An Introduction to the mortuary customs of the North American IndiansYarrow, H. C. (Harry Crécy)
History
An Introduction to the mortuary customs of the North American Indians
Yarrow, H. C. (Harry Crécy)
Indians of North America -- Funeral customs and rites
Perhaps a brief review of Dr. Turner's narrative may not be deemed
inappropriate here.
Supplying food to the dead is a custom which is known to be of great
antiquity; in some instances, as among the ancient Romans, it appears
to have been a sacrificial offering, for it usually accompanied
cremation, and was not confined to food alone, for spices, perfumes,
oil, etc., were thrown upon the burning pile. In addition to this,
articles supposed or known to have been agreeable to the deceased were
also consumed. The Jews did the same, and in our own time the Chinese,
Caribe and many of the tribes of North American Indians followed these
customs. The cutting of hair as a mourning observance is of very great
antiquity, and Tegg relates that among the ancients whole cities and
countries were shaved (_sic_) when a great man died. The Persians
not only shaved themselves on such occasions, but extended the same
process to their domestic animals, and Alexander, at the death of
Hephastin, not only cut off the manes of his horses and mules, but
took down the battlements from the city walls, that even towns might
seem in mourning and look bald. Scarifying and mutilating the body has
prevailed from a remote period of time, having possibly replaced, in
the process of evolution, to a certain extent, the more barbarous
practice of absolute personal sacrifice. In later days, among our
Indians, human sacrifices have taken place to only a limited extent,
but formerly many victims were immolated, for at the funerals of the
chiefs of the Florida and Carolina Indians all the male relatives and
wives were slain, for the reason, according to Gallatin, that the
hereditary dignity of Chief or Great Sun descended, as usual, by the
female line; and he, as well as all other members of his clan, whether
male or female, could marry only persons of an inferior clan. To this
day mutilation of the person among some tribes of Indians is usual.
The sacrifice of the favorite horse or horses is by no means peculiar
to our Indians, for it was common among the Romans, and possibly even
among the men of the Reindeer period, for at Solutre, in France, the
writer saw horses' bones exhumed from the graves examined in 1873. The
writer has frequently conversed with Indians upon this subject, and
they have invariably informed him that when horses were slain great
care was taken to select the poorest of the band.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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