816 IROQUOIAN COSMOLOGY [kth. ann.43 



Answering these questions the old woman said, "It is indeed true 

 that such an event took place. I have heard my deceased grand- 

 mother customarily say that when she was still a child men to the 

 number of thirty started out on an expedition, but that they never 

 returned to their homes." And then after some moments of thinking 

 she added, "Probably the man who dwells yonder in that lodge, no^ 

 far away from here, remembers the whole matter, for he has been 

 living during an exceedingly long life; and so he probably is familiar 

 with the tradition about which you speak. So you had better visit 

 him and seek for further information from him." 



So De'hae'"hyo'we'"s and his companion again started on their 

 quest for some one who might know them. Reaching their new des- 

 tination they found the very old man, of whom the old woman had 

 spoken, and they asked him, "Do you remember an affair which took 

 place hitherto many years ago, in which warriors to the number of 

 thirty departed hence, going on an expedition along the path of the 

 Sun?" 



After a few moments of reflection the old man replied, "I remember 

 the matter full well. This is what took place: There lived a people 

 yonder, at some distance from here; and there is where this affair 

 took place; there were a number of young men who had grown up 

 together, and they were all about 16 years of age; and thirty of these 

 young men organized themselves into a war-party, binding them- 

 selves together by means of an oath, or vow. 



"And when they, had fully organized their troop, they caused the 

 people of the entire community to assemble at the Long-lodge of 

 public gatherings. And when the people were assembled in the 

 Long-lodge De'hae'"hyo'we°'s arose and said, "Now then, it shall be 

 made known to you who have assembled here that we have indeed 

 completed our preparations. We, young men, who are three tens 

 in number, have enlisted by 'notching the stick' to go out on an expe- 

 dition along the path of the Sun. We made the agreement strong, 

 for we commingled together our minds into unity; and so now it is 

 as if we had only a single head, only a single body of flesh, only a single 

 life, and we shall bleed as one person. Moreover, we now renounce 

 our kindred, and we also forswear our lives. 



"Moreover, we will now depart from here. We will direct our 

 course toward the sunsetting, for we desire to make an excursion to 

 the place of sunsetting — to the place where the Diurnal Light Orb 

 customarily promenades to and fro. Our band have appointed me 

 . and my dear brother to be their chiefs to lead them. We, too, have 

 made a solemn vow that no matter what the situation confronting us, 

 no matter what will be transpiring ahead of us, we will nevertheless 

 pass onward in our journey. 



"We have indeed enlisted in this matter seriously by 'notching 

 the stick,' and this is of course, as you well know, the pledge that 



