The Portland daily press., 1881-11-09
The Modern Indian Dress.
[Cor. London Times.]


1t must be confessed, too, that the white man
has not done more damage to their indepen-
ence of character than to their dress. The old
national dress-a buffalo robe worn something
like the Roman toga and set off with furs,
feathers, and beads-was becoming enough, if
only for its simplicity. The Indians have
mixed this up with European dress, aud not
the least understanding the last or how to blend
the two styles have produced the most astound-
ingly homogeneous and laughable results.
began by trying to describe costume, but
found that description would be endless, as
each and every man had composite style of
his own. No two dress alike. Never, certain
ly, was there greater individuality or more I'M
restrained freedom of choice. 1t seemed, for
little, something like sound generalization to
say that an Indian, like Robson's gentleman,
may be "known by his extremities," and that
feathers, if worn at all, would always be found
on his head and mocassins on his feet. But
closer inspection soon showed that the feathers
might easily wander down to that portion OF
the person on which they are most conspicuous
in bird, and stick out from breech-clout at
an angle Of 45o, like combination of peacock's
and turkey-cocks' tails-while a battered billy
cock hat would cover the head, and a pair of
shabby old butchers cover the feet or long
scarlet coat, gorgeous with gold bro cade, as
ragged as a street-boy's while the face, with
few dirty feathers dragging over it, would be
daubed hideously with paint, and the feet
be beautiful for ever" at least externally,
with really handsome, richly-beaded mocas-
sins.
I came at last in despair to the conclusion
hat; t,o IN Aracc han Nf I'M
as they appear at least before the Governor
General-one would have to mix up the con-
tents of secondhand clothes shop with those
of fancy ball costumer's shop, add paints OF
all colors feathers mocassins, beads dd libituna,
and then let blind man throw them out in
handfuls to be scrambled for until each appli-
cant had got some sort of covering-dress one
cannot call it without insult to the word. How
can the noble savage-the ideal red man-pos-
sbly appear to advantage in the white mans
prejudiced eyes or move anything but his risi-
BILE muscles when thus grotesquely arrayed?
Carlyle's "naked Duke addressing a naked
House of Lords" would be nothing to it. The
red man, at any rate. whose physique is his
torte would come pretty well out of the Cavity
lean ordeal if modern decency and the mounted
police permitted it. Bull his present tumble of
savagery and civilization is bound to kill him,
if ridicule ever kills. There are, of course, ex-
ceptions to this, as to every rule. The princi-
pal chief here, Ussuf (Anglice, Back-fat) wore
a strikingly handsome dress, made up, from
head to foot, of otter furs; the round fur cap,
despite the pendant otter-tail, giving him the
aspect of distinguished Russian. He gave
the whole dress to Lord Lorne, and it was
present well worthy of acceptance even by
Governor General. Mr.. Mlean showed us
strikingly pretty dress, not only richly, but
most tastefully decorated with beads, and pur-
porting to be a squaw's dress, though on no
squaw did we ourselves see anything at all ap-
preaching or even resembling it. If the few
Indian ladias who attended the GOyernOr-( Gem
erals receptions had any fine toiettes they
kept them carefully out of sight. They left all
fnery and ornamentation to their lords, whose
notions of ornaments proper by-the-way, were
as quaint as their notions of dress. A penny
tin tacks or brass nails hung from neck, stom-
ach, back-fat, or ankle-anything and every
thing was pressed into the service of beauty,
to paint the already over-painted lily or gid the
refined gold.