Howard] THE PONCA TRIBE 45 



planter made a 'buffalo track' (i.e., a small depression) with his hand 

 and dropped a few seeds into this. Then the hill was covered and 

 smoothed" (PLC). PLC demonstrated the maldng of this "buffalo 

 track" by making a fist with his right hand, but with the first and 

 second fingers extended and bent at the first joint. Pressing his fist 

 into the soft earth, he made a depression which very much resembled 

 a bison's hoofprint. 



Apparently, as was true throughout Eastern North America, most 

 of the gardening was done by the women of the tribe. At least one 

 story, however, tells of a man raising corn (cf . PLC's "History," p. 20) . 

 Will and Hyde (1917, p. 110) note that: "The women usually gave the 

 patches two hoeings before the tribe started on the [summer] hunt, 

 but sometimes, when the season was late, the corn was hoed only 

 once." The corn was harvested in October, both the men and the 

 women taking part in this activity. It was then dried on scaffolds and 

 shelled as needed. PLC made an old-style Ponca com sheller as an 

 exhibit for an Indian Fair, and later gave it to me (pi. 22, e) . It is a 

 tapering wooden pin with a sharp point and a notch for the thumb. 

 He stated that the point was run between the rows of kernels on the cob. 



Beans, squashes, pumpkins, and, at least in the 19th century, a type 

 of watermelon were important to the Ponca economy as well. Squash 

 was planted in hills in the same manner as corn, and apparently inter- 

 planted with it. Detailed information on the planting of other vege- 

 tables could not be secured. The Ponca watermelons, according to 

 JLR, were small, round, and full of shiny black seeds. He considered 

 them to be aboriginal ; but this seems unlikely, though the Ponca may 

 have acquired them before Wliites actually reached the Ponca country. 

 These melons are described and pictured by Gilmore (1919, p. 120). 



Fletcher and La Flesche (1911, p. 45) write that: "There were no 

 ceremonies in the Ponca tribe relative to the planting and care of 

 maize." Yet Skinner (1915 c, p. Y89) states: "The object of the 

 [Sun] dance . . . was to obtain rain for the crops." My informants 

 PLC and WBB confirmed Skinner's statement. WBB mentioned that 

 in later years the Ghost dance was performed for a similar reason. 



At the present time the Ponca still raise their former crops, but 

 the techniques and seeds used are those of the White man. Garden 

 vegetables introduced by the Wliites have been used by the Ponca for 

 at least a century. Gourds for use in making Peyote rattles are 

 raised by some Southern Ponca. Andrew Snake, a Southern Ponca 

 gourd raiser, once told me that : "You've got to tend 'em like a baby — 

 pour a little milk on 'em now and then." He also described how the 

 growing gourds should be moved from time to time to keep them from 

 being lopsided. 



