﻿34 
  

  

  THE 
  OMAHA 
  TRIBE 
  [ETH. 
  ANN. 
  27 
  

  

  Owing 
  to 
  the 
  unwillingness 
  of 
  the 
  people 
  to 
  speak 
  of 
  the 
  dead, 
  it 
  

   was 
  impracticable 
  to 
  attempt 
  to 
  get 
  the 
  exact 
  number 
  of 
  children 
  

   that 
  had 
  been 
  born. 
  

  

  The 
  following 
  summary 
  shows 
  the 
  proportion 
  of 
  the 
  sexes 
  at 
  differ- 
  

   ent 
  stages 
  of 
  life: 
  

  

  Males. 
  Females. 
  

  

  Under 
  3 
  years 
  87 
  82 
  

  

  Between 
  3 
  and 
  7 
  years 
  69 
  82 
  

  

  Between 
  7 
  and 
  17 
  years 
  103 
  113 
  

  

  Between 
  17 
  and 
  40 
  years 
  192 
  232 
  

  

  Between 
  40 
  and 
  55 
  years 
  72 
  55 
  

  

  Over 
  55 
  years 
  41 
  51 
  

  

  The 
  marked 
  disproportion 
  between 
  the 
  sexes 
  of 
  ages 
  between 
  17 
  

   and 
  40 
  years 
  may 
  be 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  during 
  this 
  stage 
  of 
  life 
  all 
  

   the 
  men 
  were 
  exposed 
  to 
  the 
  hazards 
  of 
  hunting 
  and 
  of 
  war. 
  As 
  

   these 
  avocations 
  of 
  the 
  men 
  did 
  not 
  cease 
  until 
  1S76, 
  eight 
  years 
  before 
  

   this 
  census 
  was 
  taken, 
  the 
  influence 
  of 
  these 
  duties 
  on 
  the 
  length 
  of 
  

   life 
  of 
  the 
  men 
  is 
  probably 
  shown 
  in 
  the 
  above 
  table. 
  

  

  Formany 
  centuries 
  before 
  they 
  became 
  known 
  to 
  the 
  white 
  race 
  

   through 
  early 
  travelers, 
  traders, 
  and 
  colonists, 
  the 
  aboriginal 
  peoples 
  

   of 
  North 
  America 
  north 
  of 
  Mexico 
  had 
  been 
  passing 
  and 
  repassing 
  one 
  

   another 
  from 
  east 
  to 
  west 
  or 
  west 
  to 
  cast, 
  and 
  from 
  north 
  to 
  south 
  or 
  

   from 
  south 
  to 
  north." 
  Many 
  traces 
  of 
  these 
  ancient 
  movements 
  had 
  

   been 
  overlaid 
  by 
  movements 
  the 
  outcome 
  of 
  which 
  is 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  

   map, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  the 
  task 
  of 
  the 
  archeologist 
  to 
  disclose 
  them 
  and 
  read 
  

   their 
  history. 
  That 
  the 
  system 
  of 
  inland 
  waterways 
  and 
  the 
  exten- 
  

   sive 
  coast 
  lines 
  on 
  two 
  oceans 
  have 
  favored 
  the 
  spread 
  of 
  the 
  culture 
  

   of 
  one 
  region 
  to 
  another 
  seems 
  not 
  improbable, 
  viewed 
  in 
  the 
  light 
  of 
  

   recent 
  researches, 
  while 
  the 
  accumulating 
  evidence 
  showing 
  attrition 
  

   between 
  the 
  various 
  stocks 
  indicated 
  on 
  the 
  map 
  in 
  time 
  will 
  permit 
  

   of 
  generalizations 
  touching 
  the 
  cultural 
  development 
  of 
  the 
  native 
  

   peoples 
  of 
  this 
  continent. 
  

  

  The 
  Omaha 
  tribe 
  belongs 
  to 
  the 
  Siouan 
  linguistic 
  stock. 
  The 
  map 
  

   referred 
  to 
  represents 
  the 
  majority 
  of 
  this 
  stock 
  as 
  having 
  already 
  

   moved 
  westward 
  beyond 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  while 
  some 
  branches 
  had 
  

   advanced 
  nearly 
  to 
  the 
  eastern 
  foothills 
  of 
  the 
  Rocky 
  mountains 
  and 
  

   north 
  to 
  the 
  fiftj^-third 
  parallel. 
  There 
  were 
  also 
  a 
  few 
  outlying 
  Siouan 
  

   communities 
  — 
  those 
  who 
  may 
  have 
  lagged 
  behind 
  — 
  for 
  example 
  1 
  , 
  the 
  

   group 
  dwelling 
  on 
  the 
  eastern 
  slope 
  of 
  the 
  Appalachian 
  mountains 
  

   and 
  spreading 
  down 
  toward 
  the 
  coastal 
  plains 
  of 
  the 
  Atlantic, 
  and 
  a 
  

   group 
  on 
  the 
  northern 
  coast 
  of 
  the 
  Gulf 
  of 
  Mexico 
  that 
  seem 
  to 
  have 
  

   been 
  cut 
  off 
  from 
  that 
  portion 
  of 
  their 
  kindred 
  who 
  had 
  pressed 
  to 
  the 
  

   southwest. 
  The 
  story 
  told 
  by 
  the 
  map 
  both 
  explains 
  and 
  is 
  explained 
  

  

  o 
  Consult 
  the 
  Map 
  of 
  the 
  Linguistic 
  Families 
  of 
  American 
  Indians 
  north 
  of 
  Mexico 
  (in 
  I 
  he 
  Seventh 
  An- 
  

   nual 
  Report 
  and 
  ia 
  Bullrtin 
  SO, 
  part 
  1, 
  of 
  the 
  Bureau 
  of 
  American 
  Ethnology}, 
  which 
  shows 
  approxi- 
  

   mately 
  the 
  territories 
  occupied 
  by 
  tho 
  several 
  linguistic 
  stocks 
  when 
  they 
  became 
  known 
  to 
  the 
  whites. 
  

  

  