§ 272. The Ghost dance.—Wanáxe-í¢ae¢é-ma are those who have supernatural communications with ghosts. The dance is called Wanáxe í¢aé¢e wátcigáxe. Formerly the Ponkas had this dance, and the Omahas saw it and coveted it; so they took it. It has not been danced by the Omahas for about forty years. La Flèche and Two Crows never saw it, but they have heard of it; and they speak of it as "úqtajĭ edádan ígaxewa¢ájĭ," undesirable; totally unfit for any use. But [P]a¢in-nanpajĭ says that it was an "úwaqube," a sacred thing. No women participated. A feast was called, the men assembled, a drum was struck, and they danced. The dancers made their bodies gray, and called themselves ghosts.
§ 273. The Padanka dance.—The Pádañka watcí (Camanche dance?) has not been held among the Omahas since [P]a¢in-nanpajĭ can remember. The Omahas bought it from another tribe, and had it a long time. When Mr. J. La Flèche was small, he saw a little of it. He and Two Crows have heard about it. The drum was struck; the dancers reddened their bodies with Indian red; they wore head-dresses of crow feathers or of the large feathers of the great owl. Bach one carried the "ʇacáge" or rattles of deers' claws.
§ 274. The Hekána dance.—This was introduced among the Omahas by the Otos when they visited the former tribe in August, 1878. The Otos call it "He-kan´-yu-há." It is found among the Sacs and other Indians south of the Omahas. This is the dance in which the young people of both sexes participate, and it is called "úmin¢íg¢an," as it leads the young men to think of courting the girls.
When a young man wishes to have a chance for saying something to a girl whom he admires he boils for a feast, and invites the guests. All the young men assemble, and the unmarried girls and boys attend, though the girls never go without a proper escort. Mothers take their daughters, and husbands go with their wives.
The dance is held in a large earth-lodge, in the middle of which a fire is kept up, and candles are placed on supports around the walls. Sometimes the boys blow out the lights all at once after a preconcerted signal, and great confusion ensues. All wear their gayest clothing and plenty of ornaments. Fine ribbon is worn on clothing, hats, etc.
When a youth wishes to court a girl, he waits till the girl approaches him in the dance. Then he takes her by the hands, and dances facing her. As there is great confusion, no one else can hear him addressing her, his face being very close to hers. Every time the drumming stops, the dancers in each pair change places, but they still face each other.
When a woman or girl wishes a man as a partner, she takes him by the hands when he gets close to her in the dance.
When a distant "mother's brother" meets one whom he calls his niece, he may address her thus in sport: "Anwátcigaxe taí, wihé!" i. e., "Second daughter of the family, let us dance." She replies, "Give me pay." So he makes her a present of a necklace or of some other ornament, and she dances with him. A real uncle never acts thus.
Sometimes when a girl spies among the spectators an aged man who is a kinsman, she will rush to him in sport, take him by the hands, pull him to his feet, and make him dance with her. On the other hand, when a young man spies an aged female relative looking on, he may rush to her, in sport, and pull her into the ring making her dance with him.
There is a feast after the dance. If there is but a small supply of food only the women and girls eat; but if there is plenty, the men wait till the others have eaten awhile, then they partake. After the feast the guests go home; but they sleep nearly all of the following day, as they are very tired.