HOW THE PAWNEE GOT THE EAGLE DANCE. 395 
was not watched by other people. When he would reach the place he 
would find many eagle feathers scattered over a high hill, and before 
gathering them up he would stand on the top of the hill where a soft downy 
feather seemed to be placed. There he would standandcry. Heheardno 
strange noise, neither was he put to sleep in order to be taken into the 
lodge of the animals, and he knew all the time that he received no power 
from anyone. He would stop crying, gather the feathers and take them 
home. The first feathers he found he placed all over his robe. 
At this time, when the people had their village upon the Republican 
River, this man decided to learn what was in the hill where he found so 
many eagle feathers. He studied and thought what he should do for the 
animals that were in the hill. At last he made up his mind. One 
evening he went out where the children were playing and there he found 
his nephew playing with the other children. This little boy thought a 
great deal of his uncle. He used to follow him around through the 
_ village. When the boy saw his uncle he ran up to him and asked to be 
taken home. The man put the child upon his back and carried him off. 
When they were gone many days the man told the boy that they were 
going to a wonderful place. When the boy was taken away, the parents 
looked for him all through the village, but they could not find him. 
After a while the uncle came back, but the child was not with him. 
Then the people knew that the child must be lost. The uncle, upon 
reaching the wonderful place with the child upon his back, saw many 
feathers scattered over the hill. He went up to where the downy feather 
was, stood there, and cried. As he cried he took the child from his back. 
He placed the child upon the downy feathers and said: ‘‘To whatever 
being is in this place, I now give you my nephew to devour. For this 
present I want you to take pity on me and give me the power which you 
possess, and teach me why these feathers are scattered over this hill.” 
As he let the boy go, the boy dropped into a hole, for where the soft 
downy feather was placed was really an opening for the eagles to fly in 
and out. As the boy fell into the hole the man began to cry, and although 
he cried for several days he saw that he would receive no powers from 
anybody. He began to walk around and pick up the feathers.. After- 
wards he went home. 
When the boy was dropped into the hole all the Eagles in the den 
gave a whistling sound, jumped up, and looked at the boy. The Eagles 
_ began to talk among themselves and say: ‘‘This is wrong. This man 
who has been visiting our place has stolen his own nephew and has placed 
him in. our den in order that we might feast upon him. He has given us 
this boy. The man who has been visiting us has received from us many 
