Osage Traditions

Osage Traditions by J. Owen
Dorsey

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Title: Osage Traditions
Author: J. Owen Dorsey
Release Date: October 4, 2006 [Ebook #19464]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO 8859-1
***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OSAGE
TRADITIONS***

Osage Traditions
by J. Owen Dorsey

Edition 1, (October 4, 2006)

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION--BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY.

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION. TRADITIONS OF THE ELDERS.
UNUn'U¢Á{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED K~}E. TSÍOU
WACTÁ{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED K~}E ITÁ*P*E.
UNUn' U¢Á{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED K~}E.
QÜ¢ÁPASAn ITÁ*P*E. CONCLUDING REMARKS.

ILLUSTRATIONS
FIG. 389. Symbolic chart of the Osage.

OSAGE TRADITIONS.
BY REV. J. OWEN DORSEY.

INTRODUCTION.
When the author visited the Osage, in the Indian Territory, in January,
1883, he learned of the existence of a secret society of seven degrees, in
which, it was alleged, the traditions of the people have been preserved
to the present time. Owing to the shortness of his visit, one month and
eleven days, he was unable to gain more than fragmentary accounts of
the society, including parts of two traditions, from several Osage who
had been initiated.
The version of the first tradition was dictated to the author by

Ha*d*a-{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN O~}ü{~LATIN SMALL
LETTER TURNED T~}se (Red Corn), a halfbreed Osage of the
Tsí{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN O~}u wactá{~LATIN SMALL
LETTER TURNED K~}e gens. He obtained it from Sa*d*eki¢e.
Ha*d*a-{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN O~}ü{~LATIN SMALL
LETTER TURNED T~}se was adopted in childhood by a white man
named Matthews, who sent him to a Jesuit college in Missouri(?) to be
educated for the priesthood. But the boy left the institution after he had
been taught to read and write, as he did not wish to become a priest. He
took the name of William P. Matthews, but among his white associates
he is known as Bill Nix. He has tried several occupations and is now an
Indian doctor. The author was inclined at first to underrate Mr.
Matthews's accomplishments and stock of information, but
subsequently changed his opinion of him, as he obtained much that
agreed with what had been furnished by members of other tribes in
former years. Besides, the author obtained partial accounts of similar
traditions from other Osage, who used the same chant which
Ha*d*a-{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN O~}ü{~LATIN SMALL
LETTER TURNED T~}se had sung. None of the younger Osage men
knew about these matters and the author was urged not to speak to
them on this subject. He observed that several of the elder men,
members of the secret order in which these traditions are preserved, had
parts of the accompanying symbolic chart (Fig. 389) tattooed on their
throats and chests. This chart is a fac simile of one that was drawn for
the author by Ha*d*a-{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN
O~}ü{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}se. At the top we see
a tree near a river. The tree is a cedar, called the tree of life. It has six
roots, three on each side. Nothing is said about this tree till the speaker
nearly reaches the end of the tradition. Then follows the "ceremony of
the cedar." The tree is described very minutely. Then follows a similar
account of the river and its branches.
[Illustration: FIG. 389. Symbolic chart of the Osage.]
FIG. 389. Symbolic chart of the Osage.
Just under the river, at the left, we see a large star, the Red or Morning

Star. Next are six stars, Ta¢a*d*¢in. The Omaha know a similar group,
which they call "Minxa si {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED
T~}añga," or "Large foot of a goose." Next is the Evening Star; and last
comes the small star, "Mikak'e-{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN
O~}iñ{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED K~}a." Beneath these
four we see the seven stars, or Pleiades (Mikak'e u*d*átse pé¢un*d*a,
the Seven Gentes of Stars), between the Moon (on the left) and the Sun
(on the right). Beneath these are the peace pipe (on the left) and the
hatchet (on the right). A bird is seen hovering over the four upper
worlds. These worlds are represented by four parallel horizontal lines,
each of which, except the lowest one, is supported by two pillars. The
lowest world rests on a red oak tree.
The journey of the people began at a point below the lowest upper
world, on the left side of the chart. Then the people had neither human
bodies nor souls, though they existed in some unknown manner. They
ascended from the lowest upper world, on the left, to the highest. There
they obtained