234 Field Columbian Museum — Anthropology, Vol. V. 



being injured. Just as soon as the sun had risen, they got up from 

 bed, and the wife made the fire. 



"While the child is still sleeping, please boil enough beef this 

 morning and clean out the tipi and spread some mats for seats," said 

 the husband to his wife. So his wife hurried in preparing the food, 

 and soon got it ready. Raw-Gums was still sleeping, all wrapped up, 

 when the invitation was announced to the men to assemble in this tipi. 

 When the men had seated themselves they were in'somewh'at gloomy 

 spirits, because another chief had recently died. This invitation was 

 an unusual thing, because in the camp they were still mourning. 



"Well, young men, I have this day called you together in order 

 to decide on the best plan to get rid of this child. Our chiefs have 

 been taken away by this cruel child. How he kills them is a mystery. 

 But we have good ,proof , for we saw pieces of human flesh remaining 

 in his teeth. Until lately, while he has slept, his mouth has always 

 been closed, but yesterday, while we were eating our breakfast, my 

 wife called me to look at his teeth, and to my surprise I saw that some 

 time he had eaten human flesh. Then my wife and I slept all day and 

 watched him last night until he got out of his cradle and went to that 

 chief^s tipi. After he had done some act inside, he came out, carrying 

 the remnant of the man to the river. Reaching a cottonwocd snag, 

 he climbed it with the body and dropped the body in the hole in the 

 snag. When we both saw him doing this we began to be afraid of 

 him. Now, since you men are supposed to correct the evils and sup- 

 press disorder and violence in the tribe and camp-circle, I want you 

 to consider and devise a plan to get rid of this cannibal child," said 

 the husband. 



After the man had informed the men who had killed the chiefs, 

 they were very much amazed and said nothing for some time. Finally 

 they left it all entirely with the father, and told him to punish his child 

 in the best way. So after the men had eaten the feas't provided and 

 had gone back to their respective tipis in despair, the father told his 

 wife to provide him with fat from the tripe and unwrap the child. 

 Without much conversation with his wife, in order to prevent the 

 child from knowing, he then carefully wrapped this baby with the fat, 

 and with all his might threw it out of doors, and at the same time he 

 called the dogs to plunge for it. 



When Raw-Gums lighted on the ground, he became a young man, 

 wearing his remnant buflfalo robe, and began to dance around the cir- 

 cle, singing thus : "A skeleton ! A skeleton !" 



When the bereaved families heard about Raw-Gum's conduct and 



