Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1869-01-03
mAKIxG 4 1GEDICISE HAx.
curl Us Ceremonial OF the WIN
RebagReS.

RebaSRfS.
From ihe Daily Wisconsin,
Some three hundred WinnebaEoes
had q great medicine dance day OF two
since near Tunnel City. It was the
7ar-est Gathering they have had for
many years. The dance commenced at
suadoEn or Monday evening. and lasted
tlI the evening Iol'owing Desiring TO
be present attlis most wonderful and
mysterious Of Iadiau gathering. 1 reach
ej the Tuu.el about 10 0'clock. The
n7-ht was dark. but the oamp-h7ss Of
sixty wigwaus lii up the forest far and
wide. Near the centre Of the encamp-
ment was the great medicine wigwam.
Il vas brilliantly iilumiuatcl. and the
orgies were IN full blast As aP-
rr5aehei the wiguam the sentinel met
me at the closed entrance. 'Insah-do-
ouatch-a. said he. no 90 IN. This
was . s-umper and disappointment, but l
was prepared for emergencies. / recog-
nized the sentinel IN his blue military
coat. Il was Nau-he-eah, one OF the
SIX Winncbleo braves, who were IN
Shermln's great march. had a small
f8sk and some money in my pocket.
Ina brief space 1 was snugiy couared
inside.
The medicine dance among the In
dams IS purely religious In its origin.
None bus those who have been Initiated
are allowed to i5in IN It. To be q meii-
cine msa or . medicine woman, Is the
great thing among the Winncbagoes
ONLY the better class can afori It. It
costs from s. to $3.50 to be :nitiatcd-
that Is. to make the presents and pro-
vide f5- the linau- and feast. All the
IaIans I.z5 jit--774-- jiit-74 -he-asr n=a4cding.
The great wiewzia IS onea oaly to meJi-
eiLg men aai women. Saa.iueis are
posted outside. At 1--- The l'gL.s ere
struck INSIDE. and the unearlh!y pow
WOW Of ratt.es, drums. chants, and
cheecles commences.
From my corner by the doorway
could lg seen the whole sglea1or Of the
great wizsam. The structure was over
a hundred feet long. The ground had
been shaved clear Of grass. aud was
smooth as floor. The sides were thick
is Jellsi with fresh fern leaves. a
bright row Of lights set on poles cleaned
dJ0n the centre. while the blazing wood
Ire shuuc UP rom the farther end The
Iu6ians. ab5u- hslfaud half as to sexes.
were closely souatted along the whole
lyaz,h on either side. Half a dozen
wee beating drums. shaking rattles. and
singing in lov cuttursls around the
wood-fre. The rest were solemn as
graveyard.
The dress of the medicine squaws
would put Mad. Demorest to shame.
Many we're riezed ont ike princesses.
No two were alike. Every one had on
a new calico skirt. petdcoat fancy blanket.
sash. Iegsins. and mocssius. set off with
every u0ssiBls trick Of fnery and rib
hons. Beads. .ipys. trinkets. vristlets.
bracelets. and esrbolts qlistened in pro-
fusion. Little bells iiugled from their
leg-ius. Months had been spent in
trimming OF their petticoats with bits
Of silk and bead work. Every cheek
was painted with the brightest yermlll0a
and yellow, and crossed or circled with
a line OF blue. The men were less got
up Many had snowy head gcar. and
some had elaborate breechcs clouts
stitched with beads. y dozen or more
had borrowed coats from white folks for
the occasion. Old -Four DceIs, from
Portage, who got mp the dance, had on
. yellow scarf aod black six SHIRT.
Ills head was girdied with long Ies
deer hair, hung with ribbons, feathers,
eagle quIlis and snake ratt.es. Little
fish had the lower half Of hls face
painted blue. Nearly all had stripes OF
red across theiE faces, dotted with yellow
and blue. All the young bucks were
lavish with paint and feathers, while jhe
fwo old chiefs Dandy and = arr
income, preserved their eyc-y day p'aln-
ness But TIE most noticeable feature
OF all was theE marvellous medicine
bags.
Ehese were generally Of other skins
made up whole. Most Of them were
large. and the finest fur, lined with silk
and bead work The uaaths Of each
skin were hing with scarlet feathers
They were carried in front. Ike mufs,
with the tails reaching TO the ground
No profane haBds are allowed TO touch
them. They contain the wonderful
medicine. and are held and guarded as
sacred.
Ybe ceremonies during he NIGHT were
.s solemn as a Quaker Uraver-meetinc.
S,.ascbes r,arebes sopo5 and an kinds
of ,ovstical and musical d;sg-donos
we're Gent mn until sunrise. The differ
set sonds ba3 different ceremonies at
ending Indians bv one an5 twos
fled up anl down tie long lines. swing