In the intermediate space between the recesses and the fireplace, mats, about three by five feet, made of rushes, are laid, at convenient distances, for seats; while an extra supply of them, rolled up, and set aside at different places in the lodge, are reserved for extraordinary occasions, as for instance councils or feasts. SUBSISTENCE.—What the _seal_ is to the Greenlander the _buffalo_ is to the Pawnees and other Prairie Indians; and many of their songs, in which reference is made to the buffalo, show that this animal is held in high estimation among them. It will no doubt be a difficult undertaking to wean them from an occupation, which is at the same time a gratifying and exciting sport to them, and which imparts to an individual who distinguishes himself in its pursuit, a character of high standing among his tribe. The great scarcity of the buffalo, however, of late years, since the immense emigration to the far west, has pinched them with want and hunger, and it is evident that they cannot subsist much longer by depending mainly upon this animal as heretofore. This circumstance, though calling forth our warmest sympathies in behalf of their wretched condition, may perhaps be the means, in the hands of an Allwise Providence, of shaking that tenacity and attachment so strongly developed in the Indian character, for long cherished customs, and making them more pliable in adopting the arts of civilization. Their attention must soon be directed to agriculture and the raising of stock, or they must starve. While on the hunt, in the buffalo country, the Pawnees generally have a good supply of fresh meat to subsist on. That portion of their meat which is intended to be jerked, in order to take home with them, they cut into narrow slips, and dry it over the fire, without any salt, where, by the action of the smoke and sun, it soon dries. Several slips are then plaited together, when it is put away into a skin, and reserved for future use. The reason why no salt is added is probably, first, because it is a scarce article, and secondly, because anything that is salted and dried, imbibes moisture in damp weather, and sooner becomes rancid than meat dried without salt. Besides the buffalo, as their main subsistence, they raise some corn, beans, and pumpkins. As they use no other agricultural implements than hoes, their fields are not very extensive. For suitable spots of cultivation they generally select the mouth of a ravine, or any spot where, by the washing of the rains, the ground has become loose and mellow, and consequently the sod may more easily be extirpated than in the prairies generally, where the ground can only be prepared by turning the thick sod by means of a large prairie plough, and three or four yoke of oxen.