aced by some tribes through the
mother and by others through the father." "The gens is the grand unit of
social organization, and for many purposes is the basis of governmental
organization." To the gens belong also certain rights and duties.

Of the characteristics of the gentes of the Florida Seminole, I know
only that a man may not marry a woman of his own clan, that the children
belong exclusively to the mother, and that by birth they are members of
her own gens. So far as duogamy prevails now among the Florida Indians,
I observed that both the wives, in every case, were members of one gens.
I understand also that there are certain games in which men selected
from gentes as such are the contesting participants.

Fellowhood.

In this connection I may say that if I was understood in my inquiries
the Seminole have also the institution of "Fellowhood" among them. Major
Powell thus describes this institution: "Two young men agree to be life
friends, 'more than brothers,' confiding without reserve each in the
other and protecting each the other from all harm."

The Seminole Tribe.

Tribal Organization.

The Florida Seminole, considered as a tribe, have a very imperfect
organization. The complete tribal society of the past was much broken
up through wars with the United States. These wars having ended in the
transfer of nearly the whole of the population to the Indian Territory,
the few Indians remaining in Florida were consequently left in a
comparatively disorganized condition. There is, however, among these
Indians a simple form of government, to which the inhabitants of at
least the three southern settlements submit. The people of Cat Fish Lake
and Cow Creek settlements live in a large measure independent of or
without civil connection with the others. Tcup-ko calls his people
"Tallahassee Indians." He says that they are not "the same" as the Fish
Eating Creek, Big Cypress, and Miami people. I learned, moreover, that
the ceremony of the Green Corn Dance may take place at the three last
named settlements and not at those of the north. The "Tallahassee
Indians" go to Fish Eating Creek if they desire to take part in the
festival.

Seat Of Government.

So far as there is a common seat of government, it is located at Fish
Eating Creek, where reside the head chief and big medicine man of the
Seminole, Tus-ta-nug-ge, and his brother, Hos-pa-ta-ki, also a medicine
man. These two are called the Tus-ta-nug-ul-ki, or