1670 



The Cornell Reading Courses 



Personification of the elements of nature. Belief in their volition and 



their good or ill will; therefore practice of propitiation, which becomes 



worship. 

 Altars and votive offerings froni flocks and herds, from gardens and hunt. 



Use of symbolic offerings, such as feathers and honey. 

 Creation and God myths of all times and peoples. 

 Religious festivals; rites, games, dances. 

 Detailed study of the Iroquois creed, cults, and customs. Religious 



societies and fraternities. 

 Beliefs and practices of medicine men. 



PROGRAM 16 

 BURIAL CUSTOMS OF PRIMITIVE WOMAN 



Roll call. — Each member should name one of the present day mourning 



customs practiced before or after 

 funerals. 



Paper. — Descriptions of different 

 kinds of burials. 



Paper. — Duties, privileges, appear- 

 ance, and probable future of prim- 

 itive woman in her widowhood. 



General discussion. — • What relics of 

 barbarism in the mourning cus- 

 toms of to-day should be dis- 

 carded or modified ? What mourn- 

 ing customs might be adopted 

 from primitive peoples? 



Fig. 50. — An Indian grave of the present 

 day in Minnesota 



STUDY TOPICS FOR PROGRAM 16 



Disposition of the dead by (i) cremation or (2) burial. 



Modes of burial; in urns; under floor of tent or hut; scaffold or aerial 



burial ; aquatic burial ; canoe burial ; mound burial ; cliff burial. 

 Care of dead body and preparation for burial; embalmment. Eg\'ptian 



and Peruvian mtimmies should be compared. 

 Funeral ceremonies: songs, mourning feasts, dances. 

 Postfuneral care of the dead; food and ofterings at the grave. Customs 



of the Greeks and the Romans should be compared with those of the 



American Indians. 

 Customs of mourners, especially the women. 



" Burial of the name " of the dead — • ceasing to use or mention it. 

 Significance of certain funeral customs with regard to : 



1. The spirit of the deceased. 



2. The surviving relatives and friends. 



The willow token of the Omaha mourners. The tribal moccasin. 



