May, 1903. The Arapaho Sun Dance — Dorsey. ioi 



the thumb and forefinger of his right hand, placed his right elbow 

 upon his knee and slowly moved his hand out and back in front of his 

 face. During the second song, a similar movement was repeated on 

 the part of the three. At the beginning of the third song, Niwaat's 

 hand was moved over to the left side, where it was again waved back 

 and forth in front of him to the accompaniment of the song. The 

 same movement was continued through the fourth song. During the 

 fifth song the same movement was kept up, but he shifted his hand 

 so that it was now in front of his face. At the end of this song he 

 placed'the leaves upon the coal, took up the rawhide, and in a stoop- 

 ,ing position, passed it slowly over the rising incense. Carrying the 

 rawhide in this position, he proceeded around the lodge in a sunwise 

 circuit, halting as he stood under the northwest painted pole, when he 

 continued on to the northeast pole, where he halted; then continued 

 again to the painted pole on the southeast, and again halted ; and on 

 to the southwest. He then went back toward the southeast, in the 

 direction of the drummers, toward whom he motioned with the raw- 

 hide four times, and cast it in among them on the fifth, whereupon 

 they beat upon it rapidly with drumsticks. He then returned to his 

 position by the side of the skull, this time, however, making a sinistral 

 circuit. 



THE OFFERING OF THE LODGE-MAKER'S WIFE. 



A live coal was now brought in front of Hawkan, who made the 

 four ceremonial passes around it, beginning at the southeast, the fifth 

 direction from the above, and placed the incense upon the coal. 



There now followed the ceremony of offering the body of the wife 

 of Waatanakashi by Nishnat^yana, to the Moon. This performance 

 was practically the same as that which took place on the second night 

 of the Rabbit-tipi, and which is described in a later section of this 

 paper. An outline of what occurred may not be out of place at this 

 point, in order that the account of the performance on this night may 

 be more complete: One of the Dog-soldiers placed a coal under the 

 black-painted pole in the northwest corner of the lodge, which was to 

 be used in connection with the rite of making the footprint. The 

 pipe was given to Nishnat^yana by Waatanakashi, the latter returning 

 to his seat. Nden arose from her position in the line and stood behind 

 Nishnateyana. Hawkan began shaking the rattle, while Watanah beat 

 the Badger-pack. At the seventh beat the priests began singing. At 

 the fourth song Nishnateyana, followed by the wife of Waatanakashi, 

 both of them being enveloped in buffalo robes, arose and left the lodge, 

 passing over the rising incense in the northeast corner of the lodge. 



