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The Osage
The Osage tribe is theoretically separated into twenty-one fireplaces.
These fireplaces were grouped into three divisions—
1. The Seven Tsi-shu Fireplaces
2. The Seven Hanka Fireplaces
3. The Seven Osage Fireplaces (the Wa-sha-she
Fireplaces)
Each fireplace is a gens, so the Osage tribe is
composed of twenty-one gentes, or clans. When the two “sides” of the tribe
were fixed—the War Side and the Peace Side—there were but fourteen gentes
in the Nation. At that time the Osage camping circle, or tribal circle was
adopted. Positions for the fourteen gentes were provided. The circle is
shown as follows:
 |
At some period after the adoption of this camping
circle the tribe was enlarged by the admission of the Seven Hanka
fireplaces. It was not practicable to enlarge the camping-circle,
for it had of necessity, to |
contain an even Hanka fireplaces. It was not practicable to enlarge
the camping-circle, for it had of necessity, to contain an even
number of fireplaces, that it should show an even balance of
sides—each side an equal number of fireplaces. In making the
adaptation of the tribe, as enlarged, to the old tribal circle, the
seven Hanka gentes were counted as but five, and the seven Osage
gentes were reckoned as only two.
In the tribal ceremonies it was the law that each
fireplace should have a pipe, or be assigned a pipe, or to be in
some way associated with or represented by a pipe. The Hanka brought
in seven such pipes when it joined the tribe. The Wa-sha-she had
seven of these pipes—one for each of their fireplaces. For some
reason—yet unexplained—the Tsi-shu had no pipes of this nature. To
remedy this defect, the Wa-sha-she, or Osage, gave their seventh
ceremonial pipe to the Tsi-shu, with authority to the Tsi-shu to
make for themselves seven pipes from it. The Wa-sha-she have now but
six ceremonial pipes, though the ceremonies for the seventh are
still retained.
The fourteen gentes
represented in the Osage tribal circle, with their subgentes, are as follows:
1. Elder Tsi-shu, or Tsi-shu-wearing-a-tail (of
hair) -on-the-head
1. Sun and Comet People
2. Wolf People
2. Buffalo-bull face
1. (Not known.)
2. Hide-with-the-hair-on
3. Sun Carriers. Carry-the-sun (or Buffalo hides)
-on-their-backs
1. Sun People
2. Swan People
4. Tsi-shu Peacemaker, or Villagemaker, or Giver of
Life
1. Touches-no-blood, or Red Eagle
2. Bald Eagle, or
Sycamore People. The principal gens of the left side of the tribal
circle
5. Night People, or Tsi-shu-at-the-end
1. Night People
proper
2. Black Bear People
6. Buffalo Bul
1. Buffalo Bull
2. Reddish Buffalo. (Corresponds to
the Yuqe of the Kanss.)
7. Thunder Being, or Camp-last, or Upper
World People, or Mysterious Male being
(Subgentes not ascertained.)
8. Elder Osage, or Wa-sha-she Wa-nun. This gens embraces six
of the seven Wa-sha-
she or Osage Fireplaces, as follows:
1. White Osage
2. Turtle Carriers
3. Tall Flags
4. Deer Lights, or Deer People
5. Fish People
6. Turtle People.
(Turtle-with-serrated-crest-along-the-shell. Possibly a mythical
water
monster.)
9. Real Eagle People, or Hanka-apart-from-the-rest. The War Eagle
gens. One of the original Hanka Fireplaces
The guards,
policemen, or soldiers for the right side of the tribal circle are taken
from the eight and ninth gentes.
10. Ponka Peacemaker. This is the principal gens on the right side
of the tribe circle. It
was one of the original seven
Osage Fireplaces
1. Pond Lily
2. Dark Buffalo
Or, as some say
1. Flags
2.
Warrior-come-hither-after-touching-the-foe
3. Red Cedar
11. White Eagle People, or Hanka-having-wings
1. Elder White Eagle
People
2. Those-wearing-four-locks-of-hair.
These Subgentes were two of the
original seven Hanka Fireplaces
12. Having Black Bears
A.
Wearing-a-tail-of-hair-on-the-head
1. Black Bear
2. (Meaning not ascertained.)
B. Wearing-four-locks-of-hair
1. Swan
2. Dried Pond Lily
13. Elk
One of the
seven Hanka Fireplaces
14. Kansa, or
Holds-a-firebrand-to-the-sacred-pipes-in-order-to-light-them
Or, South Wind People
Or, Wind People
Or, Fire People
Each of the divisions A and B of the twelfth gens were
originally a Fireplace of the
Hanka.
There are four divisions of the Osages which have not yet
been identified, the—
1. Beaver People
2. Crane People
3. Owl People
4. Earth People
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