Section 12

Dr. T. Dale Stewart, Curator of Physical Anthropology, U. S. National Museum, who kindly examined this skull, has made the following report upon it :
"This specimen includes a lower jaw, is colored red in many- areas, and in many places is polished from handling. The main postmortem damage is in the facial area. Some of the teeth are broken, the ends of the nasal bones are broken, and there is a hole in the roof of each orbit. In addition, it was noted that the right side of the nasal aperture is filled with organic matter. This appears to have been deliberate.
There is very little doubt that the jaw belongs to the skull al- though tooth breakage spoils the occlusion. There had been no antemortem loss of teeth and those present show only first to se- cond degrees of wear. This, together with suture closure, which is advanced endocranially but barely perceptible ectocranially, could indicate an age around 25-35 years.
The sex characters of the skull and jaw clearly indicate a male; the racial characters definitely indicate an Indian. No measure- ments were taken, but the impression was gained that the skull vault is rather low."
33 This bundle was briefly described in Indian Notes. (Wildschut, 1925a. pp. 1 19-122).
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THE WHITE CHILD SKULL MEDICINE BUNDLE COLOR PLATE 3
A Crow skull medicine bundle which was considered almost as potent as that of Braided Tail, contained the skull of White Child. This bundle was obtained from Fire Bear in March, 1923. (cat. NO. 11/7677).
Several years after White Child's death his younger sister, Root Digger, then a woman past middle age, went to his burial place and took therefrom the skull of her brother. Shortly there- after she obtained visions in which the spirit of White Child, through the medium of the skull, foretold future events. Even in the daytime and while she was awake Root Digger sometimes heard her brother's voice prophesying what was going to happen. Soon the Crows came to regard this skull as a powerful medicine. They gave Root Digger many presents, asking her to consult the skuU on their behalf.
The Trail related the following account of the use of this bundle :
"A woman named Helps-to- Strike-Many lost her brother in battle. She went out and fasted, mourning the loss of her brother, but experienced no vision. One day she carried several gifts to Root Digger and asked to be allowed to take the skull with her when she again went to fast. Root Digger agreed to let her take the skull when she left on her quest the next day.
"Helps-to- Strike-Many did not return to her tipi that night. She laid down in front of Root Digger's lodge so she would be ready to leave camp just before daybreak. During the night she fell asleep and had a dream. In her dream the spirit of White Child appeared to her and told her she had suffered much, even though she had obtained no vision. However, a Shoshoni chief soon would pay with his life for the death of her brother.
"When Helps-to- Strike-Many awoke she related her dream to Root Digger, who then advised her not to go fasting any more as she would soon gain her revenge. Helps-to- Strike-Many went home and waited. Two days later the camp was startled by the news that some horses had been stolen. The Crows followed the enemy raiding party, who proved to be Shoshoni Indians. They recovered their horses and killed the chief who led the enemy war party.
"Thus Helps-to- Strike-Many had her revenge for the death of her brother, as was foretold by the skull medicine of White Child."
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[The White Child bundle is contained in a soft skin sack which measures 12" wide by 14'' high when the contents are in place. Upon opening this sack one finds four sub-bundles. Three of these consist of cloth wrappings enclosing plugs of "Golden Crown'* and "W. H. Tinsley" tobacco. The skull itself is carefully wrapped in no less than 22 successive layers of patterned, figured, and plain trade cloth. The surface of the skull and numerous small feathers attached to it are smeared with sacred red paint. Trade beads are inserted in the skull's eye sockets. Numerous varicolored, large trade beads, gifts to the medicine, accompany the skull. — JCE]
Dr. T. Dale Stewart's report on his examination of the White Child skull follows:
"When unwrapped, the skull (lacking a lower jaw) was seen to be covered with feathers and the whole thing liberally coated with what appeared to be a mixture of red ocher in some sort of grease. Tooth wear had reached only the first or second stages. Judging from the fact that tooth wear usually reaches these stages at an early adult age in most Indians, I had the impression that this skull represents a young adult. Certainly it is hard to see from this evi- dence how the age could be more than 35 years.
The sex characters are clearly those of a male. The race charac- ters are Indian."
OTHER SKULL MEDICINE BUNDLES
[From Crow Indian informants William Wildschut obtained accounts of four other skull medicine bundles. He did not obtain these bundles for the museum collections. However, the data collected supplies further, detailed information on the ceremonial rituals and the uses of skull bundles in Crow culture. — JCE]
Skull Bundle of Takes-Back-Twice. A skull medicine bundle often was consulted before setting out on the warpath. In many cases a tooth or a piece of the skull or some other part of the bundle was taken by a member of the party. An interesting account of such an occurrence was obtained from Two Leggings as follows :
"One day I heard that some of our men intended to go out on the warpath. As I walked through camp I noticed a number of people near one of the tipis and inquired why they were there. I was told that they were going to Takes-Back-Twice's lodge, and that he was about to open his medicine bundle. I joined the others and went to his tipi, which was one of the finest in the tribe. Its cover consisted of twenty buffalo hides. A fire was built in the
SKULL MEDICINE BUNDLES «I
lodge and as we entered we all sat down on the right-hand side from the entrance.
"Prior to our entrance the owner had taken his medicine bundle and placed it in front of him at the rear of the lodge. One man, sitting at the left, lit a pipe. After we all smoked, Takes- Back-Twice made a smudge of sweetgrass, rubbed his hands in the smoke, and opened the bundle. Inside the bundle were a large number of red feathers and a skull, which was painted yellow. Takes-Back-Twice took the skull out, held it over the smudge, then put it down again next to the wrapping, covering it with black cloth.
"Again the pipe was lit and passed from one man to the othei. As the turn of each man came to smoke he pointed the pipestem toward the skull and made a wish, according to his own desire. Some would say, T want to get a horse.' Others would say, T want to get a scalp.'
"Then the pipe was handed to the owner of the bundle and he also pointed the stem toward the skull, and said, *I am going on the warpath now. I want you to take care of me and to protect me from the enemy's bullets.'
"After Takes-Back-Twice had spoken he rubbed castoreum all over the skull.
"The ceremony lasted all that afternoon, and, after darkness had fallen, we set out on our journey. We were going toward the Sioux country. That night Takes-Back-Twice had a dream in which the spirit of the skull told him to change our course and go toward the Piegan country. Accordingly we turned north."
Two Leggings then related how the party was successful in capturing a number of Piegan horses and returned home without the loss of a man killed or wounded.
Skull Bundle of Never Dies. Coyote Runs told another story of the use of a skull medicine bundle as a war medicine :
"Four Crows, Napino (an untranslatable name, probably from the language of another tribe) as leader, Does It, Sits-Down- Spotted, and I decided to go on the warpath. We discussed what kind of medicine to take with us. One of us suggested that we call on old man Never Dies, take him four presents — tobacco, gun- powder, shells, and a horse — and ask him to give us one of his medicines. We four then went to Never Dies' tipi, gave him these presents, and told him what we wanted.
"The old man first asked us whether we planned to go then
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or later. Napino told him that we would be ready to start in four or five days. Three days later we returned to his tipi and Never Dies again asked us if we were ready to start at once. We told him that we were.
"Never Dies then advised us to make all necessary prepara- tions, and to return to his tipi that night after the other people in the camp had gone to bed. At the appointed time we returned along with a number of other men who were eager to join us. As we entered Never Dies' tipi we noticed that he had carefully cleared the floor. We Ut a pipe and each man smoked in turn. The pipe finished, Never Dies laid down two medicines, one an arrow medicine, the other a skull medicine bundle. When he asked us which one we preferred to take on the warpath, we chose the skull medicine.
"Tf you want the skull medicine, take part of it with you,' said Never Dies. 'The whole bundle is too heavy for you to carry.'
"After the bundle was opened. Never Dies took from it seven red plumes and laid them in front of the skull. Then he asked one of us to fill and light his pipe for him. After it was lighted and handed to him, Never Dies smoked it and pointed it toward the skull, stem first, saying, 'Guard these young men. Warn them and give them a sign in case of danger.' Then, turning to us, he said, T made a smudge and sang a song. Then I raised the skull over the smoke made by the incense and received a vision. In that vision I foresaw that when you young men are traveling between the Musselshell and the mountains you will meet some enemies who have stolen a number of Crow horses. You will recover all the horses and will kill three of the enemy. My vision is not clear, however, in telling whether you will, meet these enemies on your return journey or on your way out.'
"Never Dies then gave Napino the seven feathers which had been part of the wrapping of the skull, and soon afterward we started. We went toward the Snowy Mountains, and on the way saw some of the enemy but did not make contact with them. On our return we camped one night in a coulee near the Musselshell. Before daybreak Napino woke us saying that he had had a dream in which he was told that we would meet the enemy about noon.
"I was sent out as scout, and some time later saw the enemy. Some of them were hunting buffalo. The rest were driving a number of horses before them. We all painted our faces, took off our clothes, and put on our medicines. Napino, our leader.
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walked four times around us and, standing behind us, sang his war song. They he prayed to the skull, and we waited for the enemy to approach. We killed three of their number, took all the horses they had stolen from the Crows besides three of their own, and returned to camp."
Pretty Blanket's Skull Medicine: Mrs. The Trail told of a skull medicine bundle once owned by her cousin, a woman named Pretty Blanket:
"Pretty Blanket's adopted brother. Bear Head, died and his body was deposited on a scaffold in the breaks of the Big Horn Valley. Whenever the camp was near that place. Pretty Blanket visited the burial place and mourned Bear Head's loss. One day she noticed that the skull had fallen away from the body. So she decided to take it home with her.
"Soon Pretty Blanket began to tell of dreams and visions she had received from the skull. Even during the daytime and in the presence of other people it would communicate to her. The others, however, would be unaware of this .until so informed by her."
Mrs. The Trail recalled three instances of the use of Pretty Blanket's skull medicine :
"One day I was camped with the River Crows near Black Pinnacle, close to the Missouri River. The leaves of the berries were just turning yellow. We were all busy dr5dng and tanning hides as meat had been plentiful. I was sitting outside the tipi with Pretty Blanket and some other women. My husband was just coming from a hand game to get something to eat. I had observed that Pretty Blanket had been very quiet for a while, but as my husband neared, she said to him :
"'Roundnose (a term of endearment used among the Crows between close relatives), something awful is going to happen very soon. Hurry and attend to your horses.'
"My husband left to look after his horses. Even before his return the cry was heard through the camp that the enemy is coming! Get your horses and weapons! A notable battle occurred that day, and my husband was one of the first to make himself ready to fight the enemy. The skull of Bear Head had told Pretty Blanket of this impending event. Yet it was broad daylight and we were all assembled.
"At another time, during the good winter year, my husband. Mountain, was on the warpath and was leader of his party. He had been out eleven days and I was hoping to see him soon. Pretty
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Blanket, whose tipi was close to mine, came to me during the early afternoon and said, 'Your husband is returning and is bringing something wonderful. It is something that would be a credit to the leader of any war party. My skull medicine has told me so.'
"Pretty Blanket then sat down next to me and began to sing a song of victory and joy. I joined in the singing, and together we waited. That evening my husband and his party returned with fifty captured horses.
"On still another occasion I was present when it was plain to me that Pretty Blanket received communication from her skull medicine. She came one morning from her tipi and told all of the women to prepare an honour feast of boiled dried fruit and pem- mican. *A party of Mountain Crows is coming to visit us', she said. That evening a large party of Mountain Crows, with Wet as leader, visited our camp."
Strikes-the-Hat's Skull Medicine. Another skull medicine bundle of some importance is of special interest because it is still in use (1923). It is owned by Strikes-the-Hat, widow of Hunts- the-Enemy. Her husband died some years ago but Strikes-the- Hat, an old woman about 80 years of age, now (1923), lives in the Big Horn Valley near the mission of St. Xavier.
The following account of this bundle was obtained from Mrs. The Trail:
Strikes-the-Hat was a young woman when her father. Small Horse, died. Unfortunately, however, she was a cripple and she wondered how she would be able to make a living. Her father was not a medicine man. But shortly after his death Strikes-the- Hat took the skull from the place where her father's remains had been deposited, and kept it in her tipi. Soon she began to receive dreams in which the spirit of her father appeared, giving her the power to cure the sick and to recover lost or stolen property. In her ceremony she used her father's skull but would never tell what she actually saw in her dreams. Ever since then the old woman has been successful in doctoring the sick. The following stories illustrate how this skull medicine was employed in quite recent times for the recovery of stolen or lost property.
One day Mrs. C. B. missed a ten dollar bill which had disap- peared from the tent where she had been visiting, and which she believed one of the other women of her party had stolen. If she had lost it, she reasoned, it would have been returned to her. She
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consulted Strikes-the-Hat, saying to her, "If you love your children, you will help me to recover my stolen property." She also gave some presents to Strikes-the-Hat.
Strikes-the-Hat told Mrs. C. B. to return the next morning. Then she made a smudge and performed the necessary ceremony before consulting her skull medicine. When the consultation was finished, she told another woman that the money had been stolen and that it was now in a certain bag, which she minutely described, within the tent where Mrs. C. B. was visiting. She also named the woman who had stolen the money.
Strikes-the-Hat warned the old woman to whom she gave this information to say nothing about it to anyone in camp. Otherwise trouble might be caused. But the old woman, instead of guarding her secret, went to the tent where Mrs. C. B. was stay- ing and related all that Strikes-the-Hat had said to her except the name of the thief. The woman whom Strikes-the-Hat had named as the thief was present. When she heard what was said, she spoke. "Mrs. C. B., the money you lost I found outside the tent and put it in my bag intending to return it to you; but I forgot all about it." Then she reached for the bag described by Strikes-the-Hat, took from it the ten dollar bill, and returned it to its owner.