MICHELSON.] WHAT THEY DO WHEN THERE IS A DEATH. 883 
better of our enemy. By fasting for four days I easily killed him,” 
he said. That is what he related of his enemy. ‘‘So he is the one 
who will take care of you on your way there, who will bring you 
there, who will land you there in a straight line,’ that is what (the 
warriors) say about the one they killed, a Sioux, or any other. And 
then they danced, they danced a crow dance. And they imitated 
what they did when they slew their foes. That is what they did. 
Sometimes they would be on horseback or the way they actually did. 
I myself saw a (man) called Swaying Wings, when I was a boy, 
dancing when a dead person was laid to rest. He must have been 
riding horseback when he slew his enemy. He was straddling a stick. 
He was whipping it, showing what he did when he was riding horse- 
back. He was also crawling around, sneaking upon (his foe). After 
he dealt him a blow, he held his knife upwards and cut off his head; 
that is the way he pretended to do. After he had cut his head off, he 
struck (a post). And ‘‘ Well, I shall tell (of my experiences) in the 
south,” hesaid. ‘The men were talking of a Kaw over there,” he 
said. ‘What was the matter that you didn’t slay him?” he said to his 
friends. ‘Then I got my riding (horse). ‘I wish to be the man,’ I 
said to them,” he said. ‘‘When I got over the third hill, then Isaw 
my enemy walking along. Then I rode ahead of where he was going, 
to tie my horse. Then I ran crawling in the hollow, lying in wait. 
Soon surely the man came into view. When he came into view, I got 
ready beforehand with my gun. When he came very near I began 
to rise to my feet. He at once strung his bow. Then I shot him. 
The man fell on his back. He even bellowed like a buffalo. After 
he would stand up, I again went to attack him. ‘The buffaloes are 
the ones I easily kill,’ * I even thus said to him. Then I went to give 
him a fatal shot. After I killed him, I cut off his head. That is how 
I got the best of our enemy,’’ he said. ‘‘So this fellow shall take care 
of our corpse on the way,” he said, ‘‘he shall carry (the things) he 
takes for him on the way this day.’’ That is what this fellow called 
Swaying Wings said. 
That is one way they did when laying each other to rest, the way 
the relatives once did. I do not myself know if it is true. And at 
that time people when they died were buried out in the open in a 
sitting position. 
Now I shall relate about adoption-feasts, as that is in the line of 
‘death. But it is also a little different. They have performances all 
sorts of ways. 
2 Free translation. 3 Literally, shoot again and again. 
