[Rituals were now recited by Standing-Bull, which were the same as those recited when they were painting the chief.] After the reciting of the rituals the people took up Mother-Corn and took her down to the river. All the people turned out to witness the act. But before the priests threw Mother-Corn into the river, her head upstream and her feet downstream, the children’s moccasins were tied about her waist. The people offered their prayers to Mother-Corn, and after 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 her people length of life. That night Mother-Corn disappeared, and she has never been seen since.
FOOTNOTES:
[10] Told by Standing-Bull.
10. MOTHER-CORN’S VISIT TO THE ARIKARA.[11]
In olden times during time of need, it was the custom of the Arikara 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 she sat down, put on another pair and walked again. When she had walked about twenty steps her moccasins gave out again and she tried the third pair, but they too wore out. She put on the fourth pair, and that pair brought her back to the altar. Her walk around the fireplace meant that she had walked a long way off in the west, and that the way was very hard. At last she told the people that she had seen some buffalo; that in four days they were to be seen. The men watched every day after that, and early in the morning of the fourth day the buffalo were seen.
The men went out and killed many buffalo on that day and there was plenty of meat. Thus, much respect and honor was paid to Mother-Corn. After some days another party went on a buffalo hunt, but Mother-Corn stayed with those who stayed in the village. It was not many days until enemies attacked the village. But what few men were there fought very hard, and at last they were driven out of the village. They took Mother-Corn out of the medicine-lodge, but before she escaped she was killed, causing great grief among the people. The Arikara were defeated on that day. They took Mother-Corn and buried her. From the place where she was laid, grass, weeds, bushes, trees, and almost everything sprang up. When the people who had gone out on the buffalo hunt came back they were much grieved and troubled on account of the loss of Mother-Corn.