MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 



491 



a few bad guns, which are reserv- 

 ed exclusively for war, but his 

 common arms are the bow and ar- 

 row, a shield, a lance, and a 

 weapon called by the Chippeways, 

 by whom it was formejly used, 

 the poggamoggon. The bow is 

 made of cedar or pine, covered on 

 the outerside withsinews and glue. 

 It is about two and a half feet 

 long, and does not diifer in sliape 

 from those used by the Sioux, 

 Mandans and Minnetarees. Some- 

 times, however, tlie bow is made 

 of a single piece of the horn of an 

 elk, covered on the back like 

 those of wood with sinews and 

 glue, and occasionally ornament- 

 ed by a strand wrought of porcu- 

 pine quills and sinews, which is 

 wrapped round the horn near its 

 two ends. The bows made of tlie 

 the horns of the bighorn, are still 

 more prized, and are formed by 

 cementing with glue Hat pieces of 

 the horn together, covering the 

 back witli sinews and glue, and 

 loading the whole with an un- 

 usual quantity of ornaments. The 

 arrows resemble those of the 

 other Indians, except in being 

 more slender than any we have 

 seen. They are contained, with 

 the implements for striking fire, 

 in a narrow quiver formed of dif- 

 ferent kinds of skin, though that 

 of the otter seems to be preferred. 

 It is just long enough to protect 

 the arrows from the weather, and 

 is worn on tiie back by means of 

 a strap passing over the right 

 shoulder and under the left arm. 

 The shield is a circular piece of 

 buffaloc hide about two feet four 

 or five inches in diameter, orna- 

 mented with feathers, and a fringe 

 round it of dressed leather, and 

 adorned or deformed with paint- 

 ings of strange figures. The 



buffaloe hide is perfectly proof 

 against any arrow, but in the 

 minds of the Shoshonees, its 

 power to protect them is chiefly 

 derived fiom the virtues which 

 are communicated to it Ijy the old 

 men and jugglers. To make a 

 shield is indeed one of their most 

 important ceremonies : it begins 

 by a feast to which all the war- 

 riors, old men and jugglers are 

 invited. After the repast a hole 

 is dug in the groimd about eigh- 

 teen inches in depth, and of the 

 same diameter as the intended 

 shield : into this hole red hot 

 stones are thrown and water 

 poured over them, till they emit 

 a very strong hot steam. The 

 buffaloe skin, which must be the 

 entire hide of a male two years 

 old, and never suffered to dry 

 since it was taken from the ani- 

 mal, is now laid across the hole, 

 with the fleshy side to the ground, 

 and stretched in every direction 

 by as many as can take hold of it. 

 As the skin becomes heated, the 

 hair separates and is taken oif by 

 the hand ; till at last the skin is 

 contracted into the compass de- 

 signed for the shield. 1 1 is then 

 taken oiF and placed on a liide 

 prepared into parchment, and 

 then pounded duiing the rest of 

 the festival by the bare heels of 

 those who are invited to it. This 

 operation sometimes continues for 

 several days, after which it is de- 

 livered to the pioprietor, and de- 

 clared by the old men and jug- 

 glers to be a security against ar- 

 rows ; and provided the fea.st has 

 been satisfactory, against even 

 tl)e bullets of their enemies. Such 

 is the delusion, that many of the 

 Indians imphcitly believe that this 

 ceremony has given to the shield 

 supernatural poweis, and tluit 



they 



