Having thus given a view of the persons of the Indians, we may proceed
to consider the manner in which they are clothed and ornamented. This
last object might have been expected to be a very secondary one, among
tribes whose means of subsistence are so scanty and precarious; but,
so far is this from being the case, that there is scarcely any pursuit
which occupies so much of their time and regard. They have availed
themselves of European intercourse to procure each a small mirror, in
which, from time to time, they view their personal decorations, taking
care that everything shall be in the most perfect order. Embellishment,
however, is not much expended on actual clothing, which is simple,
and chiefly arranged with a view to convenience. Instead of shoes,
they wear what are termed moccasins, consisting of one strip of soft
leather wrapped round the foot, and fastened in front and behind.
Europeans, walking over hard roads, soon knock these to pieces; but the
Indian, tripping over snow or grass, finds them a light and agreeable
_chaussure_. Upward to the middle of the thigh, a piece of leather
or cloth, tightly fitted to the limb, serves instead of pantaloons,
stockings, and boots; it is sometimes sewed on so close as never to
be taken off. To a string or girdle round the waist are fastened two
aprons, one before and the other at the back, each somewhat more
than a foot square and these are connected by a piece of cloth like a
truss, often used also as a capacious pocket. The use of breeches they
have always repelled with contempt, as cumbrous and effeminate. As an
article of female dress, they would consider them less objectionable;
but that the limbs of a warrior should be thus manacled, appears to
them utterly preposterous. They were particularly scandalized at seeing
an officer have them fastened over the shoulder by braces, and never
after gave him any name but Tied-Breech.
The garments now enumerated form the whole of their permanent dress. On
occasions of ceremony, indeed, or when exposed to cold, they put over
it a short shirt fastened at the neck and wrists, and above it a long
loose robe, closed or held together in front. For this purpose they now
generally prefer an English blanket. All these articles were originally
fabricated from the skins of wild animals; but at present, unless
for the moccasins, and sometimes the leggins, European stuffs are
preferred. The dress of the female scarcely differs from that of the
male, except that the apron reaches down to the knees; and even this
is said to have been adopted since their acquaintance with civilized
nations. The early French writers relate an amusing anecdote to prove
how little dress was considered as making a distinction between the
sexes. The Ursuline nuns, having educated a Huron girl, presented her,
on her marriage to one of her countrymen, with a complete and handsome
suit of clothes in the Parisian style. They were much surprised,
some days after, to see the husband, who had ungenerously seized the
whole of his bride’s attire and arrayed himself in it, parading back
and forward in front of the convent, and betraying every symptom of
the most extravagant exultation. This was farther heightened when he
observed the ladies crowding to the window to see him, and a universal
smile spread over their countenances.
These vestments, as already observed, are simple, and adapted only
for use. To gratify his passionate love of ornament, the Indian seeks
chiefly to load his person with certain glittering appendages. Before
the arrival of Europeans, shells and feathers took the lead; but,
since that period, these commodities have been nearly supplanted by
beads, rings, bracelets, and similar toys, which are inserted profusely
into various parts of his apparel, particularly the little apron in
front. The chiefs usually wear a breastplate ornamented with them;
and among all classes it is an object of the greatest ambition to
have the largest possible number suspended from the ear. That organ,
therefore, is not bored, but slit to such an extent that a stick of
wax may be passed through the aperture, which is then loaded with all
the baubles that can be mustered; and if the weight of these gradually
draw down the yielding flap till it rest on the shoulder, and the
ornaments themselves cover the breast, the Indian has reached his
utmost height of finery. This, however, is a precarious splendour; the
ear becomes more and more unfit to support the burden, when at length
some accident, the branch of a tree, or even a twitch by a waggish
comrade, lays at his feet all his decorations, with the portion of
flesh to which they were attached. Weld saw very few who had preserved
this organ entire through life. The adjustment of the hair, again, is
an object of especial study. As already observed, the greater part is
generally eradicated, leaving only a tuft, varying in shape and place,
according to taste and national custom, but usually encircling the
crown. This lock is stuck full of feathers, wings of birds, shells,
and every kind of fantastic ornament. The women wear theirs long and
flowing, and contrive to collect a considerable number of ornaments for
it, as well as for their ears and dress.
But it is upon his skin that the American warrior chiefly lavishes his
powers of embellishment. His taste in doing so is very different from
ours. “While the European,” says Creuxius, “studies to keep his skin
clean, and free from every extraneous substance, the Indian’s aim is,
that his, by the accumulation of oil, grease, and paint, may shine like
that of a roasted pig.” Soot scraped from the bottoms of kettles, the
juices of herbs, having a green, yellow, and, above all, a vermilion
tint, rendered adhesive by combination with oil and grease, are
lavishly employed to adorn his person, or, according to our idea, to
render it hideous. Black and red, alternating with each other in varied
stripes, are the favourite tints. Some blacken the face, leaving in
the middle a red circle, including the upper lip and tip of the nose;
others have a red spot on each ear, or one eye black and the other of
a red colour. In war the black tint is profusely laid on, the others
being only employed to heighten its effect, and give to the countenance
a terrific expression. M. de Tracy, when governor of Canada, was told
by his Indian allies, that, with his good-humoured face, he would never
inspire the enemy with any degree of awe. They besought him to place
himself under their brush, when they would soon make him such that his
very aspect would strike terror. The breast, arms, and legs are the
seat of more permanent impressions, analogous to the tattooing of the
South Sea Islanders. The colours are either elaborately rubbed in, or
fixed by slight incisions with needles and sharp-pointed bones. His
guardian spirit, and the animal that forms the symbol of his tribe, are
the first objects delineated. After this, every memorable exploit, and
particularly the enemies whom he has slain and scalped, are diligently
graven on some part of his figure; so that the body of an aged warrior
contains the history of his life.