26 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY 
Mr. Francis La Flesche, ethnologist, was engaged during 
the year in the further study of the tribal rites of the 
Osage Indians in Oklahoma. These rites are regarded by 
the Osage as mysterious, and being held in great awe by 
the tribe are very difficult to obtain, even by their own 
members. Instances are pointed out where, in the belief 
of the Osage, persons in officiating at ceremonies made 
mistakes in the form or in the recitation of the rituals and 
in the singing of the songs, and have therefore become 
insane, or blind, or have met with violent death. The mur- 
der of Saucy Calf, a man of high standing in his tribe, 
and the burning of his house last winter are attributed by 
his people to the fact that he gave away certain rituals 
and songs of the sacred tribal ceremonies. From Saucy 
Calf Mr. La Flesche had obtained the entire first degree 
of the No*ho"zhi"ga rites, and while the two were together 
the old seer frequently expressed the fear that some harm 
might come to him for parting with these religious secrets. 
By reason of the superstitious awe in which these sacred 
rites are held, Mr. La Flesche’s studies in this particular 
have been necessarily slow, since it was essential for him 
first to gain the full confidence of those versed therein. 
Notwithstanding this difficulty, he has been fortunate 
enough to procure the full ritual of the Hibernating of 
the Black Bear, which pertains to the origin of the seven 
and six war honors of the tribe, and is recited by the men 
members of the No"ho*zhi"ga of the Black Bear clan at the 
sacred-bundle ceremony when the warrior chosen recounts 
his war honors and takes up the seven and six willow sap- 
lings to count and the songs of this part of the ceremony 
ure being sung by the officiating priest. A related ritual, 
which tells of the rearing of a child to the completion of its 
life, is recited when a widow is being initiated into the 
No*ho"zhi*ga to take the place of her husband; but Mr. 
La Flesche has not yet been able to record this, owing to 
the dread inspired by the death of Saucy Calf. However, 
after considerable difficulty he succeeded in obtaining six 
rituals from Waxrizhi, whose father, who died about a 
