More recent
researches by Miss Fletcher(49) and by Dorsey(50) are of especial value,
not only as direct sources of information but as a means of interpreting
the earlier writings. From these records it appears that, in so far as
they grasped the theistic concept, the Siouan Indians were polytheists;
that their mysteries or deities varied in rank and power; that some were
good but more were bad, while others combined bad and good attributes;
that they assumed various forms, actual and imaginary; and that their
dispositions and motives resembled those found among mankind.
The organization of the vague Siouan thearchy appears to have varied from
group to group. Among all of the tribes whose beliefs are known, the sun
was an important wakanda, perhaps the leading one potentially, though
usually of less immediate consideration than certain others, such as
thunder, lightning, and the cedar tree; among the Osage the sun was
invoked as "grandfather," and among various tribes there were sun
ceremonials, some of which are still maintained; among the Omaha and
Ponka, according to Miss Fletcher, the mythic thunder-bird plays a
prominent, perhaps dominant role, and the cedar tree or pole is deified as
its tangible representative. The moon was wakanda among the Osage and the
stars among the Omaha and Ponka, yet they seem to have occupied
subordinate positions; the winds and the four quarters were apparently
given higher rank; and, in individual cases, the mythic water-monsters or
earth-deities seem to have occupied leading positions.
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