Omaha Dwellings, Furniture and Implements | Page 3

in the bottom of the skins, made when
the latter were tanned and before they had become hard. The entrance
([t]ijebe) was generally opposite the quarter from which the wind was
blowing. A door flap ([t]ijebeg[|c]a^{n}--7) hung over the entrance; it
was made of skin with the hair outside, so as to turn water, and was
held taut by a stick fastened to it transversely. The bottom of the door
flap was loose, but the top was fastened to the tent.
[Illustration: Fig. 309--Exterior parts of an Omaha tent.]

The smokehole was formed by the two [t]ihugab[|c]i^{n}[|c]a(9), or
triangular ends of tent skins, immediately above the entrance and
[t]i¢uma^{n}ha^{n}. When there was no wind both of the
[t]ihugab[|c]i^{n}[|c]a were kept open by means of the
[t]ihu[|c]ubaji^{n}(8) or exterior tent poles, which were thrust through
the ujiha, or small sacks, in the corners of the [t]ihugab[|c]i^{n}[|c]a.
When the wind blew one of the [t]ihu[|c]ubaji^{n} was raised to the
windward and the other was lowered, pulling its skin close to the tent
and leaving an opening for the escape of the smoke; but if the wind
came directly against the entrance both the flaps were raised, closing
the smokehole to prevent the wind from blowing down it. When the
wind blew the people used nandi[|c]agaspe to keep the bottom of each
tent skin in place. These consisted of twisted grass, sticks, stones, or
other heavy objects.
Figure 310 represents the tent of [P]ejequde, an Omaha. The banners or
standards, which were carried by the leaders of a war party or a party
going on a dancing tour, are depicted with their decorations of strips of
red and blue Indian cloth. Sometimes these standards were ornamented
with feathers instead of with cloth. Each standard could be used in four
war expeditions.
No totem posts were in use among the Omaha. The tent of the principal
man of each gens was decorated on the outside with his gentile badge,
which was painted on each side of the entrance as well as on the back
of the tent.[1] The furniture of the sacred tents resembled that of the
ordinary ones.
Before the introduction of canvas tents by the whites no needles or
thread were used by the Siouan tribes. The women used sinew of the
deer or buffalo instead of thread, and for needles they had awls made of
elk horn.
[Illustration: Fig. 310.--[P]ejequde's tent.]
Since there were no outbuildings, public granaries, or other structures
of this description, each household stored away its own grain and other
provisions. There were no special tribal or communal dwellings; but

sometimes two or more households occupied a single earth lodge.
When a council was held, it took place in the earth lodge of one of the
head chiefs, or else two or three common tents were united, making one
large one.[2] There were no public baths, as the Missouri river was near,
and they could resort to it whenever they desired. Dance houses were
improvised either of earth lodges or skin tents.
Sweat-lodges were in the form of low tents ([t]iu[|c]ipu).[3] Stones
were not boiled for the sweat-lodge, but were put into the fire to be
heated. They were removed from the fire by means of sticks called
i^{n}[,][)e]basi[|c]a^{n}, and then water from the kettle was poured on
them, creating steam. Cedar fronds were dropped on the stones, causing
a perfume to arise.
[Footnote 1: Third Ann. Rep. Bur. Ethnology for 1882-'83, p. 230; also
"A Study of Siouan Cults," in Eleventh Ann. Rep. Bur. Ethnology,
1889-'90, p. 351.]
[Footnote 2: Third Ann. Rep., op. cit., p. 294.]
[Footnote 3: Contributions to North American Ethnology, vol. vi, 1890,
pp. 152, 169, and 234.]

FURNITURE AND IMPLEMENTS.
Fireplaces.
Within the tent, in the center, was the fireplace (une[|c][)e]), formed by
excavating a small hollow. Beside this was erected a forked post
(isag[|c][)e]), on which was hung the apparatus for suspending a kettle
over the fire. This apparatus was called [|c]exe u[|c]ugacke by the
Ponka, literally, "that by means of which the kettle is hung." The
Omaha have two names for it, uha^{n} u[|c]ugacke, and
u[|c]ugackeg[|c]e, the last syllable of the latter name referring to the
attitude of the post. Around the fireplace was a circular space for the
feet of the people as they sat about the fire. The couches of the
occupants of the tent were arranged outside of and all around this

circular space.
Beds and Bedding.
A couch was formed by laying down two or three winter hides dried
with the hair on. These hides were placed around the fireplace at a safe
distance. In the earth lodges, according to Joseph La Flèche, the Omaha
used sahi, or grass mats, for seats, as is the present custom of the
Winnebago; but at night they reclined on dressed hides