THE RAY COLLECTION FROM IIUPA liESERVATIOX. 213 



sound. The alternation of bands of straw and leather of difi'ereut 

 widths, the triangular gradines wrought by serving adjacent strands 

 with a different number of wraps, and the graceful appearance of the 

 fuinge make of these dance cloaks very attractive objects. No two of 

 these are alike in the s'equence of colors, the width of stripe, or depth 

 of fringe. 



The cinctures worn by women, and many other specimens in the mu- 

 seum from this region, are constructed on the same plan, so that the de- 

 scription of one of the most complicated will include all the rest (Fig. 43). 

 A whole buckskin is folded in the middle. At the creased portion 

 about 3 inches are left whole. The tailor slits the rest of the skin into 

 " shoe-strings." Then she folded the skin three ply, as you would a 

 sheet of letter paper for a long envelope, and sewed the undercut strip 

 together so as to keep the skin from unfolding. Commencing at one side 

 she gathered twelve strings into a cable, taking four strands from each 

 fold of the skin, and wrapped these for about 3 inches into a cylinder 

 with broad strips of yellow grass. Continuing all the way across she made 

 series of these cables, inclosing in each twelve strands. With buck- 

 skin string by twined weaving she united all these cylinders together at 

 their lower ends, wrapping each strand with yellow grass. She intro- 

 duced here and there the beads and piilon seeds so as to form bands 

 across the cincture. About 5 inches of the bottom of each strand were 

 served with a kind of braiding now to be described. A very long, tough 

 strip of straw folded by its middle around one of the buckskin strands, 

 crossing at the opposite side, the ends are alternately turned back and 

 tucked through the last fold, giving the appearance of a rough four-ply 

 braid. This ingenious trick of imitating braid in the administration of 

 one or two strands has been elsewhere noticed on the borders of basket- 

 work bowls. (Smithsonian Report, 1884. Tt. II, pi. xxxi.) 



A girdle or sash made of grass and buckskin is also worn by women. 

 The mode of manufacture is so entirely aboriginal as to demand a mi- 

 nute description. (Fig. 44.) Take a strip of buckskin about 3 feet long 

 and 3 inches wide and cut all but a short piece at one end into strings, 

 which should be rolled. Provide a quantity of fine, shredded sinew 

 and strands of yellow grass. Stretch the eight leather strands so as to 

 be about one-eighth of an inch apart. Begin at the end where the strings 

 are not cut apart, lay a thread of sinew across the leather strings at 

 right angles and pass a strand of grass between each j^air of strings, 

 around the sinews, and back. Now bring the sinew around the outside 

 string and across as before and double all the straws over it, and back 

 between the strings. The straws are carried back and forward between 

 the strings in a zig-zag manner around the sinew laid across each line. 

 In this weaving with three elements Brussels carpet is somewhat antic- 

 ipated. There is also a curious dance wand made of basket-work, which 

 is carried in the hand during the dance. (Fig. 45.) This is a mat 

 of twined grass cloth about 18 indies square woven in bands and 



