518 THE PAWNEE: MYTHOLOGY. 
with his flute out around village. He does this for four nights, whereupon girl he 
especially loves appears and follows him to his lodge, where she remains all the next 
day. Girl’s relatives hunt her, and young man and girl set out to journey toward 
east, until they come to swamp, where girl sees two goslings. These she rears as 
pets, making moccasins for them in winter and feeding them corn and dried meat. 
Husband goes off and returns with ponies, being watched in meantime by one of 
geese. Eventually they return to their village, where they make their lodge at edge. 
They invite people, who see geese at entrance. They are astonished, because geese 
act like human beings. Girl’s father is now proud of his son-in-law. They live 
together, keeping homely young man with them. One of geese dies, while other flies 
away, first telling them that they are to have two children, one of which will die 
young, and other will live to be great. Years after, girl gives birth to boy, and then 
another. One grows up to be young man and dies; other becomes great warrior. 
Chief offers to make him chief, but he declines, remaining great medicine-man, and 
founding Geese medicine-lodge. His father and mother die of old age and he 
becomes leading medicine-man, also dying of old age after being father of many 
children. 
84. THE WONDERFUL BOY WHO KILLED HIS FATHER. 
Sleight-of-hand performances are continued for many months in medicine- 
lodge. Stranger comes and shows great skill. Leading Medicine-Man relates at 
home of stranger’s skill, and his son asks his mother to help him enter lodge. She 
protests, for boy is too young as yet and has received no instructions from his father. 
Boy leads his mother to creek, where she is told to bathe. While in water boy turns 
into swan. On way home they take two squashes. His mother makes booth for 
him in medicine-lodge. Therein squashes are rid of their seeds and boy fills them 
with swan down. Seeds are buried west of village. In night during perfomance boy 
asks assistance of medicine-men. Two young men assist him, they are given knives, 
and cut two squashes in two, which now appear whole again. His mother brings in 
bowl of water, boy sings, and squirts water upon squashes, thereby forming pool 
under them, whereupon squashes sing like swans. They become swans and follow 
him. He puts his hand on their necks and they are again squashes. All rejoice over 
power of youngman. Young man’s father worries over great power boy has shown 
and hurries ceremony to end. People prepare for buffalo hunt, cacheing their food. 
On hunt young man is told to stay by his father, especially should he run after 
buffalo cow. Man follows cow far away from crowd, leaves boy to skin cow, claim- 
ing his preference to look for enemy, and shoots his son, who, when he recognizes 
that it is his father who has shot him, dies. Returning home at night with meat, 
he pretends to know nothing about his son’s whereabouts, and mourns his death. 
On night of return to their village young man quietly enters his lodge, awakens his 
mother, tells her to keep quiet, and goes to his uncle’s lodge. News spreads that 
young man hasreturned. His father sends for him, offering him his medicines, etc., 
and enlisting his wife’s aid, but boy refuses to return. When mother visits boy he 
tells her what has happened to him; that after his death he found himself in Swim- 
ming Mound, where his swans had taken him. They plan tokillman. Boy takes 
from his bundle a bone of a sunfish, and blows his breath upon it. Thus bone 
flies into man and kills him. Boy grows up to be great medicine-man. 
