Restoring Buffalo to the Dakota Plains::

Lakota Buffalo Hunters

This section is based upon Frances Densmore's turn of the 20th Century bulletin on Lakota Sioux music and culture.

The Lakota followed the buffalo, which thundered across the Plains in their millions. Basic survival demanded that every part of the animal was used and little was wasted. Both physical and spiritual nourishment was obtained from the animal. Of the former, this was obtained through hunting; of the latter, this came through ceremony and prayer.

The Lakota year was largely dictated by the movements of the buffalo. Outside of a communal chase, a Lakota could kill a buffalo at any time and claim its carcass as his own. In this case there were no formal proceedings, unless the hunter had been told otherwise in a vision or ceremony by the spirits. Furthermore, in times of famine a hunt could also be organised at any time, though here the chase had to be conducted in compliance with formal regulations. But the big hunt was usually well-organised in advance and occurred when the grazing was at its best and the buffalo were at their fattest. Come early autumn, the camp would come together at a pre-determined location and engage in the communal buffalo hunt. As we can see below, the communal buffalo hunt was not a random, haphazard occurrence. It was undergone with great precision and formality, and all those involved, from the hunter to the meat-preparer, had to act according to proscribed rules that had to be strictly adhered to.

Though buffalo could be found most of the year round, early Fall was observed to be the optimum time for a buffalo hunt. Strict regulations surrounded this event: medicine men would notify the tribe when food supplies were low, and a special hunt was made. There were times when it was not permissible for a man to hunt alone. If an individual was found to have procured meat in this way, the meat was seized by the akicita (head warrior), he may have found himself beaten up, and his tipi could have been torn down.

A buffalo hunt frequently took place when the tribe was about to move camp. During times of famine especially, a medicine man would sing and pray to secure buffalo for the camp. He would paint a buffalo skull with red and blue stripes and lay beside it a filled pipe on a bed of fresh sage. It was believed that the skull would turn into a real buffalo that would call its brethren. A special song was sung in the dark and a buffalo chip would be burned.

When the hunt was due, elders of the camp would consult with leaders of the different sodalities to choose the right men for the searching party - that group of men who were the first to seek and locate the buffalo herds. Physical strength, agility, goodness and truthfulness were the requirements. A keen knowledge of topography and understanding of the ways of the buffalo was another vital requirement. Great honour was conferred upon those men selected, for it was on them the tribe depended for food, and proud relatives often gave away gifts, including horses and blankets, as the hunt party was setting out. Great celebrations were held at the departure of the party and songs were sung.

As soon as the search party had left, the tribe broke camp and departed for the place that had been pre-designated as their next camping ground. It was to this place that the search party would return.

Out on the prairie the leader of the party would often assign each man a particular region to search. The men were expected to report back to the leader at an appointed time and place giving precise information on the locations and sizes of any buffalo herds sighted. Siyaka told anthropologist Frances Densmore that, "It occasionally happened that a searching party was unsuccessful. In that event they straggled back to the main camp, attracting as little attention as possible" (Densmore 1918: 440).¹

On return to the new camp, the search party were greeted by all the camp members, who had gathered in the circle or hocoka. Another song was sung, and inside the council tent, a pipe was filled and ready to smoke. The specially selected master-of-ceremonies, known as the itancan, smoked the pipe in the ceremonial manner (four times) and passed it to the searchers who each smoked in similar fashion. After this the pipe was offered to all those sitting in the lodge. Then the itancan emptied the pipe and everyone listened as the searchers presented their reports.

After the presentations there was great excitement in the camp, as all the able men of the camp painted themselves and horses, saddled up, and prepared their weapons. Each man feathered and painted his arrows in a certain way so that he would be able to identify and claim the animals he killed. Feathers used included prairie hen, owl or chicken hawk, or the smaller feathers of the eagle or buzzard. Buffalo blood was often smeared along the shaft of each arrow to make the arrow go more smoothly through the animal's tissues.

Several men were selected from the akicita to keep order during the hunt. These men were instructed by the chiefs. It was these men that would direct the hunt and make sure all the hunters moved quietly so as not to alarm the buffalo. Often the party would approach the buffalo in two sections, each led by five or so akicita, "under whose direction they surrounded the herd, and at whose command they plunged into the chase" (Swift Bird in Densmore: 442). "It was like a horse race," Swift Bird continued. "As soon as the man shouted 'Ready!' they were off, and you could see nothing but dust. The men who had fast horses tried to get the fattest buffalo. Each man tried to get the best possible animals as his trophies of the hunt" (ibid.).

Once enough buffalo had been killed, the meat was dressed and prepared for transportation back to the camp. Particular rules applied to the dressing of a hide that was to be removed whole for the use of a tent. After removing the hide, the tongue was taken out, as this was considered a delicacy. Though there were no other established rules beyond this point, the front quarters were usually removed first, then the back quarters, then the hump. The remaining carcass was then cut along the belly and backbone, and ribs, fat, offal and brains were removed. The lower backbone would later be chopped and boiled to extract as much fat as possible.

It was usual that each hunter would provide two horses on which to transport home the meat and bones of one buffalo. Back at the camp, the women finished cutting up the meat, drying long strips of it in the open air. The thoroughly dried meat was then pounded and mixed with wild cherries or buffalo fat. This could be kept for an indefinite period of time and became a staple food source among the Sioux.

If a rare white buffalo were killed during the hunt, the arrow that had secured the fatal blow would be purified in sweetgrass smoke, as would the knife before the skinning of the animal. The hide was removed in such a way that no blood was shed on it. Only the dreamers of animals were allowed to eat the flesh of a white buffalo. On return to the camp, only women whose lives had been pure could touch and tan the hide, after which special ceremonies were performed over it, such as its purification with sweetgrass smoke by a medicine man.

The tanned hide was kept in a safe place, and usually the owner when he died was buried with it. However, it was possible to give it away, and great honour was disposed upon such a man willing to do so. Even a small piece was as valuable as a horse and was considered sacred to the person who secured such an article.

After a successful hunt, turn of the 20th Century physician James R. Walker describes how a vision was usually sought by the medicine man, in which the spirits called upon the camp for some action or sacrifice in thanks for the aid the spirits had given them in the successful hunt (Walker 1982: 94). This repayment usually took the form of gifts given to the medicine man, or an offering to be placed at a particular place. If it was found that the meat procured was not enough to last the camp a whole year until the next formal hunt, then the chase was repeated until enough meat had been dried.

Notes::

• 1 - Frances Densmore. 1918 [1992 Reprint]. Teton Sioux Music and Culture (1918, originally Teton Sioux Music). Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

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