fire on which there was no wood. Four pebbles lay on the ground together: a black pebble in the east, a blue one in the south, a yellow one in the west, and a white one in the north; from these the flames issued forth. Around the fire lay four bears, colored and placed to correspond with the pebbles. When the strangers approached the fire the bears asked them for tobacco, and when the former replied that they had none the bears became angry and thrice more demanded it. When the Navajo fled from the Ute camp he had helped himself from one of the four bags which the council was using and had taken a pipe, and these he had tied up in his skin robe; so when the fourth demand was made he filled the pipe and lighted it at the fire. He handed the pipe to the black bear, who, taking but one whiff, passed it to the blue bear and immediately fell senseless. The blue bear took two whiffs and passed the pipe, when he too fell over in a state of unconsciousness. The yellow bear succumbed after the third whiff, and the white bear, in the north, after the fourth whiff. Now the Navajo knocked the ashes and tobacco out of his pipe and rubbed the latter on the feet, legs, abdomen, chest, shoulders, forehead, and mouth of each of the bears in turn, and they were at once resuscitated. He replaced the pipe in the corner of his robe. When the bears recovered they assigned to the Navajo a place on the east side of the fire where he might lie all night, and they brought out their stores of corn meal and tciltcin and other berries and offered them to him to eat; but Qastcèëlçi warned him not to touch the food and again disappeared. So, hungry as he was, the Indian lay down supperless to sleep. When he woke in the morning the bears again offered food, which he again declined, saying he was not hungry. Then they showed him how to make the bear kethàwns, or sticks to be sacrificed to the bear gods, and they drew from one corner of the cave a great sheet of cloud, which they unrolled, and on it were painted the forms of the yays of the cultivated plants. As he departed the bears said, “There are others in these parts who have secrets to tell you. Yonder is Tsenástci, where many dwell.” So he set forth for Tsenástci (Circle of Red Stones.)
[41.] As he passed down the valley he heard a loud rushing noise be hind him, and looking around he beheld a tornado. The air was filled with logs and uprooted trees, borne along by the great storm. It came nearer and seemed to be advancing to destroy him. He was terrified and cried out to the storm: “Ciyèïcçe, Dsilyi‘ Neyáni. Quaïláçi?” (“’Tis I, Reared Within the Mountains. Who art thou?”) The tempest recognized him and subsided, and in its place appeared four men in the shape of the glòï or weasel. The four weasel men showed him how to make the glòï-bikeçan, or sacrificial sticks of the glòï. What name the Navajo bore before this time the ancient tale does not tell us; but from the moment he said these words he was called among the gods Dsilyi‘ Neyáni, and was afterwards known by this name among his people.
[42.] After this adventure he continued on his way to Tsenástci. He had not journeyed far when he met the wind god, who said to him: “Those whom you will meet at Tsenástci are evil ones; therefore I will be with you and will walk before you.” When they came to Tsenástci they found a hole in the rocks guarded by two great rattlesnakes, one on each side, and covered by two piñon trees, for a door. When the travelers drew near, the serpents showed signs of great anger, and when the former approached the door the reptiles shook their rattles violently, thrust out their tongues, and struck at the intruders as though they would bite them; but they did not bite. Niltci thrust aside the piñon trees; he and his companions entered, and, when they had passed within, the piñon trees, moving of their own accord, closed the entrance behind them. Within they encountered a bald headed old man who had only a little tuft of hair over each ear. This was Klictsò, the Great Serpent. He asked Niltci who his human companion was, and the wind god answered that he was a Navajo who had been captured by the Ute, but had escaped from them and had suffered many hardships. On hearing this Klictsò showed the Indian how to make the kethàwns, now known to the Navajo shamans as klictsò-bikeçan, or sacrificial sticks of the Great Serpent, and he told him how to plant these sacrifices.
[43.] From the home of Klictsò they went to a place called Tse‘binàyol (Wind Circles Around a Rock). When they drew near the place they heard loud peals of thunder and the lightning struck close to them in four different places. They were now approaching the home of the lightning gods; this is why destruction by the thunderbolt seemed to threaten them. Then the Navajo spoke to the lightning, as he had formerly spoken to the whirlwind, saying, “’Tis I, Reared Within the Mountains. Who art thou?” whereat the thunder and the lightning ceased, and the travelers walked on until they entered a house of black clouds, inside of a mountain, which was the house of I‘¢nì‘, the Lightning. He was bald, like the Great Serpent, having only a little tuft of hair over each ear. At each of the four sides of the room where I‘¢nì‘ sat was a lightning bird; that in the east was black, that in the south was blue, that in the west, yellow, and that in the north, white. From time to time the birds flashed lightning from their claws to the center of the room where the god sat, and the lightning was of the same color as the bird that emitted it. When the travelers entered I‘¢nì‘ said to Niltci, “Who is this that you have brought with you?” The latter answered, “It is a Navajo who has been a captive with the Ute and has escaped. He has suffered much. See how his knees and ankles are swollen.” Then the Lightning showed him two kethàwns, such as the shamans now sacrifice under the name of I‘¢nì‘-bikeçan, or sacrificial sticks of the lightning, and, having instructed him how to make and to plant these, he bade his visitors depart.
[44.] The next place they reached on their journey was Sàï byitsòzi (Narrow Sand Hills). They entered the hill and came to the house of Ka¢lùgi, the Butterfly, a dwelling filled with butterflies and rainbows. They found Ka¢lùgi and his wife sitting there, and also Atsòs-bebagàni (House of Feathers), who wore black leggings. Here Niltci disappeared and the woman had to put her questions to the Navajo. She inquired, as the others had done, who he was, and he briefly told her his story. She arose, went out, and presently returned with a large basin made of a beautiful white shell; this was filled with water and soap root. She laid it before the Navajo, saying, “You are about to visit some fair and beautiful people, and it is proper that you should bathe your body and wash your hair well.” When he had finished his bath he of the house of feathers took fine corn meal and applied it to the feet, the knees, the abdomen, and the other parts of the body which are usually touched in healing ceremonies. Then, under the directions of Atsòs-bebagàni, the Navajo rubbed his whole body with meal to dry himself and painted his face white with glee (white earth}. House of Feathers next brought in small bundles of the following plants: tcil¢elgísi (Gutierrezia euthamiæ), çoikal (Artemesia trifida), tséji, and tlo‘nasçási (Bouteloua hirsuta), burned them to charcoal, and directed the Indian to blacken his legs and forearms with this substance. When this was done he put spots of white on the black, and, in short, painted him as the akáninili, or courier ([Fig. 52]) sent out to summon guests to the dance, is painted to this day in the ceremonies of the dsilyídje qaçàl. When the painting was done Ka¢lùgi Esçáya (Butterfly Woman) took hold of his hair and pulled it downward and stretched it until it grew in profusion down to his ankles. Then she pressed and worked his body and face all over until she molded him into a youth of the most beautiful form and feature. They gave him fine white moccasins and a collar of beaver skin with a whistle attached to it; they put the kàbasçan, or plumed sticks to represent wings, on his arms, and altogether dressed and adorned him as the akáninili is dressed and adorned. The woman gave him white corn meal mixed with water to eat, and he slept all night in the house of the butterflies. In the morning the woman (or goddess, as we might better call her) laid two streaks of white lightning on the ground and bade him stand on them with one foot on each streak. “Now,” she said, “the white lightning is yours; use it how and when you will.” Then she told him to go to the top of the hill in which their house lay. When he ascended he found another house on the top, and in it he again met Ka¢lùgi and his wife, who awaited him there. He observed a streak of white lightning that spanned a broad valley, stretching from the hill on which he stood to a distant wooded mountain. “There,” said Ka¢lùgi Esçáya, pointing to the lightning, “is the trail you must follow. It leads to yonder mountain, which is named Bistcàgi.”
[45.] He followed the lightning trail and soon arrived at the house of Estsàu-¢igìni (Holy Woman). The house was inside of a black mountain; but the lightning ended not until it went quite into the dwelling; so he had only to follow it to find his way in. The door was of trees. Within, on the east wall hung the sun and on the west wall hung the moon. Here he was shown the kethàwn which is called Estsàn-¢igìnibikeçàn, or the sacrificial stick of the holy woman, and was told how to make it and how to bury it. As he was about to depart from this place two of the wind gods and the butterfly god appeared to him, and the whole party of four set out for Tcùckai (Chusca Knoll of our geographers).
[46.] At this place they entered a house which was inside of the mountain. It was two stories high; it had four rooms on the first story and four on the second. It had four doorways, which were covered with trees for doors; in the east was a black spruce tree, in the south a blue spruce tree, in the west a yellow spruce tree, and in the north a white shining spruce tree. Here dwelt four of the Tcikè-cac-nátlehi (Maiden that Becomes a Bear). Their faces were white; their legs and forearms were covered with shaggy hair; their hands were like those of human beings; but their teeth were long and pointed. The first Tcikè-cac-nátlehi, it is said, had twelve brothers. She learned the art of converting herself into a bear from the coyote. She was a great warrior and invulnerable. When she went to war she took out and hid her vital organs, so that no one could kill her; when the battle was over she put them back in their places again. The maidens showed him how to make four kethàwns and told him how to bury them in order to properly sacrifice them.
[47.] From Tcùckai they went to Ninà-qo¢ezgòç (Valley Surrounded on All Sides by Hills), near ¢epéntsa, where they found the house of the Tsilkè-¢igìni (Holy Young Men), of whom there were four. There were, in the dwelling, four rooms, which had not smooth walls, but looked like rooms in a cavern; yet the house was made of water. A number of plumed arrows (kátso-yisçàn) were hanging on the walls, and each young man (standing one in the east, one in the south, one in the west, and one in the north) held such an arrow in his extended right hand. No kethàwn was given him; but he was bidden to observe well how the holy young warriors stood, that he might imitate them in the rites he should establish amongst men.
[48.] The next place they visited was Tse‘ça-iskági (Rock that Bends Back), where they entered a house, striped within horizontally of many colors, and found eight more of the Tsilkè-¢igìni (Holy Young Men). Two stood at each cardinal point and each one grasped a sapling which he held over his upturned mouth, as if about to swallow it. One of the young men addressed him, saying “Do thus. There are eight of us here; but when you do this in the dance that you will teach your people you need not have eight young men—six will be enough.”
[49.] From here they went to Tcétcel-hyitsò (Big Oaks), to visit the home of ¢igin-yosíni (yosíni is a species of squirrel). It was built of black water-slime (çraçlíç) and the door was of red sunbeams. On the east wall hung a big black log; on the south wall, a blue log; on the west wall, a yellow log; and on the north wall, a white log; in which logs the squirrels dwelt. Although they were squirrels, they were young men and young women, and looked very much like one another. All had red and black stripes on their backs. These taught him how to make and bury the kethàwns sacred to themselves.