O-muck-ai-ix-ixi. Big White-Root. Evening Primrose, Alkali Lily. Musenium divaricatum. The Blackfoot say the root has no flavor until dried. It was gathered in the fall and eaten raw. It grows on the prairies. Miss-issa. Camas. Camassia esculenta. The roots were generally dug in the fall after the blossoms had fallen. They were baked by placing in a deep hole with heated rocks, leaves, and grass. A fire was also kept burning on top of the ground. It was said to require two days and two nights to cook them thoroughly in this way. 4. PERFUMES At-sina-mo. Gros Ventre Scent. Meadow-Rue. Thalictrum occidentale. The berries were dried and placed in small buckskin bags for perfumery. Katoya. Sweet Pine. Balsam Fir. Abies lasiocarpa. The leaves had a delightful odor when confined in a buckskin bag. Sweet Pine was also mixed with grease in making hair oil to add fragrance. Mat-o-at-sim. Perfumed Plant. Rayless Camomile, Oregon Dog-Root, Dog Fennel. Matricaria matricarioides. The blossoms were dried and used for perfumery. Se-pat-semo. Sweet Grass. Vanilla Grass. Sevastana odorata. Sweet Grass was the most popular perfumery among the Blackfoot. It was made into braids and placed with their clothes or carried around in small bags. It was also used for a hair-wash and as incense. Pieces of punk from the Cottonwood tree, leaves of the Balsam Poplar and the ring-bone from a horse’s leg were used for perfumes. BLACKFOOT NAMES FOR FLOWERS Sik-a-pis-chis. White Flower. Aster commutatus. Ota-kap-is-chis-kit-sima. Yellow Flower. Clasping-leaved Arnica. Arnica amplexifolia. A-pis-is-kit-sa-wa. Tomato-Flower. Red Rose. Rosa Sayi. Ot-ska-a-pis-is-kit-sa. Blue Flower. Oblong-leaved Gentian. Gentiana affinis. A-sa-po-pin-ats. Looks-like-a-plume. Round-Fruited Anemone. Anemone globosa. Its name was derived from the appearance of the flower when it turns into cotton and resembles a soft, downy feather. A-po-no-kau-ki. Paper-Leaves. Arrow-leaved Balsam-Root. Balsamorrhiza sagittata. In the hot weather its large leaves become very dry and resemble paper. Sto-o-kat-sis. Ghost’s Lariat. Columbian Virgin’s-Bower. Atragene columbiana. A vine, with a beautiful light blue flower, that trails along the ground and also climbs trees. The Blackfoot have named it Ghost’s Lariat because it catches people and trips them up unexpectedly. NOTES [1] This incident is referred to in the Report of General W. T. Sherman, Secretary of War, 1876, p. 33. [2] For descriptions of Beaver Bundle, see Chapters VII and VIII. [3] Medicinal and Useful Plants of the Blackfoot Indians. See Appendix. [4] Medicinal and Useful Plants of the Blackfoot Indians. See Appendix. [5] This Medicine Robe of Brings-Down-the-Sun is now in the Blackfoot Collection, American Museum of Natural History, New York City. [6] This robe is now in the Indian collection of the American Museum of Natural History, New York City. [7] Published in Zeitschrift für Ethnologie, Berlin, Heft 2. 1909.