Howard] THE PONCA TRIBE 147 



visiting other tribes, following rodeos, visiting large cities, and visiting 

 places of unusual interest. They support themselves during this 

 time by working on and off for eating money and by staying with 

 other Indians. Young men from other tribes visit the Ponca in the 

 same manner, often from such distant groups as the New York Iro- 

 quois and the Plains-Cree of Saskatchewan. Most adult Ponca men 

 have a large fund of stories relating to their wanderings at this stage 

 of life which are recounted in much the way the old tales of war ex- 

 peditions would have been told a few generations back. 



Concerning marriage customs of the Ponca, A.D. Jones, Superin- 

 tendent and Clerk of the (Southern) Ponca Agency, in a letter to 

 J. M. Wood, the Agent, dated November 12, 1890, wiites as foUows: 



Girls married at 14 to 16 years of age. Often a man "bought" a girl with 

 ponies when she was very young, then married her later. In this case she might 

 live with him in his camp if he were already married to her older sister, otherwise 

 she would remain with her parents until of marriageable age. Wives who were 

 not sisters often refused to live under the same roof. The mother-in-law wielded 

 great power. If the husband mistreated his bride the mother-in-law would fetch 

 her home. 



Jones' comments on the early age of Ponca girls at marriage are 

 confirmed by Dorsey (1884 a, p. 259), who writes: 



It is now customary for girls to be married at the age of fifteen, sixteen, or seven- 

 teen years among the Omahas, and in the Ponka tribe they generally take hus- 

 bands as soon as they enter their fifteenth year. It was not so formerly; men 

 waited until they were twenty-five or thirty, and the women till they were twenty 

 years of age. 



PLC commented on Ponca marriage customs as follows: 



When a boy wanted to marry a girl, he could do it in one of two ways. The 

 first way he gave lots of presents to her family, such as horses and buffalo robes. 

 This was the most common way. If her family kept the presents, it meant that 

 they approved the marriage, and the girl would come and live with the man. 



The second way was by arrangement. A boy would go to his parents. He 

 would tell them that he was interested in a certain girl, and ask them to help 

 arrange a match. If they were willing, they would go and talk with the girl's 

 parents. After four days, if the girl's parents didn't complain, the boy's parents 

 collected a large number of gifts and took them over. Four days later these gifts 

 were returned. [*^] This made the marriage good. 



These two forms of marriage may reflect the mixed cultural heritage 

 of the Ponca. The first form is quite typical of the High Plains area 

 (i.e., Cheyenne, Teton Dakota) while the second is the usual form in 

 the Eastern Woodlands (i.e., Ojibwa, Potawatomi). 



James (1905 b, p. 25) refers to young Omaha men eloping with 

 married women and coming to live with the Ponca. Perhaps, in like 

 manner, Ponca couples eloped and went to live with the Omaha to 

 avoid the censure of their tribe. 



« By "these gifts" PLC actually means gifts of comparable value, not the same items. 



