THE INVITATION TO THE DANCE
ONE day Docas and his little brother Heema were playing near their brush hut, when Docas heard a slight noise near by. He looked up and saw another Indian boy about twelve years old. The boy held in his hand some strings of deerskin.
“It’s Apa, whose father is chief of the camp nearest us,” Docas said.
The boy Apa came forward. “Where’s your father?” he asked.
“In the sweat house,” answered Docas.
“Give him this string when he comes out,” said Apa, taking one of the strings from the little bunch. “Good-by. I have more camps to visit to-day,” and he started off on the run.
Docas and Heema looked the string over as soon as Apa had gone. They found five knots tied in it, each a little way apart from the others.
“I wonder what the knots are for,” said Heema. “Do they mean that they wish to fight us?”
“No, for Apa’s father is our friend. Here comes father. We will ask him,” answered Docas.
Docas and Heema ran toward Massea and gave him the string. As they passed Ama she saw the string and smiled. When they gave it to Massea, he smiled, too, and said, “It is well.”
“What does it mean, father?” asked Heema. “Why do you and mother smile when you see it?”
“It means that Chief Yeeta sends to Chief Massea an invitation for everybody in our rancheria to come to a dance at his rancheria,” answered Massea.
“All right. Let’s go this morning,” said Heema, starting toward the hut to get the new rabbit-skin skirt his mother had just made for him.
“Wait,” said Massea. “The five knots mean that we are not to come for five days.”
“Oh, that’s so long to wait,” said Heema.
“You can watch the time for us,” said Massea. “Every morning you may untie one of the knots for us, and when the last but one is reached, we will start.”
So every morning, as soon as it was light, the two boys crept out of the hut and untied a knot.