﻿420 
  THE 
  OMAHA 
  TRIBE 
  [eth. 
  anx. 
  UT 
  

  

  Literal 
  translation 
  : 
  The 
  first 
  five 
  lines 
  and 
  the 
  last 
  are 
  vocables. 
  

   Ena!, 
  an 
  exclamation 
  used 
  only 
  by 
  women; 
  abthixe, 
  I 
  marry; 
  Tco 
  n 
  biha, 
  

   I 
  wish 
  or 
  desire: 
  ////'". 
  the 
  one 
  — 
  the 
  word 
  indicates 
  that 
  the 
  one 
  spoken 
  

   of 
  is 
  moving; 
  vudo", 
  war; 
  itheahe, 
  ithehe, 
  has 
  gone 
  — 
  the 
  a 
  is 
  introduced 
  

   to 
  accommodate 
  the 
  word 
  to 
  the 
  music; 
  the, 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  sentence; 
  ena!, 
  

   feminine 
  exclamation; 
  ithatabthe, 
  I 
  hate; 
  thi 
  n 
  , 
  the 
  one 
  moving; 
  thethu, 
  

   here; 
  thazhi, 
  has 
  not 
  gone; 
  a, 
  vocable; 
  he, 
  feminine 
  termination 
  of 
  a 
  

   sentence 
  spoken 
  by 
  a 
  woman. 
  

  

  Free 
  translation 
  

  

  Ena! 
  The 
  one 
  I 
  wish 
  to 
  marry 
  has 
  gone 
  to 
  war. 
  

  

  Ena 
  ! 
  The 
  one 
  I 
  hate 
  has 
  not 
  gone 
  forth 
  but 
  remains 
  here. 
  

  

  The 
  mi'kiiri 
  dance 
  was 
  the 
  last 
  public 
  appearance 
  of 
  the 
  war 
  

   party. 
  Their 
  departure 
  was 
  kept 
  secret. 
  The 
  leader 
  designated 
  a 
  

   time 
  and 
  place 
  where 
  all 
  were 
  to 
  meet 
  and 
  each 
  man 
  stole 
  away 
  to 
  

   the 
  appointed 
  spot. 
  This 
  course 
  was 
  followed 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  prevent 
  

   undesirable 
  persons 
  from 
  joining 
  the 
  party 
  and 
  causing 
  inconvenience. 
  

  

  Each 
  leader 
  of 
  a 
  war 
  party 
  was 
  instructed 
  in 
  his 
  duties 
  by 
  the 
  

   keeper 
  of 
  the 
  Sacred 
  Pack 
  to 
  which 
  he 
  had 
  applied 
  for 
  permission 
  

   to 
  go 
  on 
  the 
  warpath. 
  There 
  were 
  slight 
  differences 
  in 
  the 
  details 
  of 
  

   these 
  instructions 
  but 
  the 
  following, 
  recounted 
  by 
  an 
  old 
  warrior 
  from 
  

   his 
  own 
  experience, 
  may 
  be 
  taken 
  as 
  a 
  fair 
  picture 
  of 
  the 
  general 
  

   procedure: 
  

  

  At 
  night, 
  when 
  (m 
  the 
  march, 
  after 
  we 
  had 
  had 
  supper 
  and 
  were 
  about 
  to 
  go 
  to 
  bed, 
  

   the 
  loader 
  selected 
  four 
  men, 
  who 
  were 
  sent 
  out 
  from 
  the 
  camp 
  to 
  four 
  designated 
  

   places 
  in 
  the 
  direction 
  of 
  the 
  four 
  cardinal 
  points. 
  The 
  leader 
  bade 
  these 
  men 
  to 
  go 
  

   forth 
  as 
  directed 
  and 
  listen 
  for 
  the 
  howling 
  of 
  the 
  wolf. 
  Toward 
  midnight 
  a 
  man 
  in 
  

   the 
  camp 
  gave 
  the 
  cry 
  of 
  the 
  wolf; 
  he 
  was 
  answered 
  by 
  the 
  four 
  men 
  from 
  their 
  posts, 
  

   who 
  then 
  returned 
  to 
  the 
  camp 
  and 
  all 
  went 
  to 
  sleep. 
  The 
  guards 
  did 
  not 
  watch 
  all 
  

   night. 
  It 
  was 
  only 
  during 
  the 
  first 
  night 
  that 
  the 
  party 
  traveled; 
  after 
  that 
  the 
  men 
  

   rested 
  at 
  night 
  and 
  went 
  forward 
  by 
  day. 
  On 
  a 
  morning 
  when 
  the 
  party 
  were 
  near 
  their 
  

   destination, 
  the 
  Pack 
  they 
  had 
  carried 
  was 
  opened 
  ceremonially 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  

   instructions 
  given 
  the 
  leader 
  and 
  eight 
  men 
  were 
  selected 
  and 
  sent 
  out 
  as 
  scouts; 
  

   two 
  were 
  to 
  turn 
  back 
  over 
  the 
  route 
  that 
  had 
  been 
  traveled 
  and 
  look 
  for 
  signs 
  of 
  

   people; 
  two 
  were 
  to 
  go 
  out 
  on 
  one 
  side, 
  two 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  side, 
  and 
  two 
  were 
  to 
  keep 
  

   in 
  advance 
  of 
  the 
  party. 
  The 
  two 
  in 
  the 
  rear 
  were 
  to 
  follow 
  at 
  night 
  and 
  rejoin 
  the 
  

   party, 
  which, 
  thus 
  protected 
  in 
  the 
  rear, 
  on 
  the 
  flanks 
  and 
  in 
  front, 
  traveled 
  on 
  all 
  the 
  

   day. 
  

  

  When 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  scouts 
  discovered 
  a 
  village 
  where 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  chance 
  to 
  obtain 
  

   booty 
  or 
  other 
  trophies 
  of 
  war, 
  he 
  at 
  once 
  ran 
  to 
  report 
  to 
  the 
  leader, 
  singing 
  this 
  song 
  

   as 
  he 
  advanced 
  toward 
  the 
  war 
  party: 
  

  

  