. LII, No. 9; dog with eagle’s tail.)

• Eagle Swallow. (4th Eth., Pl. LXXIX, No. 282; eagle with forked tail of a swallow).

• Cloud Eagle.
• Iron Deer.
• Cloud Dog.
• Buffalo-bull Small-bird.
• Mountain Buffalo-bull.
• Crow Buffalo-bull.
• Buffalo-bull Dog.
• Cloud Buffalo-bull.
• Buffalo-bull Man (i. e., Indian).
• Buffalo-bull Ghost.
• Stone Buffalo-bull.

• Buffalo-bull Buffalo-cow (the only name in which both sexes are given).

• Iron Buffalo-bull. (See § 107.)
• Buffalo-bull Wind.
• Buffalo-cow Eagle.

• Iron Buffalo. (N. B.—It is uncertain to which element the buffalo should be assigned. He seems to be associated with all of them.)

• Sun-dog (F? + E?).
• Eagle Thunder-Being (A? + F).

• Elk Eagle. (4th Eth., Pl. LXX, No. 178; an elk’s horns and eagle’s tail.)

• Sun Eagle (F + A).
• Star Eagle (F? + A).
• Stone Eagle (E? + A).
• Iron Eagle.
• Crow Eagle.
• Owl Eagle.
• Weasel Eagle.
• Grizzly-bear Hawk.
• Fire Hawk.
• Scarlet Hawk Whirlwind.
• Hawk Ghost.

• Iron Hawk. (4th Eth., Pl. LVI, No. 47; the hawk is blue.)

• Iron Wolf.
• Wolf Ghost.
• Fire Wind (F + A).
• Fire Lightning.
• Iron Lightning.
• Iron Star.

• Iron Boy. (4th Eth., Pl. LVIII, No. 81; a boy painted blue.)

• Iron Crow. (4th Eth., Pl. LVI, No. 47; a crow painted blue.)

• Crow Ghost.
• Iron Elk.

• Female-elk Boy. (4th Eth., Pl. LVII, No. 66; the head and shoulders of a boy joined to a female elk.)

• [Pg 541] Iron Dog.
• Dog Ghost.
• Bowlder Thunder-Being (E + F).
• Iron Whirlwind.
• Iron Beaver.
• Small-bird Beaver.
• Iron Owl.
• Cloud Hail.
• Iron Cloud.
• Fire Cloud.
• Iron Wind.
• Stone Ghost.
• Cloud Black-bear.
• Hermaphrodite Ghost(!)
• Iron Kingfisher.
• Cloud Horse.
• Iron Horse.
• Lightning Horse.
• Earth (or Ground) Horse.
• Wind Horse.
• Fire Horse.
• Black-bird Horse.

• Small-bird Man (or, Indian; 4th Eth., Pl. LIV, No. 28; bird’s head and wings on a man’s body).

• Dog Rattlesnake.

There are several “Waśićun” names: Cloud Waśićun, Fire Waśićun, Night Waśićun, and Iron Waśićun. The last one has for its pictograph a man with a hat, i. e., a white man, and can hardly have any mystic significance. The name, Waśićun, originally meant “guardian spirit,” but it is now applied to white people (§ 122). In the absence of the pictographs, we can not tell whether Cloud Waśićun, Fire Waśićun, and Night Waśićun refer to guardian spirits (in which case they are mystic names connected with cults) or to white men.

Most of the above names are taken from the Dakota census lists. The ┴ɔiwere lists furnish only two composite names of this character: Iron Hawk Female, and Pigeon Thunder-being. The Kansa list has Moon Hawk and Moon Hawk Female, the latter name, which is found in the Omaha and Ponka list, suggesting the Egyptian figure of a woman’s body with a hawk’s head, surmounted by a crescent moon. Horse Eagle appears to be a sort of Pegasus. Buffalo-bull Eagle may refer to the myth of the Orphan and the Buffalo-woman, in which we learn that the Buffalo people ascended through the air to the upper world.[319]

PERSONAL NAMES FROM HORNED BEINGS.

§ 394. The Dakota lists have several names of horned beings, as follows: Horned Grizzly-bear, Horned Horse (4th Eth., Pl. LIV, No. 29, and Pl. LXXI, No. 193), Horned Dog, Horned Eagle, Gray Horned Thunder-Being, Horned Deer, Black Horned Boy, and Snake Horn. No attempt to explain these names has been made. Among the Winnebago, the following names refer to water monsters, and belong to the Waktceqi or Water-monster gens: Horn on one side (equivalent to the Dakota, He-saŋnića), Horns on both sides, Two Horns, Four Horns, and Five Horns.

The Winnebago list has the name Four Women (in one), with which compare what has been said about the Double-Woman (§ 251).

[Pg 542]

NAMES DERIVED FROM SEVERAL HOMOGENEOUS OBJECTS OR BEINGS.

An examination of the personal name lists reveals such names as First or One Grizzly-bear, Two Grizzly-bears, Three Grizzly-bears, Four Grizzly-bears, Many Grizzly-bears; One Path, Two Paths, Four Paths Female, Many Paths; One Cloud, Two Clouds, Three Clouds, Many Clouds; One Crow, Two Crows, Three Crows, Four Crows, Many Crows. The author suspects that these names and many others of a similar character are symbolic of the four quarters and of the upper and lower worlds, and that the Indian who was named after the larger number of mystic objects enjoyed the protection of more spirits than did he whose name referred to the smaller number. This accords with the Cherokee notion described by Mr. Mooney in his article on the Cherokee theory and practice of medicine:[320] The shaman is represented as calling first on the Red Hawk from the east, then on the Blue Hawk in the north, the two hawks accomplishing more by working together. Still more is effected when the Black Hawk from the west joins them, and a complete victory is won when the White Hawk from the south joins the others.

Compare with this the Osage opinion that the man who could show seven sticks (representing seven brave or generous deeds) was of more importance than he who could show only six sticks.

RETURN OF THE SPIRIT TO THE EPONYM.

§ 395. In two of the buffalo gentes of the Omaha (the Iñke-sabĕ and Hañga) there is a belief that the spirits of deceased members of those gentes return to the buffaloes. Does the abode of the disembodied spirit differ in the gentes according to the nature of the eponymic ancestor? For instance, is there a belief among the Elk people that their spirits at death return to the ancestral Elk?

FUNCTIONS OF GENTES AND SUBGENTES.

§ 396. In several tribes there seems to have been a division of labor among the gentes and subgentes, that is, each social division of the tribe had its special religious duties.

In the Omaha tribe we find the following: the Elk gens regulated war; it kept the war tent, war pipes, and the bag containing poisons; it invoked the Thunder-being, who was supposed to be the god of war, and it sent out the scouts. The Iñke-sabĕ and Hañga gentes were the leading peace gentes; they regulated the buffalo hunt and the cultivation of the soil. The Hañga gens had the control of the peace pipes, and a member of that gens lighted the pipes on all ceremonial occasions except at the time of the anointing of the sacred pole.[321] The Iñke-sabĕ gens kept the peace pipes, and a member of that gens acted as crier on [Pg 543]many occasions, the other crier being a member of the [K]aⁿze or Wind gens. An Ictasanda man usually filled and emptied the pipes; but a Hañga man filled them when the sacred pole was anointed. The ┴e-[p]a-it‘ajĭ keeper of a sacred pipe really kept instead the sacred tobacco pouch and buffalo skull. The Iñke-sabĕ and ┴e-[p]a-it‘ajĭ keepers carried the two pipes around the circle of chiefs. The Black bear people aided the Elk people in the worship of the Thunder-being in the spring of the year.

§ 397. The following division of labor existed in the Ponka tribe: The Wasabe-hit‘ajĭ and Hisada gentes led in the worship of the Thunder-being. The Ȼixida and Nika[p]aɔna gentes led in war. The Wacabe, Makaⁿ, and Nuqe, all buffalo gentes, regulated the buffalo hunt. The Wajaje (Reptile people) with whom used to be the Necta or Owl people, appear to have been servants of the subaquatic powers.

§ 398. In the Kansa tribe we find that the Earth Lodge and Elk gentes consecrated the mystic fireplaces whenever a new village was established; that the Earth Lodge people consecrated the corn, and regulated the buffalo hunt as well as farming; that the Elk people directed the attack on the buffalo herd; that the Ghost people announced all deaths; that the two Hañga gentes led in war and in mourning for the dead; that the Tciju wactage was a peace-making gens; that a member of the Deer gens was the crier for the tribe; that the member of the Lṵ or Thunder-being gens could not take part in the waqpele gaxe. (§ 28) and must remain in the rear of the other warriors on such an occasion; and that the Wind people, who had to pitch their tents in the rear of the other gentes had a ceremony which they performed whenever there was a blizzard (§ 55).

§ 399. In the author’s account of Osage war customs he relates the following incidents: On the first day of preparation for the warpath the Black bear people bring willows and kindle a fire outside the war tent. On the same day some other Hañʞa people deposit branches of dried willow in some place out of sight of the war tent, and the Ȼuqe men (part of the Buffalo-bull gens) bring in those branches. On the next day men of the Night gens (a sort of Black bear people) set the willow branches on fire, and they and the Elder Osage people say prayers. After this there is a struggle to secure pieces of the charcoal. An Elk man and a Kaⁿ[s]e man act as criers. On the third day an Osage man brings in the sacred bag for the Hañʞa or Waɔaɔe mourner (the gens of each man is not specified, but both men belong to the right or war side of the tribe), and a Sinʇ[s]aʞȼe man brings in a like bag for the mourner belonging to the T[s]iɔu or peace side of the tribe. On the fourth day a woman of a Buffalo gens on the right or Hañʞa side of the tribe lays down two strips of buffalo hide so that the warriors may take the first step on the warpath. After the warriors start, a Ȼuqe man is taken ahead of them in order to perform some ceremony which has not been recorded.

[Pg 544]

On the return of the war party the warriors are met outside of the village by an old man of the Kaⁿ[s]e or Wind gens. He performs certain ceremonies as he walks around the party (beginning at the north and ending at the east), and then he tells them whether they can enter the village. The clothing of the returning warriors becomes the property of the old Kaⁿ[s]e man and his attendant.

The Kaⁿ[s]e gens of the Osage tribe is called the I[p]ats‘ĕ, because it devolves on a member of that gens to fill the peace pipes. The corresponding gens of the Kaⁿze tribe is called Ibatc‘ĕ or Hañga-jiñga.

THE “MESSIAH CRAZE.”

§ 400. Since the present article was begun there has arisen the so-called “Messiah craze” among the Dakota and other tribes of Indians. The author does not feel competent to describe this new form of Indian religion, but he suspects that some features of it are either willful or accidental perversions of the teachings of the missionaries.

§ 401. In presenting this study of Siouan cults to the scientific world the author has a painful sense of its incompleteness, but he hopes that the facts here fragmentarily collated may prove helpful to future investigators. The inferences, provisional assumptions, and suggestive queries in this chapter are not published as final results. Even should any of them prove to be erroneous the author’s labor will not be in vain, for through the correction of his mistakes additional information will be collected, tending to the attainment of the truth, which should be the aim of all mankind.