178 
SPORT AND WAR. 
CHAP. XX. 
selected from the remainder. The 4 wise man ’ then 
disrobed, retaining only a girdle round his loins, and 
walked into the river up to his waist, when a young lad 
brought him the several portions of the sacrificed lamb 
which he placed reverently and quietly on the surface 
of the water and then withdrew his hands. Sometimes 
the portion floats up stream on the surface of the 
river until apparently received by the spirit, the 
water opening as it were to accept the atonement. 
At other times the portion is washed down the cur¬ 
rent at once. All these indications were watched most 
religiously by the assembly, which rejoiced or des¬ 
ponded according to the indication. 
On this occasion the indications, in the minds of 
the people, were conclusive that the spirit had accepted 
the sacrifice as an atonement, and was propitiated; 
and the assembled relatives and friends returned to the 
post rejoicing; hut what is more strange than all the 
rest is, that Elsie had recovered her reason by the time 
the procession returned to the post. 
In this case the natives would say that Elsie had 
only struggled with the spirit; but they relate numbers 
of instances where the Water Spirit has taken her vic¬ 
tims to the palaces inhabited by the water spirits under 
the water. The legend is that you must not weep or 
wail for those that are taken—if you only believe and 
wait patiently they will be returned to you alive and 
