6a Field Columbian Museum — Anthropology, Vol. IV. 



performance of touching his finger to the ground, to his mouth, and 

 taking a bite of root and making the four customary passes with the 

 pipe-stem, ejecting spittle at the same time, upon the piece of skin 

 about to be removed. 



Watdnah now painted the grass bundle in the south eye-socket 

 black, while Watanah painted the one in the north eye-socket red. 

 The nose piece was now inserted. First, however, Hocheni pointed 

 with the pipe-stem and ejected spittle four times, while Nishnat^yana 

 motioned with the grass object four times, before inserting it in place. 

 It was then painted by those two men, Watangaa painting the half on 

 the south side black, while Watdnah painted the half on the north side 

 red. This painting was done without accompanying rites. The 

 buffalo robe, which had been lying back of the skull during this time, 

 was now replaced. 



THE LODGE-MAKER'S ROBE. 



It has been stated above that the Lodge-Maker, on the preceding 

 night, when he entered the Rabbit-tipi, wore a buffalo robe. This 

 was now spread out on the floor of the lodge, the hair side upwards, 

 and with the head toward the east. Hdwkan now daubed the upper 

 surface with moist white clay, painting first one half and then the 

 other. On the neck and between the hind legs, he made a crescent- 

 shaped device with thick white earth. These designs represented 

 respectively the sun and moon. He now drew a white line extending 

 outward on each side from both the sun and moon symbols. These 

 lines were symbolic of the Four-Old-Men, who play such an important 

 part in Arapaho mythology. The white paint itself, with which the 

 robe had been treated, in former time was made of the ashes of a 

 buffalo, and is supposed to represent the color of the sun. The robe 

 as now painted is hereafter to be worn throughout the ceremony by the 

 Lodge-Maker. 



In the mean time, according to instructions, some boys had 

 secured a rabbit, which they had hunted down and captured alive, for 

 it must not be struck with a stone or shot. After the rabbit is taken 

 alive, its breath is pressed from its body, thereby transferring the life- 

 element of the rabbit to its hide. It had been skinned, and the hide 

 was now brought into the lodge. It was cut up into small pieces 

 about two inches square. Hdwkan, Debithe, Chanitoe, Watdnah, and 

 others tied the bits here and there over the robe, with pieces of sinew. 

 The robe bears ceremonial resemblance to the Rabbit-tipi itself. 



The above account was gathered from Hdwkan, for the decoration 

 of the Lodge-Maker's robe was not observed in 1901. The entire 



