My brother-in-law older than self Nis-tum-o’.

My brother-in-law younger than self Nis-tum-o’-kun.

My sister-in-law Ni-tot’-o-ke-man.

My second cousin Nimp’-sa.

My wife Nit-o-ke’-man.

My husband No’-ma.

As the members of a gens were all considered as relatives, however remote, there was a law prohibiting a man from marrying within his gens.  Originally this law was strictly enforced, but like many of the ancient customs it is no longer observed.  Lately, within the last forty or fifty years, it has become not uncommon for a man and his family, or even two or three families, on account of some quarrel or some personal dislike of the chief of their own gens, to leave it and join another band.  Thus the gentes often received outsiders, who were not related by blood to the gens; and such people or their descendants could marry within the gens.  Ancestry became no longer necessary to membership.

As a rule, before a young man could marry, he was required to have made some successful expeditions to war against the enemy, thereby proving himself a brave man, and at the same time acquiring a number of horses and other property, which would enable him to buy the woman of his choice, and afterwards to support her.

Marriages usually took place at the instance of the parents, though often those of the young man were prompted by him.  Sometimes the father of the girl, if he desired to have a particular man for a son-in-law, would propose to the father of the latter for the young man as a husband for his daughter.

The marriage in the old days was arranged after this wise:  The chief of one of the bands may have a marriageable daughter, and he may know of a young man, the son of a chief of another band, who is a brave warrior, of good character, sober-minded, steadfast, and trustworthy, who he thinks will make a good husband for his daughter and a good son-in-law.  After he has made up his mind about this, he is very likely to call in a few of his close relations, the principal men among them, and state to them his conclusions, so as to get their opinions about it.  If nothing is said to change his mind, he sends to the father of the boy a messenger to state his own views, and ask how the father feels about the matter.

On receiving this word, the boy’s father probably calls together his close relations, discusses the matter with them, and, if the match is satisfactory to him, sends back word to that effect.  When this message is received, the relations of the girl proceed to fit her out with the very best that they can provide.  If she is the daughter of well-to-do or wealthy people, she already has many of the things that are needed, but what she may lack is soon supplied.  Her mother