r, as these people express it, "the spirit land."

When an Indian dies, and in some cases even before death occurs, the
friends and relatives assemble at the lodge and begin crying over
the departed or departing one. This consists in uttering the most
heartrending, almost hideous wails and lamentations, in which all
join until exhausted. Then the mourning ceases for a time until some
one starts it again, when all join in as before and keep it up until
unable to cry longer. This is kept up until the body is removed.
This crying is done almost wholly by women, who gather in large
numbers on such occasions, and among them a few who are professional
mourners. These are generally old women and go whenever a person is
expected to die, to take the leading part in the lamentations,
knowing that they will be well paid at the distribution of goods
which follows. As soon as death takes place, the body is dressed by
the women in the best garments and blankets obtainable, new ones if
they can be afforded. The crowd gathered near continue wailing
piteously, and from time to time cut locks of hair from their own
heads with knives, and throw them on the dead body. Those who wish
to show their grief most strongly, cut themselves in various places,
generally in the legs and arms, with their knives or pieces of
flint, more commonly the latter, causing the blood to flow freely
over their persons. This custom is followed to a less degree by the
men.

A body is seldom kept longer than one day as, besides the desire to
get the dead out of sight, the fear that the disease which caused
the death will communicate itself to others of the family causes
them to hasten the disposition of it as soon as they are certain
that death has actually taken place.

Until the body is laid away the mourners eat nothing. After that is
done, connected with which there seems to be no particular ceremony,
the few women who attend to it return to the lodge and a
distribution is made among them and others, not only of the
remaining property of the deceased, but of all the possessions, even
to the lodge itself of the family to which he belonged. This custom
in some cases has been carried so far as to leave the rest of the
family not only absolutely destitute but actually naked. After
continuing in this condition for a time, they gradually reach the
common level again by receiving gifts from v