Mr. Mulhausen relates an amusing anecdote of a native doctor’s practice upon himself. He had suffered so much in a long march that he was at last compelled to ask for a day’s rest. One of his companions, a medicine man, immediately tried the effect of his art. First he kneaded the body, and especially the stomach, of the prostrated traveller with all his force. This was to drive out the evil spirit; and, in order to effectually exorcise him, he procured his drum, and seated himself on the ground.
Placing the drum close to the ear of his patient, he kept up a continual rub-a-dub for two whole hours, singing the magic chant the while, until, in spite of his wounded feet, Mr. Mulhausen crawled out of the tent in sheer despair. The triumphant doctor wiped his streaming brows, and, declaring that no evil spirit could withstand such a medicine as that, gave the signal for resuming the march.
Among the Ojibbeways there is a remarkable ceremony by which an infant is received into the order of the Midés, a society in some degree resembling the Freemasons, the members of which consider themselves as related to each other, and addressing each other by the names of uncle, aunt, brother, sister, cousin, &c.
A temple, forty feet in length, was constructed for the express purpose, and built of boughs, like the bowers of the Feast of Tabernacles. It was built east and west, and had the entrance door at the eastern end, and the exit door at the western. In the middle sit the great Midés, each with his mystery bag, and opposite them sits the father of the child, dressed in his full paraphernalia of feathers, furs, and scalp-locks, and holding in his arms the child, lying tied on its board after the manner of Indian babies. On either side of him are the witnesses of the reception, and eastward of the chief Midés lies a large rough stone, which prevents the evil spirit.
The ceremony begins with an address of the principal Midé, and then the chiefs rise, and after walking in procession, each of them runs at one of the guests, presenting his medicine bag at him, and yelling in quickening accents, “Ho! ho! hohohoho! O! O! O! O! O!” As he presents the bag, the breath proceeding from it is supposed to overcome the person to whom it is presented, who falls down and lies there motionless. Having struck one person down, the Midé runs round the temple, to allow the medicine bag to recover its strength, and then presents it to another victim. This process is repeated until all the inmates of the hut, with the exception of the officiating Midés, are lying prostrate on the ground, where they lie until a touch from the same bag restores them to life and activity. This ceremony is repeated several times during the day, and is intended to show the virtue of the medicine bag.
The father then presents his child to the Midés, after which there is another speech from the chief Midé, and then follows a curious dance, consisting of two leaps to the right and two to the left alternately. After this, every one produces his medicine bag, and tries to blow down everybody else. And, as the bags are covered with tinkling bells, bits of metal, and shells, and the principal Midés are beating their drums and shaking their rattles with all their might, it may be imagined that the noise is deafening.
(1.) THE INDIAN BALL PLAY.
(See [page 1324].)
