﻿FLETCHEK-LA 
  FLESCHE] 
  THE 
  SACRED 
  POLE 
  247 
  

  

  beautiful! 
  I 
  make 
  him 
  beautiful!" 
  Then 
  the 
  priest 
  with 
  great 
  haste 
  dipped 
  his 
  

   brush 
  into 
  the 
  bowl 
  and 
  daubed 
  the 
  Pole 
  with 
  the 
  paste 
  while 
  the 
  singing 
  was 
  going 
  

   on. 
  Four 
  times 
  the 
  song 
  was 
  sung, 
  the 
  anointing 
  was 
  finished, 
  and 
  the 
  Pole 
  stood 
  

   shining 
  in 
  fresh 
  paint. 
  Then 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  people 
  cried: 
  " 
  Oh! 
  how 
  beautiful 
  he 
  is!" 
  

   and 
  then 
  laughed, 
  but 
  the 
  priests 
  never 
  for 
  an 
  instant 
  changed 
  the 
  expression 
  of 
  

   their 
  faces. 
  I 
  did 
  not 
  know 
  whether 
  to 
  join 
  in 
  the 
  merriment 
  or 
  to 
  imitate 
  the 
  priests 
  

   and 
  maintain 
  a 
  serious 
  countenance: 
  but 
  while 
  I 
  stood 
  thus 
  puzzled 
  the 
  ceremony 
  

   went 
  on. 
  

  

  A 
  woman 
  dressed 
  in 
  a 
  peculiar 
  fashion 
  took 
  the 
  place 
  of 
  the 
  priest 
  who 
  had 
  painted 
  

   the 
  Pole. 
  She 
  wore 
  on 
  her 
  head 
  a 
  band 
  of 
  buffalo 
  skin 
  and 
  the 
  down 
  of 
  the 
  eagle, 
  

   around 
  her 
  body 
  a 
  buffalo 
  robe 
  with 
  the 
  fur 
  outside 
  and 
  to 
  her 
  ankles 
  were 
  tied 
  

   strips 
  of 
  buffalo 
  skin 
  with 
  the 
  hair 
  on. 
  In 
  her 
  left 
  hand 
  she 
  held 
  six 
  arrows 
  and 
  

   stood 
  ready 
  with 
  one 
  poised 
  in 
  her 
  right. 
  A 
  song 
  was 
  sung 
  and 
  at 
  the 
  close 
  she 
  made 
  

   a 
  feint 
  with 
  the 
  arrow 
  at 
  the 
  bundle 
  of 
  feathers 
  in 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  the 
  Pole. 
  Four 
  

   times 
  this 
  was 
  done; 
  then 
  other 
  songs 
  were 
  sung 
  and 
  at 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  each 
  song, 
  with 
  

   a 
  quick 
  movement 
  the 
  woman 
  thrust 
  an 
  arrow 
  through 
  the 
  bundle 
  containing 
  down 
  

   tied 
  to 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  the 
  Pole 
  with 
  such 
  force 
  that 
  it 
  passed 
  entirely 
  through 
  and 
  

   as 
  it 
  dropped 
  stuck 
  in 
  the 
  ground, 
  and 
  the 
  people 
  shouted 
  as 
  with 
  great 
  joy. 
  I 
  

   joined 
  in 
  the 
  shouting, 
  although 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  I 
  did 
  not 
  know 
  why 
  the 
  people 
  cheered. 
  

   There 
  were 
  seven 
  arrows 
  in 
  all; 
  on 
  this 
  occasion 
  every 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  arrows 
  went 
  suc- 
  

   cessfully 
  through 
  the 
  downy 
  bundle. 
  It 
  is 
  said 
  that 
  if 
  an 
  arrow 
  failed 
  to 
  go 
  through 
  

   and 
  bounded 
  back, 
  the 
  gens 
  which 
  it 
  represented 
  would 
  meet 
  with 
  misfortune; 
  

   some 
  member 
  would 
  be 
  slain 
  by 
  the 
  enemy. 
  

  

  After 
  the 
  singing 
  of 
  the 
  songs 
  and 
  the 
  anointing 
  of 
  the 
  Pole, 
  the 
  meat 
  was 
  distrib- 
  

   uted 
  among 
  the 
  families 
  of 
  the 
  Ho 
  n/ 
  gagens, 
  the 
  keepers 
  of 
  the 
  Sacred 
  Pole. 
  The 
  

   moment 
  that 
  this 
  was 
  done 
  a 
  man 
  was 
  seen 
  coming 
  over 
  the 
  hill 
  running 
  at 
  full 
  speed, 
  

   waving 
  his 
  blanket 
  in 
  the 
  air 
  in 
  an 
  excited 
  manner, 
  and 
  shouting 
  the 
  cry 
  of 
  alarm 
  : 
  

   "The 
  enemy 
  are 
  upon 
  us!" 
  The 
  horses 
  were 
  familiar 
  with 
  this 
  cry 
  and 
  the 
  moment 
  

   they 
  heard 
  it 
  they 
  stampeded 
  into 
  the 
  camp 
  circle, 
  making 
  a 
  noise 
  like 
  thunder. 
  

   Men 
  rushed 
  to 
  their 
  tents 
  for 
  their 
  bows 
  and 
  arrows 
  and 
  guns 
  and 
  were 
  soon 
  mounted 
  

   on 
  their 
  best 
  horses. 
  Warriors 
  sang 
  the 
  death 
  song, 
  and 
  women 
  sang 
  songs 
  to 
  give 
  

   the 
  men 
  courage. 
  The 
  excitement 
  in 
  camp 
  was 
  at 
  its 
  height, 
  but 
  the 
  singing 
  of 
  

   the 
  priests 
  in 
  the 
  Holy 
  Tent 
  went 
  on. 
  Instead 
  of 
  going 
  out 
  to 
  meet 
  the 
  enemy, 
  

   the 
  warriors 
  gathered 
  at 
  one 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  camp 
  circle 
  opposite 
  the 
  Holy 
  Tent 
  and 
  

   at 
  the 
  firing 
  of 
  a 
  gun 
  came 
  charging 
  toward 
  it. 
  It 
  was 
  a 
  grand 
  sight— 
  four 
  or 
  five 
  

   hundred 
  warriors 
  rushing 
  on 
  us 
  at 
  full 
  speed. 
  There 
  was 
  no 
  enemy; 
  the 
  man 
  who 
  

   gave 
  the 
  alarm 
  was 
  only 
  acting 
  his 
  part 
  of 
  a 
  great 
  drama 
  to 
  be 
  performed 
  before 
  the 
  

   Sacred 
  Pole. 
  The 
  warriors 
  fired 
  their 
  guns 
  and 
  shot 
  their 
  arrows 
  at 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  

   figures 
  made 
  of 
  bundles 
  of 
  tall 
  grass 
  and 
  arranged 
  before 
  the 
  Holy 
  Tent. 
  Shouts 
  

   of 
  defiance 
  went 
  from 
  the 
  tent 
  and 
  were 
  returned 
  by 
  the 
  charging 
  warriors. 
  This 
  

   play 
  of 
  battles 
  lasted 
  nearly 
  the 
  whole 
  day. 
  

  

  Years 
  passed, 
  and 
  with 
  them 
  passed 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  brave 
  men 
  who 
  told 
  the 
  tale 
  

   of 
  their 
  battles 
  before 
  the 
  Sacred 
  Pole. 
  So 
  also 
  passed 
  the 
  buffalo, 
  the 
  game 
  upon 
  

   which 
  the 
  life 
  of 
  this 
  and 
  other 
  tribes 
  depended. 
  During 
  these 
  years 
  I 
  was 
  placed 
  

   in 
  school, 
  where 
  I 
  learned 
  to 
  speak 
  the 
  English 
  language 
  and 
  to 
  read 
  and 
  write. 
  

  

  Through 
  a 
  curious 
  chain 
  of 
  circumstances, 
  which 
  I 
  need 
  not 
  here 
  relate, 
  I 
  found 
  

   myself 
  employed 
  in 
  the 
  Indian 
  Bureau 
  at 
  Washington. 
  The 
  Omaha 
  had 
  given 
  

   up 
  the 
  chase 
  and 
  were 
  putting 
  all 
  their 
  energies 
  into 
  agriculture. 
  They 
  had 
  aban- 
  

   doned 
  their 
  villages 
  and 
  were 
  scattered 
  over 
  their 
  reservation 
  upon 
  separate 
  farms, 
  

   knowing 
  that 
  their 
  former 
  mode 
  of 
  living 
  was 
  a 
  thing 
  of 
  the 
  past 
  and 
  that 
  hence- 
  

   forth 
  their 
  livelihood 
  must 
  come 
  from 
  the 
  tilling 
  of 
  the 
  soil. 
  To 
  secure 
  themselves 
  

   in 
  the 
  individual 
  ownership 
  of 
  the 
  farms 
  they 
  had 
  opened, 
  the 
  people 
  petitioned 
  

   the 
  Government 
  to 
  survey 
  their 
  reservation 
  and 
  to 
  allot 
  the 
  land 
  to 
  them 
  in 
  sev- 
  

  

  