MICHELSON. ] ORIGIN OF THE WHITE BUFFALO DANCE, IB YWe 
“Then I was instructed in this: ‘Now you may commence telling 
each and every one of them,’ that was what I was told. That is 
why I freely have been instructing you. As the manitou told me is 
the way I told you. He did not bless me alone. The manitou 
himself is constantly thinking about our name (i. e., our gens). But 
he has personally instructed me, not you, of course. That I should 
instruct you, he desires of me. He must have thought that I am 
upright, that is why I was recollected. I have told you this in an 
upright manner, just as if you were listening to the ones who blessed 
me. Now, speak quietly to these, your children, in the future. 
Speak to them only in a right way. 
“This is practically the one thing which is good, the gens festival. 
You should attract their heads” here. There is not any secret 
about it. Now you are many listening to me. I do not in any way 
whisper to you. I plainly tell you about it. 
“And then when I woke up, just as I started out, my dwelling 
began to crumble down. Then I went to where we had been dwelling. 
It was a fact that the people had just gotten over their sickness. 
I came exactly straight to my mother’s dwelling. Then we did not 
know each other. Later on we recognized each other. Then she 
told what happened to my father. I was not thinking very much 
about my father. It was he who was thinking about it. At first 
he must have been a good upright person. At that time probably 
he was thought of by the manitous. That was the reason he knew 
that I would be his child. Soon he took up a wicked thing to practice. 
“And then this was what I and this my mother did: we built 
this wickiup of ours. After we had” built it, then I walked about 
hunting. Somewhere over there I was sitting for a long time. Lo! 
here was a stick of wood. Soon I noticed it. Well! I almost recog- 
nized it. I picked it up. Goodness! It was a cedar stick. I 
looked at it closely. Lo! it was that flute. Then I went about 
holding it im my hand. I walked away, I do not know why. 
“Then again, I saw a red stone pipe on top of a rock. The pipe- 
stem was feathered. Then I took it and I certainly recognized it. 
“Then when I came where there was a view, as far as I could see, 
something was shining as bright as possible. Then, ‘Now I am going 
over to see that,’ I thought. I went over to see it and it looked 
just as sparkling as before. ‘ Well, what, pray, may it be?’ I thought. 
When I continued to come close to it it gradually ceased sparkling. 
When I continued going much closer, it ceased sparkling. Soon 
Icame to it. When I arrived there I saw that the rock was black 
as iron, very black, black as ashes. Then, there on it, was our 
sacred pack spread out. After looking at it very closely, I bundled 
62 The children’s. 
3599°—25T 
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