244 THE HAKO, A PAWNEE CEREMONV [eth. ANN.;i2 



represent the circle Tira'wa atiiis lias made for the dwellinj^ place of 

 all the people. The circles also stand for the kinship gronp, the 

 clan, and the tribe. 



The down represents tJie light clouds near the dwelling place of 

 Tira'wa — the dome of the skj' over the dwelling place of the people — 

 and it stands for the protection of Tira'wa. WJien there is no down 

 to be had, white ashes can be used. I do not know what the ashes 

 mean, but I think they are to make the outline distinct and to repre- 

 sent the white down. 



The nests arc four, because at the four directions are the paths 

 down which tlic powers from above descend. The four winds guard 

 these paths and protect the life of man. 



After tlic four nests are made, the feathered stems are laid at rest. 



The Ku'rahus then takes bits of fat which have been preserved 

 from an animal consccratetl to Tira'wa and puts them with some native 

 tobacco into an oriole's nest and hands the nest to the chief, who con- 

 ceals it in his hands. 



The bits of fat represent the droppings that mark the trail made 

 by the hunters as they carry the meat home from the field. 'J'his trail 

 is called the path dropping fatness, and means plenty. Fat, there- 

 fore, stands for the promise of abundant food. 



The oriole's nest is used because Tira'wa made this bird build its 

 nest so that no hai'in could come to it. It hangs high, is skillfully 

 made, and is secure. An eagle's ni^st may be torn away by a storm, 

 but the oriole's nest sways in the wind and is not hurt. 



Part II. Symbolic FulfUjMENT 

 Explanaiioii hij tlte Ku'rahus 



Now ;i robe is spread on the ground and the child is placed on it 

 with his feet and legs projecting beyond the edge. Four men are 

 appointed to carry tin; child. One goes on each side and takes hold 

 of the robe and lifts it; a man at the back ojf the child steadies it as 

 it is raised and carried, while the fourth man holds another robe over 

 its feet and legs. 



The chief and the Ku'rahus precede the child to the circle at the 

 northwest, where it is held over the nest so that its feet rest within 

 the circle. The chief puts his hands under the robe held over the 

 child's legs and drojis the oriole's nest witliin the circle so that the 

 child's feet rest on it. No one but the chief and the Ku'rahus 

 know w-hat is being done beneath the robe. The chief takes up the 

 nest, co7icealing it from view, and goes to the circle at the northeast, 

 to which the child has also been carried, and in the same way places 

 its feet on it. The same act is repeated at the circles in the south- 

 east and th(> southwest. 



Th(! child r(>presents the young generation, the continuation of life, 



