71. THE MEDICINE BEAR SHIELD.
Boy’s father dies and is buried. Boy goes to grave to cry and dreams that Bear tells him that woman has removed shield from grave. During storm he crawls into crevice and watches grave. He sees Bear with paws toward sky. Lightning forms appearance of shield with bear for black center mark. Boy returns to grave and when asleep he dreams his father tells him shield taken by Howling-Wolf and that he must get it. Howling-Wolf gives boy frame. Boy has another shield made like that he had seen on father’s grave. Kills buffalo and makes inner shield. When fifteen, boy joins war-party. He strikes Sioux with bow and takes his scalplock. Scalp is offered to gods and boy made chief. Old man puts buckskin shirt on him and tells him as he strikes enemies and scalps them to make marks on shirt. When enemy attacks Village-Boy wears shield and is never hit. At sun dance boy swings day and night by buckskin strings tied to sticks run through his back. Sioux again attack village and boy again counts coup and strikes enemy. He dances sun dance many times afterward, and suffers because old medicine-men dead.