The Seminole Indians of Florida | Page 6

West Billy.]
When the Seminole warrior makes his rare visits to the white man's
settlements, he frequently adds to his scanty camp dress leggins and
moccasins.
In the camps I saw but one Indian wearing leggins (Fig. 62); he,
however, is in every way a peculiar character among his people, and is
objectionably favorable to the white man and the white man's ways. He
is called by the white men "Key West Billy," having received this name
because he once made a voyage in a canoe out of the Everglades and
along the line of keys south of the Florida mainland to Key West,
where he remained for some time. The act itself was so extraordinary,
and it was so unusual for a Seminole to enter a white man's town and
remain there for any length of time, that a commemorative name was
bestowed upon him. The materials of which the leggins of the Seminole
are usually made is buckskin. I saw, however, one pair of leggins made
of a bright red flannel, and ornamented along the outer seams with a
blue and white cross striped braid. The moccasins, also, are made of
buckskin, of either a yellow or dark red color. They are made to lace
high about the lower part of the leg, the lacing running from below the
instep upward. As showing what changes are going on among the
Seminole, I may mention that a few of them possess shoes, and one is
even the owner of a pair of frontier store boots. The blanket is not often
worn by the Florida Indians. Occasionally, in their cool weather, a
small shawl, of the kind made to do service in the turban, is thrown
about the shoulders. Oftener a piece of calico or white cotton cloth,
gathered about the neck, becomes the extra protection against mild
coolness in their winters.
[Illustration: Fig. 63. Seminole costume.]
Costume of the Women.
The costume of the women is hardly more complex than that of the

men. It consists, apparently, of but two garments, one of which, for
lack of a better English word, I name a short shirt, the other a long skirt.
The shirt is cut quite low at the neck and is just long enough to cover
the breasts. Its sleeves are buttoned close about the wrists. The garment
is otherwise buttonless, being wide enough at the neck for it to be
easily put on or taken off over the head. The conservatism of the
Seminole Indian is shown in nothing more clearly than in the use, by
the women, of this much abbreviated covering for the upper part of
their bodies. The women are noticeably modest, yet it does not seem to
have occurred to them that by making a slight change in their upper
garment they might free themselves from frequent embarrassment. In
going about their work they were constantly engaged in what our street
boys would call "pulling down their vests." This may have been done
because a stranger's eyes were upon them; but I noticed that in rising or
in sitting down, or at work, it was a perpetually renewed effort on their
part to lengthen by a pull the scanty covering hanging over their breasts.
Gathered about the waist is the other garment, the skirt, extending to
the feet and often touching the ground. This is usually made of some
dark colored calico or gingham. The cord by which the petticoat is
fastened is often drawn so tightly about the waist that it gives to that
part of the body a rather uncomfortable appearance. This is especially
noticeable because the shirt is so short that a space of two or more
inches on the body is left uncovered between it and the skirt. I saw no
woman wearing moccasins, and I was told that the women never wear
them. For head wear the women have nothing, unless the cotton cloth,
or small shawl, used about the shoulders in cool weather, and which at
times is thrown or drawn over the head, may be called that. (Fig. 63.)
Girls from seven to ten years old are clothed with only a petticoat and
boys about the same age wear only a shirt. Younger children are, as a
rule, entirely naked. If clothed at anytime, it is only during
exceptionally cool weather or when taken by their parents on a journey
to the homes of the palefaces.
Personal Adornment.
The love of personal adornment shows itself among the Seminole as

among other human beings.
[Illustration: Fig. 64. Manner of wearing the hair.]
Hair Dressing.
The coarse, brilliant, black hair of which they are possessors is taken
care of in an odd manner. The men cut all their hair close to the head,
except a strip about an inch wide,