ccsHiNG) BESEECHING OF PAIYATUMA. 441 



bead over its sacred completeness and beanty. Then he took up 

 another, that of the west, then the red of the south and the white of 

 the east. And gathering them in his arms he said, turning to go, 

 " Now verily we approach." 



As he thus turned to go, Pekwina the master. Speaker of the Sun, 

 who, all wise, well knew the meauing of these lying speeches, arose, 

 and taking two plumes, the banded wing-tip feathers of the turkey, the 

 right and the left, shifted them as he advanced toward Paiyatuma, 

 taking the left one in his right hand and the right one in his left hand. 

 And Hearing Paiyatuma he stroked him with the tips of the feathers, 

 upward, breathing from them each time. Four times he stroked him, 

 and then laid the feathers on his lips. And Paiyatuma spat upon 

 them and breathed upon them, and all the people spat by his sign of 

 command, uprising. Then the master-priest took the right feather in his 

 right hand and the left feather in his left, and casting abroad the lying 

 spittle, himself spat lightly and blew upon the feathers, aiid with them 

 stroked the lips, then the person, of Paiyatuma, this time downward, 

 breathing upon them. And this he did four times, and the face of Pai- 

 yatuma grew grave, and he lifted himself upward ; and when he had so 

 uplifted himself, lo ! he was aged and grand and straight, as is a tall 

 tree shorn by lightnings. Then placing the plume wands in the hands 

 of the father, he took the banded plumes from him and breathed in from 

 them, and out on the hands of the father, and folding his arms held 

 upright in each baud the feather pertaining thereto. Then he spake: 



"Thanks this day, thou father of the i)eo])le. Thou art wise of thought 

 and good of heart, divining that my evil of speech and act were but the 

 assumption of the evils in thy children who, had they not turned false 

 to good and fickle of their duties commanded, had else been followers of 

 thee as are the fawns unerringly followers of the deer in the mountains 

 and plains; and whose falsity, therefore lyiugly, as it were, I did take 

 unto myself and spit forth that they might be tiu'ned unto thee yet 

 again and set straight in the paths of right commandment. From out 

 of me, haply, thou hast now withdrawn the breath of reversal, and from 

 out of me the speech of lying, even as thy children Iiave spat forth, by 

 my will and example, their wronging of commandments. 



"Thanks this day; and therefore, in that ye, O, ye fathers, have 

 kept thine hearts steadfastly right and straight of inclination, there- 

 fore will we show unto ye the light of our favor. 



"Verily I will summon from Summerland, for there methinks they 

 bide, once more the beautiful maidens, that ye look once more upon them 

 and make oflering in plumes of sacrifice mieet for them, and that they 

 consummate the seedfulness of the seed of seeds, presenting them all 

 perfected, to ye; for lost are they as dwellers amongst ye, even as I 

 warned ye aforetime they would be, if not held precious of person. 



"Disperse, therefore, from this thy custom when ye shall have com- 

 pleted as is due and meet the song-lines and sacred speeches, and tlie 



