﻿FLETCHER-LA 
  flesi'iie] 
  TRIBAL 
  ORGANIZATION 
  143 
  

  

  men 
  who 
  knew 
  the 
  rites. 
  During 
  severe 
  thunder 
  storms, 
  when 
  life 
  

   and 
  property 
  were 
  in 
  danger 
  from 
  lightning, 
  sometimes 
  a 
  song 
  said 
  

   to 
  have 
  been 
  connected 
  with 
  this 
  lost 
  ceremony 
  was 
  sung 
  by 
  one 
  

   who 
  had 
  a 
  right 
  to 
  do 
  so. 
  

  

  The 
  following 
  act 
  of 
  the 
  keeper 
  of 
  the 
  Tent 
  of 
  War 
  (see 
  fig. 
  22) 
  may 
  

   have 
  been 
  a 
  part 
  of 
  this 
  lost 
  ceremony: 
  When 
  the 
  first 
  thunder 
  

   sounded, 
  he 
  at 
  once 
  took 
  a 
  small 
  pipe 
  and 
  ascended 
  a 
  lull 
  near 
  by, 
  

   where 
  he 
  offered 
  smoke 
  to 
  Wako 
  D 
  'da. 
  He 
  then 
  planted 
  a 
  small 
  wand 
  

   (fig. 
  21) 
  on 
  the 
  hill 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  point 
  toward 
  the 
  east. 
  To 
  this 
  wand 
  

   were 
  bound 
  with 
  human 
  hair 
  four 
  small 
  bunches 
  of 
  tobacco 
  inclosed 
  

   in 
  bits 
  of 
  bladder. 
  The 
  combination 
  of 
  tobacco, 
  bladder, 
  and 
  human 
  

  

  Fig. 
  21. 
  Wand 
  used 
  in 
  ceremony 
  when 
  first 
  thunder 
  was 
  heard 
  in 
  the 
  spring. 
  (Native 
  drawing. 
  ) 
  

  

  hair 
  on 
  the 
  wand 
  seems 
  to 
  indicate 
  that 
  this 
  act 
  and 
  lost 
  ceremony 
  

   probably 
  related 
  to 
  Thunder 
  as 
  the 
  arbiter 
  of 
  life 
  and 
  death, 
  as 
  is 
  

   shown 
  in 
  the 
  ceremony 
  of 
  cutting 
  the 
  lock 
  of 
  hair 
  from 
  the 
  head 
  of 
  the 
  

   boy. 
  (Seep. 
  122.) 
  

  

  The 
  tabu 
  of 
  the 
  We'zhi 
  n 
  shte 
  was 
  the 
  male 
  elk, 
  and 
  the 
  gens 
  was 
  

   sometimes 
  spoken 
  of 
  as 
  the 
  Elk 
  gens; 
  this 
  form 
  of 
  speech 
  with 
  refer- 
  

   ence 
  to 
  the 
  tabu 
  of 
  a 
  gens 
  has 
  already 
  been 
  explained 
  (see 
  p. 
  136). 
  

   Concerning 
  the 
  connection 
  of 
  the 
  male 
  elk 
  with 
  the 
  rites 
  of 
  the 
  gens 
  

   the 
  following 
  story 
  is 
  handed 
  down: 
  

  

  When 
  the 
  pipes 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  articles 
  belonging 
  to 
  the 
  rites 
  pertaining 
  to 
  war 
  were 
  

   made, 
  the 
  people 
  sought 
  for 
  some 
  skin 
  to 
  be 
  used 
  as 
  a 
  covering 
  in 
  which 
  to 
  keep 
  and 
  

   protect 
  these 
  things 
  which 
  were 
  regarded 
  a* 
  waxube, 
  or 
  sacred; 
  but 
  none 
  could 
  be 
  

   found 
  save 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  male 
  elk. 
  The 
  fact 
  that 
  at 
  that 
  particular 
  time 
  only 
  the 
  skin 
  

   of 
  the 
  male 
  elk 
  was 
  obtainable 
  was 
  regarded 
  as 
  an 
  indication 
  that 
  the 
  male 
  elk 
  came 
  

   to 
  their 
  aid 
  by 
  direction 
  of 
  Wako 
  n/ 
  da. 
  Therefore, 
  in 
  memory 
  of 
  this 
  act 
  of 
  the 
  male 
  

   elk, 
  this 
  animal 
  became 
  tabu 
  to 
  the 
  gens. 
  

  

  