THE LIGHTNING’S MEDICINE CEREMONY. 273 
The corn came up. The people began to get ready for a hunt. The 
old men held their bundle ceremonies to secure from the gods success in 
hunting. When the man heard that the chiefs had given orders for the 
people to get ready to go on the buffalo hunt, he sent for his relatives. 
When they were seated in the lodge he told them to kill several kinds of 
snipe and crane, for he wanted their skins. He also told them to kill 
many buffalo, so that much meat would be dried and used in his new 
ceremony. With these instructions in their minds the people went on the 
buffalo hunt. It was summer, and they did not go very far before they 
found many buffalo. Much buffalo meat was brought to the man’s lodge. 
In the night the man invited the chiefs and braves of the tribe, and 
when they were all seated he said: ‘‘We are seated in my lodge. The 
young men are roasting some ribs by the fire. What I have in my mind 
the chiefs and braves must know. My daughter was killed by the heav- 
ens, and the thing that killed her is here with us.’’ The man rose and 
took up the stone and placed it in front of the chiefs and braves. ‘‘I 
have talked with this stone in my sleep for a long time, and now I have 
done all that it told me to do. I was placed upon Swimming-Mound 
and stayed there for several days. By the help of this stone I went into 
the animals’ lodge. The animals taught me many wonderful things and 
also taught me their songs. They also told me to have sleight-of-hand 
performances in my lodge that you have helped me build. Now, my 
friends have killed many buffalo; you see the meat in front of my lodge. 
The meat will bejerked and dried, putin parfleches and kept for the sleight- 
of-hand performances which we shall have for our people. When we 
return to our village corn will be plentiful as well asmeat. We shall have 
plenty to eat while we give the sleight-of-hand performances. I want 
the chiefs and braves to know that I will have something that will be new 
to our people.”’ The chiefs and braves were glad to hear what the man 
had to say; they now knew why so many men took meat to this man’s 
lodge. After they had eaten, they went home. 
When all of the people had returned from the hunt to the village, prep- 
aration was made to have sleight-of-hand performances. The women 
went to their fields and gathered corn to cure, and fires were made every- 
where to roast the corn. After the corn was cured the man sat down 
in his lodge. He sent for some of his relatives, from whom he selected 
two young men to act as errand men; the other men were seated. The 
two errand men were told to put their robes over their bodies, with the 
hair outside; then they were told to take eagle wings and brushes of 
wild sage and sweep out the lodge. When the lodge was swept out the 
man told the errand men to get some wild sage. They brought the 
