New-York tribune., 1841-07-19
From The Now-Y orker
A CHAPTER ON INDIANS.
nY AZ ILLINoIAN.

The WlNyEBAGoEs are poor and few ornaments.
They have circular pieces of silver plate from two to nine IN
ccs in diameter suitably figured which they about the
neck They drill holes through the tops of himbes III
which they string and hang them about their ears III
great numbers But would be thought that the Winneba
goes could have any thing like Masonic Institution Yer
such actually the The JteS of it are however, pub
lie; and held whenever member is to be initiated
The ceremony of receiving member took place here III the
fall of 1889 The candidate then the wife of French
man. or sex bar admisson whose name was Lee
eonca fellow who could himself rise TO respectable
itv even among the Indians but whose better halt laid her
lord under contribution for the initiation fee, whirh amounted
10 about thirty dollars werh Of CLOTH and trinkets ard to
furnish which the poor Frcnchman was obliged TO sell th
only horse he had the world. have neticed that th
wives of the Frcnchmen and traders usually belong the
fraety and but the crafty rcdhides are ra-
,her fond of laying them under contributions
For some time previous the grand ceremony, most IN
;ocrabe drumming kept up day and night in the wig
wan, where to be performed The drums were made
Of powderkegs with the heads and skins drawn over IN
sead and of these beaten in tight wgwam was enough
TO deafen novice While this going on all were re-
markaby solemn and grave and vster required TO OBJ
serve the utmost decorum When the day about
enty members the ground besides numbers OF old
men and women boys and girls who had lot in the mat
ter but who slowed themselves away under the roof OF the
wgwau and made themselves merry, with jokes and Look
ing on The wiswan was about by thirty feet. 1t might
be matter of surprise how seventy persons could man
age 70 dance (tor dance waS) OF that size
with numbers of spectators srewed about, and FIRE kept
up in the wigwam. But Indian dance is not pac-ace
dance they manage to have all the fun and spirit of II
without any the Jumping kicking crossing and balancing
The motion consisted of slight swaying of the body to and
fro with very moderate alternate curscyng OF the limbs
with and then few steps here and there, as opportunity
offered and without any rue Every danced on MS own
hook Their music which consisted OF grunting cultural
humning with the ntocrabe drumming already mentioned
and the piping whstng and scrcccng of their medicine
bags was Us ntoernby narrowing their dancing was tame
These medicine bags made Of the skins OF otter wolf
mink and other quadrupeds and OF the skins OF birds
even dressed shape and with fur feathers on having
their mouths open in which inserted their reeds 50
that when suddenly compressed they uttered the most nto
cradle sbrcks and suucals These seemed be hcir badges
They kept them their hands and when they pointed the
nose Of one of them at member paternity he fall
fiat though death had struck him, and remain mooncs'
for some time until when suitable estoaves had been
Piled he could slowly Such was the magic and IN
visible power OF the medicine the initiated As this
PROCESS VI pointing tleiV was NN'''''~' 'H'
bling and dragging One old fellow without duly look
irg where fall pitched his head into the ashes and before
he taken away his hair entirely sinsed off
thought should have had JOINT that tumble The can
ddae pretty much stripped rolled up in the cloth she
had furnished and after variety OF necromancng and few
TRIALS of pointing the medicine bag declared member in
full The party finally down feast, furnish which
all the nuSkr deer and grouse had been put under
levy The cooking done by boiling and consisted o meats
which added OF soup, thckened with meal and
kernels OF 1t served trays placed on the
ground which they thst their wooden ladies' and made
merry.
On occasions their tables furnished as we'll
for when candidate prays admission and forks over the
fee must be had At had near here
they obliged sacrifice their dogs who, by long
ing were not the obese OF victims This feast aure
said eveaue Characterised such canc he eats
aiore No scruples however, arise in the Indians mind
he eats what he has and the future till another day
If he dnds bees the the honey al Ii he finds
partridge and her Young he devours n he catch and
lets those who
am told the Wnnebagoes returning IN considerable
numbers, the Wisconsin River; saving their home i
too cN that numbers have died with fever ans he
old foes the Sioux kill off great numbers o. their hunters
Government has few troops there, for protection; but
how can t'c hundred protect fifteen hundred who must
live oy hunting The poor fellows pressed side BY
the whlies-on all sides by their neghbors and enemies
and dcvoured by sickness home seem ike the spectreS
past world unable leave their old abode, or remain in it,
and unhappy every where A w