Bowers] HIDATSA SOCIAL AND CEREMONIAL ORGANIZATION 189 



Mandan, were reluctant to permit young men to advance through the 

 age-grade series to Black Mouth status until they had demonstrated 

 mature judgment. Entrusting village police functions to a society 

 of men of all ages, as observed by them when neighboring tribes 

 visited them, was considered to be a poor way of handling people. 



The Black Mouths were expected to act with discretion and not 

 in anger, A nmnber of years after 1845, the three Hidatsa village 

 groups were in separate winter camps along the Missouri. At that 

 time scouts from the most northern group discovered buffaloes ap- 

 proaching their village, drifting along with a strong north wind. 

 Orders were immediately given in the village that the dogs should 

 be tied up, woodcutting stopped, and fires extinguished. Until 

 that time no buffalo had been on the river bottoms and the people 

 were short of meat. While the people were awaiting the arrival 

 of the herds and waiting for them to fan out in the timber and brush 

 along the river bottoms, a Black Mouth was told that someone had 

 fired a gun just below the village and around a bend in the river. 

 Several Black Mouths ran out and found a man from the next village 

 downstream who was just starting to butcher a buffalo which he 

 had killed. As the Black Mouths ran up they called JJUII and the 

 hunter knew that the Black Mouths were angry; that call was given 

 only when someone's actions had met with their displeasure. He 

 looked toward the village but could not see it for the bend in the 

 river nor could he hear the sound of barking dogs or of axes in the 

 woodlots. He suspected then that the village was quiet because 

 herds had been discovered approaching. When he was told that 

 hunting was prohibited, he expressed regrets even though his weapons 

 had already been taken from him. He explained that he had been 

 sent up from the next village to see how the upper camp was faring, 

 that he had seen many buffaloes as he walked along, and that he had 

 concluded that the upper village had already been hunting. Seeing 

 that the man meant no harm, his weapons were returned to him and 

 the men butchered the buffalo before returning to camp. At the 

 camp he was rewarded with goods for his "good behavior" in admitting 

 his error and offering appropriate apologies. 



In dealing with infractions, the clan had its role in the practice 

 of using as spokesman for the Black Mouths, one of the same clan 

 as the individual who had committed the infraction. When a conflict 

 situation developed and the village leaders resolved to settle the matter 

 lest permanent differences arise, the spokesman for the Black Mouths 

 would take a pipe belonging to the moiety of the offender and ask 

 him to smoke the pipe and forget his grievance. The same procedure 

 was followed when addressing the leader of the opposing side. When 

 individual Black Mouths in the performance of their duty acted 



