50 Field Columbian Museum — Anthropology, Vol. V. 



young women dressed themselves, and drums and a feast were brought 

 in. The woman said : "I have come back to show you a dance. It is 

 called seineniinah''waa"t. Young men and young women will dance it 

 after a victory." She taught them the songs and showed them the 

 dance. She showed them the tiaxanatiit, the touching with the feet; 

 the tcaatceciinatiit, untying, when a man gives something to the woman 

 with whom he dances; and the tceaatiit, the welcome ("'scalp-dance"), 

 and the niina°tah*waa^t, the rejoicing dance ("war-dance"). When 

 she had given the people this dance, she said: "I came to show you 

 how to be happy while you live on earth, and to love each other. I 

 am going back where I came from," Then she went back. — K. 



1 6. — Nir'a^ca^ loses his Eyes. 



Nih'a'^ga'^ went down the river and met a man who was in the act 

 of throwing his eyes up in the cottonwood tree-tops, and he was very 

 much interested in him. Nih'a^ga'^ went to this man weeping for 

 mercy, and saying, "I come to you that I may be taught of you how to 

 perform your wonderful trick." "Oh ! You are smart enough ! What 

 more do you want?" said the man. "Well, you see I like your way 

 and want to follow your footsteps," said Nih'a'^ga'^. Finally the man 

 consented and showed him. This man stepped off and said, "Let my 

 eyes light on the branches." Then his eyes would go from him and 

 light in the tree-top. "Well. Niha^ga", that is the way you must do, 

 but not excessively," said the man. Then the man said, when the 

 eyes were up in the tree, "Let my eyes come back," and sure enough, 

 they returned to him. 



This man went away, and Nih'a^qa" went in a different 

 direction. Nih^a"<;a° came to a bunch of cottonwood trees 

 and did as the man had done. Now Nih'a"ga^ was in- 

 structed not to do this trick unless it was necessary. Nih'a'^ga" being 

 successful in the trick went away very proudly and came to a second 

 bunch of cottonwood trees and commanded his eyes to light on the 

 tree-top, and they did so. Then he commanded them and they returned 

 to their sockets. This made Nih'a^ga'^ very proud, and a third time 

 he attempted to exercise the power which had been given him. 



While he was hunting something in the tall grass, he came to a 

 big grove of cottonwood trees, and stopping, commanded his eyes to 

 go to the top of the cottonwood trees, saying, "Let my eyes be at the 

 top of the trees, fastened to the branches," and it was so. His eyes 

 were hanging entirely separated from him. "Well ! Now let my eyes 



