372 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bull. 194 



since the Grandfather snake was formerly one of the Two Men. He 

 could doctor, using the sacred arrows for opening wounds, and he 

 could remove arrows. He derived his authority to use black medicine 

 for doctoring from Two Men who were represented in the bundle 

 by the snakeskin. 



Bullboat-making rites were iuherited with the bundle, and those 

 desiring to make bullboats paid the bundle owner for these rights. 

 When the sale was made, the bundle owner sang the sacred song 

 "belonging to the bullboat" for safe passage on the water. There- 

 after, whenever a new bullboat was completed, the song was sung and 

 prayers were directed to Grandfather and the other six water gods. 



Important rainmaking rites were performed with the bundle. 

 These rites stem from native beliefs that moisture for the native 

 vegetation and the gardens comes both from the sky and the streams 

 and lakes. Likewise, the sky and the water gods both possess light- 

 ning. Snakes are generally associated with precipitation: One of Old- 

 Woman-Who-Never-Dies' husbands, a giant snake, was put into 

 Short Missouri and maintains the water level of that pond; Grand- 

 father snake maintains the level of the Missouri; another large snake 

 associated with the Little Missouri maintains the flow of that stream 

 and, by means of his supernatural powers, provided good hunting 

 along its banks. Other traditional snakes maintain the lakes of the 

 area and when a lake dried it was said that either the snake died or 

 had moved away. And, of course, Old-Woman-Who-Never-Dies is 

 protected by four large snakes on her island in the southland. The 

 same concepts are extended to include small streams, many of which 

 are thought to be the particular home of the seven water spirits. 

 In other instances, men have been known to fast at certain small 

 springs or streams in an effort to learn which spirit made his home 

 there. When one of the seven spirits "revealed" itself, this knowledge 

 often became a part of the sacred lore of the group. It has been 

 "revealed" through fasting that a giant frog lives in the spring near 

 Tom Smith's home. The large spring on the Little Knife Creek is 

 the home of an otter which was "revealed" to Crow-Flies-High. 



It was believed that on cloudy days during the hot weather of the 

 summer, the Big Birds produced clouds as they flew about looking 

 for snakes and other spirits inhabiting the various bodies of water 

 situated on the land. Then occurred the contests such as transpired 

 at intervals throughout the mythological period. Natives have 

 observed that lightning is sent down on these occasions by the Big 

 Birds and is returned by the snakes and the six other animals who 

 make their home in the water. 



Bundle owners were authorized to doctor for rheumatism and 

 stiffness and had the power to remove snakes, usually occurring as 



