36 TRADITIONS OF THE ARIKARA. 
praying they all began to cry. But Mother-Corn had disappeared in 
the Missouri River, and had gone with the current. 
Many years afterwards, a woman returned to the village of the 
Arikara, and as the bundle ceremonies were being given the woman 
visited these ceremonies. At last, when she visited one ceremony, a 
man recognized her as Mother-Corn. He placed her under the bundle. 
She let them know that she was Mother-Corn, and she taught them 
many ceremonies and songs that night, and she said that she always 
would be present with them; that she would never forget them; and 
that the gods in the heavens had promised her and ther people length 
of life. That night Mother-Corn disappeared, and she has never been 
seen since. 
10. MOTHER-CORN’S VISIT TO THE ARIKARA. 
In olden times during time of need, it was the custom of the Ari- 
kara to have a ceremony in which some old man would make offerings 
to the gods and to the Mother-Corn. It seems that in this ceremony all 
the old men who were offering smoke wanted the Mother-Corn to come, 
so that they might have plenty of corn, for it was planting season. 
Mother-Corn was pleased to have smoke with the people. She 
started from the east to visit these people, and came to many other 
camps, and finally came to these people. She went into the medicine- 
lodge, and all the people followed her in. She spoke to them and the 
people cried for joy. The woman was pretty. The people brought her 
all kinds of food, but she would not eat. She told them the only thing 
she could eat was a bird, such as a chicken or duck. She stayed with 
the people many days and taught them many lessons. But the people 
were now hungry for meat, for the buffalo roamed far away from them. 
They had plenty of corn, and yet they liked to ‘have meat, but all the 
animals were now scarce. One wise old man took a sacred pipe and 
laid it before the Mother-Corn for an aid, because he knew that she 
had all power from Nesaru. 
Mother-Corn was much pleased to smoke with them and to offer 
smoke offerings to the father. Then she asked certain women to make 
moccasins for her, and they did so. The people gathered together in 
the medicine-lodge, while Mother-Corn sat on the altar. She put on 
one pair of moccasins and arose. She walked very slowly and when 
she had gone about twenty steps her moccasins were worn out. ‘Then 

*Told by Hawk. 
