THE WARRIOR AND THE BLACK LIGHTNING ARROW. 83 
the valley he would go up on a high hill, and would pray to the gods to 
give him power and to help him to be successful in finding the villages 
of the enemy. The other young men promised to stay in the valley 
while he went up onto the hill, and so he started. His absence gave the 
warriors a chance to hunt through the ravines and upon the mountains, 
and they were successful. They killed game and brought it into their 
camp. In the meantime the leader of the war party was upon the 
high hill praying. He went up on the high hill in the afternoon, and he 
stood there until dark, offering his prayers to the different gods in the 
heavens. When night came he ceased praying and began tocry. For 
three days and three nights he stood crying and asking help from the 
gods in the heavens. The fourth night he noticed a dark cloud com- 
ing up from the west. Then he cried louder. After a while the cloud 
passed all over the sky and darkness overspread the earth. The young 
man faced the west. He had his robe over his shoulders, tied around 
his waist with a buffalo-hair lariat rope. As he stood thus the light- 
ning flashed and then it thundered, and as it thundered the boy fell 
over and knew no more. 
In the morning he awoke, as he thought, from a deep sleep. He 
found upon his breast a little black arrow about six inches long, with 
a point of the finest flint and shaft of black stone, and the end of stone 
so fine that it looked like feathers. The young man knew that Light- 
ning had given him this arrow, to let him know that he was to be suc- 
cessful in all his undertakings while upon the war-path. The boy took 
the arrow and hid it under his robe and went down the hill. 
The other warriors saw him coming and they were glad. They seated 
him by the fire, gave him water that they had brought up in a buffalo 
bladder, washed him, and gave him some meat to eat. After he had 
eaten he told the warriors that he had received something from Light- 
ning, the wonderful god. After he had eaten he sat down to the west of 
the fireplace and placed the arrow in front of him, then asked for a pipe 
and some native tobacco. When he received the tobacco he arose, 
lighted the pipe, and began tosmoke. He stood west of the fireplace, and 
blew one whiff straight up to the sky, then four to the west, at the same 
time thanking the gods in the west for the arrow that they had given him. 
After thanking the gods he walked up to the arrow and gave it four 
whiffs, saying: ‘‘My brother, you came to me from the gods and I am 
thankful that you are with me. I shall always carry you upon my body. 
If I neglect to care for you, then you may return to the gods.’’ When 
he had finished he dumped the ashes out in front of the arrow and waved 
his hands over the arrow four times. Then he sat down. He took a 
