108 TRADITIONS OF THE ARIKARA. 
friend to go back to the camp where the others were and to watch out, 
for the next day he should see him, and that then he should tell the 
people that it was Village-Boy. The boy went to the camp, while 
Village-Boy went on ahead. 
The next day Village-Boy was seen coming. Village-Boy’s friend 
told the other warriors that he was Village-Boy. So he ran up to 
Village-Boy. Village-Boy then told his friend that the enemy’s camp 
was a short distance away. The warriors then stopped and sang some 
songs for Village-Boy. Village-Boy departed. The next day they 
saw him again, driving many ponies. He brought them to the people. 
Then he led the warriors into camp. The war-party then attacked the 
enemy’s village. Village-Boy was in the lead. He killed one enemy 
and took his scalp. He left, and hid out while the battle was going on. 
After a time the warriors came back where the horses were, and Vil- 
lage-Boy came there. He gave the scalp to the leader of the war-party, 
also all the ponies, telling him that he was going ahead of them. 
Village-Boy now returned to his home. Not a word was spoken 
by him, nor was anything said by him about the battle. He just lay 
upon his bed. 
A few days afterward the war-party returned home and near the 
village had a sham battle. The people went out to meet them. It was 
announced by the leader of the war-party that Village-Boy had done 
all the killing, and capturing of the ponies. Village-Boy’s father 
thought that the warriors were making fun of ‘this son because he had 
come back several days before without anything. But when the war- 
riors came into the village and showed the scalp that Village-Boy had 
taken and given to the leader, and also when the ponies he had captured 
were brought to the village, then all the old men believed. Village-Boy’s 
father scolded him because he had said nothing. Scalp dances were 
made throughout the village. The young man’s sisters now danced 
the scalp dance without fear of ridicule. Whenever the young man 
went out to dance the women surrounded him. He married and be- 
came one of the great men of the village. 
One day ‘the took several warriors and went east. He came to a 
village that was known as the “Village-of-the-Dumb-People.” He 
left the war-party behind and went into the village by himself. He 
killed their medicine-man, cut his throat, and carried the head away. 
As he carried the head away it kept mumbling. The people became 
excited when they found out that their prophet was dead. They began 
to talk in a peculiar language. These warriors were followed by the 
Dumb-People, who did not catch up with them. 
