Traditions of the Arikara

by George A. Dorsey

The people divided up into companies and circled around where the buffalo were. The command to attack was given and the boy went right among the buffalo, and there he began to kill. After he was through killing, he turned back and pulled out the buffalo beards, and also pulled out a bunch of hair from the side of the shoulder. This he kept. When he went on to find his robe, he found that somebody had taken it. The young man then began to sing about his robe. He wanted some one to return it to him, but they would not return it to him, but made fun of him. Then the boy began to sing about the snowstorm coming. The boy ran into the village where his grandmother lived. He took the hairs that he had taken off from the robe and threw them upon the ground, and there in that place appeared several tongues and hearts. The old woman was very glad that the boy had brought these things. She boiled them, and they ate until they were filled. The cold weather turned into a blizzard, and killed many men who had made fun of the young man, while others came home and said that the young man had done some things that were wonderful.

After the cold weather was over, the village broke up and moved on. Again scouts came and reported that there were buffalo. After this killing the people ceased to make fun of the boy. They called him again to stand in front of the procession and to wave his hand to divide the men into the different companies. They all attacked the buffalo, but the boy was the first to kill, although he was not on a horse. He again simulated the taking of the tongues and hearts by simply pulling out the beard and the hair from the sides of the buffalo. When the boy had taken the hairs and thrown them down in the lodge there at once appeared many tongues and hearts.

People found out that the boy was wonderful, and they finally gave him a pony on which to carry his meat home, and the chief’s daughter visited the young man, and finally Poor-Boy married the chief’s daughter. Poor-Boy became a great warrior, and at last became a chief.

FOOTNOTES:

[20] Told by Antelope.

20. THE TWO BOYS AND THE WATER-SERPENT.[21]

Two boys once wandered about the village and they were welcomed to any lodge they entered. One morning they came into one lodge and the people were glad to have them come in, but they claimed that the boys must be the ones who ate up their pot of corn. The boys did not know anything about the pot of corn. They left the lodge and went into another and there they were accused of the same thing. The boys went to another lodge, but were again accused. They were indignant at the accusations that were made against them. They wandered off from the village and returned when the sun set.

Now the two boys said one to the other, “Let us be on our guard to-night and perhaps we may discover who eats the corn.” In those times an inclosure surrounded the village, and the two boys sat by the inclosure. They sat there until all the people of the village went to sleep, for they agreed to stay till morning. After all the people had gone to sleep the boys heard much roaring by the river; so they listened. After the noise of the waters ceased, they saw a big black thing going over their heads. It climbed over the inclosure and went on top of a lodge. It was a long serpent. The serpent stuck its head into the smoke hole of the lodge. In a few moments he went to another lodge and did the same thing. Then he went to still another. Now the serpent went back to the river and the boys were glad to find out who ate up the people’s corn, beans, and squash that had been prepared in the evening for the next morning.

When morning came the boys went down to the timber and cut many sticks to make arrows with. They sat down and made arrows till evening; but they never mentioned what had happened. Again the boys stayed out, and after all the people had gone to sleep the same thing happened as on the preceding night. Again they saw the serpent climbing over the inclosure and onto the lodges. Then the boys shot at the serpent while it had its head inside a lodge, reaching for food. The boys threw their arrows at the water-monster as fast as they could. They threw so many arrows at the monster that he was almost dead. The serpent came out from the lodge and went down to the river. The waters roared and rose, because the water-monster was dying, but when it was dead the waters were silent. When the waters went down the big serpent was found dead on a small peninsula.