May, 1905. 



The Cheyenne — Dorsey. 



75 



same way, the Chief Priest caused the Lodge-maker's thumb to 

 describe a small circle just above the ground.* He then caused 

 the Lodge-maker's thumb to touch the ground and rub the earth 

 in a circular motion, thus smoothing a space ^bout an inch in diam- 

 eter. The Chief Priest enlarged this little circle to about twice its 

 size, and thus was formed the first, or new life "earth," which marks 

 the beginning of vegetation. This "earth," the first one made, is 

 said to be small because not much is known of it. Its proper size 

 is said to be the length of the thumb to the longest finger. The 

 thumb is used in the rite because it is the strongest finger. 



Smoking the Red Pipe. 



Bull-Tongue left the lodge and returned in a few minutes with 

 a shovel of live coals, one of which he placed in the center of the 

 cleared space. The posi- 



tion of the chief partici- 

 pants in the tipi at this 

 time and their relation to 

 the pipe, etc., may be seen 

 from the accompanying 

 diagram (see Fig. 14). 

 The Chief Priest leaned 

 forward and picked up 

 the pipe and lit it from 

 the coal. After the pipe 

 was thoroughly lighted he 

 directed the point of the 

 stem toward the diminu- 

 tive circle of earth. He 

 passed the pipe to the 

 Lodge-maker, who also 

 directed the point of the 

 stem to the "earth" and then smoked while Bull-Tongue emptied the 

 remaining coals from the shovel in the center, where the first coal had 

 been deposited. The pipe was passed around the circle, each one 

 directing its stem toward the earth before beginning to smoke. 



After all had smoked, the pipe was passed back unsmoked around 

 the circle to the Chief Priest, who directed the stem to the earth. 

 He removed the stem from the bowl, and taking up the plain tamper, 

 loosened the ashes and deposited them in the center of the earth. 



•It is assumed that in making the first four passes, one was made for each of the cardinal 

 points, or medicine spirits, beginning with the southeast; the next four passes to the center was 

 for the sun and the circular motion was for all spirits. 



Fi(i. 14. Diaj^ram of Lone-tipi. 



