When the tree flowered

by John G. Neihardt

“Then the oldest man among the wichasha yatapika stood up among his brothers where they sat. He leaned upon his cane and looked around the hoop where the people waited for his words, and his head shook. They listened hard, for he was feeble and his voice came thin. ‘My people, this day we have seen something that was given to the wichasha yatapika when they were chosen. It is a hard thing to do that we have seen, but a man whom all praise must hold fast to his pipe and do what he was taught when he was asked to sit among us. He was told that a wounded dog with an arrow in his body would be brought to him, but he would not be angry. He would hold fast to his pipe. This is what was meant. This is what we have seen; and Standing Hawk has not forgotten. His son has been murdered and brought back to him. You have seen him hold fast to his pipe and remember what he was taught. It is wachin tanka [magnanimity] you have seen, and it is good to see.’ Then the old, old man looked at Running Wolf sitting there upon the dead man, with his tears upon his face, and said, ‘Young warrior, my grandson, you have taken the place of him you killed. But first you must be cleansed by praying and lamenting. To the four quarters you shall go forth, and there shall be only strangers everywhere. The faces of your own you shall not look upon. Three moons you shall wander and lament and pray, thinking of this worst thing that you have done. For you have killed a home. Maka, the mother of all, you have wounded, and the sacred hoop of the people you have broken a little. Have a strong heart, and come back cleansed, my grandson.’

“When the old, old man had spoken, the people did not cry out; they only murmured all around the hoop, for they had seen and heard a great thing.

“The two akichitas had prepared a sweat-lodge, using only four sticks to hold the hide. It was made to cleanse a te-wichakte, and he must wander to the four quarters; so that is why they used four sticks. And when the rocks were heated in a fire and placed inside the lodge with forked poles, the unclean one went in there naked, and water was thrown upon the stones. Then the two akichitas dug a shallow hole in front of the sweat-lodge, as deep as the thickness of a man and shaped like him. And when the lodge was opened and Running Wolf came out, they placed him in the hole, face down, and left him there a little while. Thus they gave him back to the mother of all, who has shown mercy to her children; and even this they could not do until his body was cleansed in the sweat-lodge. But his heart was not yet clean, and he was dead to his people. Those near could hear him weeping there and see his shoulders shaking. And in a little while, they lifted him and led him to where Standing Hawk was sitting. There he stood, naked and weeping. And the old man said to those about him, ‘Bring clothing for my son who is going on a long journey and may never come back. Also bring to him my best horse and my bow and arrows and all that he shall need, for I think his journey will be long and hard where there are only strangers.’

“And when this was done, and Running Wolf was clothed, Standing Hawk stood up and, for a little, held the young man’s head upon his shoulder, then pushed him off and turned away. Then the akichitas lifted the kills-home to the saddle, and with whips they struck him and the horse, and drove him forth alone into the world of strangers. And the people watched him going towards where you are always facing [the south], until they could not see him any more.”

Eagle Voice ceased, and when he had sat motionless for some time with closed eyes, I prompted, “And did Running Wolf come back?” Ignoring the question that had brought him out of his reverie, he continued: “It was good to die on the prairie for the people and to make a story for men to hear. But if the kills-home died out there, no story would be told and no song sung about him. A dead dog makes no story. The crows and wolves are glad, and the voice of mourning is not heard. His very name is evil in the mouth.

“Kicking Bear and High Horse had gone back home, and Charging Cat was in the world of spirit; but some of us who fought Shoshoni horsebacks in the snow would get together where we knew that no one heard, and talk about him; but we could not take his name into our mouths. He would be lamenting and praying at night on a lonely hill in the country of the strangers until he slept. And when the day came, even Maka would be staring at him with all her hills—like a stranger. When he sought for food, there would be enemies watching him and lying in wait to kill him. And if maybe a wandering band of Lakotas came in sight, he must flee from them that they might not see his face. We liked him, and when we talked of him our hearts were sad. We might have done it too if we had seen the bones of our brothers scattered yonder.

“They did not put Last Dog upon a scaffold. Because he did not die as meh should die, they buried him face down upon a hill. His relatives could not follow him to that place, to mourn beside him through the night. But some people said they saw his woman, the sister of the kills-home, sneaking back to her tepee when the day was just beginning.

“When this was done, the village had to move, for there was an evil spirit in that place. The game all went away to where Maka, the mother of all, had not been wounded. And so the village moved over to the valley of the Rosebud, where grass was good and there was wood in plenty, and the game was not afraid.

“My heart was sick, and I wanted to see High Horse and Kicking Bear. Also I thought much about my father lying yonder on his scaffold. Sometimes I thought I would go and see him again. Then I would think how still it was on that hill. Yonder I would listen, and maybe there would be only the wind blowing. Then I would remember the voice of the eagle on my hill of vision, ‘Hold fast; there is more.’

“When the first moon was getting old, I rode alone towards where the sun comes up. The Hunkpapas and Miniconjous would be camping near Pa Sapa [the Black Hills], and I would see High Horse and Kicking Bear. We would make plans for some great deed as we had done before; and if we came back with scalps and horses, people would praise us again. If we did not make a kill-come-back, we could die on the prairie. Then Charging Cat would ride with us again, and I would see my father.