Howard] THE PONCA TRIBE 23 



1858 Treaty 



Wah gah sah pi 

 Gish tab wah gu 

 Was Kon mi the 

 Ashna nika gah hi 



Peter Le Claire 

 Niobrara, Nebraska 



In addition to archeology and traditional history, there are other 

 lines of evidence which shed light on the Ponca past. Some interest- 

 ing botanical evidence bearing upon the relationship of the Ponca 

 to the Omaha is presented by Will and Hyde (1917, p. 296) : "As 

 might be supposed from their close relationship and intimacy in early 

 times, the Ponkas and Omahas have the same varieties of corn today. 

 Each tribe, however, preserves some varieties which the other appears 

 to have lost." 



The close connection between the Ponca and other Southern Siouan 

 groups is evident to the trained observer even at the present time, 

 and has been mentioned repeatedly in print. Fletcher and La Flesche, 

 for example, write : "The five cognate tribes [Omaha, Ponca, Osage, 

 Kansa, and Quapaw] , of which the Omaha is one, bear a strong resem- 

 blance to one another, not only in language but in tribal organization 

 and religious rites" (1911, p. 35). Some ceremonies and dances still 

 performed today are claimed jointly by all of the ^egiha groups, 

 the most notable being the well-known Heduska or "War dance." 

 Indeed, the separation of the Omaha and Ponca was recent enough 

 that at least one artifact predating the separation is still in existence. 

 This is the famous "sacred pole" of which J. O. Dorsey writes : "The 

 Waxdege, Zq-wdxube, or sacred pole, is very old, having been cut 

 more than two hundred years ago, before the separation of the Omahas, 

 Ponkas, and lowas" (1884 a, p. 234). Two of my own informants, 

 LMD and OYB, knew of the sacred pole and mentioned that it had 

 once been revered by both the Omaha and the Ponca. This intertribal 

 relic now rests in the Peabody Museum, Harvard University. Its 

 origin and functions are discussed at length by Fletcher and La Flesche 

 in "The Omaha Tribe" (1911, pp. 217-269) . 



ENTER THE LONG-KNIVES 



Some American Indian tribes, such as the Pawnee, Osage, and 

 Dakota, owing to their great numbers or warlike reputation, became 

 known to the Europeans long before explorers and traders had ac- 

 tually reached their territory. This was not true of the Ponca. From 

 the fact that they are not noted on the earliest maps nor mentioned, by 

 report, in the earliest explorers' chronicles relating to the Missouri 

 country, we may reasonably assume that the Ponca tribe was neither 



