﻿46 
  THE 
  OMAHA 
  TRIBE 
  [eth. 
  ANN. 
  27 
  

  

  A 
  member 
  of 
  this 
  gens 
  must 
  not 
  touch 
  or 
  kill 
  a 
  snake, 
  and 
  care 
  had 
  

   to 
  be 
  exercised 
  always 
  to 
  enter 
  the 
  tent 
  by 
  the 
  door, 
  otherwise 
  snakes 
  

   would 
  go 
  in 
  and 
  do 
  harm. 
  Mothers 
  in 
  this 
  gens 
  were 
  very 
  particular 
  

   to 
  impress 
  on 
  their 
  children 
  the 
  importance 
  of 
  entering 
  the 
  tent 
  by 
  

   the 
  door 
  and 
  little 
  children 
  were 
  watched 
  lest 
  one 
  should 
  creep 
  under 
  

   the 
  tent 
  cover 
  and 
  so 
  bring 
  harm 
  to 
  itself 
  or 
  the 
  inmates. 
  

  

  A 
  man 
  harboring 
  a 
  grudge 
  against 
  a 
  person 
  could 
  bring 
  about 
  the 
  

   punishment 
  of 
  that 
  individual 
  by 
  dropping 
  inside 
  the 
  offender's 
  tent 
  

   a 
  figure 
  of 
  a 
  snake 
  cut 
  out 
  of 
  rawhide. 
  Shortly 
  afterward 
  the 
  man 
  

   would 
  be 
  bitten 
  by 
  a 
  snake. 
  A 
  drawing 
  made 
  of 
  the 
  snake 
  to 
  be 
  cut 
  

   out 
  showed 
  it 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  rattlesnake. 
  

  

  When 
  any 
  one 
  in 
  the 
  tribe 
  chanced 
  to 
  be 
  bitten 
  by 
  a 
  snake, 
  he 
  sent 
  

   at 
  once 
  for 
  a 
  member 
  of 
  the 
  Wazha'zhe 
  gens, 
  who 
  on 
  arriving 
  at 
  the 
  

   tent 
  quickly 
  dug 
  a 
  hole 
  beside 
  the 
  fire 
  with 
  a 
  stick, 
  and 
  then 
  sucked 
  

   the 
  wound 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  draw 
  out 
  the 
  blood 
  and 
  prevent 
  any 
  serious 
  trouble 
  

   from 
  the 
  injury. 
  The 
  purpose 
  in 
  digging 
  the 
  hole 
  

   could 
  not 
  be 
  learned 
  from 
  the- 
  writer's 
  informant. 
  

   When 
  on 
  the 
  tribal 
  hunt, 
  the 
  women 
  gathered 
  

   the 
  bones 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo 
  and 
  boiled 
  them 
  to 
  ex- 
  

   tract 
  the 
  marrow 
  for 
  future 
  use. 
  If 
  a 
  person 
  

   wished 
  to 
  tease 
  a 
  woman 
  so 
  employed, 
  he 
  would 
  

   catch 
  up 
  with 
  a 
  stick 
  and 
  throw 
  away 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  

   scum 
  from 
  the 
  pot. 
  This 
  act 
  would 
  prevent 
  any 
  

   fig. 
  s. 
  cut 
  of 
  hair, 
  Wa- 
  more 
  marrow 
  from 
  leaving 
  the 
  bones, 
  and 
  the 
  only 
  

   shd'zhegeristPonca). 
  way 
  to 
  un 
  ,i 
  the 
  mischief 
  was 
  to 
  send 
  for 
  a 
  Wa- 
  

   zha'zhe, 
  who 
  on 
  arriving 
  removed 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  a 
  stick 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  fat 
  

   from 
  the 
  boiling 
  bones. 
  The 
  marrow 
  would 
  then 
  come 
  out 
  freely 
  at 
  

   once 
  and 
  the 
  woman 
  would 
  be 
  able 
  to 
  secure 
  an 
  ample 
  supply 
  of 
  

   tallow. 
  'That 
  is 
  the 
  mystery 
  of 
  my 
  people," 
  said 
  the 
  old 
  informant, 
  

   with 
  a 
  sly 
  smile, 
  in 
  response 
  to 
  inquiries 
  on 
  the 
  subject. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  said 
  that 
  the 
  Wazha'zhe 
  were 
  a 
  warlike 
  and 
  quarrelsome 
  peo- 
  

   ple, 
  and 
  that 
  at 
  the 
  organization 
  of 
  the 
  tribe 
  a 
  peace 
  pipe 
  was 
  given 
  

   into 
  their 
  keeping. 
  By 
  accepting 
  this 
  trust 
  they 
  committed 
  them- 
  

   selves 
  to 
  more 
  peaceful 
  and 
  orderly 
  conduct 
  in 
  the 
  tribe. 
  It 
  is 
  still 
  

   a 
  matter 
  of 
  dispute 
  within 
  the 
  gens 
  as 
  to 
  which 
  of 
  the 
  two 
  subdi- 
  

   visions 
  the 
  custody 
  of 
  the 
  peace 
  pipe 
  originally 
  belonged, 
  whether 
  

   to 
  the 
  "real" 
  or 
  to 
  the 
  "gray" 
  Wazha'zhe. 
  

   The 
  office 
  of 
  tribal 
  herald 
  was 
  in 
  this 
  gens. 
  

  

  The. 
  symbolic 
  cut 
  of 
  (lie 
  hair 
  consisted 
  in 
  leaving 
  a 
  lock 
  on 
  the 
  

   forehead, 
  one 
  at 
  the 
  back 
  of 
  the 
  head, 
  and 
  one 
  over 
  each 
  ear 
  (fig. 
  8). 
  

  

  NU'XE 
  CEXS 
  

  

  The 
  name 
  of 
  this 
  gens, 
  Nu'xe 
  ("ice"), 
  found 
  also 
  in 
  the 
  Osage 
  tribe, 
  

   refers 
  to 
  the 
  hail. 
  The 
  Osage 
  gens 
  of 
  this 
  name 
  is 
  closely 
  associated 
  

   witli 
  the 
  Buffalo-bull 
  people, 
  and 
  in 
  this 
  connection 
  it 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  noted 
  

  

  