hofkman] MYSTIC ORIGIN OF BALL GAME 133 



wrapped itself around the trunk and tightened its coils until Ma'nabush 

 was almost strangled, although he was able to endure the bites which 

 the Serpent inflicted on his head, neck, and arms. Before Ma'nabush 

 became entirely unconscious the Serpent uncoiled and glided down. 

 The Bear chiefs then believed that the tree was not Ma'nabush, so they 

 lay down near the trunk and caused the game to begin. After a long 

 and furious struggle the ball was carried so far from the starting point 

 that the Bear chiefs were left entirely alone, when in an instant Ma'na- 

 bush drew an arrow from the quiver hanging at his side, shot one into 

 the body of the silvery-white Bear chief, and another into the body of 

 the gray Bear chief. Then Ma'nabush resumed his human form and ran 

 for the sand bar. He had not proceeded far, however, when the defeated 

 ana'maqki'u returned, saw what had happened, and set out in pursuit 

 of Ma'nabush. The waters poured out of the ground and followed 

 with such speed that Mii/niibush was about being overtaken, when he 

 saw Ma'nakwo, the Badger, whom he begged to help secrete him in the 

 earth. The Badger took Mii'nabush down into the earth, and as he 

 burrowed threw the loose dirt behind him, which retarded the waters. 



The ana'maqki'u could nowhere find Ma'nabush, so they gave up the 

 pursuit, and just as the waters were sinking into the depths of the bur- 

 row, Ma'nabush and the Badger returned to the surface. 



When the ana'maqki'u returned to the ball ground, they took up their 

 wounded chiefs and carried them home, erecting at a short distance 

 from camp a sick lodge, in which the wounded were attended by a 

 mita' v or shaman. Fearing that Ma'nabush might return to complete 

 his work of destroying the two Bear chiefs, the ana'maqki'u began the 

 erection of a network of strands of basswood, which was to inclose 

 the entire sick lodge. When Ma'nabush came near the camp of the 

 ana'maqki'u, he met an old woman carrying a bundle of basswood bark 

 upon her back and asked her, "Grandmother, what have you on your 

 back?" The old woman replied, "You are Ma'nabush, and wish to kill 

 me." " No," he replied, " I am not Ma'nabush, for if I were Ma'nabush 

 I should have killed you at once, without asking you a question." So, 

 the old woman's fears being quieted, she began to relate to Mii'niibush 

 all of the troubles which had befallen the ana'maqki'u, adding, "We 

 have built a network of strands of basswood bark around the wigwam 

 in which the Bear chiefs are lying sick, so that if Mii'niibush should 

 come to kill them he would have to cut his way through it, which would 

 cause it to shake, when the ana'maqki'u would discover and kill him. 

 We have only a little more of the network to make, when it will be 

 complete." The old woman also told Mii'niibush that she herself was 

 the meta who attended to the two chiefs, and that no other person was 

 permitted to enter the wigwam. 



When Mii'niibush heard all this, he struck the old woman and killed 

 her, after which he removed her skin and got into it himself, took the 

 bundle of basswood bark on his back, and in this disguise passed unde- 

 tected into the sick lodge. Here he found the two Bear chief's with the 



