Show seminoles Semi noles misrepresented by Sensa sensational sensations tiona 0 I 1 writers by news atil service icia 1010 eye cyc NV washington I 1 0 this is the she lecoat of 01 two IWO artach hasta on alt itt to lo me inam iraldi st reservation at as brighton fla SOMEWHERE NORTH OF TIIE THE everglades whenever one tries as I 1 did to study the humar human side of the that nation which has left so sc a little written reci ord of its short but historic life span sp anone one Is del del urged with anfor 4 m motion and mis info rm a t I 1 0 n misinformation of the type on which the sunday supplement writer feeds for example examine the contradictory data on the Semi seminoles noles baukhage slid ad snake killing when I 1 called on agent boehmer his wife recounted how 2 greatly excited indian had appeared one day on their doorstep to announce his pressing domire that doehmer come to the seminole campa camp a rods or so distant to kill a 0 rattler boehmer obliged lie he carefully avoided carrying the corpse through the he cal camp n P a seminole taboo and he noted the usual ore fire lighted at the point where the victim fell As usual tho the indian children had co operated with him without actively participating in the execution there are two explanations as to why the Semi seminoles noles would not themselves kill the snake one la Is that once in the past tho the Semi seminoles noles were ordered by the white man alan to leave florida for points west they prepared pared to remain even though it meant retiring deep into the everglades however they decided it would be a good idea for or both parties if they made 4 treaty with the snakes they did so on it a live and let alvo basis that is one ex or it may have been one of those common comi noti sense arrangements vm ein belli shed with the authority aul hoilly of 0 mysticism there are arc tevy ew awakes which if left alone wont kont reciprocate another anoker interpretation may be that when a white man attacks the rattler rattle r the die chances are that it if any oni one Is bitten if IC would not nol be an indian I 1 understand Semi seminoles noles do kill snakes when it seems necessary ess ary Doc boehmer whose opinion 1 I learned 0 to o value as I 1 pursued this subject thinks the rattlesnake situation Is intO interesting Testing but I 1 get him to say it meant the seminole was superstitious gaudy costumes intrigue observer like every observer I 1 was impressed byl b the seminole attire not by the men mens they wear conven lional garments lightened by a gay handkerchief about the neck when they pursued pursue their dally daily tasks hunt on the reservation or loaf in camp they have shortened the long garment comparable to the homans womans cape to sport shirt length even in ili ecremen ceremonial I 1 dress I 1 found only sara sam huff reputed to be A medicine man mail as well as the handy man at the school wearing thet the long skirt like garment plus the blouse some say sam clings to this outfit merely because of his love tor for the past others say any it may hive have to do with ills his spi special function as a medicine man there is a whisper that it is a badge of repentance or punishment tor for some palt sin sam is a grandfather today lie he still lives in the nearby camp with the rest of his three generations the younger men save their gay shirts for dress up occasions the annual green corn danco dance and the hunting dunce but they have adopted modem trousers their shirts ire are coverd with complicated geometric tracery their scarves arc aril bound by a metal or wooden clasp they wear beads or other brightly decorated fobs the most striking piece of sem mole clothing Is the womans comans billowing skirl kirt next come the beads wacl which I 1 CO cover vir her neck front shoulder blade to ear tips then her unlike the men the seminole women umen except those who have been completely converted to modern ways wear their special garb and wear it it all the timed time consequently they always look dressed up the an innovation and a highly practical one dates back only some six or seven years yeara tho the smooth black hair is brought forward over a semi cincu lar cardboard form like the wid peak of a cap this gives her the appearance of peering at you from underneath a wide circular hat brim and Is achieved easily without the old aid of the beauty shop and virtually without mirrors further more the colf coinsure fure Is one development ment that has no conne connection C hon with the white mans culture Wan tens skirts shirts are real art Artt unlike tile hairdo the seminole skirt and cape changed except to grow more artistic and more intricate with the advent of colored textiles they likewise have become less to td create thanks to the hand driven sewing machine this gadget long since has been as common in tepee hogan or even igloo as an tee ice pick in a modern flat bat the skirts are made of parallel bonds bands of a i brightly colored patchwork design which experts claim are real art they are fashioned of hundreds eds of separate pieces of col erful 01 fuli cloth blended or contrasted to make a barbarically splendorous whole the skirts bell out widening in circumference as they approach the hem which according to regulations must trail lit at least three inches or thereabouts on the ground how can this be a practical everyday dress in a country of swamps and morasses of barbed and cutting underbrush that Is the first question I 1 and every ignorant ob V W M I 1 1 4 5 0 1 4 aw 4 tp A f 9 V 41 xii j 11 seminole maid and bravo brave native dress lit in everglades eror server asks but they are practical say the experts who have seen them in ope ra through wet going and wading they are lusted bisted there are no undergarments to complicate matters traveling over the dry and dusty fields rife with snakes and other annoying reptiles they protect the bare feet and shins As miss or mrs seminole moves forward toeing boeing in slightly according to good indian cust custom OM she gently kicks the drag dragging gang rim forward without baring the bare feet feel to inquisitive eyes or any lora flora or fauna that might obtrude the only other cloth garment I 1 Is the tha cape this is usually a single solid and bright color matching the skirt the seminole Semi beads remain a mystery so far I 1 have been able to learn little concerning the origin purpose tor for them beyond the explanation offered by agent doehmer boehmer and supported by his wife t they wear them because they think 11 and what better reason in any womans comans lexicon it does seem strange though to tee see a comely indian matron her skirt tucked high before a roaring fire on a hot florida day or working vigorously in a tomato omato patch or even strolling through throng h a shop among sweltering whites in low cut dresses or open sport shirts with perhaps 25 pounds they have been beed weighed of beads in a solid collar rising as high as the whalebone enforced chokers american girls girl wore in the first decades of 0 ta tha |