Winona is carried in a travois handsomely dec-
orated, and is received with equal ceremony.
For several days following she is dressed and
painted by the female relatives of the groom,
each in her turn, while in both clans the wedding
feast is celebrated.
To illustrate womanly nobility of nature, let
me tell the story of Dowanhotaninwin, Her-
Singing-Heard. The maiden was deprived of
both father and mother when scarcely ten years
old, by an attack of the Sacs and Foxes while
they were on a hunting expedition. Left alone
with her grandmother, she was carefully reared
and trained by this sage of the wild life.
Nature had given her more than her share
of attractiveness, and she was womanly and win-
ning as she was handsome. Yet she remained
unmarried for nearly thirty years--a most un-
usual thing among us; and although she had
worthy suitors in every branch of the Sioux na-
tion, she quietly refused every offer.
Certain warriors who had distinguished them-
selves against the particular tribe who had made
her an orphan, persistently sought her hand in
marriage, but failed utterly.
Pages:
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197