LAFLESCHE] BITE OF VIGIL FREE TRANSLATION. 369 



FEEE TRANSLATION. 

 1. 



Lo, I come home, having slain the enemy, 

 Causing their bodies to redden the earth. 



2. 



Lo, I come liome, having .slain the enemy. 

 Their bodies lie scattered and gray on the earth. 



Lo, I come home, having slain the enemy, 

 Their bodies turn vellow as thev lie on the earth. 



Lo, I come home, having slain the enemy, 

 Their whitened bones lie scattered on the earth. 



Songs of Laying Down the Wa-xo'-be. 



The Ancient No'''-ho"-zhi"-ga gave to the fifth stanza of Song 3 a 

 distinctive subtitle, and in the table of contents of the ritual, which 

 they memorized with the aid of counting sticks, they fixed a place 

 for it as a song separate from the Arrow Songs. The first word of 

 the title, Gthi, means The Return, that is, the triumphant return of 

 a successful Do-do" '-ho°-ga to his home. The second word, I-he-the, 

 means The Putting Down, that is, the putting down of his Wa-xo'-be 

 in its ceremonial place in the house; Wa-tho°, Song. The added 

 dignity of a song was thus given to the stanza because of the por- 

 tentous significance of the dramatic movements that accompany it. 



At the close of the fourth stanza of Song 3, the A'-ki-ho" Xo'-ka 

 pauses in his singing, during which the Sho'-ka takes the symbolic 

 bow and the arrows from the Xo'-ka, removes from his back the 

 Wa-xo'-be and places on the upturned palms of the Xo'-ka the 

 sacred bird (PL 17). When the change in the attire of the Xo'-ka 

 is completed the A'-ki-ho" Xo'-ka begins to sing the song of the 

 Laying Down of the Wa-xo'-be. 



Song. 



Lo, I come home, having slain the enemv, 



I have made them to fall, to lie low on the earth. 



The Xo'-ka, still holding the bird, renews his dance, keeping step 

 to the music as he rhythmically moves from side to side. At the 

 final note of the song the Xo'-ka, with a dramatic movement of his 

 arms, drops to earth the Wa-xo'-be, the tribal emblem of the courage 

 of the warrior. At that instant the Sho'-ka hastens to the spot 

 Avhere the bird fell, while from every side of the lodge arises the 

 3594°— 25t 24 



