Colorful Garb Marks Florida Indians
Seminoles Misrepresented
By Sensational Writers
By BAUKIIAGE
News Analyst and Commentator.
WNU Service, 1616 Eye Street. N.W.,
Washington, D. C.
(This it the second of two articles
based on visits to the Seminole Indian
reservation at Brighton, Fla.).
SOMEWHERE NORTH OF THE
EVERGLADES. — Whenever one
tries, as I did. to study the human
side of the Seminoles—that nation
which has left so j
I little written rec
ord of it* short
; but historic life
i span—one is del
urged with Infor
mation and mis
informatlo n.
Misinformation
of the type on
which the Sunday
supplement writ-,
er feeds.
For example,
examine the con
tradictory data
on the Seminoles
and snake killing:
When I called
Baukhage
on Agent Boehmer. hi* wife re
counted how a greatly-excited In
dian had appeared one day on their
doorstep to announce his pressing
desire that Boehmer come to the
Seminole camp—a 100 rods or so
distant—to kill a rattler.
Boehmer obliged. He carefully
avoided carrying the corpse through
the camp (a Seminole taboo), and
he noted the usual Are lighted at
the point where the victim fell. As
usual, the Indian children had co
operated with him, without actively
participating in the execution.
There are two explanations as to
why the Seminole* would not them
selves kill the snake. One is that
once in the past the Semimdes were
ordered by the White Man to leave
Florida for points west. They pre
pared to remain even though it
meant retiring deep into the Ever
glades. However they decided it
would be a good idea for both
parties if they made a treaty with
the snakes. They did so on a "live
and let live" basis. That is one ex
planation.
Or it may have been one of those
common sense arrangements em
bellished with the authority of mys
ticism. There are few snakes which,
if left alone, won’t reciprocate.
Another interpretation may be
that when a white man attacks the
rattler, the chances are that if any
one is bitten, it would not be an
Indian. I understand Seminoles do
kill snakes when it seems nec
essary.
Boehmer, whose opinion I learned
to value as I pursued this subject,
thinks the rattlesnake situation is
interesting, but I couldn’t get him
to say it meant the Seminole was
superstitious.
Gaudy Costumes
Intrigue Observer
Like every observer, I 'was im
pressed by the Seminole attire. Not
by the men's—they wear conven
tional garments lightened by a gay
handkerchief about the neck when
they pursue their daily tasks, hunt
on the reservation or loaf in camp.
They have shortened the long skirt
like garment (comparable to the
woman's cape* to sport-shirt length,
even in ceremonial dress.
I found only Sam Huff, reputed
to be a medicine man as well as
the handy man at the school, wear
ing the long skirt-like garment, plus
the blouse Some say Sam clings to
this outfit merely because of hit
love for the past; others say it may
have something to do with his spe
cial function as a medicine man;
there is a whisper that it is a badge
of repentance or punishment for
some past sin. Sam is a grand
father today. He still lives in the
nearby camp with the rest of his
three generations.
The younger men save their gay
shirts for dress up occasions (the
annual green corn dance and the
hunting dance), but they have
adopted modern trousers. .Their
shirts are coverd with complicated
geometric tracery; their scarves
are bound by a metal or wooden
clasp; they wear beads or other
brightly-decorated fobs.
The most striking piece of Sem
inole clothing is the woman's bil
lowing skirt; next come the beads
which C' ver her neck from shoulder
blade to ear tips; then her hair
dress.
Unlike the men. the Seminole
women (except those who have been
completely converted to modern
trays) wear their special garb and
wear it all the time Consequently
they always look "dressed up.”
The hairdress, an innovation and
a highly practical one. dates back
only some six or seven years The
woman's smooth black hair is
brought forward over a semi-circu
lar cardboard form like the wide
peak of a cap This gives her the
appearance of peering at you from
underneath a wide, circular hat
brim, and is achieved easily with
out the aid of the beauty shop and
virtually without mirrors. Further
more, the coiffure is one develop
ment that has no connection with
the White Man's cuiw.
Women’* Skirt*
Are Real Art
Unlike the hairdo, the Seminole
skirt and cape haven’t changed ex
cept to grow more artistic and more
intricate with the advent of colored
textiles. They likewise have become
less difficult to create, thanks to
the hand-driven sewing machine.
This gadget long since has been as
common in tepee, hogan or even
igloo as an ice-pick in a modern
flat.
The skirts are made of parallel
bands of a brightly colored patch
work design which experts claim
are real art. They are fashioned of
hundreds of separate pieces of col
•rful cloth, blended or contrasted
to make a barbarically splendorous
whole. The skirts bell out, widen
ing in circumference as they ap
proach the hem which, according
to regulations, must trail at least
three inches or thereabouts on the
ground.
How can this be a practical every
day dress in a country of swamps
and morasses, of barbed and cut
ting underbrush? That is the first
question I (and every ignorant ob
server) asks. But they are practi
cal, say the experts who have seen
them in operation. Through wet go
ing and wading, they are "histed”
(there are no undergarments to com
plicate matters). Traveling over
the dry and dusty fields, rife with
snakes and other annoying rep
tiles. they protect the bare feet and
shins. As Miss or Mrs. Seminole
moves forward, toeing in slightly,
according to good Indian custom,
she gently kicks the dragging rim
forward without baring the bare
feet to inquisitive eyes or any flora
or fauna that might obtrude.
The only other cloth garment is
the cape. This is usually a single
solid and bright color matching the
skirt.
The Seminole beads remain a
mystery. So far, I have been able
to learn little concerning the origin,
purpose or excuse for them beyond
the explanation offered by Agent
Boehmer and supported by his wife:
“They wear them because they
think they're pretty.” And what bet
ter reason in any woman's lexi
con?
It does seem strange, though, to
see a comely Indian matron, her
skirt tucked high before a roaring
Qre on a hot Florida day. or work
ing vigorously in a tomato patch,
or even strolling through a shop
among sweltering whites in low cut
dresses or open sport shirts, with
perhaps 25 pounds (they have been
weighed) of beads in a solid collar
rising as high as the whalebone
enforced "chokers” American girls
wore in the first decades of the
1900s.
I
NEW GERMAN FLAG . . . Unfurled
for the first time (officially) Is the
new German flag, shown being
hoisted on the Tagblatt tower in
Stuttgart, Germany. New state col
ors are black, red and gold.
POLIO P08TER BABY . . . Once i victim of the dread polio disease,
Nancy Drury, 4-year-old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Drury of
Louisville, Ky., was chosen to symbolise the fight against Infantile
paralysis in the 1947 March of Dimes. Nancy, shown relaxing in a
warm bath at her home, made a splendid recovery after being strick
en with polio in July, 1944.
NEWS REVIEW
Marshall Gets Key Post;
Labor Reforms Studied
STATE DEPARTMENT: <
Happy Day
"There are two happy days a man
has in public life,” former Sec
retary Byrnes told British Ambas
sador Kerr. “There is the day a
man is elected to office. Then there
is the day he quits.”
January 7, 1947, therefore was a
happy day for the dapper little South
Carolinian when he
stepped down from
his high post in the
Truman adminis
tration. It was a
happy day. too —
under the Byrnes’
standard—for Gen
eral of the Army
Marshall who was
named to succeed
him.
But as Byrnes
implied. Mar
Byrnes
shall's cheer was destined to be
short-lived as he took over direc
tion of the nation's international af
fairs. Byrnes had a tough time tus
sling with the Russians over com
pletion of peace treaties for the
axis satellites and Marshall faced
the even tougher job of framing
pacts for Germany and Austria.
Although friendly with Russian
leaders, Marshall is no admirer
of Communism or
Communist tactics.
Just before being
named to office, he
blasted Chinese
Reds for risking the
welfare of their
country to obtain
power and re
sorting to untruths
to tar the U. S.
Some observers
also read in Mar
shall's appointment
Marshall
an effort by President Truman to
build the general up as his succes
sor in 1948. Should Marshall make
a name for himself in the state de
partment, his work there plus his
prestige as the No 1 military chief
in World War II would give the Dem
ocrats a strong candidate to offset
dissatisfaction with the Truman re
gime in the reconversion period.
CONGRESS:
Sharpen Payroll Axe
Economy - minded GOP house
members, axe in hand, were eying
the big federal payroll in their an
nounced drive to scale U. S. ex
penditures 12 billion dollars below
the 1946 budget of 41 billion dollars
Declaring that there is hardly a
government department that does
not have twice as many employees
as needed. Representative Taber
(Rep., N Y.), chairman of the
house appropriations committee, as
serted that 1.000.000 workers could
be chopped off the payroll of 2.300,
>
000 without seriously impairing
services. Not more than 500,000 em
ployees in all are needed, Taber
said.
Labor Reforms
Sen. Joe Ball (Rep., Minn.,
and Rep. George Case (Rep., S. D.)
pushed labor reform in early ses
sions of the 80th congress, Ball
proposing sweeping measures for
corrective legislation.
First, Ball called for prohibition
of secondary boycotts and making
labor organizations liable for violat
ing contracts.
Then, he introduced legislation to
ban all union and closed shop
agreements and maintenance of
membership contracts.
Finally, Ball proposed to decen
tralize collective bargaining to pre
vent the tieup of an entire industry
through general negotiations.
The new Case bill introduced in
the house permits issuance of in
junctions to prevent strikes impair
ing the public welfare; forbids un
ions to coerce employees, seize prop
erty in disputes, withdraw essential
maintenance workers, or order walk
outs with majority approval of mem
bers; and makes union liable for
damages resulting from breach of
contract. The bill also grants the
states authority to ban the closed
shop.
ECONOMICS:
President Reports
In the first annual economic re
port issued by the President under
the employment act of 1948, Mr.
Truman set forth the principles for
a prosperous America. Drawn by
a three man council of economic
advisers, the report called for con
tinuance of the traditional free en
terprise system supplemented by
constructive government assistance
where necessary.
Long-range recommendations
Include maximum use of labor
and productive facilities, pre
vention of economic fluctuations,
cooperation In international
trade and finance, and promo
tion of welfare, health and se
curity.
Because of their Immediate
bearing, the short-range rec
ommendations were of greater
Interest. The report asked for
the maintenance of present tax
rates to provide for substantial
retirement of the national debt;
lowering of prices wherever pos
sible to increase consumption;
moderation of labor demands
to head off additional price
rises; Increase In the minimum
wage above 40 cents an hour,
and extension of the fair labor
standards act to workers now
excluded.
TEMPORARY TREND
Marriages and Births Hit Peak
WASHINGTON. — Return of war
veterans was largely responsible for
boosting marriages and births to
record highs In 1946. Viewing the
trend, population experts are trying
to figure out how long the United
States can support large population
increases, but Guy Irving Burch,
director of the population reference
bureau, believes the rise is only
temporary.
Births in 1946 were one per cent
greater than in 1943, previous rec
ord year, according to the office of
vital statistics.
Births headed toward a peak 11
months after a record high in the
number of American marriages.
The trend still is upward.
Family Size Drops.
Before the 1946 rise in the birth
rate the average size of the "com
pleted” American family was about
2.5 children. It is estimated that
2.2 children a family would main
tain the population at its present
size of about 140.000,(100.
Burch says the Increase In
births “definitely appears to be
temporary, entirely attributable
to the return of war veterans.”
Statistics for cities of more than
100,000 population, most comprehen
sive figures available, show more
marriages were performed in the
first nine months of the year than
tn all of 1942, previous high year
More Families Created.
Apparently styles in the sizes of
families are not changing, Burch
says. “It's simply that we've had
more marriages and more families
have been created with one and two
children in them. Over long periods
the tendency toward large families
has been downward.
"It's more reasonable to assume
this is what is happening:
“The statistics show that, first, the
depression postponed about 800.000
marriages for a time: second the
war caused young people to defer
marriage.
“Veterans have returned.
They were, and still are, being
married in large numbers. So
the bir'h rate is up. This wifi
continue for a time. But then
the trend will recede. Births
will decline.
"Most students of population
trends agree that the United States
will experience a decline of around
25 per cent in the birth rate before
the year 2000.
“The experts disagree w'hcn the
population total will ‘stabilize' itself;
these estimates range from the
present number of about 140,000.000
persons to about 175,000,000 or even
200,000.000.’'
Simple Styled
Daytime Dress
A NARROW harmonizing bind
** ing makes a nice finish on
this simple styled daytime dress
in the larger size range. The flat
tering panelled skirt is beloved by
all women and goes together eas
ily and quickly. You’ll wear it
everywhere with pride now through
Spring.
« • •
Pattern No. 8097 If for sizes 36, 38. 40.
42, 44 46, 48 . 50 and 52. Size 38 requires
41k yards of 35 or 39-inch; 41k yards of
binding.
SEWING CIRCLE PATTERN DEPT.
530 South Wells St. Chicago 7. IU.
Enclose 25 cents in coins for each
pattern desired.
Pattern No_Size_
Name_
Address_
I l_l
You stort right when you measure the m
required amount of Clabber Girl Into ||
your flour... You are sure to get just
the right rise In your mixing bowl, I
^ followed by that Anal rise to light 'i,
rand fluffy flavor in the oven ... SSj
That's the story of Clabber GirTi W
l
Buy U. S. Savings Bonds!
''/UifiOjaV' GOT HER CHEST
COIVVO& IN A VISE?
f ACHING MUSCLES
L ARE My r-4
„ MEATl )
hk v-'&
k . _
Poor little chest muscles so tight from
_______ coughing it hurts her to breathe? Quick.
M E IvTnOlJnTUM Mentholatum. Rub on chest, back,
g neck. Its gently stimulating ac tion helps
f lessen congestion without irritating
0 child’s delicate normal skin. Its com
Cf ' forting vapors lessen coughing spasms.
/ 01 947. Th* MenthoUtum ( otup»n». Iao
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ternational Livestock
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chased by Firestone
to be exhibited to
• he farmers of
America aa a
22,000-mile educa
tional tour.
/
I
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I today.
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Nans#..............
Coorrtcbt, 1947, The Plrastooe Tire A Robber Oa
