﻿FLETCHEIt-LA 
  FLESCHc] 
  SOCIETIES 
  ' 
  481 
  

  

  THE 
  Fu'GTHO 
  N 
  

  

  Chiefs 
  only 
  could 
  become 
  members 
  of 
  this 
  society. 
  It 
  was, 
  there- 
  

   fore, 
  what 
  might 
  be 
  called 
  exclusive, 
  as 
  compared 
  with 
  the 
  more 
  

   democratic 
  Hetlm'shka, 
  which 
  was 
  open 
  to 
  every 
  man 
  who 
  had 
  won 
  

   public 
  war 
  honors. 
  The 
  songs 
  of 
  the 
  Pu'gtho 
  n 
  society 
  were 
  rest 
  ricted 
  

   to 
  the 
  members, 
  outsiders 
  not 
  being 
  permitted 
  to 
  sing 
  them. 
  The 
  

   society 
  ceased 
  to 
  exist 
  some 
  fifty 
  years 
  ago; 
  the 
  few 
  members 
  who 
  

   were 
  living 
  twenty 
  years 
  ago 
  clung 
  to 
  their 
  exclusiveness 
  and 
  were 
  

   chary 
  of 
  speaking 
  about 
  or 
  singing 
  the 
  songs. 
  For 
  this 
  reason 
  only 
  

   a 
  few 
  songs 
  were 
  obtainable, 
  and 
  also 
  for 
  another 
  reason, 
  which, 
  it 
  

   is 
  said, 
  had 
  much 
  to 
  do 
  with 
  the 
  final 
  breaking 
  up 
  of 
  the 
  society. 
  

   There 
  was 
  an 
  officer 
  in 
  the 
  organization 
  known 
  as 
  the 
  keeper 
  of 
  the 
  

   songs. 
  This 
  office 
  was 
  held 
  for 
  life 
  and 
  it 
  was 
  the 
  duty 
  of 
  the 
  keeper 
  

   to 
  train 
  his 
  successor 
  in 
  the 
  knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  songs 
  and 
  their 
  stories. 
  

   Through 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  coincidences 
  a 
  superstition 
  grew 
  up 
  that 
  when- 
  

   ever 
  the 
  keeper 
  sang 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  songs 
  death 
  would 
  visit 
  his 
  family. 
  

   Members 
  became 
  loath, 
  therefore, 
  to 
  take 
  the 
  responsibility 
  of 
  asking 
  

   for 
  the 
  songs 
  and 
  whenever 
  the 
  request 
  was 
  made 
  it 
  was 
  accompanied 
  

   by 
  large 
  gifts; 
  these 
  gifts 
  were 
  offered 
  the 
  keeper 
  to 
  atone 
  for 
  any 
  

   ill 
  fortune 
  that 
  might 
  come 
  to 
  him 
  because 
  he 
  had 
  sung 
  the 
  songs. 
  

   As 
  all 
  the 
  songs 
  referred 
  to 
  the 
  acts 
  of 
  chiefs, 
  such 
  songs 
  were 
  his- 
  

   torical 
  and 
  were 
  of 
  tribal 
  import. 
  Moreover, 
  these 
  songs 
  were 
  

   necessary 
  for 
  the 
  ceremonial 
  dances 
  that 
  could 
  be 
  performed 
  

   only 
  at 
  meetings 
  of 
  this 
  society. 
  On 
  these 
  occasions 
  the 
  chiefs 
  

   wore 
  their 
  full 
  regalia 
  and 
  headdresses 
  made 
  from 
  the 
  head 
  of 
  the 
  

   buffalo, 
  which 
  partook 
  of 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  a 
  mask. 
  This 
  was 
  the 
  only 
  

   society 
  among 
  the 
  Omaha 
  in 
  which 
  headgear 
  that 
  approximated 
  

   the 
  character 
  of 
  a 
  mask 
  was 
  used. 
  It 
  is 
  said 
  that 
  the 
  last 
  time 
  the 
  

   keeper 
  was 
  prevailed 
  on 
  to 
  sing 
  an 
  old 
  song, 
  while 
  he 
  was 
  in 
  the 
  

   act 
  of 
  singing 
  a 
  Sioux 
  warrior 
  crept 
  stealthily 
  into 
  the 
  camp, 
  made 
  

   his 
  way 
  to 
  the 
  singer's 
  tent, 
  and 
  there 
  shot 
  dead 
  the 
  daughter 
  of 
  the 
  

   keeper. 
  This 
  event 
  put 
  an 
  end 
  to 
  the 
  meetings 
  of 
  the 
  society. 
  No 
  

   one 
  knows 
  for 
  whom 
  or 
  by 
  whom 
  the 
  Pu'gtho 
  11 
  songs 
  were 
  composed 
  

   or 
  the 
  events 
  they 
  celebrated. 
  Not 
  a 
  half 
  dozen 
  of 
  the 
  songs 
  sur- 
  

   vive 
  and 
  of 
  these 
  the 
  incidents 
  which 
  gave 
  rise 
  to 
  them 
  all 
  but 
  

   one 
  are 
  lost. 
  The 
  Pu'gtho" 
  songs 
  are 
  unlike, 
  the 
  Hetlm'shka 
  songs 
  

   in 
  that 
  they 
  do 
  not 
  present 
  contrasting 
  rhythms, 
  which 
  so 
  fre- 
  

   quently 
  occur 
  in 
  the 
  latter. 
  The 
  rhythm 
  is 
  simple 
  and 
  forceful 
  

   and 
  the 
  music 
  wilder 
  than 
  in 
  any 
  other 
  class 
  of 
  Omaha 
  songs. 
  

  

  The 
  songs 
  that 
  survive 
  are 
  warlike 
  in 
  character 
  and 
  their 
  marked 
  

   rhythm 
  is 
  attractive, 
  hut 
  they 
  are 
  rather 
  bombastic 
  in 
  both 
  words 
  and 
  

   music, 
  as 
  became 
  the 
  expressions 
  of 
  a 
  society 
  composed 
  exclusively 
  of 
  

   chiefs 
  — 
  men 
  who 
  had 
  won 
  distinction 
  ami 
  achieved 
  public 
  recognition 
  

  

  83993°— 
  27 
  eth— 
  11 
  31 
  

  

  