The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1906-02-02

tirely around the pot to uss as a bail. !
pot was always carried or hung, I
as the round bottom prevented it from
being set down with anything in it..
Ihese hanging pots We're also used for
x over the fire. The remains in
dlcate mat this was a common article.
me pottery of this find does not show
the individualism of the makers as do
tne stone and flint instruments. 1t may
pc tnat the art Of pot making was con-
Hneo TO a few, or that the same method
was used by all who took part in its
manufacture. There are OF course
many Kinds and hardly two alike in
similarity in them all. as an examine
tion OF the pieces will indicate.
Coin Shaped Pieces Found.
Among the pottery ruins were dis
covered several flat coin-shaped pieces
OF cay OF the same make. as far as ap-
go. as the pots. They are
RON an inch to two and three-quarters
lhcnes IN diameter, perfectly round and
smoo.h on both sides. One of them is
slightly oncav one Of them is brok-
en- and shows a hole had been drilled
enrough 1t. One Of the smaller is coll
REQ on one side a light red. Some OF
the southern tribes, as stated by some
oi.Ihe authorities. used disks of this
kiilo Us Wampum and a medium Of ex-
hange but this is doubtful, owing to
the Drlttleness of h clay and the ease
WIN which they could be manufac-
tured. The more probable use was for
decorative purposes, ceremonial or play
things. 10y
The decorations on these pots were
n lorerunner and beginning of an art
cuiminating in the Venus de Medtci.
our c~ivllization passed through these
CTuQe Sflpao aud ony,1f<toa-
vealed in the mound. The rough and
uneven decoration is the great grand
mother of all that Is beautiful in
painting or sculpture. The one idea
e and above all others WHY we
should study these things, is that we
see IN these people our own beginning.
the start and infancy of our own Won
derful civilization bein be-
ore our eyes. The story Of the Amer
lean red men Of yesterday is the story
OF the white race centuries ago.
Why Flint Was Used.
Flint implements and weapons have
been described in a former paper. The
chief reason for the selection Of flint in
the manufacture OF articles was the
hardness, the lightness, and the edge
desirable of the stone rock Tor cutting
purposes and for arrow and spear
reads. The aborigine used flint for cut
ting purposes where we now use iron
and steel. The flint drills used in the
same manner as the bone ones, though
vastly different in shape. celts.
scrapers. knives. arrow points, spear
heads are among h chief and import
ant articles manufactured.
Among the new finds in flint were
some minute arrow heads. Most of
them are perfect. Some of the author
tiles call them bird points, but observa-
ton and reason would lead to another
conclusion. For example. some OF them
fastened to any shaft. Again, a prac-
tice among the tribe vas to shoot the
birds with blunt arrows In order that
the blood might not discolor the
plumage which they desired to wear.
For the lurger birds, used for food.
the ordinary arrow was used. Small
arrows were used for war purposes, and
when so used were poisoned, but they
were larger than these small points,
Among some of the tribes 1t has been
recorded that these small arrows were
used to designate the different chiefs
and honors. being strung together. the
greater the chief or warrior, the more
were useG as play things for the chill
dren with no further comment than to
refer to the indisposition Of the red
man to perform unnecessary labor of
any kind.
Different sized arrows were no doubt
made for different kinds of shooting,
the shape, weight and size of the head
having much to do with the renetra-
ton. speed and trajectory of the arrow.
This would necessitate the owner Of q
culver full of flint pointed arrows. all
OF different sizes and weight. to be IA
miliar with each and every one Of
them, to know which ones would shoot
hitch on1 ~n,1}1I, ~~~~ I@x,, AL-
a sportsman knows his rife.
The Popular Small Beads.
One of the most interesting phases
Of this wild life is found in the orna-
ments. the most popular being the shell
beads. because. first, they were bright
and beautiful. and because they were
comparatively rare, being hard to man
u%facture. They are interesting because
they are the beginning Of the beautiful
work of gold and gem that adorns our
ladies. The wearing of diamonds and
other precious stones as ornaments may
be traced ack to the half wild white
man in Europe. The Indian found the
shells in the creek and the Big Sioux
river. They had their drills and other
tools. but the shell was brittle and hard
to work, hence its rarity and value. The
beads found in the mound are much
different from those found in any other
portion of the state. Out of q string
of nearly 100 beads from the state mu-
scum sent by T.. Van Hyning, nothing
like these are shown. Some of the re-
ports state that the same kind have
been found in Tennessee and Colorado
and probably at places between these
states. They AIRY from one-fourth of an
inch to n and one-fourth inches in
diameter. perforated in the center.
Of them are perfectly fiat on 10th
sides. some are concave and some are
convo convex and others double con-
vex. The circumference Is smooth and
round, the circle being almost perfect.
The perforations vary slightly in size,
according to the size OF the bead. Some
of these beads have been painted and
still retain some OF the traces of the
past, but most Of them are the natural
color. Some of them show evidences Of
having been burned. but this may
have been accidental.
There n other shell articles that
were evidently used as ornaments, one
of which 10 a peculiar shape, being q
trife larger in circumference than an
ordinary match with a spiral groove
running down. perforated at one end,
used to string al q pendant. Other
portions Of the shell were perforated
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