LIFE IN THE FAR \y EST. 47 



but a little distance from the ground, they made their way, 

 through an interval left in the circle of warriors, to the grim pole, 

 and encircling it, danced in perfect silence round it for a few mo- 

 ments. Then they burst forth with an extempore song, laudatory 

 of the achievements of their victorious braves. They addressed 

 the scalps as " sisters" (to be called a squaw is the greatest insult 

 that can be offered to an Indian), and, spitting at them, upbraided 

 them with rashness in leaving their lodges to seek for Yuta hus- 

 bands ; " that the Yuta warriors and young men despised them, 

 and chastised them for their forwardness and presumption, bring- 

 ing back their scalps to their own women." 



After sufficiently proving that they had any thing but lost the 

 use of their tongues, but possessed, on the contrary, as fair a 

 length of that formidable weapon as any of their sex, they with- 

 drew, and left the field in undisputed possession of the men : who, 

 accompanied by tap of drum, and by the noise of many rattles, 

 broke out into a war-song in which their own valor was by no 

 means hidden in a bushel, or modestly refused the light of day. 

 After this came the more interesting ceremony of a warrior 

 •' counting his coups." 



A young brave, with his face painted black, mounted on a 

 white horse mysteriously marked with red clay, and naked to the 

 breech-clout, holding in his hand a long, taper lance, rode into the 

 circle, and paced slowly round it ; then, flourishing his spear on 

 high, he darted to the scalp-pole, round which the warriors were 

 now seated in a semicircle ; and in a loud voice, and with furious 

 gesticulations, related his exploits, the drums tapping at the con- 

 clusion of each. On his spear hung seven scalps, and holding it 

 vertically above his head, and commencing with the top one, he 

 told the feats in which he had raised the trophy hair. When he 

 had run through these, the drums tapped loudly, and several of 

 the old chiefs shook their rattles, in corroboration of the truth of 

 his achievements. The brave, swelling with pride, then pointed 



