OF THE POLAR SEA. 



81 



vow. Vows of this nature are often made by a Cree before he joins 

 a war party, and they sometimes, like the eastern bonzes, walk for 

 a certain number of days on all fours, or impose upon themselves 

 some other penance, equally ridiculous. By such means the Cree 

 warrior becomes godlike; but unless he kills an enemy before his 

 return, his newly-acquired powers are esteemed to be productive in 

 future of some direful consequence to himself. 



As we did not witness any of the Cree dances ourselves, we shall 

 merely mention, that like the other North American nations, they 

 are accustomed to practise that amusement on meeting with strange 

 tribes, before going to war, and on other solemn occasions. 



The habitual intoxication of the Cumberland House Crees has 

 induced such a disregard of personal appearance, that they are 

 squalid and dirty in the extreme ; hence a minute description of their 

 clothing would be by no means interesting. We shall, therefore, 

 only remark in a general manner, that the dress of the males consists 

 of a blanket thrown over the shoulders, a leathern shirt or jacket, and 

 a piece of cloth tied round the middle. The women have in addition 

 a long petticoat; and both sexes wear a kind of wide hose, which 

 reaching from the ancle to the middle of the thigh, are suspended by 

 strings to the girdle. These hose, or as they are termed, Indian 

 stockings, are commonly ornamented with beads or ribands, and from 

 their convenience, have been universally adopted by the white resi- 

 dents, as an essential part of their winter clothing. Their shoes, or 

 rather short boots, for they tie round the ancle, are made of soft 

 dressed moose skins, and during the winter they wrap several pieces 

 of blanket round their feet. 



They are fond of European articles of dress, considering it as mean 

 to be dressed entirely in leather, and the hunters are generally fur- 

 nished annually with a capot or great coat, and the women with 

 shawls, printed calicoes, and other things very unsuitable to their 

 mode of life, but which they wear in imitation of the wives of the 



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