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Show I I 158 PHYSIOGNOMY OF THE SIOUX-THEIlt regalia. the Dacotas are very beautiful, in truth the most beautiful of all the North American Indians, which they make, in various forms, of the red indurated clay,* or stone. (See the figures of the various Dacota pipes, Plate XLVIII. fig. 12, and in the preceding woodcuts.) The pipe has a long, flat, broad wooden tube, which is ornamented with tufts of horse-hair, dyed red, yellow, or green, and wound round with strings of porcupine quills of divers colours. We looked at the women as they were at work. For the shoes which they made they had softened the leather in a tub of water, and stretched it in the breadth and length with their teeth. In the middle of the hut was a fire, over which the kettle was suspended by a wooden hook; they now all use iron kettles, which they obtain from the traders. Before most of the tents poles were placed, leaning against each other, to which gaily-painted parchment pouches were hung, and likewise the medicine-bags, as they are called, in which the medicine, or charms, are preserved, and which they open and consult only on solemn or important occasions, such as campaigns and the like. Here, too, were suspended the bow and quiver of arrows, spears, and a round shield of thick leather, with a thin cover, also of the same material. In another tent the women were dressing the skins, either with a pumice-stone, or with the before-described toothed instrument, which was here entirely of iron. They then pulled the skin over a line, in all directions, backwards and forwards, to make it pliable. The Sioux at Fort Pierre were in general slender, sometimes muscular-men, of middling stature, though some of them were tall. They had oval faces, with prominent cheek-bones, slightly-curved and well-formed noses; the inner angle of the eye often drawn down. Their faces were painted red, some with white rings round the eyes, and others with a black point on the forehead, or a white circle with a black point on each cheek. Some had strings of wampum in their ears, but the greater part of them strings of white or blue glass beads, and round their necks an elegant, and frequently broad necklace, embroidered with white beads. The neck and breast of several were marked with dark blue tatooed stripes, or only with some small figures. These Indians let their hair grow as long as possible, and plait it behind in a long tail, which is ornamented with round pieces of brass, and often hangs down to a great length, as among the Chinese. Many of the Dacotas have three such tails, one behind, and one at each side, for the Indians on the Upper Missouri take much pride in long hair, whereas those in the country lower * The red pipe-clay is found chiefly on a lateral stream of the Big Sioux River, but also in other places, for instance, on St. Peter's River; and it is said, that the several Indian tribes behave peaceably towards each other while they are digging up the stone in that place, but again treat each other as enemies as soon as they have left it. Persons who have visited the quarries on the Big Sioux River have given me the following description of them : the red stone occurs in large beds or strata, where the perpendicular sides of the stream show divers alternating layers. The strata of red stone, which are at the most a foot thick, alternate with yellow, blue, white, and other kinds of clay. The green turf on the surface, and the upper stratum, are removed, and the red-brown colour of the stone is generally more lively and beautiful the deeper you go down. It is possible to obtain large pieces, and to make beautiful slabs of them. The Indians make not only pipe-heads of this stone, but likewise war-clubs, which, however, are only carried in their hands for show. |