﻿324 
  THE 
  OMAHA 
  TRIBE 
  [eth. 
  ANN. 
  27 
  

  

  or 
  her 
  husband 
  or 
  children. 
  Both 
  men 
  and 
  women 
  were 
  allowed 
  to 
  

   to 
  win 
  back 
  by 
  subsequent 
  good 
  conduct 
  their 
  lost 
  position. 
  

  

  When 
  a 
  j^oung 
  man 
  asked 
  the 
  hand 
  of 
  a 
  girl 
  in 
  marriage 
  he 
  observed 
  

   a 
  certain 
  conventional 
  form 
  of 
  address. 
  The 
  words 
  were 
  not 
  always 
  

   the 
  same 
  but 
  the 
  aspect 
  put 
  on 
  the 
  proposal 
  was 
  practically 
  uniform. 
  

   The 
  young 
  man 
  extolled 
  the 
  girl 
  and 
  her 
  relations; 
  he 
  did 
  not 
  vaunt 
  

   himself; 
  he 
  pleaded 
  his 
  constancy 
  and 
  asked, 
  rather 
  than 
  demanded, 
  

   that 
  she 
  become 
  his 
  wife, 
  craving 
  it 
  as 
  a 
  boon. 
  There 
  were 
  signals 
  

   other 
  than 
  songs 
  or 
  flute 
  calls 
  to 
  let 
  a 
  girl 
  know 
  her 
  lover 
  was 
  near. 
  

   A 
  tent 
  pole 
  might 
  fall 
  or 
  some 
  other 
  noise 
  be 
  made 
  which 
  she 
  would 
  

   know 
  how 
  to 
  interpret 
  and 
  so 
  be 
  able 
  to 
  meet 
  the 
  young 
  man 
  if 
  a 
  

   meeting 
  had 
  been 
  agreed 
  on. 
  Marriage 
  was 
  usually 
  by 
  elopement. 
  

   The 
  claims 
  on 
  a 
  girl 
  by 
  men 
  holding 
  a 
  potential 
  right 
  to 
  marry 
  her 
  

   almost 
  necessitated 
  her 
  escaping 
  secretly 
  if 
  she 
  would 
  exercise 
  her 
  

   free 
  choice 
  in 
  the 
  matter 
  of 
  a 
  husband. 
  When 
  a 
  young 
  couple 
  during 
  

   their 
  courtship 
  determined 
  on 
  taking 
  the 
  final 
  step 
  of 
  marriage, 
  they 
  

   agreed 
  to 
  meet 
  some 
  evening. 
  The 
  youth 
  generally 
  rode 
  to 
  a 
  place 
  

   near 
  the 
  lodge 
  of 
  the 
  girl 
  and 
  gave 
  the 
  proper 
  signal 
  ; 
  she 
  stepped 
  out 
  

   and 
  they 
  galloped 
  off 
  to 
  one 
  of 
  his 
  relations. 
  In 
  a 
  day 
  or 
  two 
  the 
  

   young 
  man 
  took 
  the 
  girl 
  to 
  his 
  father's 
  lodge, 
  where, 
  if 
  she 
  was 
  re- 
  

   ceived 
  as 
  his 
  wife, 
  all 
  claims 
  by 
  other 
  men 
  as 
  to 
  marriage 
  were 
  can- 
  

   celed 
  by 
  this 
  act, 
  but 
  gifts 
  had 
  to 
  be 
  made 
  to 
  the 
  girl's 
  parents 
  and 
  

   shared 
  with 
  her 
  relatives, 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  ratify 
  the 
  marriage. 
  To 
  bring 
  

   this 
  about, 
  the 
  father 
  of 
  the 
  young 
  man 
  made 
  a 
  feast 
  and 
  invited 
  the 
  

   relatives 
  of 
  the 
  girl. 
  When 
  this 
  invitation 
  was 
  accepted 
  and 
  the 
  

   presents 
  received, 
  the 
  marriage 
  was 
  considered 
  as 
  settled 
  beyond 
  

   all 
  dispute. 
  In 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  a 
  few 
  months 
  the 
  father 
  of 
  the 
  bride 
  

   generally 
  presented 
  his 
  daughter 
  with 
  return 
  gifts 
  about 
  equal 
  in 
  

   value 
  to 
  those 
  he 
  had 
  received 
  and 
  the 
  young 
  husband 
  was 
  expected 
  

   to 
  work 
  for 
  a 
  year 
  or 
  two 
  for 
  his 
  father-in-law. 
  This 
  latter 
  claim 
  

   was 
  frequently 
  rigidly 
  exacted 
  and 
  the 
  father-in-law 
  was 
  sometimes 
  

   a 
  tyrant 
  over 
  his 
  son-in-law's 
  affairs. 
  

  

  The 
  following 
  story 
  is 
  told 
  of 
  a 
  man 
  who 
  was 
  highly 
  respected, 
  

   industrious, 
  and 
  thrifty. 
  He 
  never 
  married; 
  why, 
  no 
  one 
  knew, 
  for. 
  

   he 
  was 
  an 
  attractive 
  man. 
  He 
  had 
  a 
  brother 
  who 
  for 
  some 
  reason 
  

   was 
  alwavs 
  unsuccessful 
  in 
  his 
  wooing 
  and 
  as 
  he 
  greatly 
  desired 
  to 
  

   marry 
  a 
  certain 
  girl 
  the 
  bachelor 
  brother 
  was 
  moved 
  to 
  say: 
  "I 
  will 
  

   help 
  you 
  to 
  get 
  the 
  girl 
  you 
  want." 
  To 
  the 
  surprise 
  of 
  everyone, 
  the 
  

   girl 
  included, 
  the 
  bachelor 
  was 
  seen 
  at 
  the 
  spring, 
  where 
  he 
  wooed 
  the 
  

   girl 
  and 
  planned 
  their 
  elopement. 
  At 
  the 
  appointed 
  hour 
  he 
  signaled 
  

   her, 
  she 
  came 
  to 
  him, 
  and 
  together 
  they 
  rode 
  to 
  the 
  lodge 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  

   his 
  near 
  relatives 
  where 
  the 
  brother 
  was 
  in 
  waiting. 
  The 
  bachelor 
  

   explained 
  to 
  the 
  girl 
  that 
  he 
  had 
  been 
  wooing 
  her 
  for 
  his 
  brother, 
  and 
  

   the 
  girl, 
  having 
  compromised 
  herself 
  by 
  running 
  away 
  with 
  her 
  sup- 
  

  

  