﻿448 
  THE 
  OMAHA 
  TRIBE 
  [BTH. 
  ANN. 
  27 
  

  

  honors 
  could 
  be 
  gained 
  only 
  by 
  risking 
  one's 
  life, 
  when 
  the 
  young 
  man 
  

   was 
  brought 
  into 
  his 
  father's 
  lodge 
  to 
  receive 
  the. 
  bonnet 
  the 
  women 
  

   of 
  the 
  family 
  gathered 
  about 
  the 
  lodge 
  and 
  as 
  he 
  entered 
  wailed 
  for 
  

   him 
  as 
  dead, 
  cutting 
  their 
  hair 
  and 
  making 
  all 
  the 
  demonstrations 
  of 
  

   grief 
  in 
  recognition 
  of 
  the 
  dangers 
  he 
  must 
  face 
  to 
  make 
  good 
  t 
  lie 
  

   challenge 
  of 
  the 
  war 
  bonnet. 
  

  

  The 
  war 
  bonnet 
  was 
  worn 
  on 
  ceremonial 
  occasions 
  and 
  sometimes 
  

   in 
  defensive 
  warfare 
  when 
  the 
  village 
  or 
  camp 
  was 
  attacked. 
  A 
  

   story 
  was 
  told 
  by 
  an 
  old 
  man 
  of 
  an 
  adventure 
  in 
  his 
  youth. 
  A 
  party 
  

   of 
  warriors 
  had 
  gone 
  out 
  to 
  defend 
  the 
  village 
  and 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  leading 
  

   men 
  had 
  worn 
  his 
  war 
  bonnet. 
  In 
  the 
  fight 
  he 
  found 
  the 
  bonnet 
  

   in 
  his 
  way, 
  so, 
  calling 
  a 
  lad, 
  he 
  bade 
  him 
  take 
  the 
  bonnet 
  back 
  to 
  

   the 
  village. 
  The 
  boy 
  did 
  so 
  and 
  entered 
  the 
  camp 
  wearing 
  the 
  war 
  

   bonnet, 
  amid 
  the 
  laughter 
  and 
  jokes 
  of 
  the 
  people. 
  Being 
  a 
  fun- 
  

   loving 
  lad, 
  he 
  paraded 
  about 
  and 
  played 
  the 
  part 
  of 
  a 
  victorious 
  

   warrior 
  to 
  the 
  amusement 
  of 
  all; 
  as 
  the 
  event 
  proved, 
  he 
  was 
  really 
  

   the. 
  herald 
  of 
  a 
  notable 
  victory 
  by 
  the 
  Omaha. 
  

  

  In 
  former 
  times 
  a 
  man 
  could 
  not 
  deck 
  his 
  leggings 
  or 
  shirt 
  with 
  

   a 
  fringe 
  of 
  hair 
  except 
  by 
  the 
  consent 
  of 
  the 
  warriors. 
  Honors 
  had 
  

   to 
  be 
  counted 
  on 
  the 
  strands 
  of 
  hair 
  as 
  on 
  the 
  feathers 
  used 
  in 
  mak- 
  

   ing 
  a 
  war 
  bonnet, 
  therefore 
  each 
  lock 
  or 
  tuft 
  of 
  the 
  fringe 
  stood 
  for 
  

   a 
  war 
  honor 
  and 
  no 
  honor 
  could 
  be 
  counted 
  twice. 
  It 
  was 
  this 
  

   custom 
  that 
  made 
  garments 
  of 
  this 
  character 
  so 
  highly 
  valued. 
  

   The 
  hair 
  for 
  the 
  fringe 
  was 
  generally 
  furnished 
  by 
  the 
  man's 
  female 
  

   relatives. 
  Each 
  of 
  the 
  locks 
  forming 
  the 
  fringe 
  usually 
  sewed 
  in 
  a 
  

   heading 
  of 
  skin, 
  frequently 
  ornamented 
  with 
  quill 
  work. 
  

  

  Weapons 
  

  

  The 
  weapons 
  of 
  the 
  Omaha 
  were 
  the 
  bow 
  and 
  arrow, 
  the 
  shield 
  

   the 
  club, 
  and 
  the 
  spear. 
  

  

  The 
  club, 
  called 
  zho 
  n 
  pa'zhna 
  (fig. 
  99), 
  was 
  generally 
  made 
  from 
  the 
  

   root 
  of 
  the 
  ash. 
  It 
  was 
  well 
  shaped, 
  and 
  not 
  infrequently 
  a 
  weasel 
  

   was 
  carved 
  on 
  top 
  above 
  the 
  rounded 
  end. 
  

  

  The 
  lance, 
  or 
  spear, 
  was 
  called 
  mo 
  n 
  'dehi 
  (mo 
  n 
  'de, 
  "bow;" 
  hi, 
  "tooth"). 
  

   This 
  name 
  bears 
  out 
  a 
  tradition 
  that 
  in 
  ancient 
  times 
  the 
  Omaha 
  

   used 
  to 
  attach 
  a 
  blade 
  to 
  one 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  bow, 
  to 
  be 
  used 
  like 
  a 
  

   bayonet, 
  for 
  thrusting. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  said 
  that 
  different 
  kinds 
  of 
  wood 
  have 
  been 
  tried 
  in 
  making 
  the 
  

   bow. 
  Hickory 
  proved 
  to 
  be 
  worthless 
  j 
  as 
  changes 
  in 
  the 
  weather 
  caused 
  

   it 
  to 
  warp 
  or 
  to 
  lose 
  its 
  strength. 
  Experience 
  has 
  shown 
  that 
  ash 
  and 
  

   ironwood 
  make 
  the 
  best 
  1 
  >< 
  >ws. 
  These 
  woods 
  polish 
  easily 
  and 
  the 
  bows 
  

   made 
  from 
  them 
  remain 
  true. 
  When 
  these 
  Mere 
  not 
  available 
  a 
  kind 
  

   of 
  elm 
  was 
  used, 
  "that 
  having 
  the 
  drooping 
  branches." 
  The 
  parts 
  of 
  

   I 
  he 
  how 
  which 
  were 
  to 
  be 
  bent, 
  were 
  well 
  oiled 
  and 
  bent 
  into 
  shape 
  by 
  

  

  