626 SENECA FICTION, LEGENDS, AND MYTHS [eth. ann.32 



beautiful flowers, which supplied the light of that upper world; 

 and they &aw the plants and the shrubs and bushes full of fruits of 

 all kinds, all growing luxuriantly. Never before had they seen paths 

 so fine leading in various directions; and they beheld along these 

 paths the trees whose overhanging boughs, loaded with blossoms, 

 were scented with all manner of fragrance. 



They beheld all figures of human beings (on'gwe) promenading 

 along the paths from place to place, but they realized that these were 

 shades (or shadows), and that consequently it was not possible to 

 hold conversation with them. Farther along in their ramble they 

 came to a village which was inhabited, there being many lodges in 

 different places in the manner of a village of human beings. In 

 passing through the village one of the hosts, addressing Dehaen- 

 hyowens, said : " In this lodge, standing here apart, your mother 

 dwells. She was still on the earth below when you and your party 

 left on this journey; but she started for this country soon after you 

 had departed therefrom. Here also dwell your relations — all those 

 who were able to observe the customs of their ancestors during the 

 time they dwelt on the earth below." 



Then they went back to the place where the old woman awaited 

 their return. On entering the lodge they said to her : " We have now 

 i-eturned from our ramble," to which she i-eplied : " I have quite com- 

 pleted my pi'eparations. Now you must start on your journey 

 homeward, and the men of the lodge will accompany j'ou part of the 

 way. In going home you must pass around by the place where abides 

 the Light Orb that travels by day. Let them see Him too. May your 

 dreams foreshadow your safe arrival home." 



Thereupon they departed from the lodge of the old woman. Not 

 far distant from the home of their hosts there stood a lodge. One of 

 their hosts told Dehaenhyowens and his friends that that was the 

 lodge of the Sun. " Thence," they said, " he starts to give light to 

 the world beneath this one." Having reached the lodge, they entered 

 it, and within they saw the Sun engaged in cooking chestnut-meal 

 mush. One of the men of Thunder said: " We are now on our jour- 

 ney, accompanying these human beings part of their way home. We 

 are taking these men back to the earth below this one. The reason 

 that we have come around this way is that we desired to have you 

 and them see one another." Then the Master of the lodge, raising 

 his voice, said to his visitors: " It is I, indeed, who has met with you, 

 and it is I whom you habitually call in your ceremonies, 

 ' Ho'sge°'age"dag6wa, He-the-Great-W^ar-Chief, and our Elder 

 Brother, the Diurnal Orb of Light. I have just completed my usual 

 pi-eparations for the journey on which I am about to start. Further- 

 more, just as soon as you depart hence I will start on my journey to 

 make the earth below light and warm again." 



