﻿816 
  SACKED 
  FORMULAS 
  OF 
  THE 
  CIIEROKEES. 
  

  

  In 
  fact 
  the 
  box 
  was 
  a 
  regular 
  curiosity 
  shop, 
  and 
  it 
  was 
  with 
  a 
  

   feeling 
  akin 
  to 
  despair 
  that 
  we 
  viewed 
  the 
  piles 
  of 
  manuscript 
  which 
  

   had 
  to 
  be 
  waded 
  through 
  and 
  classified. 
  There 
  was 
  a 
  day's 
  hard 
  

   work 
  ahead, 
  and 
  it 
  was 
  already 
  past 
  noon; 
  but 
  the 
  woman 
  was 
  not 
  

   done 
  yet, 
  and 
  after 
  rummaging 
  about 
  inside 
  the 
  house 
  for 
  awhile 
  

   longer 
  she 
  appeared 
  with 
  another 
  armful 
  of 
  papers, 
  which 
  she 
  emp- 
  

   tied 
  on 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  others. 
  This 
  was 
  the 
  last 
  straw; 
  and 
  finding 
  it 
  

   impossible 
  to 
  examine 
  in 
  detail 
  such 
  a 
  mass 
  of 
  material 
  we 
  contented 
  

   ourselves 
  with 
  picking 
  out 
  the 
  sacred 
  formulas 
  and 
  the 
  two 
  manu- 
  

   script 
  books 
  containing 
  the 
  town-house 
  records 
  and 
  scriptural 
  quota- 
  

   tions 
  and 
  departed. 
  

  

  The 
  daughter 
  of 
  Black 
  Fox 
  agreed 
  to 
  fetch 
  down 
  the 
  other 
  papers 
  

   in 
  a 
  few 
  days 
  for 
  further 
  examination 
  at 
  our 
  leisure; 
  and 
  she 
  kept 
  her 
  

   promise, 
  bringing 
  with 
  her 
  at 
  the 
  same 
  time 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  additional 
  

   formulas 
  which 
  she 
  had 
  not 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  obtain 
  before. 
  A 
  large 
  

   number 
  of 
  letters 
  and 
  other 
  papers 
  were 
  selected 
  from 
  the 
  miscella- 
  

   neous 
  lot, 
  and 
  these, 
  with 
  the 
  others 
  obtained 
  from 
  her, 
  are 
  now 
  

   deposited 
  also 
  with 
  the 
  Bureau 
  of 
  Ethnology. 
  Among 
  other 
  things 
  

   found 
  at 
  this 
  house 
  were 
  several 
  beads 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  shell 
  wampum, 
  of 
  

   whose 
  use 
  the 
  Cherokees 
  have 
  now 
  lost 
  even 
  the 
  recollection. 
  She 
  

   knew 
  only 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  very 
  old 
  and 
  different 
  from 
  the 
  common 
  

   beads, 
  but 
  she 
  prized 
  them 
  as 
  talismans, 
  and 
  firmly 
  refused 
  to 
  part 
  

   with 
  them. 
  

  

  OTHER 
  MANUSCRIPTS. 
  

  

  Subsequently 
  a 
  few 
  formulas 
  were 
  obtained 
  from 
  an 
  old 
  shaman 
  

   named 
  Tsiskwa 
  or 
  "Bird," 
  but 
  they 
  were 
  so 
  carelessly 
  written 
  as 
  to 
  

   be 
  almost 
  worthless, 
  aud 
  the 
  old 
  man 
  who 
  wrote 
  them, 
  being 
  then 
  

   on 
  his 
  dying 
  bed, 
  was 
  unable 
  to 
  give 
  much 
  help 
  in 
  the 
  matter. 
  How- 
  

   ever, 
  as 
  he 
  was 
  anxious 
  to 
  tell 
  what 
  he 
  knew 
  an 
  attempt 
  was 
  made 
  

   to 
  take 
  down 
  some 
  formulas 
  from 
  his 
  dictation. 
  A 
  few 
  more 
  were 
  

   obtained 
  in 
  this 
  way 
  but 
  the 
  results 
  were 
  not 
  satisfactory 
  and 
  the 
  

   experiment 
  was 
  abandoned. 
  About 
  the 
  same 
  time 
  A'wani'ta 
  or 
  

   "Young 
  Deer," 
  one 
  of 
  their 
  best 
  herb 
  doctors, 
  was 
  engaged 
  to 
  col- 
  

   lect 
  the 
  various 
  plants 
  used 
  in 
  medicine 
  and 
  describe 
  their 
  uses. 
  

   While 
  thus 
  employed 
  he 
  wrote 
  in 
  a 
  book 
  furnished 
  him 
  for 
  the 
  pur- 
  

   pose 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  formulas 
  used 
  by 
  him 
  in 
  his 
  practice, 
  giving 
  at 
  

   the 
  same 
  time 
  a 
  verbal 
  explanation 
  of 
  the 
  theory 
  and 
  ceremonies. 
  

   Among 
  these 
  was 
  one 
  for 
  protection 
  in 
  battle, 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  used 
  

   by 
  himself 
  and 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  other 
  Cherokees 
  in 
  the 
  late 
  war. 
  An- 
  

   other 
  doctor 
  named 
  Takwati'hi 
  or 
  "Catawba 
  Killer." 
  was 
  after- 
  

   ward 
  employed 
  on 
  the 
  same 
  work 
  and 
  furnished 
  some 
  additional 
  

   formulas 
  which 
  he 
  had 
  had 
  his 
  son 
  write 
  down 
  from 
  his 
  dictation, 
  

   he 
  himself 
  being 
  unable 
  to 
  write. 
  His 
  knowledge 
  was 
  limited 
  to 
  

   the 
  practice 
  of 
  a 
  few 
  specialties, 
  but 
  in 
  regard 
  to 
  these 
  his 
  informa- 
  

  

  