SO OMAHA AND PONKA LETTERS. 
health. I wish to hear how you are, therefore I write to you. O grand- 
father, the way that you and your friend have treated me has always 
been pleasant to me. As I do not see you, I am dying from poverty. 
To-day I must content myself with talking to you instead of seeing you. 
Please send me a letter. The very aged man who was ill (Ma*teu-na"ba) 
has recovered, and is able to walk. 
TANWAN-GAXE JINGA TO MAWATA‘NA. MARCH 5, 1880. 
Ca® fe wi", negiha, ana™b¢i®. Ca™ cin’ga 
« 
yin'ga ¢anka 
ld 
Well word = one, O mother’s Iam uncertain Well, chi the ones 
brother, about it. who 
, Nis of, , , . Ser Palle / 7 , 
wadixe ¢anka’ & ... Weéawa® niniba uaket‘a” ka*b¢éga™. 
I have made theones_ they Calumet pipe IT acquire it I hope. 
them who 
4 St ‘1. 
Edada® ctéctéwa® in¢éckaxe téga”™ ka*b¢éga"™ éga™ wib¢a- 
What soever you do forme in orde r I hope as I pray to 
: that 
, fei 
ha® cu¢ age. Wi can gejajin’ga witagtci ab¢i" éde nujinga 
you I send it to colt just one Thad it but boy 
you. : 
téké ga", nin‘de gipeji éga", ati, Mawada¢i". Adinge gxai. 
he lay as, heart bad for as, T gave Mandan. He parted with it on 
dead him it to him, . account of the dead. 
NOTES. 
Though this letter was dictated in Omaha, most of it was recorded 
in English at that time, as shown in the translation by the parenthet- 
ical sentences. 
80, 5. A¢ifige gaxai, the sender gave “ wa¢inge.” Ta™wa"-gaxe jilga 
gave his colt to Mandan in order that the latter could give it away 
because of the death of his son. 
TRANSLATION. 
O mother’s brother, I am uncertain about one part of your letter. (I 
wish to make sure of your meaning. Do you refer only to yourself, or 
to all the Yanktons? Ask my son, Wiyakoi®. O Wiyakoi", [ hope 
that you will speak to) ny adopted children in your tribe. I hope to 
acquire a calumet, such as they use in the pipe-dance. (I do not refer 
to the children for whom I have already had the calumet dance. I put 
them aside. I wish to enter the house of Mi"xabu, and dance the 
calumet dance for his children. Speak to him in my behalf. I hope 
that you will speak to my four adopted children, Mi®xabu and others. 
Send me a reply to this letter very soon, in fact as soon as you receive 
this. O Mawata"na, I have your letter, and it is just like seeing you! 
It delights me!) I send to you to petition to you, as I hope that you 
will do something or other for me. I had just one colt, but when Man- 
dan’s son lay dead, I gave the colt to the father, as he was sorrowful, 
and he gave it away on account of his dead son, 
cad 
