String-Figures from the Patamana Indians of British Guiana

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1912. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... Page. The Double-woman Cult 92 Dreaming-pair Cult 94 Mountain Sheep Cult 95 Rabbit Cult 95 The Horse Cult 95 The Woman's Medicine Cult 98 The Mescal Cult 99 A Dog Cult 99 ILLUSTRATIONS. Text Figures. 1. Lances carried by a War Party 58 2. The Water Boy's Lance 60 3. Lances, a, Wiciska. b, Kangi yuha. c, Cante tinza .... 68 4. Kangi yuha lance 69 5. Sash and supporting Stake used in the Miwatani .... 69 6. Tokala Lance 70 7. Bow Lance for the sotka tanka 71 8. An Indian drawing representing the Elk Cult and their mystical connec tion with the dream cult 86 9. Sketches showing an Elk Cult dance and the power of the dre/un elk over females 87 I. SOCIETIES FOR MEN. At the outset it is necessary to have a general idea of the tribal government. The Oglala were formerly, it is said, composed of four divisions (Oglala, Kiaksai, Oyukhpe and Wazazies).1 When reservations were established, two of these divisions were placed under the Pine Ridge Agency. It was chiefly among these that our data were gathered. Some difficulty was experienced in formulating the governmental system since it seems that shortly after settling upon the reservation, in conformity to the wishes of United States officials, the two divisions at Pine Ridge combined and formed a single tribal government. Curiously enough, each of these divisions had its own scheme of government from which it follows that some adjustment was necessary. All this tends to confuse our information and make it difficult to avoid inconsistencies. The two former Pine Ridge divisions are now known as the Red-cloud camp (Oglala) and the Kiaksai. As far as our information goes, it appears that the former had by far the more complex organization and in the main prevailed when the reservation was established. It was in this camp tha...