256 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bull. 194 



two leaders rode double. One day they found two women and a berdache digging 

 wild turnips on the prairie. Until they were near they thought they were women, 

 for all three Sioux were dressed alike. Before making the attack, Four Bears told 

 his party that they would strike coups on the women but spare their lives. Four 

 Bears got ahead of the others and struck both but the berdache was brave, saying, 

 "You can't kill me for I am holy. I will strike coups on you with my digging 

 stick." 



Then the berdache sang a sacred song and chased them. Four Bears shot an 

 arrow at the berdache but it would not penetrate the robe. Then he knew that 

 the berdache had great supernatural powers. Since he had been successful on 

 all other military expeditions and did not want to spoil his luck, he called his 

 party back. The expedition was successful, for they got the horse. Four Bears 

 used good judgment, for it was hard to kill a berdache since they were holy. 

 Later Poor "Wolf bought his clan brother's Bullet rites. 



Later the Assiniboin learned from the Whites that the Hidatsa were dying of 

 smallpox and decided to come and kill off the Hidatsa, for then they would have a 

 large territory on the Missouri River. At that time the Awatixa and Awaxawi 

 were at Snake Creek on the bend above the mouth of Knife River and many of 

 the Hidatsa-proper were around Sanish where they went to escape the smallpox. 

 The head men selected Raven Paunch as chief of the scouts to locate and watch 

 the movements of the Assiniboin camp, for they had their women and children 

 along. He found the Assiniboin on Stevenson Flats. The police were on guard 

 all night, and in the morning the men, numbering about 50 and constituting all 

 who had survived the smallpox, hid near the trail the Assiniboin would take. 



Seven Bears told the men that they should kill all the Assiniboin men and older 

 boys they could, but to spare the women and children for many of the Awaxawi 

 and Awatixa had lost their wives and families with smallpox. If they could take 

 the women prisoners, there would soon be many children in the tribe again. In 

 the battle, taking the Assiniboin by surprise, the men were all killed off and about 

 60 women and children were taken. They were taken back to the village and 

 traded around so that all the single men had wives. Some escaped from time to 

 time but the people never looked for them, thinking that they had children at 

 home they wanted to see. Many of the people in the tribe today are the descen- 

 dants of these women and children taken at that time, but the people never tell 

 if a person is the descendant of a captive for it would hurt his record in the tribe. 

 In this way, young male descendants of captives and Hidatsa fathers have the 

 same chance as the other boys. 



When they got back to camp, they found that Four Bears had been shot through 

 the body. His clan brother, One Buffalo, went among his clans-people asking 

 assistance so they could engage a doctor. They gave robes, war bonnets, guns, 

 and one horse. Then One Buffalo went to Cherry Necklace with the pipe and 

 asked him to doctor Four Bears. Cherry Necklace instructed One Buffalo to 

 bring in four of the round hand-drums. Then he dressed in his medicine objects, 

 the otter, and went to Four Bear's lodge where all the people were gathered. He 

 said to the people, "Do not let any dogs into the lodge for that is a rule when I 

 doctor. If a dog gets in, my patient will die. The Waterbusters selected one 

 of their members to sit at the door and keep the dogs out. 



Four young men were selected to use the round hand-drums and sing the holy 

 songs with Cherry Necklace. Then he said to the people, "Go over to the river 

 bank and see how I am going to do this." 



Cherry Necklace and Four Bears were naked with only an otter skin on Cherry 

 Necklace's head. They went to the river where Four Bears was led into the water 

 until they were in the water to the depth of Four Bear's belt where he was wounded. 



