|
Personal Studies of Indian Life
In the life of the American Indian
so much has ever depended upon the skill of the hunter that in the hazards
of the chase he has sought supernatural aid to supplement his own inadequate
powers; thus, in every tribe, we find rites connected with hunting carefully
observed, and frequently forming an important part of the tribal ceremonies.
Mention has been made, in my previous papers, of the
Indian's custom of retiring into the forest or to the mountain to fast, that
there might come to him in a vision some manifestation of the powers of
nature. Whatever appears in this vision,-beast or bird, or symbolic
form,-the man makes diligent search for its natural counterpart, and secures
it as an amulet; or, in some tribes, he makes a model in wood or stone,
which he carries always with him, to bring the game near while he recruits
his strength in sleep or needed rest. Songs also which come in dreams are
believed to be able to beguile by their mysterious power the deer and the
elk, and to entice the beaver to enter the trap; but notwithstanding this
dependence upon the supernatural for aid, the Indian hunter does not neglect
expedients of a very practical sort. He resorts to strategy: he covers fatal
precision; he entices the eagle to its prey, beneath which he lies
concealed; he brings the elk within his reach by imitating the cries of its
young; he spreads honey before the covert where he hides waiting for the
bear to be attracted by the fragrant bait; and in regions where the antelope
and deer once abounded earth inclosures have been discovered into which it
is probable the game was driven to meet a certain death. When hunting the
buffalo no mystery-songs were used, as when trapping smaller game; no decoy
calls, as for deer and elk. Success in taking the buffalo depended upon the
skill and the supernatural favor received through the leader. The power
otherwise gained through mystery songs here came through a regular
ceremonial in charge of a gens and an authorized leader, who became for the
time being something of a priest.
The physical training of the hunter was a part of the
education of every Indian boy, and different tribes had different modes of
developing the powers of endurance. Among the Omaha the youth were taught
to run - not so much to run rapidly for a short distance, as to keep up an
even pace for many miles; and the habit of careful observation was also
inculcated. The runners' services on the tribal hunt were important: it was
necessary for them to be able to travel far in search of the buffalo, and to
return quickly, so that the tribe could go forward, and the hunters
encompass the herd before it could move any great distance. They must also
closely note the topography of the country as they ran here and there in
search of the game, so as to be able to direct the tribe to the herd over
the shortest route, which they might not themselves have traveled. They must
also be constantly on the watch for tracks or signs of an enemy, lest they
should bring the tribe into danger. It was not uncommon for these young men
to run from seventy to one hundred miles within twenty-four hours, taking
very little rest and food.
Among the Nez Percé
Indians of Idaho a part of the training of the hunters and fishermen was to
plunge into the river in midwinter, and struggle with the ice and the rapid
current. Many of these Indians believed that meat made a man short-winded,
and some of the most noted hunters lived exclusively upon fish and roots.
Two methods of strengthening the body were common in all tribes: enforced
vomiting and the sweat-lodge bath. A concoction of herbs was taken as an
emetic, or the result was reached by thrusting peeled willow twigs down the
throat. This practice required considerable resolution, and was associated
somewhat with the notion that a plan or purpose strongly conceived at the
time of the operation would surely come to pass. Heaps of stones were raised
where this ordeal took place, and the willow twigs used were inserted in a
split pole firmly set in the center of the pile of stones, to remain as a
memorial until the winds and the frosts of years should destroy the witness
of the man's endurance. The sweat-lodge was a place of purification and
physical refreshment. Water was thrown upon heated stones within the lodge,
where the men sat crouching and perspiring in the steam; they afterward
plunged into a running stream even in the winter season.
The strength of the hunter was often severely taxed,
not only in the chase proper, but in encountering fierce animals by the way.
The bear figures largely in hunting-tales told around the camp-fire to a
group of interested listeners, among whom sits the boy longing for the time
the Indians under his control to the cause of the king, as in like manner,
at an earlier date, the French trader had turned certain tribes against the
English. For nearly two centuries Indian traders kept alive on this
continent the rivalry of foreign nations. playing Indian against Indian, and
Indian against white man. Their influence was potent in the border disputes,
both prior to 1812 and during the war of that year, as well as in the later
controversies over the Canadian boundary line and on the North Pacific
coast, where Indian tribes became involved in wars with us and with each
other upon issues foreign to the Indians themselves.
The political importance of making the traders directly
responsible to the government was early recognized by the United States. In
'795 Congress appropriated $50,000 for the purchase of goods to be sold to
the Indians under the direction of the President; and in the following year
Washington suggested the establishment of trading-houses, which Congress
afterward authorized. For twenty-five years these "factories" were under the
charge of a superintendent of Indian trade, with headquarters at Georgetown,
D. C. The government then retired from direct business contact with the
Indian hunter, leaving the field to private individuals or companies legally
licensed. Treaties made with various tribes bear ample testimony to the
extent and importance which the trade in pelts had assumed. A large
proportion of the money received by Indians from the sale of their lands
passed directly to the trader for "debts." And these "debts" in several
instances led to new cessions, and the consequent removal of Indians from
their old homes. Thus the Indian hunter has played no small part, directly
and indirectly, in bringing about the present conditions of his race.
The customs of tribes living in the country over which
the buffalo roamed were largely influenced by the habits of this animal. Its
movements in vast numbers necessitated the adoption of elaborate rules to
systematize the hunt, so as to prevent a few men, while securing their own
supply of food, from scattering the herd beyond the reach of the many, thus
leaving the greater part of the tribe to suffer from hunger.
The Omaha hunting-grounds lay between the Platte and
the Niobrara rivers, and extended from the Missouri nearly to the present
western boundary of the State of Nebraska. Upon the south lay the land of
the Pawnees ; to the west dwelt the warlike Paddocks; the Dakotas hunted to
the north of the Niobrara River, and often trespassed upon the tempting
Omaha range, when warlike encounters were sure to take place. Upon their
extensive range the Omaha often traveled many hundred miles from the time
they left their village by the bluffs of the Missouri until they returned to
it laden with the trophies of their annual chase.
When on the hunt the position of the Omaha tents in the
tribal circle, or Hoo-thu-ga, was in the order of their gentes or clans. The
Hun-ga gens had charge of two sacred tents, which stood a short distance in
front of the lodges of this gens; the one nearest the opening of the
Hoo-thu-ga had red spots painted on the tent cover, representing the
buffalo-wallow, and it contained the pole; the other, upon which cornstalks
bearing ears were painted, contained the hide of a white buffalo cow, and it
was from this tent, in the spring, that kernels from a red ear of corn were
distributed to the families of the tribe as a signal that the time for
planting had arrived. Later, when the corn was well up, and it had been hoed
twice, preparations for the tribal hunt were in order to come when, like some well-remembered hero of the tribe,
he shall be able to grapple single handed with the powerful grizzly bear, and
tear its fearful jaws asunder.1
Men of great strength became famous, as the man who could carry three
deer, one on his back and one with each arm; or he who, unaided, could bring
an elk in from the forest.
Previous |
Title | Next
Omaha Hunting Customs
|
|
