MAR 2 7 1924 
 
 Office of Indian Affairs. 
 
 Bulletin 22 , (1923*)' 
 
 INDIAN HOME LIFE« 
 
 Beginning with our first acquaintance with 
 and followed by a brief summary of present 
 
 ****** 
 
 Part I* The Past. 
 
 (Excerpts from the Handbook of American Indians -*»' Bulletin 30, 
 
 Bureau of American Ethnology.) 
 
 Habitat io.usu 
 
 The habitations of the Indians of northern America may be classed as 
 community houses (using the teim "community" in the sense of comprising more than 
 one family) and single, or family dwellings. The house architecture of the north¬ 
 ern tribes is of little importance, in itself considered; but as an outcome of 
 their social condition and for comparison with that of the southern village In V 
 dians, is highly important. The typical community houses, as those of the 
 Iroquois tribes, were 50 to 100 feet long by 16 to 18 feet wide, with frame of 
 poles and with sides and triangular roof covered with berk, usually of the elm; 
 the interior was divided into compartments and a smoke hole was left in the roof. 
 
 A Mahican house, similar in form, 14 by 60 feet, had the sidetr and roof made of 
 rushes and chestnut bark, with an opening along the top of the roof from.end to 
 end. The Handan circular community house was usually about 40 feet in diameter; 
 it was supported by two series of posts and cross-beams, and the wide roof and 
 sloping sides were covered with willow.or brush matting and earth.* The fireplace 
 was in the center. It is thought that the oblong, round-roof houses of the Vir¬ 
 ginia and North Carolina tribes, seen and described by Capt. John Smith and drawn 
 by John White, were of the community order. That some of them housed a number of 
 families is distinctly sta^fl* There is also included in the community class the 
 circular, dome** shaped earth lodges of Sacramento valley and the L-form, tent- 
 shaped, thatched lodges of the higher areas of California; but the leading exam¬ 
 ples of community houses are the large, sometimes massive, many-celled clusters 
 of stone or adobe in New Mexico and Arizona known as pueblos* These dwellings 
 vary in form, some of those built in prehistoric times being semi-circular, others 
 oblong, around or inclosing a court of* .plaza. These buildings were constructed 
 usually in terrace form, the lower having a one-story tier of apartments, the next 
 two storii&Sj, and so on to the uppermost tier, which sometimes constituted a seventh 
 story. The masonry consisted usually of small, flat stones laid in adobe mortar 
 and chinked, with spalls; but sometimes large balls of adobe were used as building 
 stones, or a double row of wattling was erected and filled in with grout, solidly 
 tamped. By the latter method, known as "pise" construction, walls 5 to 7> feet 
 thick were sometimes built. The outer walls of the lowest story were pierfced 
 only by small openings, access to the interior being gained by means of ladders, 
 which could be drawn up, if necessary, and of a hatchway in the roof. It is pos¬ 
 sible that some of the elaborate structures of Mexico were developed from such 
 
 So 2, 
 
 Uu 
 
 the native VArnei*icart, ^ (K " 
 day conditions. 
 
hive-like buildings as those of the typical pueblos* the cells increasing in size 
 toward the aouth. Chimneys appear to have been unknown in North America until 
 after contact of the natives with Europeans, the. hatchway in the roof serving the 
 double purpose of entrance and flue* 
 
 The Tlingit, Haida, and some other tribes build substantial rectangular 
 houses with sides and ends formed of planks and with the fronts elaborately carved 
 and painted with symbolic figures. Directly in front of the house a totem pole 
 is placed, and near by a memorial pole is erected* These houses are sometimes 40 
 by 100 feet in the Nootka and Salish region, and are occupied by a number of fami¬ 
 lies* Formerly some of the Haida houses are said to have been built on platforms 
 supported by posts; some of these seen by such early navigators as Vancouver were 
 25 to 30 feet above ground, access being had by notched logs serving as ladders. 
 Among the Northwestern inland tribes, as the Nest Perces, the 'dwelling was a frame 
 of poles covered with rush matting or with buffalo or elk skins* The houses of the 
 California tribes, some of which are above noted, were rectangular or circular; 
 of the latter, some were conical, others dome«shaped* There was also formerly in 
 use in various parts of California, and to some extent on the interior plateaus, 
 a semi-subterranean .earth-covered lodge known among the Maidu as kum. 
 
 The most primitive abodes were those of the Paiute and the Cocopa, con¬ 
 sisting simply of brush shelters for summer, and for winter of a framework of. 
 poles bent together at the top and covered with brush, bark, and earth* Somewhat 
 similar structures are erected by the Pueblos as farm shelters, and more elaborate 
 houses of the same general type are built by the Apache of Arizona, As indicated 
 by archaeological researches, the circular wigwam, with sides?of bark or mats, 
 built over a shallow excavation in the soil, and with earth thrown against the base, 
 appears to have been the usual fonn of dwelling in the Ohio valley and the immedi¬ 
 ate valley of the Mississippi in prehistoric and early historic times.- Another 
 kind of dwelling, in use in Arkansas before the discovery, was a rectangular struc¬ 
 ture with two rooms in front and one in the rear; the walls were of upright posts 
 thickly plastered with clay on a sort of wattle. With the exception of the Pueblo 
 structures, buildings of stone or adobe were unknown until recent times* 
 
 The dwellings of some of the tribes of the plains, as the Sioux, Arapaho, 
 Comanche, and Kiowa, were generally portable skin tents or tipis, but those of the 
 Omaha, Osage, and some others were more substantial. The dwellings of the Omaha 
 are built by setting carefully selected and prepared posts together in a circle, 
 and binding them firmly with willows, then backing them with dried grass, and cov¬ 
 ering the entire structure with closely packed sods. The roof is made in the same 
 manner, having an additional support, of an inner circle of posts, with crotchets 
 to hold the cross logs which act as beams to the dome*>shaped roof* A circular 
 opening in the center serves as a chimney and also to give light to the interior 
 of the dwelling; a sort of sail is rigged and fastened outside of this opening to 
 guide the smoke and prevent it from annoying the occupants of the lodge. The en¬ 
 trance passageway, which usually faces eastward, is from 6 ^o 10 feet long and is 
 built in the same manner as the lodge* An imp o it ant type is the Wichita grass hut, 
 circular, dome-shaped with conical top. The frame is built somewhfat in panels 
 formed by ribs and crossbars; these are covered with grass tied on shingle fashion* 
 'These grass lodges vary in diameter from 40 to 50 feet* The early Florida houses 
 we re either circular with dome-like roof, or oblong with rounded roof like those 
 of Secotan in North Carolina* The frame was of poles; the sides and roof were 
 covered with bark, or the latter was sometimes thatched# The Chippewa usually 
 
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 constructed a conical or hemispherical framework of poles# covered with hark# 
 Formerly caves and rock shelters were used in some sections as abodes, and in the 
 Pueblo region houses were formerly constructed in natural recesses or shelters 
 jk in the cliffs, whence the designation cliff-dwellings* Similar habitations are 
 W still in use to some extent by the Tarahumare of Chihuahua, Mexico. Cavate houses 
 ' with several rooms were also hewn in the sides of soft volcanic cliffs; so numerous 
 were these in Verde valley, Arizona, and the Jemez plateau, New Mexico, that for 
 miles the cliff face is honeycombed with them# As a rule the women were the build¬ 
 ers of the houses where wood was the structural material, but the men assisted in 
 the heavier work* In the Southern States it/.was a common custom to erect mounds 
 ao foundations for council houses, for the chief*s dwelling, or for structures de¬ 
 signed for other official uses. 
 
 The erection of houses, especially those of a permanent character, was 
 usually attended with great ceremony, particularly when the time for dedication 
 came. The construction of the Navajo hogan, for sample, was done in accordance 
 with fixed rules, as was the cutting and sewing of the tipi among the Plains tribes, 
 while the new houses erected during the year were usually dedicated with ceremony 
 and feasting. Although the better types of houses were symmetrical and well pro¬ 
 portioned, their builders had not learned the use of the square or the plumb-line; 
 the unit of measure was also apparently unknown, and even in the best types of 
 ancient Pueblo masonry the joints of the stonework were not "broken." 
 
 The Indian names for some of their structures, as tipi, wigwam, wickiup, 
 hogan, and iglu, have come into use to a greater or Ioes extent by English-speaking 
 people. 
 
 Medicine and Medicine-Men . 
 
 Medicine is an agent or influence employed to prevent, alleviate, or cure 
 some pathological condition or its symptoms. The scope of such agents among the 
 Indians was extensive, ranging, as 8mong other primitive peoples, from magic, 
 prayer, force of suggestion, and a multitude of symbolic and empirical means, to 
 actual and more rationally used remedies* "Where the Indians are in contact with 
 whites the old methods of combating physical ills are slowly giving way to the cura¬ 
 tive agencies of civilization. The white man in turn has adopted from the Indians 
 a number of valuable medicinal plants, such as cinchona, jalapa, hydrastis, etc. 
 
 In general the tribes show many similarities in regard to medicine, but 
 the actual agents employed differ with the tribes and localities, as well as with 
 individual healer®. Magic, prayers, songs, exhortation, suggestion, ceremonies, 
 fetishes, and certain specifics and mechanical processes are employed only by the 
 medicien-men or medicine*.women; other specific remediee or procedures are proprie¬ 
 tary, generally among a few old women of the tribe;; while many vegetal remedies and 
 simple manipulations are of common knowledge in a given locality. 
 
 The employment of magic consists in opposing a supposed malign influence, 
 such as that of a sorcerer, spirits of the dead, mythic animals, etc., by the super- 
 v natural power of the healer’s fetishes and other means. Prayers are addressed to 
 If benevolent dietiess and spirits, invoking their aid. Healing songs, consisting of 
 i prayers or exhortations, are sung. Harangues are directed to evil spirits supposed 
 to cause the sickness, and often are accentuated by noises to frighten suchj spirits 
 away. Suggestion is exercised in many ways directly and indirectly* Curative cere¬ 
 monies usually combine all or most of the agencies mentioned* Some of them, among 
 
the Navajo, are very elaborate, prolonged, and costly* The. fetishes used are 
 peculiarly shaped stones or wooden objects.,, lightning-riven wood, feathers,'claws, 
 hair, figurines of mythic animals, representations of the sun, of lightning, etc*, 
 and are supposed to embody a mysterious power capable of preventing disease or of 
 counteracting its effects* Mechanical means of curing consist of rubbing, pres* 
 sure with hands or feet, or with a sash or cord (as in painful affections of the 
 chest), bonesetting, cutting, cauterizing, scarifying, cupping, blood-letting, 
 poulticing, clysmata, sweat bath, sucking'of snake poison or abscesses* counter 
 irritation, tooth pulling, bandaging, etc* Dieting and total abstinence from food 
 were forms Of treatment in vogue in various localities* Vegetal medicines were, 
 and in some tribes still are, numerous* Some of these are employed by reason of 
 a real or fancied resemblance to the part affected, or as fetishes, because of a 
 supposed mythical antagonism to the cause of the sickness* Thus, one that has 
 many hair-like processes is used among the Hopi to cure baldness* Among the 
 Apache the sacred tule pollen known as ha-dn«tin is given or applied because of 
 its supposed supernatural beneficial effect* Other plants are employed as remedies 
 simply for traditional reasons, without any formulated opinion as to their modes 
 of action. Every tribe has knowledge of some of the poisonous plants in its 
 neighborhood and their antidotes. 
 
 The parts of plants used as medicines are most often roots, occasionally 
 twigs, leaves, or bark, but rarely flowers or seeds* They are used either fresh 
 or dry, and most commonly in the form of a decoction* Of this a considerable 
 quantity, as much as a cupful, is administered at a time, usually in the morning* 
 Only exceptionally is the dos© repeated* Generally.only a single plant is used, 
 but among some Indians as many as four plants are combined in a single medicine; 
 some of the Opata mix indiscriminately a large number of substances. The proprie¬ 
 tary medicines are sold at a high price. Some of these plants, so far as they are 
 known, possess real medicinal value, but many are quite useless for the purpose 
 for which they are prescribed* There is? a prevalent belief that the Indians are 
 acquainted with valuable specifics for snake bites, etc*, but how far this belief 
 may be true has not yet been shown* 
 
 Animal and mineral substances are also occasionally used as remedies. 
 Among Southv/estem tribes the bite of a snake is often treated by applying to the 
 wound a portion of the surface of the body of the same snake* The papago use 
 crickets as medicine; the Tarahumare, lizards; the Apache, spiders* eggs. Among 
 the Navajo and others red ocher combined with fat is used externally to prevent 
 sunburn. The Hopi blow charcoal, ashes, or other products of fire on an inflamed 
 surface to counteract the supposed fire which caused the ailment* Antiseptics 
 are unknown, but some of the cleansing agents or healing pov/ders employed probably 
 serve as such, though undesignkdly on the part of the Indians. 
 
 The exact manner of the therapeutic action is as absolutely unknown to 
 the Indian as it is to the ignorant v;hite man. Among some tribes the term for 
 medicine signifies ’’mystery, 11 but among others a distinction is made between thau- 
 maturgic practices and actual medicines. Occasionally the term ’’medicine” is ex¬ 
 tended to a higher class of greatly prized, fetishes that are supposed to be im¬ 
 bued, with mysterious protective ^ower over an -individual or even over a tribe. 
 
 Such object a form the principal contents of the so-called medicine-bags. 
 
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In many localities there was prepared on special occasions a tribal 
 "medicineThe Iroquois used such a remedy for healing wounds, and the Hopi 
 still prepare one on the occasion of their'Snake dance. Among the tribes who 
 prepare tiswin, or tesvino, particularly the Apache, parts of a numoer of bitter, 
 aromatic, and even poisonous plants, especially a species of datura, are added 
 to the liquid to make it ’’stronger"; these are termed medicines* 
 
 The causation and the nature of disease being to the Indian in large 
 part mysteries* he assigned them to supernatural agencies* In general, every 
 illness that could not plainly be connected with a visible influence was regarded 
 as the effect of an introduction into the body, by malevolent*or offended super¬ 
 natural beings or through sorcery practised by an enemy, of nordous objects capable 
 of producing and continuing pain or other symptoms, or of absorbing the patients 
 vitality* These beliefs, and the more rational ones concerning many minor indis¬ 
 positions and injuries, led to the development of separate forms of treatment, 
 and varieties of healers* 
 
 In every Indian tribe there were, and in some tribes still are, a number 
 of men, and perhaps also a number of women, who were regarded as the possessors^of 
 supernatural powers that enabled them to recognize, antagonize, or cure disease, 
 and there were others who were better acquainted with actual remedies than the 
 average. Those two classes were .the "physicians* 11 They were oftentimes dis in- 
 guished in designation and differed in influence over the people as well as m 
 responsibilities* Among the Dakota one was called "wakan witehasha," ’nys ery 
 man," the other "pejihuta witshasha," "grass^rootman"; among the Navajo one is 
 "khathali," "singer," "chanter,” the other "izeelini," "maker of medicines , among 
 the Apache one is "taiyin," "wonderful," the ether simply "ize," "medicine. 
 
 The mystery man, or thaumaturgist, was believed to have obtained rom 
 the dieties,' usually through dreams, powers of recognizing and removing " 
 terious causes of disea.se. He was "given" appropriate songs or prayer^, an _ 
 came possessed of one or more powerful fetishes. He announced ° r ® xni 1 ' 
 
 attributes, and after convincing his tribesmen that he possessed e P r °P e 
 quirements, was accepted as a healer. In some tribes he was called to tree* ail 
 diseases, in others his functions were specialized, and his treatment w g * 
 as efficacious in only a certain line of affections. He v ^s feare Jig ^/e f E 
 respected* In numerous instances the medicineman combined the u_ ' amon,- 
 
 shaman cr priest with those of a healer, and thus exercised a g _ os .+ ° 
 
 his people. All priests were believed to possess some healing P 0 ' 7 ®^* .® d 
 
 of the populous tribes the medicine-men of this class were associated in guiles 
 
 or societies, and on special occasions performed great healing or li ( “ ■ Jf> 
 
 giving" ceremonies, v.hich abounded in songs, prayers, ritual, and dram , < 
 tended over a period of a few hours to nine days. 
 
 The ordinary procedure of the medicine-man was about asnt^vhon 
 quired into the symptoms, dreams, and transgressions of tabus of JB-tienV 
 
 » Xs Uhe a,' 
 
 -ot ^ ^ofte™by i means I 'of C sleight-of-hand” B producing the 
 
 •m»E»r«rs?i» The thorn,"pebble, hair, or other object which was 
 
 ?hen throvn away or destroyed; finally he administered a mysterious powder or 
 
 - 5 - 
 
other tangible ’'medicine;-" and perhaps left also a protective fetish* There were 
 many variations of this method, according to the requirements of the case, and the 
 medicine*»man never failed to exercise as much mental influence as possible over 
 his patient* For these services the healer was usually well compensated*. If the 
 case would not yield to the simpler treatment, a healing ceremony might be re¬ 
 sorted to* If all means failed, particularly in the case of internal diseases, 
 the medicine-man often suggested a witch or wizard as the cause, and the designa¬ 
 tion of some one as the culprit frequently placed his life in jeopardy* If the 
 medicine**man lost several patients in succession, he himself might be suspected 
 either of having been deprived of his supernatural power or of having become a 
 sorcerer, the penalty for which was usually death* 
 
 These shaman as a rule were shrewd and experienced men; some were sin¬ 
 cere, noble characters, worthy of respect; others were charlatans to a greater 
 or less degree* They are still to be found among the less civilized tribes, buu 
 are diminishing in number and losing their influence* Medicine-women of this 
 class were found among the Apache and some other tribes* 
 
 The other class of medicine men and women corresponds closely to the 
 herbalists* The women predominated* They formed no societies, were not so highly 
 respected or so much feared as those of the other class, were not so well compen¬ 
 sated, and had less responsibility* In general they used much more common sense 
 in their practice, were acquainted with the beneficial effects of sweating, poul¬ 
 ticing, moxa, scarification, various manipulations, and numerous vegetal remedies* 
 
 Besides these two chief classes of healers there existed among some, 
 tribes large medical societies, composed principally of patients cured of serious 
 ailments* This was particularly the case emong the Pueblo* At Zuni there 
 exist several such societies, whose members include the greater part of he ri e 
 and whose organization and functions are complex* The ordinary members are not 
 actual healers, but are believed to be more competent to assist in the particular 
 line of diseases which are the specialty of their society and therefore may e 
 called by the actual medicine-men for assistance. They participate also m the 
 ceremonies of their own society. 
 
 Food * 
 
 The areas occupied by the Indians may be classed as supplying, predomi- 
 nantly, animal food, vegetal food, and mixed diet. No strict lines separate these 
 classes, so that in regions -where it is commonly said that the tribes are meat- 
 ear,ers exclusively, vegetal food is also of importance, and vice versa. Vegetal 
 food stuffs are (1) preagricultural, or the gathering of self-sown iruits, nuts, 
 seeds, and ro6ts; and (2) agricultural, or (a) the raising of root crops, originat¬ 
 ing in the harvesting of roots of wild plants, and (b) of cereal products, consists 
 ing chiefly of maize grown by the majority of the tribes, and wild, rice in the 
 area of the upper lakes, where a sort of semi agriculture was practised to some 
 extent* 
 
 Animal food was obtained from the game of the environment, and the set¬ 
 tlement and movements of some tribes depended largely on the location or range of 
 animals, subh as the buffalo, capable of furnishing an adequate food supply; while 
 on the other hand, the limit of habitat of water animals, as the salmon, tended 
 to restrict the range of other tribes to the places where the supply could be 
 gathered* No pure hunter stage can be found, if it ever existed, for while the 
 
 - 6 - 
 
capture of animals devolved on the man and the preparation of food on the woman, 
 the latter added to the diet substances derived from the vegetal kingdom * Sxmi* •- 
 j-arly no purely agricultural stage with exclusively vegetal diet existed, and no 
 aboriginal domestication of animals north of Mexico is found except in the aase 
 of the turkey and the dog. 
 
 In general, in the northern portion of the continent the diet was three- 
 fourths animal food; in the southern part it was three-fourths vegetal; while with 
 he tribes oi the coast, mountains, lakes, and plains, it varied according to the 
 food supply. The absence of milk food, to a considerable extent, limited the 
 natural increase of population* The food supply also changed with the seasons, 
 causing the diet at different periods of the year to vary in st-fe ratio of animal 
 to vegetal constituents, and another feature depended on religious customs and 
 habits which modified or regulated the food used* For example, the Apache and 
 Navajo will not eat fish or the flesh of the bearnor beaver, and other tribes had 
 tabu or totemic animals which, though useful for food, were not eaten. In in¬ 
 hospitable regions, such as that inland from the Texas coast in the 16th century, 
 the natives subsisted on whatsoever they could find*. Cabeza de Vaca wrote of the 
 Yguazas; "Their support is principally roots, which require roasting two days; 
 many are very bitter* Occasionally they take deer, and at times take fish; but 
 the quantity is so small and the famine sc great, that they eat spiders and the 
 eggs of ant55, worms, lizards, salamanders, snakes, and vipers that kill whom they 
 strike; and*, they eat earth and wood, and all that there is, the dung of deer, and 
 other things that I omit to mention; and I honestly believe that wfc>cflr&tteerfr' stones 
 in that land they would eat them*- They save the bones of the fishes they consume, 
 of snakes, and other animals, that they may afterward beat them together and eat 
 the- powder*” Almost as much may be said of the Maidu of California who, in addi¬ 
 tion to consuming every edible vegetal product, ate badgers, skunks, wildcats, and 
 mountain lions; practically all birds except the bus sard; yellovjacket larvae, 
 grasshoppers, locusts, and crickets, and even salmon bones and deer vertebrae. 
 
 Vegetal food comprised a vast array of the products of plant life, of 
 which roots ana seeds were the most valuable* The most important food plant pos¬ 
 sessed by the Indians was maize which formed and still forms their principal sub¬ 
 sistence* Following maize in order of importance came beans, peas, potatoes, 
 squashes, pumpkins, melons, and chil$, which were grown in variety. Uncultivated 
 plants also entered into the dietary, as seeds, roots, and flowers of grasses and 
 other plants, cr parts of plants used as greens, for flavoring, etc* In numberless 
 cases wild plants have prajfe&ved tribes from starvation when cultivated crops 
 failed. In the'Southwest, cactus and yucca fruits, mesquite beans, and the agave 
 were the most important elements of the food supply. As in Mexico, the roasted 
 fleshy leaves and leaf matrix of the agave were prised as sweet, nourishing food. 
 Tuekaho. and other fungi were used for food by the eastern Indians; "tuckaho bread” 
 was well known in the South. The northern pacific tribes made much use of the 
 sv/eet inner bark of the hemlock and spruce. Savors, flavors, and condiments, as 
 well as sweets, were valued by the Indian, 1 who was also fond of chewing gum. Whi&e 
 salt was tabued by the Onondaga and lye \a.s substituted by some of the southern 
 Indians, the former was in general use* In some cases salt was made by the evapo¬ 
 ration of the water of salt springs; in other localities it was obtained in crystal 
 form frem salt lakes and springs, and commerce in this product was widespread. 
 
 Chile, which is of Mexican origin, became known throughout the Southwest, and saf¬ 
 fron, an introduced plant, is still in use there to flavor and color food, as are 
 also the yellow flowers of the squash vine. Throughout New; England and southeast* 
 ern Canada sugar was produced by the evaporation of maple sap; in the Southwest it 
 
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was derived from the’willow and the agave. In some localities clay was eaten, 
 either alone or mixed with food or taken in connection with wild potatoes to miti¬ 
 gate the griping effect of this acrid tubers In general, buffalo, the deer family, 
 and fish were the animals most useful for food* Some woodland tribes depended on 
 deer, while the coast and river tribes usually made special use Of fish and other 
 products of the waters* ^Amphibious mammals sustained the Eskimo, while the porcu- 
 p?.ne is said to have been the chief food animal of the Montagnais* The range of 
 game animals influenced the range of man in America quite as much as the distribu¬ 
 tion of food plants predetermined his natural diffusion* 
 
 Contrary to popular belief the Indians, as a rule, preferred cooked food# 
 
 Among the Pueblo Indians cooking is carried to a remarkable degree of 
 proficiency, approaching in variety and methods the art among civilized peoples* 
 Most tribes know how to prepard savory and nourishing dishes, some of which have 
 been adopted by civilized peoples* The methods of cooking among the meat-eating 
 tribes were, in order of importance, broiling, roasting, and boiling, the last- 
 named process often being that known as "stone boiling*" The tribes whose diet was 
 approximately vegetarian practised all the methods* The preparation of maize as 
 food involved almost numberless processes, varying with the tribes* In general, 
 when maize reached the edible stage the ears were roasted in pi-t ovens, and after 
 the feasting the surplus of roasted ears was dried for future use* The mature grain 
 was milled raw or parched, the meal entering into various mushes, cakes, pones, 
 wafers, and other bread* The grain was soaked in lye obtained from wood ashes to 
 remove the horny envelope and was then boiled, forming hominy; this in turn was 
 often dried, parched, and ground, reparched and reground, making a concentrated 
 food of great nourishing power in small bulk, which was consumed dry or in water as 
 gruel, pinole, consisting of ground parched corn, forms the favorite food of south¬ 
 western desert tribes. The fermentation of corn to make beer was not generally 
 practised, and it is doubtful if the process'' was known in America before the dis¬ 
 covery* A yeast formed by chewing earn has long been known to the Zuni and Hcpi Q-t 
 least, and the former know how to preserve it through the agency of salt* 
 
 The Iroquois and other eastern tribes cooked maize with beans, meat, or 
 vegetables* The Pueblos add woodr>ash lye to their "paper bread," and prepare their 
 bread and mushes with meat, greens, or oily seeds and nuts, besides using condi- - 
 ments, especially chile* 
 
 Vegetal food stuffs were preserved by drying, and among the less seden¬ 
 tary tribes were strung or tied in bundles for facility of transportation or stor¬ 
 age* The preservation of maize, mesquite beans, acorns, etc*, gave rise to grana¬ 
 ries and other storage devices. Animal food, from its perishable character, was 
 often dried or frozen, but at times was preserved by smoking* Dried meat was some¬ 
 times pulverized and mixed with berries, grease, etc*, forming pemmi.can, valued for 
 use on journeys on account of its keeping properties. Fruits were pulped and dried 
 for preservation* Nuts were often ground before being stored, as were also maize, 
 grass seeds, and the legumes. Tubers were frequently stored in the ground or near 
 the fireplace; the Virginian tribes preserved tubers for winter use in this way* 
 
 Infusions of leaves, roots, etc., of various herbs were drunk by the In- ^ 
 diano as medicine, but no stimulating beverage of the character of tea or coffee 
 has been observed. Drinks made from fruit, as cider from manzanita berries, used 
 by the tribes of California, and a beverage made from cactus fruit by the Pima and 
 neighboring tribes of Arizona, are the fermented beverages best known. 
 
Clothing, 
 
 c , P 16 tribe f of northern America belong in general to the wholly clothed 
 
 p-op &b» e exceptions being those inhabiting the warmer regions of southern 
 
 united States and the pacific coast, who were semiclothed. Tanned skin of the deer 
 iamily was generally the material for clothing throughout the greater part of the 
 country. The hide of the buffalo was worn for robes by tribes of the plains, and 
 even f° r dresses and leggings by older people, but the leather was too harsh for 
 ciotmng generally, while elk or moose skin, although soft, was too thick* Fabrics 
 o &rk. Lair, fur, mountainssheep wool, and feathers were made in the northern 
 Pacific, pueblo, and southern regions, and cotton has been woven by the Hopi from 
 ancien lmes* Climate, environment, elevation, and oceanic currents determined 
 the materials used for clothing as well as the demand for clothing. Sinew from the 
 en ons of the larger animals was the usual sewing material, but fibers of plants, 
 especia ly the agave, were also employed* Bone awls were used in sewing; bone 
 needles were rarely employed and were too large for fine work* The older needlework 
 is of exceptionally good character and shows great skill with the awl* Unlike many 
 °i +u- artS> sev/in S ms practised by both sexes, and each sex usually made its. own 
 clothing* The typical and more familiar costume of the Indian man was of tanned 
 buckskin and consisted of a shirt, a breechcloth, leggings tied to a belt or waist- 
 strap, and low moccasins* The shirt, which hung free over the hips, was provided 
 with sleeves and w r as designed to be drawn over the head* The woman's costume dif¬ 
 fered from that of the man on the length of the shirt, which had short sleeves hang¬ 
 ing loosely over the upper arm, and in the absence of the breechcloth* Women also 
 wore the belt to confine the garment at the waist* Robes of skin, woven fabrics, 
 or of feathers were also worn, but blankets we re substituted for these later* The 
 costume presented tribal differences in cut, color, and omentation* The free 
 edges were generally fringed, and quill embroidery and beadwork, painting, scalp- 
 locks, tails of animals, feathers, claws, hoofs, shells, etc*, were applied as orna¬ 
 ments or charms* The L^ypiical dress of the Pueblo Indians is generally similar to 
 that of the Plains tribes, except that it is made largely of woven fabrics. 
 
 Among the Pacific coast tribes, and those along the Mexican border, the 
 Gulf, and the Atlantic coast, the customary garment of women was a fringe-like 
 skirt of bark, cord, strung seeds, or peltry, worn around the loins* In certain 
 seasons or during special occupations only the loin band was worn* For occasional 
 use in cooler weather, a skin robe or cape was thrown about the shoulders, or, 
 under exceptional conditions, a large robe woven of strips of rabbit skin. Cere¬ 
 monial costume was much more elaborate than that for ordinary wear* Moccasins and 
 leggings were worn throughout much of this area, but in the wanner parts and in 
 California their use was unusual* Some tribes near the Mexican boundary wear san¬ 
 dals, and sandal-wearing tribes ©nee ranged widely in the Southwest* Those have 
 also been found in Kentucky caverns. Hats, usually of basketry, were worn by many 
 Pacific coast tribes. Belts erf various materials and ornamentation not only con¬ 
 fined the clothing but supported pouches, trinket bags, paint bags, etc. Larger 
 pouches and pipe bags of fur or deerskin, beaded or .ornamented with quillwork, and 
 of plain skin, netting, or woven stuff, were slung from the shoulder. Necklaces, 
 earrings, channs, and bracelets in infinite variety-formed a part of the clothing, 
 and the wrist-guard to protect the am from the recoil of the bow-string was ,• ’ 
 general. 
 
 Shortly after the advent of whites Indian costume was profooudiy/modified 
 over a vast area of America by the copying of European dresB and the use of traders* 
 stuffs. Knowledge of prehistoric and early historic primitive textile fabric® has 
 
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been derived from the impressions of fabrics on pottery and from fabrics themselves 
 that have been preserved by charring in fire, contact with copper, or protection! 
 from the elements in caves* . .. 
 
 A synopsis of the costumes worh by tribes living in the eleven geographi¬ 
 cal regions of northern America follows* ' The list is necessarily incomplete, for 
 on account of the abandonment of tribal costumes the data abetdh^efly historical: 
 
 (1) Eskimo (Northern)* Men: Shirt-coat with hood, trousers, half or 
 full boots, stockings, mittens* Women: Shirt-coat with large hood, trousers,or 
 begging-mOccasins, belt and mittens, needle-case, workbag, etc* (southern). 
 
 Men: Robe, gown, trousers, boots, hood on gown or cap-K 
 
 (2) Athapascan (Mackenzie and Yukon)* Men; Shirt-coat, legging-mocca- 
 sins, breechcloth, hat, and hood. Women; Long shirt-coat, legging^moccasins, belt. 
 
 (3) Algonqui&n^Iroquois (Northern). Men: Rohe, shirt-coat, long*-coat, 
 trousers, leggings, mocca3in3, breechcloth, turban, (Virginia). Men and women; 
 Cloak, waist garment, moccasins, sandals (?), breechcloth (?).* (Western), Men: 
 Robe* long dress-shirt, long leggings, moccasins, bandoleer bag* Women; Long 
 dress-shirt, 3hort leggings, moccasins, bait, (Arctic). Men; Long coat, open in 
 front, short breeches, leggings, moccasins, gloves or mittens, cap or head-dress. 
 Women: Robe, shirt-dress, leggings, moccasins, belt,- cap, and sometimes a shoulder 
 mantle. 
 
 (4) Southern or Muskhogean (Seminole)* Men: Shirt, over-shirt, leggihgs, 
 moccasins, breechcloth, belt, turban* Formerly the Gulf, tribes wore robe, waist 
 garment, and occasionally moccasins* 
 
 (5) plains. Men: Buffalo robe, shirt to knees or longer, breechcloth, 
 thigh-leggings, moccasins, headdress* Women: Long shirt-dress with short ample 
 cape sleeves, belt, leggings to the knees, moccasins, 
 
 (6) North Pacific (chilkat). Men: Blanket or bark mat robe, shirt- 
 coat (rare), leggins-moccasins, basket hat. Women; Tanned skin shoulder-robe, 
 shirt-dress with sleeves* fringed aproh, leggings (?}, moccasins, breechcloth( ?).* 
 
 (7) Washington-Columbia (Salish)* Men; Robe, headband, and, rarely, 
 shirt-coat, leggings, moccasins, breechcloth. Women: Long shirt-dress, apron, and, 
 rarely, leggings, breechcloth, moccasins. 
 
 (8) Shoshonean* Sane as the plains tribes* 
 
 (9) California-Oregon (Hupa). Men; Robe and waist garment on occasion, 
 moccasins (rarely), men frequently and old men generally went entirely naked* 
 
 Women; Waist garment and narrow aprons; occasionally robe-cape, like Pueblo, over 
 shoulders or under arms, over breast; basket cap; sometimes moccasins* (central 
 California). Men; Usually naked; robe, network cap, moccasins and breechcloth 
 occasionally. Women; Waist-skirt of vegetal fiber or buckskin, and basketry cap; 
 robe and moccasins on occasion* 
 
 (10) Southwestern (Pueblo)* Men; Blanket or rabbit or feather robe, 
 shirt with sleeves, short breeches partly open on outer sides; breechcloth, leg*',, 
 gings to knees, moccasins, hair-tape, and headband. Women; Blanket fastened over- 
 
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one shoulder, extending to knees; small calico shawl over blanket thrown over 
 shoulders; legging-moccasins, belt. Sandals, formerly worn in this area. Snow 
 ^occasins of fur sometimes worn in winter. (Apache). Men: Same as on plains. 
 %omen; Same, except legging-moccasins with shield toe. Navajo, now like Pueblo; 
 formerly like Plains tribes* 
 
 (11) Gila-Sonora (Cocopa and Mojave). Men; Breechcloth, sandals, some¬ 
 times headband. Women: Waist garment, usually of fringed bark, front and rear* 
 (Pima). Same as Plains, foimerly/robe° n waist cloth, and sandals. 
 
 Part II, The Present. 
 
 w \s a/ \j \r 
 
 A A a A A A 
 
 Since the passage of the "General Allotment Act" in 1887, the tribal 
 lands, or reservations, of a large majority of the Indians of the United States 
 have been allotted, or set apart, to individual Indians, with the purpose of having 
 them establish homes thereon, become self-supporting, and adopt the white man's ways 
 of living. A3- a result of this policy, and with the active assistance of the Gov¬ 
 ernment along educational and industrial lines, the Indians of today are fast as¬ 
 suming the habits and customs of modern civilization and becoming good citizens in 
 every sense of the word# As they advance in civilization, they lay aside the old 
 methods of housing and live in houses of whatever style and size their means afford, 
 just as do their white neighbors* 
 
 The practices of the medicine-men are rapidly passing away, due to the 
 fact that the Government has established hospitals on most of the Indian reserva¬ 
 tions, and employs physicians who render medical and surgical services to the 
 Indians free of charge. 
 
 As the Indians take up their residence on their individual allotments of 
 land, they are taught proper methods of fanning and stock raising, and naturally 
 their diet is largely composed of such articles of food as are produced on the farm, 
 supplemented by the purchase of other food stuffs as their taste may suggest and 
 their means afford* In the preparation of their food, they are more and more fol¬ 
 lowing the modem methods of cooking learned at the Government schools, and further 
 taught by field matrons employed by the Government who visit their homes from time 
 to time* 
 
 In the matter of clothing, there are very few Indians in the United States 
 at the present time who have not adopted the white man's style of clothing, suita¬ 
 ble to the climatic conditions in which they live. 
 
 ( 5756 ) 
 
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