NO. I SMITIISOXIAX EX i'LOKATlON S, I919 7I 



This arrangement naturally tended strongly to jn-eservc the tra- 

 ditional and the concrete knowledge of the distinctively federal insti- 

 tutions and laws and rituals. But. even here, a living and con- 

 structive knowledge of the institutions of the League is less definite 

 and is often displaced hy dubious modern interpretations. So it has 

 become increasingly difficult, indeed, to obtain from the variant 

 extant versions of laws, traditions, rituals, songs and institutions, 

 their most i)robable original form. 



The Onondaga tribes of New York State, dwelling 8 miles south- 

 ward from S\Tacuse. occu])y the ancient seat of the I'ederal t'ouncil 

 of the League of the Iroquois. In the original structure of the 

 League, and still exercised by both the Canadian and the New ^'ork 

 federations, the Onondaga chiefs as a body exercised functions 

 appro.ximating those of the presiding juflge of a modern court sitting 

 without a jury, and had power to confirm or to refer back {but not to 

 veto) for constitutional reasons the decisions or votes of the Federal 

 Council. 



OSAGE TRIRAL RITES, ()KEA1[0^[A 



In the S])ring of 1919 Mr. Francis Lahdesche. luhnologist. sj^ent 

 a month among the Osage Indians, gathering further information 

 concerning the ancient rites of that tribe and collected two rituals, 

 one from \\'a-tse-mo"-i". ]>ertaining to the origin of the people 

 of the black bear gens, and one from Mo"-zho"-a-ki-da of the Peace 

 gens of the Tsi'-zhu division, as to the origin of that people. 



The ritual obtained from Wa-tse-mo"-i" contains 582 lines, di\ ided 

 into 29 sections and arranged in grou])s according to subjects. The 

 first group of five sections describes the descent of the ])eople from 

 the sky to the earth. The second group of four sections tells of the 

 ay)peal of the people to certain water insects who i)roinise helj). The 

 third group of eight sections speak of the Great Flk who brought to 

 light four different colored soils which he gave to the ])eoi)le to use 

 in this rite as symbols. The next group of ;i single section tills of tlu' 

 waiiflerings of the ])eople, of their meeting a man whou) i]u'\- learned 

 had descended from the stars and who gave to the ]n(iple certain 

 sacred geiUile names, .\lthough they were warriors whose business 

 it was to destroy, they resolved to make the str.mger ilieir cliief. 

 saving tf) one anr)ther : " There siiall be in him no anger, no violence 

 .-ind he shall be a man of peace." 



The fifth group of three sections speaks of the ]»arts of the swan 

 that were dedicated for use as a war standard. I'"roin this s.icred 

 bird were taken person.d n.ime^. The sixth group of four sections 



