The St. Johns herald., 1889-10-24

their legs below the knee. lengthwise
 and crosswise. till the blood flows
 freely. All the while they vail and
 call upon the dead. The young men
 who are near relations to the deceased remove their leggings and moccasins.
 and pierce their legs with a sharp
 knife until the blood flows fast from the wounds. The old men do not scar ! fly themselves.
 With every new arrival. whether the
 person be of near kin or not, the wail- i ing starts afresh. By this long-con-
 tinued crying, the excitement of grief
 and the pain of wounds. the relatives become exhausted before the time of l burial arrives, and unable to speak
 above whisper Soon after death the
 corpse is placed in sitting position | facing the east and dressed in gala cos tune, ornaments are put upon the
 hair and person, and sometimes the ! face is painted in the same manner as
 the Hunga in the ceremony of the sa- cred pipes, that is, if the deceased be-
 longed to one Of the gentes owning a
 sacred pipe. The '.Hunga-keunzae,"
 as this mode of painting is called, is
 done by painting the entire face red
 with vermilion; then black line about
 the breadth of the little finger is
 marked across the forehead horizontal ly and down both cheeks to meet line | drawn across the chin, thus forming a square, A center line starts from the one
 across the forehead and falls along the
 nose to its point This black paint is
 made of charcoal and prepared fat. Men, women and children belonging to the Nenebatan (sacred pipe owners)
 genteS of the tribe, with few exceptions,
 re painted in this manner after death.
 When a member of society dies the
 body is taken care of by the fraternity,
 and the burial ceremonies are trans ferred from the family to the manage ment of the society. For instance, when a member of the Mawadane Society dies the body i5 taken immedi- ately after death, while the body is yet Timber, to the lodge where the society is accustomed to meet. On it's arrival it is placed in @ sitting posture, facing the east, and decked with the regalia of the society. The face of the corpse is painted in the manner in which the man while living was accus- toned to paint when attending the meetings of the society. In his right hand is placed the "Ta-sha-gae, or deer's hoof rattle, which is carried only by the leader of the society. This preparation of the body is done by the relatives of the deceased and one or two members of the society. When all is complete the c fer summons the mem- bers, and these wend their way to the lodge where the deId man sits as silent host. The Mawadane songs which were the favorites of the dead member are then sung and the rhythmic steps taken, while presents are laid on the drum; these latter are offerings to- ward tho funeral ceremonies. As each gift is made the crier sings fo tn the name of the giVer, that all the village may hear of the deed. While the body lies in state in the lodge, either of the family or the society of which the deceased was member, if the person or his family are held in high respect by the tribe, the young men, those between the ages of twenty and thirty, gather together to perform a ceremony expressive of their esteem and grief. Having stripped them selves of their garments, except the breech-cloth, loop is cut through the skin of the arm, midway between the point of the shoulder and the elbow, and the end of 8 willow twig, about a foot long having the leaves on,is thrust through the loop of skin. The blood trickles down the willow stem and spatters the hanging leaves. The young men then walk slowly to the abreast before the tent entrance, sing ing the funeral song, each man accent ing the time by striking together two short sticks of willow. All shed tears as they sing. This song is an old one, having been handed down from an unknown past. It is the only funer- al song in the Omaha tribe.
 At the close of the song the chief mourner, whether man or woman, steps forth from the lodge. wailing. The young men join in the vail of the mourner, who advances with up- l lifted hands, and passes along the line, pausing an instant at each per- son. This act is an expression of thanks and acknowledgment of tho sympathy and honor shown. When 1 the end of the line is reached, the mourner retraces his steps, and pulls 1 from each young mans arm the blood stained willow twig, throwing it on the ground. Some relatives prepare a horse, the gift being an additional . Al.