An entire volume might well be written which should embrace only an
account of the superstitions regarding death and burial among the
Indians, so thoroughly has the matter been examined and discussed by
various authors, and yet so much still remains to be commented on, but
in this work, which is simply preliminary, and is hoped will be
provocative of future efforts, it is deemed sufficient to give only a
few accounts. The first is by Dr. W. Mathews, U. S. A., [Footnote:
Ethnol. and Philol. of the Hidatsa Indians. U.S. Geol. Surv. of Terr.,
1877, p. 409] and relates to the Hidatsa:
"When a Hidatsa dies his shade lingers four nights around the camp or
village in which he died, and then goes to the lodge of his departed
kindred in the 'village of the dead.' When he has arrived there he is
rewarded for his valor, self-denial, and ambition on earth by
receiving the same regard in the one place as in the other, for there
as here the brave man is honored and the coward despised. Some say
that the ghosts of those that commit suicide occupy a separate part of
the village, but that their condition differs in no wise from that of
the others. In the next world human shades hunt and live in the shades
of buffalo and other animals that have here died. There, too, there
are four seasons, but they come in an inverse order to the terrestrial
seasons. During the four nights that the ghost is supposed to linger
near his former dwelling, those who disliked or feared the deceased,
and do not wish a visit from the shade, scorch with red coals a pair
of moccasins which they leave at the door of the lodge. The smell of
the burning leather they claim keeps the ghost out; but the true
friends of the dead man take no such precautions."
From this account it will be seen that the Hidatsa as well as the
Algonkins and Mexicans believed that four days were required before
the spirit could finally leave the earth. Why the smell of burning
leather should he offensive to spirits it would perhaps be fruitless
to speculate on.
The next account, by Keating, [Footnote: Long's Exped., 1824, ii, p.
l58.] relating to the Chippewas, shows a slight analogy regarding the
slippery-pole tradition already alluded to:
"The Chippewas believe that there is in man an essence entirely
distinct from the body; they call it _Ochechag,_ and appear to
supply to it the qualities which we refer to the soul. They believe
that it quits the body at the time of death and repairs to what they
term _Chekechekchekawe;_ this region is supposed to be situated
to the south and on the shores of the great ocean. Previous to
arriving there they meet with a stream which they are obliged to cross
upon a large snake that answers the purpose of a bridge; those who die
from drowning never succeed in crossing the stream; they are thrown
into it and remain there forever. Some souls come to the edge of the
stream but are prevented from passing by the snake that threatens to
devour them: these are the souls of the persons in a lethargy or
trance. Being refused a passage, these souls return to their bodies
and reanimate them. They believe that animals have souls and even that
inorganic substances such as kettles etc., have in them a similar
essence."
In this land of souls all are treated according to their merits. Those
who have been good men are free from pain, they have no duties to
perform, their time is spent in dancing and singing and they feed upon
mushrooms which are very abundant The souls of bad men are haunted by
the phantom of the persons or things that they have injured, thus if a
man has destroyed much property the phantoms of the wrecks of this
property obstruct his passage wherever he goes, if he has been cruel
to his dogs or horses they also torment him after death. The ghosts of
those whom during his lifetime he wronged are there permitted to
avenge their injuries. They think that when a soul has crossed the
stream it cannot return to its body, yet they believe in apparitions
and entertain the opinion that the spirits of the departed will
frequently revisit the abodes of their friends in order to invite them
to the other world and to forewarn them of their approaching
dissolution.
Stephen Powers in his valuable work so often quoted, gives a number of
examples of superstitions regarding the dead of which the following
relates to the Karok of California.
"How well and truly the Karok reverence the memory of the dead is
shown by the fact that the highest crime one can commit is the _pet-
chi-e-ri_, the mere mention of the dead relative's name. It is a
deadly insult to the survivors and can be atoned for only by the same
amount of blood money paid for willful murder. In default of that they
will have the villain's blood.... At the mention of his name the
moldering skeleton turns in his grave and groans. They do not like
stragglers even to inspect the burial place.... They believe that the
soul of a good Karok goes to the 'happy western land' beyond the great
ocean. That they have a well grounded assurance of an immortality
beyond the grave is proven, if not otherwise, by their beautiful and
poetical custom of whispering a message in the ear of the dead....
Believe that dancing will liberate some relative's soul from bonds of
death and restore him to earth"
According to the same author, when a Kelta dies a little bird flies
away with his soul to the spirit land. If he was a bad Indian a hawk
will catch the little bird and eat him up soul and feathers, but if he
was good he will reach the spirit land. Mr. Powers also states that
"The Tolowa share in the superstitious observance for the memory of
the dead which is common to the Northern Californian tribes When I
asked the chief Tahhokolli to tell me the Indian words for 'father'
and 'mother' and certain others similar, he shook his head mournfully
and said 'all dead,' 'all dead,' 'no good.' They are forbidden to
mention the name of the dead, as it is a deadly insult to the
relatives,"... and that the "Mat-toal hold that the good depart to a
happy region somewhere southward in the great ocean, but the soul of a
bad Indian transmigrates into a grizzly bear, which they consider of
all animals the cousin-german of sin."
The Mosquito Indians of Central America studiously and superstitiously
avoid mentioning the name of the dead, in this regard resembling those
of our own country.