﻿mooney] 
  INTRODUCTION. 
  309 
  

  

  matic 
  manner 
  for 
  their 
  mutual 
  benefit. 
  The 
  language, 
  the 
  concep- 
  

   tion, 
  and 
  the 
  execution 
  are 
  all 
  genuinely 
  Indian, 
  and 
  hardly 
  a 
  dozen 
  

   lines 
  of 
  the 
  hundreds 
  of 
  formulas 
  show 
  a 
  trace 
  of 
  the 
  influence 
  of 
  the 
  

   white 
  man 
  or 
  his 
  religion. 
  The 
  formulas 
  contained 
  in 
  these 
  manu- 
  

   scripts 
  are 
  not 
  disjointed 
  fragments 
  of 
  a 
  system 
  long 
  since 
  extinct, 
  

   but 
  are 
  the 
  revelation 
  of 
  a 
  living 
  faith 
  which 
  still 
  has 
  its 
  priests 
  and 
  

   devoted 
  adherents, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  only 
  necessary 
  to 
  witness 
  a 
  ceremonial 
  

   ball 
  play, 
  with 
  its 
  fasting, 
  its 
  going 
  to 
  water, 
  and 
  its 
  mystic 
  bead 
  

   manipulation, 
  to 
  understand 
  how 
  strong 
  is 
  the 
  hold 
  which 
  the 
  old 
  

   faith 
  yet 
  has 
  upon 
  the 
  minds 
  even 
  of 
  the 
  younger 
  generation. 
  The 
  

   numerous 
  archaic 
  and 
  figurative 
  expressions 
  used 
  require 
  the 
  inter- 
  

   pretation 
  of 
  the 
  priests, 
  but, 
  as 
  before 
  stated, 
  the 
  alphabet 
  in 
  which 
  

   they 
  are 
  written 
  is 
  that 
  in 
  daily 
  use 
  among 
  the 
  common 
  people. 
  

  

  In 
  all 
  tribes 
  that 
  still 
  retain 
  something 
  of 
  their 
  ancient 
  organiza- 
  

   tion 
  we 
  find 
  this 
  sacred 
  knowledge 
  committed 
  to 
  the 
  keeping 
  of 
  va- 
  

   rious 
  secret 
  societies, 
  each 
  of 
  which 
  has 
  its 
  peculiar 
  ritual 
  with 
  regular 
  

   initiation 
  and 
  degrees 
  of 
  advancement. 
  From 
  this 
  analogy 
  we 
  may 
  

   reasonably 
  conclude 
  that 
  such 
  was 
  formerly 
  the 
  case 
  with 
  the 
  Cher- 
  

   okees 
  also, 
  but 
  by 
  the 
  breaking 
  down 
  of 
  old 
  customs 
  consequent 
  

   upon 
  their 
  long 
  contact 
  with 
  the 
  whites 
  and 
  the 
  voluntary 
  adoption 
  

   of 
  a 
  civilized 
  form 
  of 
  government 
  in 
  1827, 
  all 
  traces 
  of 
  such 
  society 
  

   organization 
  have 
  long 
  since 
  disappeared, 
  and 
  at 
  present 
  each 
  

   priest 
  or 
  shaman 
  is 
  isolated 
  and 
  independent, 
  sometimes 
  confining 
  

   himself 
  to 
  a 
  particular 
  specialty, 
  such 
  as 
  love 
  or 
  medicine, 
  or 
  even 
  

   the 
  treatment 
  of 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  diseases, 
  in 
  other 
  cases 
  broadening 
  his 
  

   field 
  of 
  operations 
  to 
  include 
  the 
  whole 
  range 
  of 
  mystic 
  knowledge. 
  

  

  It 
  frequently 
  happens, 
  however, 
  that 
  priests 
  form 
  personal 
  friend- 
  

   ships 
  and 
  thus 
  are 
  led 
  to 
  divulge 
  their 
  secrets 
  to 
  each 
  other 
  for 
  their 
  

   mutual 
  advantage. 
  Thus 
  when 
  one 
  shaman 
  meets 
  another 
  who 
  he 
  

   thinks 
  can 
  probably 
  give 
  him 
  some 
  valuable 
  information, 
  he 
  says 
  

   to 
  him, 
  " 
  Let 
  tis 
  sit 
  down 
  together." 
  This 
  is 
  understood 
  by 
  the 
  other 
  

   to 
  mean. 
  " 
  Let 
  us 
  tell 
  each 
  other 
  our 
  secrets.*' 
  Should 
  it 
  seem 
  prob- 
  

   able 
  that 
  the 
  seeker 
  after 
  knowledge 
  can 
  give 
  as 
  much 
  as 
  he 
  receives, 
  

   an 
  agreement 
  is 
  generally 
  arrived 
  at, 
  the 
  two 
  retire 
  to 
  some 
  conven- 
  

   ient 
  spot 
  secure 
  from 
  observation, 
  and 
  the 
  first 
  party 
  begins 
  by 
  

   reciting 
  one 
  of 
  his 
  formulas 
  with 
  the 
  explanations. 
  The 
  other 
  then 
  

   reciprocates 
  with 
  one 
  of 
  his 
  own, 
  unless 
  it 
  appears 
  that 
  the 
  bargain 
  

   is 
  apt 
  to 
  prove 
  a 
  losing 
  one, 
  in 
  which 
  case 
  the 
  conference 
  comes 
  to 
  

   an 
  abrupt 
  ending. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  sometimes 
  possible 
  to 
  obtain 
  a 
  formula 
  by 
  the 
  payment 
  of 
  a 
  

   c< 
  >at, 
  a 
  quantity 
  of 
  cloth, 
  or 
  a 
  sum 
  of 
  money. 
  Like 
  the 
  Celtic 
  Druids 
  

   ( 
  >f 
  old, 
  the 
  candidate 
  for 
  the 
  priesthood 
  in 
  former 
  times 
  found 
  it 
  nec- 
  

   essary 
  to 
  cultivate 
  a 
  long 
  memory, 
  as 
  no 
  formula 
  was 
  repeated 
  more 
  

   than 
  once 
  for 
  his 
  benefit. 
  It 
  was 
  considered 
  that 
  one 
  who 
  failed 
  to 
  

   remember 
  after 
  the 
  first 
  hearing 
  was 
  not 
  worthy 
  to 
  be 
  accounted 
  a 
  

   shaman. 
  This 
  task, 
  In 
  >wever, 
  was 
  not 
  s< 
  > 
  difficult 
  as 
  might 
  appear 
  on 
  

  

  