182 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bull. 194 



Out was owner of the bundle at Awaxawi where the Kit Fox society- 

 was organized and served as one of the singers. He was the only 

 member of the society to survive the epidemic of 1837. He sold the 

 society to a group of young married men at Fishhook Village after the 

 society had been inactive for a number of years. Because of the 

 "friendship" bond between this society and the women's Goose 

 society, owners of this society were reluctant to sell until the members 

 of the buying group had married, since women of the Goose society 

 were married. Instead, when the selling society thought that the 

 prospective buyers were too young, the price was set high enough to 

 discourage purchase. This practice tended to slow up purchase, 

 during which time the younger groups would generally buy into either 

 the Crazy Dog or Little Dog societies. It was customary for young 

 men of Hidatsa and Awatixa to move from the Stone Hammer to the 

 Little Dog while waiting to reach the age for entering either the Kit 

 Fox or the Crazy Dog. During the 19th century, after the union of 

 the three groups at Fishhook Village, the Little Dog and the Kit Fox 

 were in competition for position intermediate to the Crazy Dog and 

 Lumpwood societies. In spite of the prominent role of the dog in the 

 sacred myths and rites, the Little Dog society lost popularity as the 

 Kit Fox society expanded its membership with each successive sale. 

 At present (1932), the Kit Fox society is one of the few surviving 

 societies. 



Of the entire series for the three original villages, the Notched 

 Stick, Stone Hammer, and Crazy Dog societies were owned by boys 

 and young men whose members were predominantly unmarried. 

 There was no ceremonial surrender of wives even when some of the 

 members of the purchasing group had already married. Another 

 feature of these societies reserved to younger men was the practice 

 of employing singers of the older age-grade societies. As a rule, 

 the society paid its singers to officiate until either they learned the 

 songs and dances or the singers and members tired of each other. 



The purchase pattern for societies higher in the age-grade structure 

 than the Crazy Dog society was essentially the same as for the 

 younger men except that surrender of wives to the buyers became the 

 rule. Those who were unmarried but otherwise qualified and accepted 

 by the purchasing group were not, however, disqualified since it was 

 the duty of any clansman asked to supply a wife for the occasion. 

 The Hidatsa interpret age-grade purchase from an older age group 

 as a means of acquiring additional supernatural powers through 

 participation in various ceremonial activities not a part of the age- 

 grade series. The purchase provided an opportunity for an older 

 man to "bless" his "sons" by means of ceremonial sexual licenses 

 with the giver's wife. This practice is not unique to age-grade 



