BOURKE. ] THE GHOST DANCE HEADDRESS. 585 
buttons. These three dancers were naked to the waist, and wore beau- 
tiful kilts of frmged buckskin bound on with sashes, and moccasins 
reaching tothe knees. In this guise they jumped into the center of the 
great circle of spectators and singers and began running about the fire 
shrieking and muttering, encouraged by the shouts and the singing, and 
by the drumming and incantation of the chorus which now swelled forth 
at full lung power. 
THE SPIRIT OR GHOST DANCE HEADDRESS. 
As the volume of music swelled and the cries of the on-lookers became 
fiercer, the dancers were encouraged to the enthusiasm of frenzy. They 
darted about the circle, going through the motions of looking for an 
enemy, all the while muttering, mumbling, and singing, jumping, sway- 
ing, and whirling like the dancing Dervishes of Arabia. 
Their actions, at times, bore a very considerable resemblance to the 
movements of the Zuni Shalako at the Feast of Fire. Klashidn told 
me that the orchestra was singing to the four willow branches planted 
nearthem. This would indicate a vestige of tree worship, such as is to 
be noticed also at the sun dance of the Sioux. 
At intervals, the three dancers would dart out of the ring and disap- 
pear in the darkness, to consult with the spirits or with other medicine- 
men seated a considerable distance from the throng. Three several times 
they appeared and disappeared, always dancing, running, and whirling 
about with increased energy. Having attained the degree of mental or 
spiritual exaltation necessary for communion with the spirits, they took 
their departure and kept away for at least half an hour, the orchestra 
during their absence rendering a mournful refrain, monotonous asafuneral 
dirge. My patience became exhausted and I turned to go to my quar- 
ters. <A thrill of excited expectancy ran through the throng of Indians, 
and I saw that they were looking anxiously at the returning medicine- 
men. All the orchestra now stood up, their leader (the principal medi- 
cine-man) slightly in advance, holding a branch of cedar in his left 
hand. The first advanced and bending low his head murmured some 
words of unknown import with which the chief seemed to be greatly 
pleased. Then the chief, taking his stand in front of the orchestra on 
the east side of the grove or cluster of trees, awaited the final cere- 
mony, which was as follows: The three dancers in file and in proper 
order advanced and receded three times; then they embraced the chief 
in such a manner that the sticks or wands held in their hands came 
behind his neck, after which they mumbled and muttered a jumble of 
sounds which I can not reproduce, but which sounded for all the world 
like the chant of the “‘hooter” at the Zuni Feast of Fire. They then 
pranced or danced through the grove three times. This was repeated 
for each point of the compass, the chief medicine-man, with the orches- 
tra, taking a position successively on the east, south, west, and north 
and the three dancers advancing, receding, and embracing as at first. 
