Indian Story and Song, from North America

								

on.
It was a peaceful, picturesque scene upon which I looked; and by very
contrast my thoughts reverted to the preceding evening, when I had
attended a meeting of the He-dhu´-shka, society composed of warriors.
The gathering had been in a large tent; and, as the night was warm,
the bottom of the tent cover had been lifted to let the breeze blow
through. This had given an opportunity for the crowd outside to look
within and watch the ceremony and the dramatic dance. To the right of
the door, in two circles around the drum, sat the choir of men and
women, all in their gala dress. Each member of the society, wrapped in
his robe, with measured steps entered the tent, and silently took his
seat on the ground against the wall. The ceremony had opened by the
choir singing the ritual song which accompanied the act of charring
the elder wood with which the face of the Leader was afterward to be
painted. As memory brought back the scene in vivid colours,--the
blazing fire in the centre of the wide circle of muffled warriors, the
solemn aspect of the Leader awaiting the preparation of the elder
wood, and his strange appearance after the painting of his face,--I
pondered wonderingly as to what it all might signify. In my perplexity
I spoke from my hammock to one of the elder men in the group before
me:--
"Grandfather, I wish you would explain to me the meaning of what I saw
yesterday at the He-dhu´-shka Society. Tell me why the Leader put
black on his face."
My friend was accustomed to my questionings, and all eyes were turned
toward him as he replied:
"The Leader put the black cloud over his face, because the black cloud
is worn by Thunder when it comes near to man. The song sung while this
is being done tells that the Leader is making ready and impatiently
awaits the commands of the approaching god of war."...
This is the song which accompanied the preparation and the putting on
of the insignia of the thunder god. The music is expressive of the
tremulous movement of the leaves, of the flying of the birds, of the
stir of all nature before the advancing storm, typifying the
stirring of the heart of man when summoned to fight the enemies of his
people.
[Music: PUTTING ON THE INSIGNIA OF THE THUNDER GOD.
Omaha. He-dhu´-shka.
Harmonized by PROF. J.C. FILLMORE.
Non-g'dhe dhe-te hi-dha-ki-un te dhon-hi-de,
Non-g'dhe dhe-te hi-dha-ki-un te dhon-hi-de,
Non-g'dhe dhe-te hi-dha-ki-un te dhon-hi-de,
Non-g'dhe dhe-te hi-dha-hi-un te dhon-hi-de,
Non-g'dhe dhe-te hi-dha-ke-un te dhon-hi-de.]
At the close of the song and ceremony of blackening the Leader's face,
I had seen the Leader take the pipe belonging to the society, fill it,
and reverently lift the stem upward.
"When the Leader's face is painted," continued the old man, "he offers
the pipe to Wa-kon´-da (god). The words of the song then sung mean:
Wa-kon´-da, we offer this pipe (the symbol of our unity as a