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106 SMITHSONIAN CONTRIBUTIONS TO ANTHROPOLOGY medals of different sizes, certificates, and other gifts including quasimilitary coats. When the Spanish took control of the Mississippi Valley from France, they simply continued the French policies and told the tribes that the gifts of the two nations were the same and "no innovation is being made in anything" (Ewers, 1974:272). The Spanish regime passed out medals, canes, coats, flags, and certificates to their allies west of the Mississippi. In 1787, there were nine laced coats for Missouri Basin chiefs on inventory in St. Louis (Wedel, 1955:148). Spanish presents for the Utes and Comanches included blue wool capes and coats "with red lapels for the big chiefs, threecornered hats, and some medals" (Carroll and Haggard, 1967:135). The Mexicans continued the long-established tradition among the Southern Plains and Southwestern tribes. Travellers as late as 1850 frequently encountered Indians wearing blue or red Mexican coats with reversed facings (Barlett, 1965:119). The United States policy after the Revolution followed that of Great Britain's in colonial times. Secretary of War Henry Knox told President George Washington that "the British Government had the practice of making the Indians presents of silver medals, gorgets, uniform clothing, and a sort of military commission . . . the Southern Indians are exceedingly desirous of receiving similar gifts from the United States. . . . The policy of gratifying them cannot be doubted" (U.S. Congress, 1851:60). The young American nation's policymakers took General Knox's advice to heart and issued special presidential medals, certificates, and military coats. When the Corps of Discovery ascended the Missouri in 1804-1805, it carried several red coats with blue facings as gifts for the Indians. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark met the Brule chief, Weucha or Shake Hand, in what is now South Dakota, and presented him with a flag, medal, certificate and beads, "to which we added a chiefs coat; that is, a richly laced uniform of the United States artillery corps, and a cocked hat and red feather." The chief thanked them and remarked that the Spanish had given him a medal, "but nothing to keep it from my skin; but now you give me a medal and clothes," as had the English (Biddle, 1922:101- 102). The fur traders had a pressing need to maintain the good will of their customers. Established practice required a trader to make presents of liquor, clothing, or other goods to head men in order to secure the trade of their followers, embarrass the competition, and protect themselves and their property from physical harm. As an example of this custom, Robert Campbell at Fort William, North Dakota in 1833, mentioned giving the Assiniboine chief, Capot Bleu, a "blue chief coat shirt and breech cloth. He is well satisfied" (Brooks, 1964:27). Cloth coats were typical among the Plains Indians by the beginning of the nineteenth century. Pierre-Antoine Tabeau remarked that among the Brule Sioux in the period 1803-1805, "the clothes of both men and women are scarlet; the coats of the men are decorated in false gold, with a blue collar ornamented with silver" (Wedel, 1955:148). Although governments and trading companies passed them out as gifts, chief's coats were a standard item of trade available at a set price. At St. Peter's River, Minnesota, in 1786, Sioux traders reckoned a fine scarlet coat at about S35.00, or two month's wages for the average fur company employee (Thwaites, 1892:94). Toward the end of their popularity in the 1850s, a chiefs coat cost a style-conscious Teton warrior ten buffalo robes. A typical tanned robe was valued at $3.50, so neither inflation nor competition had changed the price of a chiefs coat in half a century (Hanson, 1971:3). To give an idea of the importance of the fancy coats in the trade, the inventory for 1831 at Fort Union, North Dakota, is helpful: scarlet chiefs, 47; blue chiefs, 18; blue chiefs common, 4 (Thompson, 1968:132). One Sioux trader the same year said his business was suffering greatly because he had no chiefs coats or green blankets (Abel, 1932:345). Any Plains Indian who was important, or thought himself so, saw such a fancy cloth coat as the standard of
NUMBER 30 107 fashion. Far more colorful than the most decorative piece of native handiwork, it represented conspicuous wealth and cost him dearly. The chiefs coat may have been popular as well because similar coats were worn by the military, whom Indians usually respected, admired, and occasionally emulated. It was probably, however, simply a human desire for chic fashion. The chiefs coat of the Plains became standardized in design and construction by the early nineteenth century (Figure 8). Basically it followed military frock coat lines with falling collar and knee-length skirt slit to the waist in the back. ..
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JM*^>T^ Plains Indian Studies A COL
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SMITHSONIAN CONTRIBUTIONS TO ANTHRO
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Contents Page EDITORS' INTRODUCTION
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Plains Indian Studies Editors' Intr
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NUMBER 30 12:00 p.m. LUNCH 1:30 p.m
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NUMBER 30 comprised some of the ear
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John C. Ewers and William N. Fenton
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^9 ^^^^H/"^V^^^^H P^^B Lf// to n|[/
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John Canfield Ewers and the Great T
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NUMBER 30 13 heavy doses of materia
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NUMBER 30 15 sages from books and a
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NUMBER 30 sault by the medicine pip
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NUMBER 30 19 cused on archeology. T
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NUMBER 30 21 he has viewed statisti
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NUMBER 30 23 Basin Surveys, establi
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Bibliography of John C. Ewers 1932
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NUMBER 30 27 36. The Indian Trade o
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NUMBER 30 29 1966 82. Chiefs from t
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NUMBER 30 31 125. Chippewa, Cree an
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Bibhography of Waldo R. Wedel 1933
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NUMBER 30 35 43. The Missouri River
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NUMBER 30 37 1959 79. An Introducti
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NUMBER 30 39 116. House Floors and
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NUMBER 30 41 phase of the game of m
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NUMBER 30 43 FIGURE 3.—Waldo and
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NUMBER 30 45 came Jack's extensive
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An Historical Character Mythologize
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NUMBER 30 49 ruined"), since the ac
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NUMBER 30 51 a war party that happe
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NUMBER 30 The Legendary Figure An i
Page 61 and 62: NUMBER 30 their identity to anyone,
Page 63 and 64: NUMBER 30 57 as the actors approach
Page 65 and 66: Political Assimilation on the Black
Page 67 and 68: NUMBER 30 61 and daring on horse-st
Page 69 and 70: NUMBER 30 63 the incident led to hi
Page 71 and 72: NUMBER 30 65 after years of litigat
Page 73 and 74: NUMBER 30 67 vation and before the
Page 75 and 76: NUMBER 30 69 to the financially dis
Page 77 and 78: NUMBER 30 Federal Records Center, D
Page 79 and 80: "Look at My Hair, It is Gray": Age
Page 81 and 82: NUMBER 30 75 suited potential selec
Page 83 and 84: NUMBER 30 77 THE GROS VENTRE BUSINE
Page 85 and 86: NUMBER 30 79 worked to generate sup
Page 87 and 88: NUMBER 30 81 Mountain Crows, and th
Page 89 and 90: NUMBER 30 83 validated and reinforc
Page 91 and 92: NUMBER 30 85 general. The Sun Dance
Page 93 and 94: NUMBER 30 87 spect for ritual leade
Page 95 and 96: NUMBER 30 89 and I don't know what
Page 97 and 98: NUMBER 30 91 ington, D.C: Catholic
Page 99 and 100: NUMBER 30 93 volume 12, book 1. Hou
Page 101 and 102: NUMBER 30 95 ing and travel. Yet ea
Page 103 and 104: NUMBER 30 97 place." The leadership
Page 105 and 106: NUMBER 30 99 (Imuks-ay'k-ni), from
Page 107 and 108: NUMBER 30 101 ical condition were t
Page 109 and 110: NUMBER 30 103 chiefs of the tribe.
Page 111: Laced Coats and Leather Jackets: Th
Page 115 and 116: NUMBER 30 109 On the other side of
Page 117 and 118: NUMBER 30 111 FIGURE 10.—White ma
Page 119 and 120: NUMBER 30 113 sashes and beadwork.
Page 121 and 122: NUMBER 30 115 FIGURE 13.—Oglala S
Page 123 and 124: NUMBER 30 117 Cabinet of Curiositie
Page 125 and 126: NUMBER 30 119 the period has often
Page 127 and 128: NUMBER 30 121 as physically large;
Page 129 and 130: NUMBER 30 123 New Spain and in many
Page 131 and 132: NUMBER 30 125 ita) trader (M. Wedel
Page 133 and 134: NUMBER 30 127 riors and have served
Page 135 and 136: NUMBER 30 129 hunters and traders d
Page 137 and 138: NUMBER 30 131 I have seen no record
Page 139 and 140: NUMBER 30 133 effective enticements
Page 141 and 142: Shelling Corn in the Prairie-Plains
Page 143 and 144: NUMBER 30 137 FIGURE 15.—Oneota s
Page 145 and 146: NUMBER 30 It is possible that still
Page 147 and 148: NUMBER 30 141 canvas on which they
Page 149 and 150: NUMBER 30 143 of September when the
Page 151 and 152: NUMBER 30 gested the use of these i
Page 153 and 154: NUMBER 30 147 Shell and side A, rig
Page 155 and 156: NUMBER 30 ences, demonstrated below
Page 157 and 158: NUMBER 30 151 FIGURE 22.—Vertical
Page 159 and 160: NUMBER 30 153 fig. 12r). Objects of
Page 161 and 162: NUMBER 30 155 editor. Aspects of Up
Page 163 and 164:
Bias in the Zooarcheological Record
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NUMBER 30 159 population in cultura
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NUMBER 30 between sites. Since so m
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NUMBER 30 163 pling scheme used. Th
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NUMBER 30 165 MNI MNI FIGURE 25.—
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NUMBER 30 167 taken to contribute t
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NUMBER 30 169 Among the historic Co
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NUMBER 30 171 etery. Keos, 1:129-13
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Some Observations on the Central Pl
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NUMBER 30 175 similarity in the cho
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NUMBER 30 177 N SELECTED ARCHAEOLOG
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NUMBER 30 179 FIGURE 30.—Forest c
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NUMBER 30 181 a long line along the
Page 189 and 190:
NUMBER 30 183 sloping ridge spurs.
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NUMBER 30 hunting and fishing camps
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NUMBER 30 187 should reduce the num
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NUMBER 30 189 has drawn upon models
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NUMBER 30 191 Dean, Seth 1883. Anti
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Paleo-Indian Winter Subsistence Str
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NUMBER 30 195 and late Archaic peri
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NUMBER 30 197 nent is located in th
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NUMBER 30 199 1977-78 caused the ar
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NUMBER 30 201 meat caches, would un
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NUMBER 30 203 published advocating
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NUMBER 30 205 Radiometric determina
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NUMBER 30 207 of butchering. Among
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NUMBER 30 209 as hearths, along wit
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NUMBER 30 211 found. At Locality II
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NUMBER 30 213 and unifacial flake t
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NUMBER 30 extended across Beringia
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NUMBER 30 217 Irving, William N. 19
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REQUIREMENTS FOR SMITHSONIAN SERIES
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