DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 
 
 OFFICE OF INDIAN AFFAIRS 
 
 0 
 
 Bulletin, 1927, No. 22 
 
 INDIAN HOME LIFE 
 
 Part I—The Past 
 Part II—The Present 
 
 HASKELL INSTITUTE 
 
 A GOVERNMENT TRAINING SCHOOL FOR INDIANS 
 LAWRENCE. KANSAS 
 
I/Ou SJMVAl 
 
 
 March 4, 1930—10M 
 
 d 
 
Office of Indian Affairs 
 Bulletin 22 (1927) 
 
 INDIAN HOME LIFE 
 
 Beginning with our first acquaintance with the Native American, and fol¬ 
 lowed by a brief summary of present-day conditions. 
 
 PART I.— THE PAST 
 
 Excerpts from the Handbook of American Indians, Bulletin 30, Bureau of 
 American Ethnology. 
 
 HABITATIONS 
 
 The habitations of the Indians of northern America may be classed as 
 community houses (using the term “community” in the sense of comprising 
 more than one family) and single, or family, dwellings. The house architec¬ 
 ture of the northern 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 Indians 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 bark, 
 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 sides and roof made of rushes and chestnut bark, with an opening alone 
 the top of the roof from end to end. The Mandan circular community house 
 was usually about 40 feet in diameter; it was supported by two series of posts 
 and crossbeams, 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 Virginia 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 stated. There is also included in the community class the circular 
 6arth l0dg6S ° f Sacrament0 Valley and the L-form, tent-shaped 
 thatched lodges of the higher areas of California, but the leading examples of 
 community houses are the large, sometimes massive, many-celled clusters of 
 stone or adobe m New Mexico and Arizona, known as pueblos. These dwellings 
 oThe y r, m m rm ’ S ° me ° f those built in P^historic times being semi-circular, 
 ° g ’ ar0und or mclosin g a court or plaza. These buildings were con¬ 
 structed usually m terrace form, the lower having a one-story tier of 
 apartments the next two stories, and so on to the uppermost tier, which some¬ 
 times constituted a seventh story. The masonry consisted usually of small flat 
 stones laid m adobe mortar and chinked with spalls; but sometimes large ball! 
 
 and fiii e , Were -r aS bUilding St ° neS ’ ° r a d0Uble row of wattling was erected 
 and filled m with grout, solidly tamped. By the latter method, known as “pise” 
 cons ruction wans 5 to 7 feet thick were sometimes built. The outer wall! of 
 
 iS J Were Plerced 0nly by sma11 openings, access to the interior 
 
 being gamed by means of ladders, which could be drawn up, if necessary and 
 of a hatchway in the roof. It is possible that some of the elaborate sttucturS 
 
 nu^n 1C °th Were u eVel0Ped fr ° m SUCh hive ~ like buildings as those of the typical 
 pueblos, the cells increasing in size toward the south. Chimneys appear to 
 have been unknown in North America until after contact of the natTve^ 
 anTf^’ hatchway m the roof ser ™g the double purpose of entrance 
 
 Page 3 
 
4 
 
 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 families. 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 Nez 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. Some¬ 
 what 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 form of dwelling in 
 ‘the Ohio Valley and the immediate valley of the Mississippi in prehistoric and 
 early historic times. Another kind of dwelling, in use in Arkansas before the 
 discovery, was a rectangular structure with two rooms in front and one in the 
 rear; the walls were of upright posts thickly plastered with clay or 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 to¬ 
 gether in a circle, and binding them firmly with willows, then backing them 
 with dried grass, and covering 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 an¬ 
 noying the occupants of the lodge. The entrance passageway, which usually 
 faces eastward, is from 6 to 10 feet long and is built in the same manner as 
 the lodge. An important type is the Wichita grass hut, circular, dome-shaped 
 with conical top. The frame is built somewhat 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 were 
 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 constructed a conical or hemispherical framework of poles, covered with 
 bark. 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 in the cliffs whence the designation cliff-dwellings. Similar habi- 
 
5 
 
 tations are 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 are 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 builders 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 as foundations for council 
 houses, for the chief’s dwelling, or for structures designed 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 example, 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 proportioned, their builders had not learned the use of 
 the square or the plumb-line; the unit of measure was also apparently un¬ 
 known, 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 lglu, have come into use to a greater or less extent by English- 
 speaking people. 
 
 MEDICINE AND MEDICINE-MEN 
 
 Medicine is an agent or influence employed to prevent, alleviate or cure 
 some pathologic^ condition or its symptoms. The scope of such agents among 
 the Indians was extensive, ranging, as among other primitive peoples from 
 magic, prayer, force of suggestion, amd a multitude of symbolic and empirical 
 ^ ^, aCt , U T f 1 an ? more ratl °naHy used remedies. Where the Indians are 
 contact with w hl te S the old methods of combatting physical ills are slowly 
 giving way to the curative 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 
 ac uai agents employed differ with the tribes and localities, as well as with in! 
 drv dua! healers Magic, prayers, songs, exhortation, suggestion, ceremonies 
 th “ eS :. and Certain specifics and mechanical processes are employed only by 
 the medicine-men or medicine-women; other specific remedies or procedures 
 are proprietary, generally among a few old women of the tribe while many 
 
 giventcamy S ‘ mPle manipulatIons are ° f «™mon knowledge In a 
 
 The employment of magic consists in opposing a summed moiirm 
 
 sunernV ha , 1 °* * SP ‘ r ‘ tS ° f ““ dead ’ mythic “imals etc., bytee 
 
 supernatural power of the healer’s fetishes, and other means. Prayers are ad 
 
 dressed to benevolent deities and spirits, invoking their aid. Helling songs 
 consisting of prayers or exhortations, are sung. Harangues are directed tn 
 spirit supped to cause the sickness, and often 
 frighten such spirits away. Suggestion is exerrided „ 
 indirectly. Curative ceremonies usuaUy combtafaUoTZJT,f'^ and 
 mentioned. Some of them, among th7Nava1o are v«v7al™, “ S 
 and costly. The fetishes used are peculiarly shaped stones or w^en°obS 
 lightning-riven wood, feathers, claws, hair, figurines of mythic animals rep¬ 
 resentations of the sun, of lightning, etc., and are supposed to embody a 
 mysterious power capable of preventing disease or of counteracting its effects. 
 
6 
 
 Mechanical means of curing consist of rubbing, pressure with hands or feet, or 
 with a sash or cord (as in painful affections of the chest), bonesetting, cutting, 
 cauterizing, scarifying, cupping, bloodletting, poulticing, clysmata, sweat bath, 
 sucking of snake poison or abscesses, counter irritation, tooth pulling, bandag¬ 
 ing, 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 resem¬ 
 blance to the part affected, or as fetishes, because of a supposed mythical 
 antagonism to the cause of the sickness. Thus, a plant that has many hair-like 
 processes is used among the Hopi to cure baldness. Among the Apache the sa¬ 
 cred 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 dose 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 sub¬ 
 stances. The proprietary 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 pre¬ 
 valent 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 
 southwestern 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, spider’s 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 causes the ailment. 
 Antiseptics are unknown, but some of the cleansing agents or healing powders 
 employed probably serve as such, though undesignedly 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 white man. Among some tribes the term 
 for medicine signifies “mystery,” but among others a distinction is made be¬ 
 tween thaumaturgic practices and actual medicines. Occasionally the term 
 “medicine” is extended to a higher class of greatly prized fetishes that are 
 supposed to be imbued with mysterious protective power over an individual 
 or even over a tribe. Such objects form the principal contents of the so-called 
 medicine-bags. 
 
 In many localities there was prepared on special occasions a tribal “medi¬ 
 cine.” The 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 number 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 
 
7 
 
 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 practiced by an enemy, of noxious objects 
 capable of producing and continuing pain or other symptoms, or of absorbing 
 the patient’s vitality. These beliefs, and the more rational ones concerning 
 many minor indispositions 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 pos¬ 
 sessors of supernatural powers that enabled them to recognize, antagonize, or 
 cure disease; and there were others who were better acquainted with actual rem¬ 
 edies than the average. These two classes were the “physicians.” They were 
 oftentimes distinguished in designation and differed in influence over the 
 people as well as in responsibilities. Among the Dakota one was called “wakan 
 witshasha, “mystery man,” the other “pejihuta witshasha,” “grass-root 
 man ; among the Navajo one is “khathali,” “singer,” “chanter,” the other 
 ‘lzeelim,” “maker of medicines”; among the Apache one is “taiyin,” “wonder¬ 
 ful,” the other, simply “ize,” “medicine.” 
 
 The mystery man, or thaumaturgist, was believed to have obtained from 
 the deities, usually through dreams, power of recognizing and removing the 
 mysterious causes of disease.. He was “given” appropriate songs or prayers 
 and became possessed of one or more powerful fetishes. He announced or 
 exhibited these attributes, and after convincing his tribesmen that he posses- 
 S6 i t ? e + pr ° per requirements, was accepted as a healer. In some tribes he was 
 called to treat all diseases, m others his functions were specialized, and his 
 tieatment was regarded as efficacious in only a certain line of affections. He 
 was feared as well as respected. In numerous instances the medicine-man 
 combined the functions of a shaman or priest with those of a healer, and thus 
 exercised a great influence among his people. All priests were believed to 
 
 cS mer°of e tbi al ^ g Am0n§ ^ ° f th ® P ° pulous tribes the medi- 
 
 cme-men of this class were associated in guilds or societies, and on special 
 
 rmed ^ h6allng ° r “ nfe (vitality) g™ng” ceremonies, which 
 abounded m songs, prayers, ritual, and drama, and extended over a period of 
 a few hours to nine days. p u os 
 
 The ordinary procedure of the medicine-man was about as follows- He 
 inquired into the symptoms, dreams, and transgressions of tabus of the patient 
 whom he examined, and then pronounced his opinion as to the nature (gener^ 
 ally mythical) of the ailment. He then prayed, exhorted, or sang the last 
 perhaps, to the accompaniment of a rattle; made passes wih his hLd somt’ 
 times moistened with saliva, over the part affected; and finally placed his 
 mouth over the most painful spot and sucked hard to extract the LnediSe 
 principle of the illness. This result he apparently accomplished often bv 
 means of sleight-of-hand, producing the offending cause in the shape of I 
 thorn pebble, hair, or other object, which was then thrown away or destroyed 
 mally he administered a mysterious powder or 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 • 
 
 never failed to exercise as much mental influence as possible over hirpaSnt 1 
 For these services the healer was usually well compensated. If the case wouTd 
 not yield to the simpler treatment, a healing ceremony migh“ be re"to 
 If ah means failed, particularly in the case of internal diseases, the medicine¬ 
 man often suggested a witch or wizard as the cause, and the designation of 
 some one as the culprit frequently placed his hfe in jeopardy. If the medicine- 
 
8 
 
 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 healers as a rule were shrewd and experienced men; some 
 were sincere, 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, but 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 compensated, and had less responsibility. In general, they used much 
 more common sense in their practice, were acquainted with the beneficial 
 effects of sweating, poulticing, moxa, scarification, various manipulations, 
 and numerous vegetal remedies. 
 
 Besides these two cnief classes of healers there existed among some tribes 
 large medicine societies, composed principally of patients cured of serious ail¬ 
 ments. This was particularly the case among the Pueblo. At Zuni there still 
 exists several such societies, whose members include the greater part of the 
 tribe and whose organization and functions are complex. The ordinary mem¬ 
 bers 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 there¬ 
 fore may be called by the actual medicine-men for assistance. They participate 
 also in the ceremonies of their own society. 
 
 FOOD 
 
 The areas occupied by the Indians may be classed as supplying, predom¬ 
 inantly, 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-eaters exclusively, vegetal food is also of importance, and vice versa. 
 Vegetal foodstuffs are (1) pre-agricultural, or the gathering of self-sown fruits, 
 nuts, seeds, and roots; and (2) agricultural, or (a) the raising of root crops, 
 originating in the harvesting of roots of wild plants, and (b) of cereal prod¬ 
 ucts, consisting chiefly of maize grown by the majority of the tribes, and 
 wild’rice in the area of the upper lakes, where a sort of semiagriculture was 
 practiced to some extent. 
 
 Animal food was obtained from the game of the environment, and the settle¬ 
 ment and movements of some tribes depended largely on the location or range of 
 animals, such 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 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 king¬ 
 dom. Similarly no purely agricultural stage with exclusively vegetal diet ex¬ 
 isted, and no aboriginal domestication of animals north of Mexico is found 
 except in the case 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 the 
 tribes of 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 suppply also changed with the seasons, 
 causing the diet at different periods of the year to vary in its ratio of animal to 
 
9 
 
 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 flesh of the bear nor beaver, and other tribes 
 had tabu or totemic animals which, though useful for food, were not eaten. In 
 inhospitable regions, such as that inland from the Texas coast in the six¬ 
 teenth century, the natives subsisted on whatsoever they could find. Cabeza 
 de Vaca wrote of the Yguazas: “Their support is principally roots, which re¬ 
 quire 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 so great' 
 that they eat spiders and the eggs of ants, 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 meo- Ir.i,. and I 
 honestly believe that were there stones in that land they would cat them. They 
 save the bones of the fishes they consume, of snakes, and other animals, that 
 they may afterwards beat them together and eat the powder.” Almost: as much 
 may be said of the Maidu of California, who, in addition to consuming every 
 edible vegetal product, ate badgers, skunks, wildcats, and mountain lions, practi¬ 
 cally all birds except the buzzards, yellowjacket larvae, grasshoppers, locusts, 
 and crickets, and even s&lmon bones and deer vertebrae. 
 
 Vegetal food comprised a vast array of the products of plant life, of which 
 roots and seeds were the most valuable. The most important food plant pos¬ 
 sessed by the Indians was maize which formed and still forms their principal 
 subsistence. Following maize in order of importance came beans, peas, po¬ 
 tatoes, squashes, pumpkins, melons, and chile, which were grown in variety. 
 Uncultivated plants also entered into the dietary, as seeds, roots, and flowers 
 of grasses and other plants or parts of plants used as greens for flavoring, etc. 
 In numberless cases wild plants have preserved 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 
 prized as sweet, nourishing food. Tuckaho 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 sweet inner bark of the hemlock 
 and spruce. Savors, flavors, and condiments, as well as sweets, were valued by 
 the Indian, who was alsc fond of chewing gum. While salt was tabued by the 
 Onondaga and lye was substituted by some of the southern Indians, the former 
 was in general use. In some cases salt was made by the evaporation of the water 
 of salt springs, in other localities it was obtained in crystal form from salt 
 lakes and springs, and commerce in this product was widespread. Chile which 
 is of Mexican origin, became known throughout the Southwest, and saffron 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 southeastern 
 Canada sugar was produced by the evaporation of maple sap; in the Southwest 
 it 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 po¬ 
 tatoes to mitigate the griping effect of this acrid tuber. 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 water. Amphibious mammals sustained 
 the Eskimo, while the porcupine 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 distribution of food plants predetermined his 
 natural diffusion. 
 
10 
 
 Contrary to popular belief the Indians, as a rule, preferred cooked food. 
 
 Among the Pueblo Indians cooking is carried to a remarkable degree of pro¬ 
 ficiency, approaching in variety and methods the art among civilized peoples. 
 Most tribes knew how to prepare 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 practiced all the methods. The prep¬ 
 aration 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 pit 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 nourish¬ 
 ing power in small bulk, which was consumed dry or in water as gruel. Pinole, 
 consisting of ground parched corn, forms the favorite food of southwestern 
 desert tribes. The fermentation of corn to make beer was not generally prac¬ 
 ticed, and it is doubtful if the process was known in America before the dis¬ 
 covery. A yeast formed by chewing corn has long been known to the Zuni 
 and Hopi at 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 wood-ash lye to their “paper bread,” and pre¬ 
 pare their bread and mushes with meat, greens, or oily seeds and nuts, besides 
 using condiments, especially chile. 
 
 Vegetal foodstuffs were preserved by drying, and among the less sedentary 
 tribes were strung or tied in bundles for facility of transportation or storage. 
 The preservation of maize, mesquite beans, acorns, etc., gave rise to granaries 
 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 sometimes pulverized and mixed with berries, grease, etc., forming pem- 
 mican, 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 fre¬ 
 quently 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 Indians 
 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 
 
 The tribes of northern America belong in general to the wholly clothed 
 peoples, the exceptions being those inhabiting the warmer regions of southern 
 United States and the Pacific coast, who were semiclothed. Tanned skin of 
 the deer family 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 for dresses and leggings by older people, but the leather 
 was too harsh for clothing generally, while elk or moose skin, although soft, 
 
11 
 
 was too thick. Fabrics of bark, hair, fur, mountain-sheep wool, and feathers 
 were made in the northern Pacific, Pueblo, and southern regions, and cotton 
 nas been woven by the Hopi from ancient times. Climate, environment, ele¬ 
 vation, and oceanic currents determined the materials used for clothing as 
 well as the demand for clothing. Sinew from the tendons of the larger ani¬ 
 mals was the usual sewing material, but fibers of plants especially 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 needle-work is of ex¬ 
 ceptionally good character and shows great skill with the awl. Unlike many 
 other arts, sewing was practiced 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 was designed to be drawn over the head! 
 The woman’s costume differed from that of the man on the length of the 
 shirt, which had short sleeves hanging 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 were substituted for these later. The costume presented 
 tribal differences in cut, color, and ornamentation. 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 ornaments 
 or charms. The typical 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 fri’nge- 
 like skirt of bark, cord, strung seeds, or peltry, worn around the loins. In cer¬ 
 tain 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. Ceremonial costume was much more elaborate than that for 
 ordinary wear. Moccasins and leggings were worn throughout much of this 
 area, but in the warmer parts and in California their use was unusual. Some 
 tnbes near the Mexican boundary wear sandals, and sandal-wearing tribes 
 once ranged widely m the Southwest. Those have also been found in Ken- 
 
 ShS C t V T S ' HatS ’ USUally ° f basketry ’ were worn by many Pacific coast 
 
 bes. Belts of various materials and ornamentations not only confined the 
 clothing but supported pouches, trinket bags, paint bags, etc. Larger pouches 
 and pipe bags of fur or deerskin, beaded or ornamented with quill-work, and of 
 plain skin, netting, or woven stuff, were slug from the shoulder. Necklaces 
 C £ arms ’ and bracelets ^ infinite variety formed a part of the cloth- 
 was general 6 gUafd t0 pr ° tect the arm from the recoil of the bowstring 
 
 Shortly after the advent of whites Indian costume was profoundly modified 
 over a vast area of America by the copying of European dress and the use of 
 traders stuffs. Knowledge of prehistoric and early historic primitive textile 
 fabrics has been derived from the impressions of fabrics on pottSy Tnd from 
 fabrics themselves that have been preserved by charring in fire contact with 
 
 copper, or protection from the elements in caves. ’ tact Wlth 
 
 r^I yn T iS °i the C0Stumes worn b y trib es living in the eleven geographical 
 regions of northern America follows. The list is necessarily incomplete, for on 
 account of the abandonment of tribal costumes the data are chiefly historical: 
 
 (1) Eskimo (Northern.) Men: Shirt-coat with hood, trousers, half, or full 
 
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 boots, stockings, mittens. Women: Shirt-coat with large hood, trousers or 
 legging-moccasins, belt and mittens, needle case, workbag, etc. (Southern.) 
 Men: Robe, gown, trousers, boots, hood on gown or cap. 
 
 (2) Athapascan (Mackenzie and Yukon). Men: Shirt-coat, legging-moc¬ 
 casins, breechcloth, hat, and hood. Women: Long shirt-coat, legging-moccasins,. 
 belt. 
 
 (3) Algonquian-Iroquois (Northern). Men: Robe, shirt-coat, long-coat,, 
 trousers, leggings, moccasins, 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, short leggings, moccasins, belt. (Arctic). Men: 
 Long coat, open in front, short breeches, leggings, moccasins, gloves or mit¬ 
 tens, cap or headdress. Women: Robe, shirt-dress, leggings, moccasins, belt, 
 cap, and sometimes a shoulder mantle. 
 
 (4) Southern or Muskhogean (Seminole). Men: Shirt, overshirt, leggings, 
 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), legging-moccasins, basket hat. Women: Tanned skin shoulder-robe, 
 shirt-dress with sleeves, fringed apron, 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. Same 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 moc¬ 
 casins. (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, leggings to 
 knees, moccasins, hair-tape, and headband. Women: Blanket fastened over 
 the one shoulder, extending to knees; small calico shawl over blanket thrown 
 over shoulders: legging-moccasins, belt. Sandals formerly worn in this area. 
 Snow moccasins of fur sometimes worn in winter. (Apache.) Men: Same as 
 on The Plains. Women: 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, formerly cotton robe, waist cloth, and, sandals. 
 
 PART H—THE PRESENT 
 
 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. As a result of this policy and with the active assistance of the 
 Government along educational and industrial lines, the Indians of to-day are 
 
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 fast assuming the habits and customs of modern civilization and becoming 
 good citizens in every sense of the word. 
 
 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 reser¬ 
 vations, 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 farming and stock raising and nat¬ 
 urally their diet is largely composed of such articles of food as are produced on 
 the farm, supplemented by the purchase of other foodstuffs as their taste may 
 suggest and their means afford. In the preparation of their food, they are 
 more and more following the modern methods of cooking learned at the Gov¬ 
 ernment 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, suitable to the climatic conditions in which they live. 
 
 As the Indians advance in civilization, they lay aside the old methods of 
 housing and live in dwellings of whatever style and size their means afford, just 
 as do their white neighbors. 
 
 Among the Pueblo, the adobe type of building tile is in use; houses are 
 of the detached style; board floors have replaced dirt floors; full-size doors 
 and windows have replaced the old half door and shutter windows; doors and 
 windows are screened; cook stoves have replaced old-time fireplaces. 
 
 Among the Kiowa, modern two to six room homes are being built. 
 
 Log houses have replaced the old tipi of the Sioux. 
 
 In Tulalip country, frame houses have replaced the log or rough-board 
 shacks. 
 
 Practice cottages for the teaching of home-making are provided at the larger 
 Indian schools; those cottages also serve as model homes for Indian com¬ 
 munities. 
 
 In the Indian villages home-economics teachers are working with mothers 
 and daughters alike. The girls and women are taught better ventilation. Much 
 emphasis is placed on child care since infant mortality has been particularly 
 high among Indians. 
 
 The American Red Cross is assisting very particularly in this movement and 
 at the present time is conducting two community demonstrations in different 
 sections of the Indian country. 
 
 Parents’ associations in connection with schools, chapters in connection 
 with industrial programs are active, and are practical demonstrations of the 
 Indian’s interest in progress. 
 
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