The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1905-10-14
DESCENDED FROM NOON,
A Distinction, Of Which the Indian is
Very Proud.

- S'SsuIS1IoH, OI winch tne I1Olan Is
Very Proud.
People in general have been con
tent to look upon the Indians adorn
ment of his head with eagle feathers
and his face with paint as marks of
personal decoration, inspired by van.
ity and a savage taste, different only
In degree from what is sometimes
witnessed among highly civilized peo-
PIES remarked a scientist of the Bu-
reau OF Ethnology. But the fact is,''
he continued, that, In reference to
the latter custom, for instance, every
paint mark on an Indians face has
a sort of heraldic meaning, implying
not only the honors won by the brave
In person, but representing also the
claims of his family and race to dis
tlnction. In other words, what is
shown among more cultured COM
munlties by coats of arms, orders and
decorations Is depicted by the Indian
on his face by means of pigments.
scientists of this bureau are now
engaged, among other novel investi-
cations concerning the North Amer-
can Indian, in compiling a record Of
the armorial, or rather facial, bear
ings Of certain celebrated chiefs, AMI
1t is found to be fascinating work.
One renowned warrior, for instance,
will have his lip painted a copper
red. This is found to indicate that
his tribe was once in possession Of
huge mines of copper. Another indi-
vidual will have his forehead adorned
with painting of a certain fish, thus
implying that he, or his people, are
renowned for prowess in catching |
fish. The same distinguished person
sometimes wears a disk OF pearl In
addition to his paint mask This, by
Its shimmering radiance and it's form,
Implies that he is descended from the
moon, in the sense that the goddess
CT night Is one of his ancestors.
The fact that the Indian artist has
no conception OF perspective serious
ly handicaps the success of his pic
,orial efforts. Indeed, the Indian linn
ner merely aims to show the most
portion of the object he
attempts to depict, unless he be a
nan of unusual attainments, in which
;ase he divides or dissects the sub
ect OF his picture and represents the
Whole by its parts, the latter being
arranged entirely irrespective Of the
latural sequence, so that to properly
understand a native Indian picture
would require course in a special!z-
d branch of art criticism.
"The exceedingly arbitrary meth
ds of the Indian artist render It diff
cult, If not wholly impossible for
ny but an expert to interpret the
leanings Of the pictorial representa-
ions. Thus, an animals ears are in
ariably depicted above the eyes on
ne human subject, the ears Of the
eaver being just above the eye
rows. On the cheeks are painted
le paws In a position as though they 9
ere raised to the mouth in the man
er conventional in Indian carvings.
The dOgf1sh painted in red on the :,
zee designates the members of an =
ltire tribe. On the foreheads of the a
embers of this tribe is painted the y
ng, thin snout: the gills are repre- s
'nted by two curved lines below the c
res, while the tail Is shown as cut a
two and hanging from each nostril e
My one or two parts of an animal . .
tinted on an Indians face indicates -
at he is of inferior position; the +,
tire symbol, no matter in what c,
rm presented. is significant OF lofty G;
alton and high honors. T
This facial heraldry of tho Indians s.
ay be said to be unique, not alone p
the method Of representation EN- az
Dyed. but in the subjects selected. ,,
lese latter include fish, flesh and -,
wi Of all descriptions-dog salmon,
vii fish, star fish. woodpeckers, raw
$, eagles, bears, wolves, frogs are
mprised in the armorial gallery. ~
Every object represented has its
n particular significance, and one j
the most peculiar phases of face
hitting relates to the employment Of
ms other than animal--tools, i'm. Z
ments of the chase of war, denot-
) the occupation of the individual
his tribe, etc."-Philadelphia Rec