SACRED PIPES THE ELK GENS. 225 



LAW OF MEMBERSHIP. 



§ 20. A child belongs to its father's gens, as " father-right " has suc- 

 ceeded " mother-right." But children of white or black men are as- 

 signed to the gentes of their mothers, and they cannot marry any women 

 of those gentes. A stranger cannot belong to any gens of the tribe, 

 there being no ceremony of adoption into a gens. 



§ 21. This gens occupies the first place in the tribal circles, pitching 

 its tents at one of the horns or extremities, not far from the Ictasanda 

 gens, which camps at the other end. When the ancient chieftainship 

 was abolished in 1880, Mahi n -£inge was the chief of this gens, having 

 succeeded Joseph La Fleche in 1S65. 



The word " Weji n cte" cannot be translated, as the meaning of this 

 archaic word has been forgotten. It may have some connection with 

 '• \vaji n/ cte," to be in a bqd humor, but we have no means of ascertaining 

 this. 



La Fleche and Two Crows said that there were no subgentes in this 

 gens. But it seems probable that in former days there were subgentes 

 in each gens, while in the course of time changes occurred, owing to 

 decrease in numbers and the advent of the white men. 



Taboo. — The members of this gens are afraid to touch any part of the 

 male elk, or to eat its flesh ; and they cannot eat the flesh of the male 

 deer. Should they accidentally violate this custom they say that they 

 are sure to break out in boils and white spots on different parts of the 

 body. But when a member of this gens dies he is buried in moccasins 

 made of deer skin. 



Style of wearing the hair. — The writer noticed that Bi u ze-tig£e, a boy 

 of this gens, had his hair next the forehead standing erect, and that 

 back of it was brushed forward till it projected beyond the former. A 

 tuft of hair at the back extended about 3 inches below the head. This 

 style of wearing the hair prevails only among the smaller children as 

 a rule ; men and women do not observe it. 



Some say that 'A n -wega n ^a is the head of those who join in the wor- 

 ship of the thunder, but his younger brother, Qaga-ma"$i n , being a more 

 active man, is allowed to have the custody of the Iug$a n f6 and the 

 Ing$a n baiigac'a. J. La Fleche and Two Crows said that this might be 

 so; but they did not know about it. Nor could they or my other in- 

 formants tell the meaning of Ing^a^e" and I0g$a n ha5gac'a. Perhaps 

 they refer either to the wild-cat (iug^aiiga), or to the thunder (iug<fa n ). 

 Compare the Ictasanda "keepers of the claws of a wild-cat." 

 3 E'lH — 15 



