CHAPTER. Tk. 
THE KAROK, CONTINUED. 
The first of September brings a red-letter day in the Karok ephem- 
eris, the great Dance of Propitiation, at which all the tribe are present, 
together with deputations from the Yurok, the Hti-pa, and others. They 
call it sif’-san-di pik-i-d-vish, (at Happy Camp, szi-san-ni nik-i-d-vish), which 
signifies, literally, “‘working the earth”. The object of it is to propitiate 
the spirits of the earth and the forest, in order to prevent disastrous land- 
slides, forest fires, earthquakes, drought, and other calamities. 
All the villages are then deserted, left unprotected and undefended, for 
all the women and all the children and the old men must attend the grand 
anniversary. They come in fleets of canoes up and down the Klamath, or 
on foot in joyous throngs along the trails beside the river, the squaws bring- 
ing in their baskets victuals enough to last their families as long as possible, 
a fortnight or more. But singular to say, neither on this nor on any other 
occasion do they have any feasting. Each family partake of their own 
plain messes, though the greatest generosity prevails, and strangers or per- 
sons without families are freely invited to share their simple repasts of dried 
salmon and acorn-bread or panada. 
Some Frenchman has said we have a hundred religions and one gravy. 
The California Indians have a hundred dances and one acorn-porridge. 
In the first place an Indian of a robust frame, able to endure the terri- 
ble ordeal of fasting to which he is subjected, goes away into the mountains 
with an attendant to remain ten days. He is called the Kareya Indian, 
which may be translated almost literally “‘God-man”; and their evident be- 
lief is that by the keen anguish he undergoes, he propitiates the spirits vi- 
cariously in behalf of the whole tribe. During these ten days he partakes 
of nothing whatever, theoretically, though in case of extreme suffering it is 
probable that he takes a little acorn-porridge or pinole; but he must abstain 
28 
