CLOTHING AND ITS PREPARATION.
§ 179. Garments were usually made by the women, while men made their weapons. Some of the Omahas have adopted the clothing of the white man. There is no distinction between the attire of dignitaries and that of the common people.
§ 180. There were no out-buildings, public granaries, etc. Each household stored away its own grain and other provisions. There were no special tribal or communal dwellings, but sometimes two or more families occupied one earth lodge. When a tribal council was held, it was in the earth lodge of one of the principal chiefs, or else two or three common tents were thrown into one, making a long tent.
There were no public baths, as the Missouri River was near, and they could resort to it when they desired. Dances were held in earth lodges, or else in large skin tents, when not out of doors.
§ 181. Dressing hides.—The hides were stretched and dried as soon as possible after they were taken from the animals. When a hide was stretched on the ground, pins were driven through holes along the border of the hide. These holes had been cut with a knife. While the hide was still green, the woman scraped it on the under side by pushing a wébajábe over its surface, thus removing the superfluous flesh, etc. The wébajábe was formed from the lower bone of an elk's leg, which had been made thin by scraping or striking ("gab¢eʞa"). The lower end was sharpened by striking, having several teeth-like projections, as in the accompanying figure (B). A withe (A) was tied to the upper end, and this was secured to the arm of the woman just above the wrist.
Fig. 27.—The Webajabe.
When the hide was dry the woman stretched it again on the ground, and proceeded to make it thinner and lighter by using another implement, called the wéubájan, which she moved towards her after the manner of an adze. This instrument was formed from an elk horn, to the lower end of which was fastened a piece of iron (in recent times) called the wé`u-hi.
Fig. 28.—The Weubajan.
(1.) The horn. (2.) The iron (side view). (3.) Sinew tied around the iron.
Fig. 29.—Front view of the iron.
It is about 4 inches wide.
When the hide was needed for a summer tent, leggings, or summer clothing of any sort, the wéubájan was applied to the hairy side. When the hide was sufficiently smooth, grease was rubbed on it, and it was laid out of doors to dry in the sun. This act of greasing the hide was called "wawé¢iq¢i," because they sometimes used the brains of the elk or buffalo for that purpose. Brains, wé¢iq¢i, seem to have their name from this custom, or else from the primitive verb ¢iq¢i. Dougherty stated that, in his day, they used to spread over the hide the brains or liver of the animal, which had been carefully retained for that purpose, and the warm broth of the meat was also poured over it. Some persons made two-thirds of the brain of an animal suffice for dressing its skin. But Frank La Flèche says that the liver was not used for tanning purposes, though the broth was so used when it was brackish.
When the hide had been dried in the sun, it was soaked by sinking it beneath the surface of any adjacent stream. This act lasted about two days. Then the hide was dried again and subjected to the final operation, which was intended to make it sufficiently soft and pliant. A twisted sinew, about as thick as one's finger, called the wé¢ikĭnde, was fastened at each end to a post or tree, about 5 feet from the ground. The hide was put through this, and pulled back and forth. This act was called wa¢íkĭnde.
On the commencement of this process, called tan´¢ě, the hides were almost invariably divided longitudinally into two parts each, for the convenience of the operator. When they were finished they were again sewed together with awls and sinew. When the hides were small they were not so divided before they were tanned. The skins of elk, deer, and antelopes were dressed in a similar manner.