Topic: North American Mythology

[Prometheus]

THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH 245

excellence in art, and more than one myth is adorned with
tales of houses in which the sculptured pillars or the painted
pictures are evidently alive, while stories of living persons
rooted to the floor apparently have a similar origin. The carv-
ing of a wife out of wood is a frequent theme, and occasionally
she, like Galatea, is vivified; when the husband’s name is
Sitting-on-Earth, we may suspect that here, too, we have a
myth connected with the house-post. In creation stories the
first human pair are sometimes represented as carved from
wood by the demiurge and then endowed with life, although
this may be a version of the Californian legend of the creation
of men from sticks, modified by a people with a native genius
for wood carving.


III. SECRET SOCIETIES AND THEIR TUTELARIES

Of even greater ceremonial significance than the possession
of crests is membership in the secret societies of the North-
West. Everywhere in North America, as the clan system loos-
ens in rigidity, the Medicine Lodge or the Esoteric Fraternity
grows in importance. In its inception the medicine society is
seldom unrelated to the clan organization, but it breaks free
from this either in the form of a ceremonial priesthood, as
among the Pueblo, or in that of a tribal or inter-tribal religious
order, as in the mystery societies of the Great Plains. Among
the peoples of the North-West the fraternities have had a de-
velopment of their own. Apparently they originated with the
Elwakiutl tribes, among whom the social organization Is either
a compromise or a transitional stage between the matrilinear
clans of the northward stocks and the patriarchal family or
village-groups of the southerly Coast-Dwellers. Membership
in the secret societies Is in a sense dependent upon heredity,
for certain of the tutelary spirits of the societies are supposed
to appear only to members of particular clans or families; but
with this restriction the influence of the clan upon society



246 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

membership ends. Perhaps no sharper indication of the differ-
ence could be given than the very general custom of changing
the names of the society members, during the season of their
ceremonials, from their clan names to the spirit names given
them at the time of their initiation; the family system tem-
porarily yields place to a mystic division into groups defined by
patron spirits, the genii or guardians of the societies.

These spirits are distinguished from the totems that mark
descent in that the latter are not regarded as giving continued
revelations of themselves: the totem appeared to the ancestor
and revealed his mystery, which then became traditionary;
the spirits of the societies manifest themselves to, and indeed
must take possession of, every initiate; they still move among
men, and the ceremonials in their honour take place in the
winter season, when these supernatural beings are supposed to
be living in association with their neophytes.’’® The most
famed and dreaded of the secret society tutelarics is the Canni-
bal, whose votaries practise ceremonial anthropophagy, biting
the arms of non-initiates (in former times slaves were killed
and partly eaten).’’® Cannibals are common characters in the
myths of the North-West, as elsewhere; but the Cannibal of
the society is a particular personage who is supposed to dwell
in the mountains with his servants, the man-eating Grizzly
Bear and the Raven who feeds upon the eyes of the persons
whom his master has devoured, and who is a long-beaked bird
which breaks men’s skulls and finds their brains a daintymorsel.
The cult of the Cannibal probably originated among the Heil-
tsuk Kwakiutl, whence it passed to neighbouring tribes in com-
paratively recent times. The Warrior of the North is a second
spirit, his gifts being prowess in war, and resistance ^to wounds
and disease. Still others are the Bird-Spirit which makes one
able to fly, and the ghosts who bestow the power of returning
to life after being slain. The Dog-Eating Spirit, whose votaries
kill and eat a dog as they dance, is the inspirer of yet another
society with a wide-spread following. The more potent spirits




PLATE XXXI


Kwakiutl ceremonial masks. Upper, an ancestral
or totemic double mask, the bird mask, representing
the totem being opened out to show the inner man-
faced mask. Lower, mask representing the Sisiutl,
or double-headed and horned serpent. After MAM
viii, Plates XLIX, LX.






THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH 247

e regarded as malignant in character, but there are milder
ings and gentler forms of inspiration derived from the greater
iwers, some of these latter types belonging to societies exclu-
tqIj for women.

The winter ceremonials, accompanying initiations into the
sret societies, are the great festivals of the North-West,
ley are made the occasion for feasts, mask dances of the clan
itiates in honour of their totems, potlatches, with their rival-
;s, and varied forms of social activity and ceremonial puri-
ation. The central event, however, is the endowment of the
ophyte with the powers which the genius of the society is be-
ved to give. The underlying idea is shamanistic;® the initiate
ust be possessed by the spirit, which is supposed to speak and
t through him: he must become as glass for the spirit to
ter him, as one myth expressively states. The preparation
the. novice is various: sometimes he is sent into the wilder-
ss to seek his revelation; sometimes he is ceremonially killed
entranced; but in every instance seizure by the controlling
irit is the end sought. The Haida call this “the spirit speak-
g through” the novice; and an account of such possession
' the Cannibal Spirit, Ulala, is given by Swanton: “The one
lo was going to be initiated sat waiting in a definite place.
2 always belonged to the clan of the host’s wife. When the
ief had danced around the fire awhile, he threw feathers upon
e novice, and a noise was heard in the chiefs body. Then
e novice fell flat on the ground, and something made a noise
side of him. When that happened, all the ‘inspired’ said,
o and so fell on the ground.’ A while after he went out of
e house. Walala (the same as Ulala) acted through him.
le novice was naked; but the spirit-companions wore dancing
irts and cedar-bark rings, and held oval rattles (like those
ed by shamans) in their hands. Wherever the novice went in,
e town people acted as if afraid of him, exclaiming, ‘ Hoy-hoy-
ly-hoy hiya-ha-ha hoyil’ Wherever he started to go in, the
irit-companions went in first in a crowd. All the uninitiated

X — 18



248 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

hid themselves; not so the others. When he passed in through
the doorway, he made his sound, ^ Ap ap ap!’ At the same time
the Walala spirit made a noise outside. As he went around the
fire he held his face turned upward. In his mouth, too, some-
thing (a whistle) sounded. His eyes were turned over and
showed the whites.’’ The cannibal initiate among the Kwakiutl
is called ‘‘hamatsa”; and Boas has recorded (Report of the
United States National Museum^ 1895, pp. 458-62) a number
of hamatsa songs which reveal the spirit of the society and its
rites better than mere description. The poetry of the North-
West tribes, like their mythology, seems pervaded with a spirit
of rank gluttony, which naturally finds its most unveiled ex-
pression in the cannibal songs: —

Food will be given to me, food will be given to me, because I ob-
tained this magic treasure.

I am swallowing food alive: I eat living men.

I swallow wealth; I swallow the wealth that my father is giving
away [in the accompanying Potlatch].

This is an old song, and typical. A touch of sensibility and a
grimly imaginative repression of detail is in the following: —

Now I am going to eat.

My face is ghastly pale.

I shall eat what is given to me by Baxbakualanuchsiwae.

Baxbakualanuchsiwae is the Kwakiutl name for the Cannibal
Spirit, and the appellation signifies ^^the first to eat man at the
mouth of the river,” i. e., in the north, the ocean being con-
ceived as a river running toward the arctic regions. In some
of the songs the cosmic significance of the spirit is clearly set
forth: —

You will be known all over the world; you will be known all over the
world, as far as the edge of the world, you great one who safely
returned from the spirits.

You will be known all over the world; you will be known all over
the world, as far as the edge of the world. You went to Bax-
bakualanuchsiwae, and there you first ate dried human flesh.



THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH 249

You were led to his cannibal pole, in the place of honor in his house,
and his house is our world.

You were led to his cannibal pole, which is the milky way of our
world.

You were led to his cannibal pole at the right-hand side of our world.

From the abode of the Cannibal, the Kwakiutl say, red
smoke arises. Sometimes the “cannibal pole” is the rainbow,
rather than the Milky Way; but the Cannibal himself is re-
garded as living at the north end of the world (as is the case
with the Titanic beings of many Pacific-Coast myths), and it is
quite possible that he is originally a war-god typified by the
Aurora Borealis. A Tlingit belief holds that the souls of all who
meet a violent death dwell in the heaven-world of the north,
ruled by Tahit, who determines those that shall fall in battle,
of what sex children shall be born, and whether the mother
shall die in child-birth.^® The Aurora is blood-red when these
fighting souls prepare for battle, and the Milky Way is a huge
tree-trunk (pole) over which they spring back and forth. Boas
is of opinion that the secret societies originated as warrior
fraternities among the Kwakiutl, whose two most famed tute-
laries are the Cannibal and Winalagilis, the Warrior of the
North. Ecstasy is supposed to follow the slaying of a foe;
the killing of a slave by the Cannibal Society members is in
a sense a celebration of victory, since the slave is war booty;
and it is significant that in certain tribes the Cannibals merely
hold in their teeth the heads of enemies taken in war.

IV. THE WORLD AND ITS RULERS

The usual primitive conception of the world’s form prevails
in the North-West. It is flat and round below and surmounted
above by a solid firmament in the shape of an inverted bowl. As
the people of this region are Coast-Dwellers, Earth is regarded
as an island or group of islands floating in the cosmic waters.
The Haida have a curious belief that the sky-vault rises and



250


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


falls at regular intervals, so that the clouds at times strike
against the mountains, making a noise which the Indians say
they can hear. The world above the firmament is inhabited,
and one Haida myth (which closely resembles the Pueblo
cosmogony) tells of Raven, escaping from the rising flood in
the earth below, boring his way through the firmament and
discovering five successive storeys in the world above; a five-
row town is the more characteristically North-West concep-
tion, given in another version. The Bella Coola believe that
there are five worlds, one above the other, two being heaven-
worlds, two underworlds, and our Earth the mid-world — an
arrangement which is of significance in their theology. Belief
in an underworld, and especially in undersea towns and coun-
tries, is universal in this region; while the northern tribes all
regard the Earth itself as anchored in its mobile foundation by
a kind of Atlas, an earth-sustaining Titan. According to the
Haida, Sacred-One-Standing-and-Moving, as he is called, is the
Earth-Supporter; he himself rests upon a copper box, which,
presumably, is conceived as a boat; from his breast rises the
Pillar of the Heavens, extending to the sky; his movements are
the cause of earthquakes. The Bella Coola, following a myth
which is clearly of a South-Coast type, also believe in the Earth-
Titan, who is not, however, beneath the world, but sits in the
distant east holding a stone bar to which the earth island is
fastened by stone ropes; when he shifts his hold, earthquakes
occur. The Tsimshian and Tlingit deem the Earth-Sustainer
to be a, woman. The earth, they say, rests upon a pillar in
charge of this Titaness, Old-Woman-Undemeath;'^ and when
the Raven tries to drive her from the pillar, earthquake follows.

The sun, moon, stars, and clouds are regarded as material
things, — sometimes as mechanically connected with the firma-
ment; sometimes as the dwellings of celestial creatures; some-
times, as in the South-West, as masks of these beings.^® The
winds are personified according to their prevailing directions,
but there is little trace in the North-West of the four-square



THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH 251

conception of the world, amounting to a cult of the Quarters.®^
As might be expected among seafarers, tide-myths are common.
Among the southern tribes animal heroes control the movement
of the sea, as in the Kwakiutl story of the Mink who stole the
tail of the Wolf that owned the tides, and caused them to ebb
or flow by raising or lowering it. In the north a different con-
ception prevails : the Haida regard the command of the tide as
the possession of an Old Man of the Sea, from whom the ebb
and flow were won by the craft of the Raven, who wished to
satisfy his gluttony on the life of the tide-flats ; the. same story
is found among the Tlingit, who, however, also believe the
tide to issue from and recede into a hole at the north end of
the world, an idea which is similar to the Bella Coola notion
of an undersea man who twice a day swallows and gives forth
the waters.

The universe so conceived is peopled by an uncountable
number of spirits or powers, whom the Tlingit call Yek.®
According to one of Swanton’s informants, everything has
one principal and several subordinate spirits, “and this idea
seems to be reflected in shamans’ masks, each of which repre-
sents one main spirit and usually contains effigies of several
subsidiary spirits as well.” There is a spirit on every trail, a
spirit in every fire, the world is full of listening ears and gazing
eyes — the eyes so conspicuous in the decorative emblems of
the North-West. Earth is full and the sea is full of the Keres
loosed by Pandora, says Hesiod, and an anonymous Greek
poet tells how the air is so dense with them that there is no
chink or crevice between them; for the idea is universal to
mankind.

Among these spirits appear, up and down the Coast, almost
every type of being known to mythology.® There are the one-
eyed Cyclops, the acephalous giant with eyes in his breast;
the bodiless but living heads and talking skulls, sea-serpents,
mermen, Circes, the siren-like singers of Haida lore, anthro-
pophagi of many types. Harpy-like birds, giants, dwarfs.



252


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


treasure-wardens, witches, transformers, werefolk, ghosts, and
a multitude of genii locorum, to say nothing of magically
endowed animals, birds, and fishes. The Haida even have
a double nomenclature for the animal kinds; as “Gina teiga”
they are creatures of their several sorts, and the proper prey
of the hunter; as “Sgana quedas” they are werefolk or man-
beings, capable of assisting the human race with their magic
might.'*® The Haida make another interesting distinction be-
tween the world-powers, classifying them, as their own tribes
are divided, into Ravens and Eagles; and they also arrange
the ruling potencies in a sort of hierarchy, sky, sea, and land
having each its superior and subordinate powers.

The greatest of these potencies is a true divinity, who is
named Power-of-the-Shining-Hcavens,® and who, in a prayer
recorded by Swanton, is thus addressed: “ Power-of-the-Shin-
ing-Heavens, let there be peace upon me; let not my heart be
sorry.” He is not, however, a deity of popular story, although
a legend is told of his incarnation. Born of a cockle-shell which
a maiden dug from the beach, he became a mighty getter of
food; a picturesque passage tells how he sat “blue, broad and
high over the sea”; and at his final departure for heaven, he
said, “When the sky looks like my face as my father painted
it there will be no wind; in me (i. e., in my days) people will
get their food.” It is Power-of-the-Shining-Heavens who de-
termines those that are to die, although Wigit, another celestial
deity, who is the same as the Raven, is the one who apportions
the length of life of the new-born child, according as he draws
a long or a short stick from the faggot which he keeps for this
purpose. The Tsimshian have a conception of the sky-god
similar to that of the Haida, their name for him being Laxha.

The idea of a Fate in the sky-world, deciding the life of
men, is common to the northern tribes. Tahit, the Tlingit
divinity of this type, has already been mentioned; and the
same god (Taxet, “the House Above”) is recognized by the
Haida, though here he is the one who receives the souls of



253


THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH

those slain by violence, rather than the determiner of death.
The Bella Coola have an elaborate system of Fates. When
Senx creates the new-born child, an assistant deity gives it its
individual features, while a birth goddess rocks It in a pre-
natal cradle; and this is true also of animals whose skins and
flesh are foreordained for the food and clothing of man. Death,
according to the Bella Coola, is predestined by the deities who
rule over the winter solstice (the season of the great cere-
monies) : two divinities stand at the ends of a plank, balanced
like a seesaw, while the souls of men and animals are collected
about them; and as the plank rises or falls, the time of the pass-
ing of the souls is decided.

It is among the Bella Coola that the hierarchic arrangement
of the world-powers has reached, apparently, the most system-
atic and conscious form on the North Pacific. As stated above,
this tribe separates the universe into five worlds or storeys,
two above and two below the earth. In the upper heaven re-
sides Qamaits,^ who is also called “Our Woman” and “Afraid-
of-Nothlng.” The house of this goddess is in the east of the
treeless and wind-swept prairie which forms her domain, and
behind her home is the salt-water pond in which she bathes
and which forms the abode of the Sisiutl. In the beginning of
the world she is said to have waged war against the moun-
tains, who made the world uninhabitable, and to have con-
quered them and reduced them in height. Qamaits is regarded
as a great warrior, but she is not addressed in prayer, and her
rare visits to earth cause sickness and death. In the centre of
the lower heaven stands the mansion of the gods, called the
House of Myths. Senx, the Sun,^® Is master of this house, “the
Sacred One” and “Our Father” are his epithets; and it is to
him that the Bella Coola pray and make offerings. Almost
equal In rank to Senx is Alkuntam, who, with the sun, presided
over the creation of man.^® Alkuntam’s mother is described
as a Cannibal, who inserts her long snout into the ears of men
and sucks out their brains. She seems to be a personification

[Prometheus]

254


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


of the mosquito, for in a myth frequent throughout the North-
West these insects spring from the ashes to which the Cannibal
is reduced in the effort to destroy herd’’ Various inferior gods,
including the Fates and the ten deities presiding over the great
ceremonies, dwell in the House of Myths; at the rear of it are
two rooms, in the first of which lives the Cannibal, organizer of
the Cannibal Society, and in the second another ecstasy-giv-
ing god: these two are the sons of Senx and Alkuntam. In-
tercessors and Messengers, Sun Guardians and Sky Guardians
(whose business it is to feed the sky continually with firewood),
the Flower Goddess, and the Cedar-Bark Goddess are other per-
sonages of the Bella Coola pantheon. Four brothers, dwellers
in the House of Myths, gave man the arts, teaching him carv-
ing and painting, the making of canoes, boxes, and houses,
fishing, and hunting.*® They are continually engaged in carv-
ing and painting, and seem to be analogous to the Master Car-
penter, who often appears in Haida myths. Earth, in Bella
Coola lore, is the home of a multitude of spirits — chiefly
Animal Elders — and in the ocean are similar beings, though
there seems to be no power corresponding to the Haida Nep-
tune, The-Greatest-One-in-the-Sea. The two underworlds
have their own raison d^Hre, the upper one belonging to reve-
nant spirits, who are at liberty to return to heaven, whence
they may be reborn on earth; and the lower being the abode
of those who die a second death, from which there is no re-
lease.^®

V. THE SUN AND THE MOON«

The place of sunrise, according to the Bella Coola, is guarded
by the Bear of Heaven,*® a fierce warrior, inspirer of martial
zeal in man; and the place of sunset is marked by an enor-
mous pillar which supports the sky. The trail of the Sun is a
bridge as wide as the distance between the winter and summer
solstices; in summer he walks on the right-hand side of the
bridge, in winter on the left; the solstices are “where the sun



255


THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH

sits down.” Three guardians accompany the Sun on his course,
dancing about him; but sometimes he drops his torch, and then
an eclipse occurs.

Not many Pacific-Coast tribes have as definite a concep-
tion of the Sun’ as this, and generally speaking the orb of day
is of less importance in the myths of the northern than in those
of the southern stocks of the North-West. It is conceived both
as a living being, which can even be slain, and as a material
object — a torch or a mask — carried by a Sun-Bearer. One
of the most wide-spread of North-Western legends is a Phae-
thon-like story of the Mink, son of the Sun, and his adventures
with his father’s burden, the sun-disk. A woman becomes preg-
nant from sitting in the Sun’s rays; she gives birth to a boy,
who grows with marvellous rapidity, and who, even before he
can talk, indicates to his mother that he wants a bow and ar-
rows ; other children taunt him with having no father, but when
his mother tells him that the Sun is his parent, he shoots his
arrows into the sky until they form a ladder whereby he climbs
to the Sun’s house; the father requests the boy to relieve him of
the sun-burden, and the boy, carelessly impatient, sweeps away
the clouds and approaches the earth, which becomes too hot
— the ocean boils, the stones split, and all life is threatened;
whereupon the Sun Father casts his offspring back to earth
condemning him to take the form of the Mink. In some ver-
sions the heating of the world results in such a conflagration
that those animal-beings who escape it, by betaking themselves
to the sea, are transformed into the men who thereafter people
the earth. It is obvious that in these myths we have a special
North-Western form of the legend of the Son of the Sun who
climbs to the sky, associated with the cataclysm which so fre-
quently separates the Age of Animals from that of Man.

A curious Kwakiutl tradition tells of a Copper given up by
the sea and accidentally turned so that the side bearing a pic-
tured countenance lay downward; for ten days the sun failed
to rise or shine: then the Copper was laid face upward, and the



256 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

light again appeared. It would seem from this that copper is
associated with the sun. Other myths tell of a hero who marries
a copper woman, whose home — an underworld or undersea
mansion — is also made of copper. The connexion of the bones
of the dead with an abundance of food and mineral wealth
would imply that the hero of this tale, Chief Wealthy, is a
kind of Pluto. One of the most widely disseminated of North-
Western legends, in which the Raven is usually the principal
figure, tells of a time when darkness reigned throughout the
world. The sun, or daylight, was kept imprisoned in a chest,
under the jealous protection of a chieftain. The hero of the
story realizes that daylight cannot be obtained by force, so he
enters the womb of the chieftain’s daughter when she comes
to the spring for water; thence he is born, an infant insatiate
until he gets possession of the precious box, from which the
light is freed. A Salish version makes the Gull the guardian of
the chest; the Raven wishes a thorn into the Gull’s foot; then
he demands light to draw the thorn; and thus day and light
are created. Still another tale (which seems to be derived
from the South-West) narrates how the Raven bored his way
through the sky or persuaded the beings above to break it
open, thus permitting sunlight to enter the world below.

The origin of fire®^ is sometimes associated with the sun, as in
a Salish account which tells how men lived “as in a dream”
without fire until the Sun took pity upon them and gave it to
them; but in very many North-Western myths the element is
secured, curiously enough, from the ocean — perhaps a remi-
niscence of submarine volcanoes. Thus another Salish story
recounts how the Beaver and the Woodpecker stole fire from
the Salmon and gave it to the ghosts; the Mink captured the
head of the ghost-chief and received fire as its ransom. Possibly
the salmon’s red flesh may account for its connexion with the
igneous element, but the most plausible explanation of the fire
as the gift of the sea is in the popular tale which ascribes its
theft to the stag. An old man had a daughter who owned a




PLATE XXXII


Haida crests, from tatu designs. Upper left, the
Sun; right, Moon and Moon Girl. Central, left,
Eagle; right, Sea-Lion. Lower, left, Raven; right,
Killer Whale. After MAM viii, Plate XXL





THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH 257

wonderful bow and arrow; in the navel of the ocean, a gigan-
tic whirlpool, pieces of wood suitable for kindling were carried
about, and when the daughter shot her arrows into this mael-
strom the wood was cast ashore, and her father lit a huge fire
and became its keeper; but the stag, concealing bark in his
hair, entered by craft, lay down by the flame as if to dry him-
self, caught the spark, and made off with the treasure.

The Sun and the Moon are sometimes described as hus-
band and wife, and the Tlingit say that eclipses are caused by
the wife visiting her husband. Again, they are the “eyes of
heaven,” and it is quite possible that the prominence of eyes
and eyelashes in North-Western myth is associated primarily
with these heavenly bodies. The Sun’s rays are termed his
eyelashes; one of the sky-beings recognized by the Haida is
called Great Shining Heaven, and a row of little people is said
to be suspended, head down, from his eyelashes. The Haida,
Kwakiutl, and Tlingit believe that they see in the moon figure
a girl with a bucket, carried thither by the Moon; and the
Kwakiutl have also a legend of his descent to earth, where
he made a rattle and a medicine lodge from an eagle’s beak and
jaw, and with the power so won created men, who built him a
wonderful four-storeyed house, to be his servants. An interest-
ing Tsimshian belief makes the Moon a kind of half-way house
to the heavens, so that whoever would enter the sky-world
must pass through the Home of the Moon. The Keeper of
this abode is Pestilence, and with him are four hermaphrodite
dwarfs.®^ When the quester appears, he must cry out to the
Keeper, “I wish to be made fair and sound”; then the dwarfs
will call, “ Come hither, come hither!” If he obeys them, they
will kill him; but if he passes on, he is safe.® A certain hero
found his way to the Moon’s House by the frequent mode of
the arrow ladder, and was there made pure and white as snow.
Finally the Keeper sent him back to the world, with the com-
mand: “Harken what you shall teach men when you return
to Earth. I rejoice to see men upon the Earth, for otherwise



NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


258

there would be no one to pray to me or to honor me. I need and
enjoy your worship. But when you undertake to do evil I will
thwart you. Man and wife shall be true to one another; ye
shall pray to me; and ye shall not look upon the Moon when
attending to nature’s needs. I rejoice in your smoke. Ye shall
not spend the evening in riotous play. When you undertake
to do what I forbid I will deny you.” This revelation of the
law is a truly primitive mixture of morality and tabu, based
upon the do ut des relationship of god and man so succinctly
expressed in a Haida prayer recorded by Swanton: “I give this
to you for a whale; give one to me, Chief.”

VI. THE RAVEN CYCLE'®

The most characteristic feature of the mythology of the
North-West is the cycle of legends of which the hero is the
Raven ^ — the Yeti of the Northern tribes. Like Coyote in
the tales of the interior. Raven is a transformer and a trickster
— half demiurge, half clown; and very many of the stories that
are told of Coyote reappear almost unchanged with Raven as
their hero; he is in fact a littoral and insular substitute for
Coyote.

Nevertheless, he is given a character of his own. Like Coyote,
he is greedy, selfish, and treacherous, but gluttony rather than
licentiousness is his prevailing vice. He is engaged in an in-
satiable food-quest: “Raven never got full,” says a Tlingit
teller, “because he had eaten the black spots off of his own toes.
He learned about this after having inquired everywhere for
some way of bringing such a state about. Then he wandered
through all the world in search of things to eat.” The journeys
of Raven form the chief subject of most of the myths ; he trav-
els from place to place, meets animals of every description, and
in contests of wit usually succeeds in destroying and eating
them or in driving them off and securing their stores of food.
As is the case with Coyote, he himself is occasionally over-



THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH 259

come, but always manages to make good his escape, even
(again like Coyote) returning to life after having been slain.
A touch of characteristic humour is added to his portrait by
the derisive “Ka, ka,” with which he calls back to his oppon-
ents as he flies away — frequently through the smoke-hole, to
which he owes his blackness, having once been uncomfortably
detained in this aperture.

Despite all their ugliness and clownishness, the acts of Raven
have a kind of fatefulness attached to them, for their conse-
quence is the establishment of the laws that govern life, alike
of men and animals. A Haida epithet for Raven is He-Whose-
Voice-is-Obeyed, because whatever he told to happen came to
pass, one of his marked traits being that his bare word or even
his unexpressed wish is a creative act. In one Haida version
there is a suggestion of Genesis in the Raven’s creative lacon-
ism: “Not long ago no land was to be seen. Then there was a
little thing on the ocean. This was all open sea. And Raven
sat upon this. He said, ‘Become dust.’ And it became Earth.”
The Haida, Swanton says, make a distinction between the
events in the flrst portion of the Raven story — the truly crea-
tive acts — and the mad adventures of the later anecdotes : the
flrst division is called “the old man’s story,” and the chiefs
will not allow the young men to laugh while it is being told,
hilarity being permissible only during the latter part.

Raven is not, apparently, an object of worship, although it
is said that in former times people sometimes left food on the
beach for him. Rather he is numbered among those heroes of
the past about whom indecorous tales may be narrated without
sullying the spirit of reverence which attaches to the regnant
gods. One of the most comprehensive of Raven stories — a
Tlingit version — states that at the beginning of things there
was no daylight; the world was in darkness.^® In this period
lived Raven-at-the-Head-of-Nass, who had in his house the
sun, moon, stars, and daylight. With him were two aged men,
Old-Man-Who-Foresees-All-Trouble-in-the-World and He-



26 o


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


Who-Knows-Everything-that-Happens, while Old-Woman-Un-
derneath was under the world. Raven-at-the-Head-of-Nass
had a sister, who was the mother of many children, but they
all died young, the reason, according to the legend, being the
jealousy of her brother, who did not wish her to have any male
offspring. Advised by Heron, who had already been created,
she circumvented his malicious intent by swallowing a red-
hot stone, as a consequence of which she gave birth to Yeti,
the Raven, who was as hard as rock and so tough that
he could not easily be killed. Nascakiyetl (Raven-at-the-
Head-of-Nass) thereupon made Raven the head man over the
world. Nascakiyetl appears as the true creator in this myth,
however, for it is he who brought mankind into existence.
He undertook to make people out of a rock and a leaf at the
same time, but the rock was slow and the leaf quick; there-
fore human beings came from the latter. Then the creator
showed a leaf to the new race and said, “You see this leaf.
You are to be like it. When it falls off the branch and rots
there is nothing left of it.” And so death came into the world.^®
A striking Tsimshian myth tells how a woman died in the
throes of child-birth; how her child lived in her grave, nour-
ished by her body; how he later ascended to heaven, by means
of Woodpecker’s wings, and married the Sun’s daughter; and
how her child by him was cast down to earth and adopted by
a chieftain there, but abandoned because the gluttonous in-
fant ate the tribe out of provisions; this child was the Raven.
Usually, however, the myth begins abruptly with the wander-
ing Raven. The world is covered with water and Raven is
seeking a resting-place. From a bit of flotsam or a rocky islet
upon which he alights he creates the earth. His adventures,
creative in their consequences rather than in Intention, follow.
He steals the daylight and the sun, moon, and stars from an
old man who keeps them in chests or sacks and who seems
to be a kind of personification of primeval night. Raven’s
mode of theft being to allow himself to be swallowed by the




PLATE XXXIII


Chilkat blanket. The design is interpreted as a
Killer Whale motive. Above the lower fringe arc
two kites in profile. Above these the mouth and
teeth of the whale, whose nostrils are central in the
mouth. The whale’s eyes are just above, the figure
between them representing water from the blowhole,
which is indicated by the central human face. The
body of the whale is denoted by the upper face, the
figures on either side of the two faces representing
fins. The upper eyes represent the lobes of the whale’s
tail; the figure between them, the dorsal fin. After
MAM xn^ Plate XXVII.








THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH 261

old man’s daughter, from whom he is born again. He steals
water from its guardian, the Petrel, and creates the rivers and
streams, and he forces the tide-keeper to release the tides. He
captures fire from the sea and puts it in wood and stone for the
use of man. He seizes and opens the chest containing the fish
that are to inhabit the sea, also creating fish by carving their
images in wood and vivifying them; or he carries off the Sal-
mon’s daughter and throws her Into the water, where she be-
comes the parent of the salmon klnd.^^ In addition he enters
the belly of a great fish, where he kindles a fire, but his ever-
present greed causes him to attack the monster’s heart, thereby
killing It; he wishes the carcass ashore, and is released by the
people who cut up its body. In some versions the walrus is
Raven’s victim, the story being a special North-West form of
the myth of the hero swallowed by the monster, which is found
from ocean to ocean In North America. Finally, in various ways
he is responsible for the flood which puts an end to the Age
of Animal Beings and inaugurates that of Men.'*® A Haida
legend repeats the Tlingit tale of the jealous uncle, who is
here Identified with the personified Raven, Nankilstlas (He-
Whose-VoIce-is-Obeyed) . The sister gives birth to a boy, as
a result of swallowing hot stones, but the uncle plots to de-
stroy the child, and puts on his huge hat (the rain-cloud?),
from which a flood of water pours forth to cover the earth.
The infant transforms himself Into Yeti, the Raven, and flies
heavenward, while the hat of Nankilstlas rises with the Inun-
dation; but when Yeti reaches the sky, he pushes his beak
into it and, with his foot upon the hat, presses Nankilstlas
back and drowns him. This tale appears in many forms in
the North-West, the flood-bringing hat often belonging to the
Beaver. After the deluge, the surviving beings of the first
age are transformed into animals, human beings are created,
with their several languages, and the present order of the world
is established — all as in Californian myths. One curious in-
version of events, in a Kwakiutl story, tells how the ante-



262


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


diluvian wolves, after the subsidence of the flood, took off their
wolf-masks and became human beings.^®

[Prometheus]

VII. SOULS AND THEIR POWERS

In no section of America is the belief in possession by spirits
and spiritistic powers more deeply seated than in the North-
West; shamanism is the key to the whole conception of life
which animates myth and rite. Scarcely any idea connected
with spiritualism is absent: stories of soul-journeys are fre-
quent, while telepathic communication, prophetic forewarnings
of death and disaster, and magic cures through spirit aid are
a part of the scheme of nature; there are accounts of crystal-
gazing, in which all lands and events are revealed in the trans-
lucent stone, which recurs again and again as a magic object;
and there are tales of houses haunted by shadows and feathers,
of talking skulls and bones that are living beings by night,
and of children born of the dead, which are only abortively
human. There is also a kind of psychology which is well de-
veloped among some tribes.®® The disembodied soul is not a
whole or hale being: “Why are you making an uproar, ghosts?
You who take away men’s reason!” is a fragment of Kwakiutl
song; and a certain story tells how a sick girl, whose heart was
painted, went insane because the colouring was applied too
strongly. The Haida have three words for “ soul ” ; two of these
apply to the incarnate soul, and are regarded as synonyms;
the third designates the disembodied soul, although the latter
is not the same as the ghost, which is marked by a distinct
name. A curious feature of Haida psychology is that the word
for mind is the same as that for throat — less strange, perhaps,
when we reflect upon the importance of speech in any descrip-
tion of the mind’s most distinctive power, that of reason.

The origin of death is explained in many ways.'® A Tlingit
story has been given, and a Nootka tale tells of a chieftain
who kept eternal life in a chest; men tried to steal it from him



THE PACIFIC COAST, NORTH 263

and almost succeeded, but their final failure doomed them to
mortality. A significant Wikeno (Kwakiutl) myth recounts the
descent from heaven of two ancestral beings who wished to
endow men with everlasting life, but a little bird wished death
into the world: “Where will I dwell,” he asked, “if ye always
live.? I would build my nest in your graves and warm me.”
The two offered to die for four days, and then arise from the
tomb ; but the bird was not satisfied, so finally they concluded
to pass away and be born again as children. After their death
they ascended to heaven, whence they beheld men mourning
them; whereupon they transformed themselves into drops of
bipod, carried downward by the wind. Sleeping women in-
breathe these drops and thence bear children.

The abodes of the dead are variously placed.^® Beneath the
sea is one of the most frequent, and there is an interesting story
telling of the waters parting and the ghost, in the form of a
butterfly, rising before a young man who sat fasting beside
the waters. The Haida believe that the drowned go to live with
the killer whales; those who perish by violence pass to Taxet’s
house in the sky, whence rebirth is difficult, though not impos-
sible for an adventurous soul; while those who die in the sick-
bed pass to the Land of Souls — a shore land, beyond the
waters, with innumerable inlets, each with its town, just as in
their own country. Although the dying could decide for them-
selves to what town in the Land of Souls they wished their
own spirits to go, there is occasionally, nevertheless, an appor-
tionment of the future abode on a moral basis; thus, in Tlingit
myth, after Nascakiyetl has created men, he decrees that when
the souls of the dead come before him, he will ask: “What were
you killed for.? What was your life in the world.?” Destiny is
determined by the answer; the good go to a Paradise above;
the wicked and witches are reborn as dogs and other animals.
The Bella Coola assign the dead to the two lower worlds, from
the upper of which alone is return possible through reincarna-
tion. An old woman who, in trance, had seen the spirit world,

X — 19



264 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

described it as stretching along the banks of a sandy river.
When it is sumnaer in the world above, it is winter in the earth
below (an idea which appears in Hopi conceptions of the world
order); and the ghosts, too, are said to walk with their heads
downward. They speak a different language from that in the
world above, and each soul receives a new name on entering
the lower realms.

The ever-recurring and ever-pathetic story of the dead wife
and of her grieving lord’s quest for her — the tale of Orpheus
and Eurydice — appears in various forms in the North-West.*®
Sometimes it is the story of a vain journey, without even a
sight of the beloved, though the Land of the Dead be dis-
covered; sometimes the searcher is sent back with gifts, but
not with the one sought; sometimes the legend is made a part
of the incident of the carved wife — the bereaved husband
making a statue of the lost spouse, which may show a dim
and troubled life, as if her soul were seeking to break through
to him; and again it is the true Orphean tale with the partial
success, the tabu broken through anxiety or love, and the spirit
wife receding once more to the lower world. It is not necessary
to invoke the theory of borrowings for such a tale as this ; the
elemental fact of human grief and yearning for the departed
will explain it. Doubtless a similar universality in human na-
ture and a similar likeness in human experiences will account
for the multitude of other conceptions which make the mythic
universe of the men of the Old World and the men of the New
fundamentally and essentially one.



NOTES




NOTES


I. Spelling. — Kahluna {kavdlundk^ qadluna are variants) is
the Eskimo’s word for “white man”; kablunait is the plural. Simi-
larly, tornit {tunnit) is the plural of tunek {tuniq, tunnek); tornait of
tornak {tornaq, tornat ) ; angakut of angakok^ other forms of which are
angekkoky angatkuk^ angaqok^ etc. These differences in spelling are
due in part to dialectic variations in Eskimo speech, in part to the
phonetic symbols adopted by investigators. Their number in a
language comparatively so stable as is Eskimo illustrates the diffi-
culties which beset the writer on American Indian subjects in choos-
ing proper representation for the sounds of aboriginal words. These
difficulties arise from a number of causes. In the first place, aboriginal
tongues, having no written forms, are extremely plastic in their
phonetics. Dialects of the same language vary from tribe to tribe;
within a single tribe different clans or families show dialectic pecu-
liarities; while individual pronunciation varies not only from man to
man but from time to time. In the second place, the printed records
vary in every conceivable fashion. Divergent systems of trans-
literation are employed by different investigators, publications, and
ethnological bureaux; translations from French and Spanish have
introduced foreign forms into English; usage changes for old words
from early to later times; and finally few men whose writings are
extensive adhere consistently to chosen forms; indeed, not infre-
quently the form for the same word varies in an identical writing.
In formulating rules of spelling for a general work, a number of
considerations call for regard. First, it is undesirable even to seek
to follow the phonetic niceties represented by the more elaborate
transliterative systems, which represent sound-material unknown in
English or other European tongues. Aboriginal phonetics is impor-
tant to the student of linguistics; it is unessential to the student
of mythology; and it is detrimental to that literary interest which
seeks to make the mythological conceptions available to the general
reader; for the mythologist or the literary artist a symbol conform-
ing to the genius of his own tongue is the prime desideratum. In
the light of these considerations the following rules of spelling for
aboriginal terms have been adopted for the present work:

(i) In the spelling of the names of tribes and linguistic stocks the
usage of the Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico (50



268


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


BBE) has been chosen as the standard. The same form (as a rule)
is used for the singular and for the collective plural; also, frequently,
for the adjective.

(2) Where a term has attained, through considerable usage, a
frequent English form, especially if this has literary (as distinct
from scientific) sanction, such form is preferred. This rule is neces-
sarily loose and difficult to apply. Thus the term manito^ which has
many variants, is almost equally well known under the French
form manitou, for which there is the warrant of geographical usage.
Again, Manabozho is preferred to Nanabozho (used for the title of
the article in jo BBE) for the reason that Manabozho is more widely
employed in non-technical works.

(3) In adaptations of transliterations all special characters are
rendered by an approximation in the Anglo-Roman alphabet and
all except the most familiar diacritical marks are omitted. This is
an arbitrary rule, but in a literary sense it seems to be the only one
possible.

(4) Vowels have the Italian values. Thus tipi replaces the older
form teepee. Changes of this type are not altogether fortunate, but
the trend of usage is clearly in this direction. In a few cases (notably
from Longfellow’s Hiawatha) older literary forms are kept.

2. Monsters. — Monstrous beings and races occur in the my-
thology of every American tribe, and with little variation in type.
There are: (a) manlike monsters, including giants, dwarfs, cannibals,
and hermaphrodites; (b) animal monsters, bird monsters, water
monsters, etc.; (c) composite and malformed creatures, such as one-
eyed giants, headless bodies and bodiless heads, skeletons, persons
half stone, one-legged, double-headed, and flint-armoured beings,
harpies, witches, ogres, etc. As a rule, these creatures are in the
nature of folk-lore beings or bogies. In some cases they have a clear-
cut cosmologic or cosmogonic significance; thus, myths of Titans
and Stone Giants are usually cosmogonic in meaning; legends of
serpents and giant birds occur especially in descriptions of atmos-
pheric and meteorological phenomena; the story of the hero swal-
lowed by a monster is usually in connexion with the origin of ani-
mals.^ See Notes 9, 12, 19, 32, 36, 37, 38, 40, 41, 49, 50, 64. The
principal text references are: Ch. I. i (cf. Rink, Nos. 54, 55). — Ch.
IL vii. — Ch. IV. vi (Mooney , pp. 325-49). — Ch. V. ii (Jette
[a]). — Ch. VII. ii (Lowie . Nos. 10-15, 3^; Teit [a]. Nos. 29-30;
Powell, pp. 45-49). — Ch. VIIL i, ii. — Ch. IX. vi (Cushing [c],
Lummis, Voth). — Ch. XL iv.

3. Animism. — The Eskimo’s Inue belong to that universal group
of elementary powers commonly called “animistic,” though some
writers object to this term on the ground that it implies a clear-cut



NOTES


269

spiritism in aboriginal conceptions (cf. Clodd, Hartland, et aL, in
Transactions of the Third International Congress for the History of
Religions j Oxford, 1908; Marett, Threshold of Religion, London, 1909;
Lang, ^‘Preanimistic Religion,” in Contemporary Review, 1909; see
also, Powell, i ARBE, pp. 29-33). Taking anima in its primitive
sense of ‘^breath,” “wind,” no other word seems really preferable as
a description of the ancient notion of indwelling lives or powers in
all things, — “panzoism,” if that term be preferred. The American
forms under which this idea appears are many, manito, orenda, and
wakanda being the terms most widely known. The application of
the words varies somewhat, (a) Manito, the Algonquian name, desig-
nates not only impersonal powers, but frequently personified beings,
(b) Orenda, an Iroquoian term, is applied to powers, considered as
attributes, (c) Wakanda, the Siouan designation, connotes, in the
main, impersonal powers, though It is sometimes used of individuals,
and apparently also for the collective or pantheistic power of the
world as a whole. Usually in Indian religion there is some sense of
the difference between a personality as a cause and its power as an
attribute, but in myths the tendency is naturally toward lively per-
sonification. Cf. Note 4. Text references: Ch. 1. iii {inua, plural
inue, is cognate with inuk, “man,” and means “its man” or “owner”).
— Ch. 11. iii (Brinton [a], p. 62; Hewitt [a], pp. 134, 197, note a;
JR V. 157, 17s; Ixvi. 233 ff.). — Ch. V. ii (Jette [a], ); iv (Fletcher
and La Flesche, pp. 597-99). — Ch. VIIL i (Matthews [a]). —
Ch. X. V. — Ch. XI. ii (Boas [f]; Swanton [a], chh. viii, ix); iv
(S WANTON [e], p. 452).

4. Medicine. — The term “medicine” has come to be applied
in a technical sense to objects and practices controlling the animistic
powers of nature, as the Indian conceives them. “Medicine” is,
therefore, in the nature of private magical property. It may exist
in the form of a song or spell known to the owner, in the shape of a
symbol with which he adorns his body or his possessions, or in the
guise of a material object which is kept in the “medicine-bag,” in
the “sacred bundle,” or it may be present in some other fetishistic
form. It may appear in a “medicine dance” or ceremony, or in a
system of rites and practices known to a “medicine lodge” or so-
ciety. The essential idea varies from fetishism to symbolism. On
the fetishistic level is the regard for objects themselves as sacred
and powerful, having the nature of charms or talismans. Such
fetishes may be personal belongings — the contents of the “medicine-
bag,” etc. (sometimes even subject to barter) — or they may be
tribal or cult possessions, such as the sacred poles and sacred bundles
of the Plains tribes, or the fetish images, masks, and sacra of the
Pueblo and North-West stocks; a not infrequent form is the sacred



270


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


drum or rattle. Symbolism is rarely absent even from the fetishistic
object, and usually the fetish is lost in the symbol, which is the
token of the union of interests between its owner and his “helper/’
or tutelary. It is in this latter sense, as designating the relation
between the owner and his guardian or tutelary, that the Algon-
quian term “totem” is most used. The totem is not a thing mate-
rially owned, as is the fetish; it is a spirit or power, frequently an
animal-being, which has been revealed to the individual in vision as
his tutelary, or which has come to him by descent, his whole clan
participating in the right. The Tornait of the Eskimo belong to this
latter class; the word “totem,” however, is not used in connexion
with such guardians, and indeed is now mainly restricted to the tute-
laries of clans, right to which passes by inheritance. Text references:
Ch. 1 . iii. — Ch. V. V (De Smet, pp. 1068-69). — Ch. VIL vi. —
Ch. IX. iii (Cushing [a]; M. C. Stevenson [c]; Fewkes, passim).

5. Shamanism. — The terms applied to Indian priests and wonder-
workers are many, but they do not always bear a clear distinction
of meaning. The word “shaman” is especially common in works on
the Eskimo and the North-West tribes; “medicine-man” is used
very largely with reference to the eastern and central tribes; “priest”
is particularly frequent in descriptions of Pueblo institutions. In
general, the following definitions represent the distinctions implied:

(a) Shaman. A wonder-worker and healer directly inspired by a
“medicine ’’-power, or group of such powers, “shamanism” signify-
ing the recognition of possession by powers or spirits as the primary
modus operandi in all the essential relations between man and the
world-powers.

(b) Medicine’-Man, Doctor. Not radically different from shaman,
though the employment of naturalistic methods of healing, such as
the use of herbal medicines, the sweat-bath, crude surgery, etc., is
often implied, especially where the term “doctor” is employed.

(c) Priest. One authorized to preside over the celebration of tradi-
tional ceremonies. Such persons must be initiates in the society or
body owning the rites, which are sometimes shamanistic in char-
acter, though more frequently the shaman is supposed to get his
powers as the result of an individual experience.

Every degree of relationship is found for these offices. In tribes
of low social organization (e. g. the Eskimo and the Californians)
the shaman is the man of religious importance; in tribes with well
developed traditional rites the priestly character is frequently com-
bined with the shamanistic (as in the North-West); still other peo-
ples (as the Pueblo) elevate the priest far above the medicine-man,
who may be simply a doctor, or medical practitioner, or who, on
the shamanistic level, may be regarded as a witch or wizard, with

[Prometheus]

NOTES


271


an evil reputation. The tendency toward formal and hereditary
priesthoods is naturally confined to the socially advanced peoples
(of whom the Creek and Pueblo are examples), while “mystery”
societies and ceremonies, the aim of which is spiritual and physical
well-being, and often material prosperity in addition, occur in all
but the lowest tribal stocks. The principal text references are: Ch,
1 . iii. — Ch. IV. vii (Mooney , p. 392). — Ch. VI. vi (G. A.
Dorsey , pp. 46-49). — Ch. VII. vii (Mooney [d], for trans-
lated songs, pp. 958-1012, 1052-55). — Ch. VIII. iv (Matthews [a],
“Natinesthani,” “The Great Shell of Kintyel”; [c], “The Vision-
ary,” “So,” “The Stricken Twins,” “The Whirling Logs”; James
Stevenson, “The Floating Logs,” “The Brothers”; cf. Goddard
[a], Nos. 18, 22, 23). — Ch. IX. iii (M. C. Stevenson [c], pp. 32-33,
62-67, 289-90; Fewkes [a], pp. 310-11). — Ch. X. ii. — CL XL iii
(SwANTON [a], pp. 163-64; Boas [f]).

6. Great Spirit. — The Greenlander’s Tomarsuk is another ex-
ample of the faineant supreme being for which Lang so astutely
argued {Myth, Ritual and Religion, 3d ed., London, 1901, Introd.),
citing Atahocan and Kiehtan as early instances. Writers on Ameri-
can Indian religion frequently assert that the idea of a “Great
Spirit” is not aboriginal (cf. Brinton [a], p. 69; Fewkes [f], p. 688).
Thus Morgan (Appendix B, sect. 62): “The beautiful and elevating
conception of the Great Spirit watching over his red children from
the heavens and pleased with their good deeds, their prayers, and
their sacrifices, has been known to the Indians only since the Gospel
of Christ was preached to them.” Yet in the section just preceding,
on Indian councils, he says: “The master of ceremonies, again ris-
ing to his feet, filled and lighted the pipe of peace from his own fire.
Drawing three whiffs, one after the other, he blew the first toward
the zenith, the second toward the ground, and the third toward the
Sun. By the first act he returned thanks to the Great Spirit for the
preservation of his life during the past year, and for being permitted
to be present at this council. By the second, he returned thanks to
his Mother, the Earth, for her various productions which had minis-
tered to his sustenance. And by the third, he returned thanks to the
Sun for his never-failing light, ever shining upon all.” No one ques-
tions the aboriginal character of this pipe ritual, its pre-Columbian
antiquity, or its universality (cf., e. g., De Smet, Index, “Calumet”);
and equally there is abundant evidence that Morgan’s interpreta-
tion of its meaning is correct: the first whiff is directed to the Great
Spirit, the Master of Life, whose abode is the upper heaven. Very
commonly this being is referred to as “Father Heaven,” and invari-
ably he is regarded as beneficent and all-seeing, and as “pleased
with the good deeds of his red children.” The only truth in the as-



272


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


sertion that the Indian’s idea of a Great Spirit is derived from white
missionaries is that the Indian conception is less anthropomorphic
than that commonly entertained by an unphilosophic white (though
it is one that would have been readily comprehended by the Stoics
of antiquity, and would not have seemed remote to the thought of
Plato or Aristotle). If a separation of ideas be made, and the Bibli-
cal epithet “Heavenly Father” be understood for what it doubtless
originally was, a name for a being who was (i) the sky-throned ruler
of the world, and (2) its creator, a better comprehension of Indian
ideas will follow; for it is rare in America to find Father Heaven in
the creative rdle (the Zuni and Californian cosmogonies are excep-
tions). It is partly for this reason that he plays so small a part
in myth; he belongs to religion rather than to mythology proper.
Lang is probably wrong in regarding the Supreme Being as fainSa 7 it,
a do-nothing; occasionally the Indian expresses himself to this
effect, but no one can follow the detail of Indian ritual without
being impressed by his intense reverence for the Master of Life and
his firm conviction in his goodness. That the Indian more often
addresses prayer to the intermediaries between himself and the
ruler of the high heaven, or makes offerings to them, is as natural
as that a Latin should approach his familiar saints. A particularly
good bit of evidence, if more were needed, for the aboriginal char-
acter of the heaven-god is given by S wanton ([a], p. 14). “The-
Chief-Above” is the Haida name for God, as taught them by the
missionaries; “ Power-of-the-Shining-Heavens ” is their aboriginal
Zeus: “Some Masset people once fell to comparing The-Chlef-Above
with Power-of-the-Shining-Heavens in my presence. They said
they were not the same. The idea that I formed of their attitude
toward this being was, that, just as human beings could ‘receive
power’ or ‘be possessed’ by supernatural beings, and supernatural
beings could receive power from other supernatural beings, so the
whole of the latter got theirs in the last analysis from the Power-of-
the-Shining-Heavens.” The same idea of a hierarchy in space with
the heaven-god at its summit appears in the ritual of the Midewiwin,
in the Hako Ceremony, and in the Olelbis myth. These are only a
few instances from different parts of the continent; there are numer-
ous other examples, for wherever the breath of Heaven is identi-
fied with the descent of life from on high, and the light of day is
regarded as the symbol of blessings bestowed upon man, the con-
ception of Father Heaven, the Great Spirit, is found. See Notes 13,
15, 25, 26, 30, 34, 63. Text references: Ch. 1 . iii (cf. Boas [a], p. 583:
“The Central Eskimo . , • believe in the Tornait of the old Green-
landers, while the Tornarsuk (i. e. the great Tornaq of the latter)
is unknown to them”). — Ch. 11 . ii {JR xxxiii. 225); iv (see Note



NOTES


273

28). — Ch. V. iii (Fletcher, pp. 27, 216, 243); iv (Morice ;
De Smet, p. 936; Eastman , pp. 4--6). — Ch. VIL v. — Ch. IX.
iii (M. C. Stevenson [c], pp. 22-24). — Oh. X. iii (Kroeber [c],
pp. 184, 348; [e], p. 94; Goddard , No. i; Gatschet [c], p. 140;
Curtin [a]; , pp. 39-45). — Ch. XL iv (Swanton [a], pp. 13-15,
190; , p. 284; [c], pp. 26-30).

7. Goddesses. — There are several occurrences in North Ameri-
can mythology of a goddess as the supremely important deity of a
pantheon. Nerrivik, ‘Tood Dish,’^ is the epithet given by Rasmus-
sen to the divinity called Arnarksuagsak, ‘'Old Woman,” by Rink,
Arnakuagsak by Thalbitzer, and Sedna and Nuliajoq by Boas. Her
character as the ruler of sea-food sufficiently accounts for her impor-
tance in the far North. A somewhat similar goddess appears among
the North-West Coast tribes; she is the owner of the food animals
of the sea which come forth from a chest that is always full (Boas
[g], XX. 7). Foam Woman, the Haida ancestral divinity, is perhaps
the same personage. The Bella Coola deity, Qamaits, who dwells
in the highest heaven, belongs to a different class; apparently she is
the one example of a truly supreme being in feminine form in North
America, for she is a cosmic creator and ruler rather than a food-
giver; on the other hand, the fact that she has a lake of salt water
as her bath may indicate a marine origin. In the South-West god-
desses are important both in cosmogony and in cult. There is no
higher personage in the Navaho pantheon than Estsanatlehi, and
her doublets in Pueblo myth enjoy nearly equal rank. Again it is
her association with food-giving from which this goddess derives
her status, for in the South-West the Great Goddess of the West
presides over the region whence come the fructifying rains. Cos-
mogonic Titanesses occur in many myths, in almost every instance
as personifications of the Earth, which in turn is almost universally
recognized as the great giver of life and food. See Notes 34, 35, 43.
Text references: Ch. I. iii (cf. Rasmussen, pp. 142, 151; Rink, p. 40;
Boas [a], pp. 583-87), — Ch. VI. vii. — Ch. VIII. i (Matthews
[a]). — Ch. IX. V (see Note 35 for references), vi, — Ch. XL ii:
The marine god of the North-West Coast is a masculine equivalent
of Sedna (Boas [f], p. 374; [g], passim); iv (Boas [j], pp. 27-28).

8. The Perilous Way. — Descriptions of the dangers besetting
the journey to the Land of Spirits, whether for the dead souls that
are to return no more, the adventurous spirits of shamans, or the
still more daring heroes of myth who seek to traverse the way in the
flesh, are found in practically all Indian mythologies. The analogues
with Old-World myth will occur to every reader. The special perils
associated with the moon in journeys to the sky-world are interest-
ingly similar in Greenland and on the North-West Coast. Cf. Notes



NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


274

10, 42, 53. Text references: Ch. 1 . lii, iv. — Ch. Ill, vil {JR vi. 181;
Converse, pp. 51-52; De Smet, p. 382). — CL VIL vi. — CL
VIIL ii. — Ch. X. vi, — Ch. XL v.

9. Water Monsters. — There is a striking similarity in the per-
sonnel of the mythic sea-powers among the Eskimo and on the
North-West Coast, nearly every type of being in the one group hav-
ing its equivalent in the other — mermen, phantom boatmen, mouth-
prowed and living boats, and, most curious of all, the Fire-People.
Nowhere else in North America, except for the Nova Scotian Mic-
mac, has any considerable body of marine myths been preserved.
Everywhere, however, there are well defined groups of under-water
beings, sometimes reptilian or piscine, sometimes human in form.
Among the important myths in which under-water monsters are
conspicuous are: (a) the common legend of a hero swallowed by a
huge fish or other creature (not always a water-being; cf. Note 41),
from whose body he cuts his way to freedom, or is otherwise released;
(b) the flood story, in which the heroes brother, or companion, is
dragged down to death by water monsters which cause the deluge
when the hero takes revenge upon them (see Note 49); (c) the
South-Western myth of the subterranean water monster who threat-
ens to inundate the world in revenge for the theft of his two children,
and who is appeased only by the sacrifice of other two children or of
a youth and a maid (cf. Note 29). Text references: Ch. I. iv (Rink,
p. 46; Rasmussen, pp. 307-08). — Ch. II. vii. — CL III. iv. — Ch.
IV, vi (Mooney , pp. 320, 349). — Ch. V. ix (J. O. Dorsey [d],
p. 538; Fletcher and La Flesche, p, 63). — CL VIIL i. — CL
X. iv.

10. Abode of the Dead. — Cavernous underworlds, houses in
heaven, the remotely terrene village beyond the river, or the earthly
town on the other side of the western sea are all included in the
American’s mythic homes of the dead. In the Forest and Plains
regions a western village, situated beyond a river which the living
cannot cross even if they win to its banks, is perhaps the most
common idea, though throughout this portion of the continent the
Milky Way is the “Pathway of Souls.” In the South-West the sub-
terranean land of souls is usual, and on the Pacific the spirits of the
dead are supposed to fare to oversea isles ; but nowhere is there great
consistency of belief. The idea of divergent destinies for different
classes of people finds what is doubtless its most primitive form in
the notion that those who die by violence, especially in war, and
women in child-birth have a separate abode in the after-life. The
Eskimo, Tlingit, and Haida place the dwelling-place of persons so
dying in the skies, and it is interesting to note that the same dis-
tinction was observed by the Aztecs, who believed that men dying



NOTES


275

in battle, persons sacrificed to the gods (except underworld gods),
and women dead in child-birth all went to the house of the Sun,
others to a subterranean Hades. The Norse Valhalla is a European
counterpart, though it is difficult to say whether the American in-
stances had any clearly conscious moral value in view. The Zufil
make a similar discrimination for a different reason, the souls of the
members of the Bow priesthood going to the sky-world, but only
because of their office as archers and hence as lightning and storm-
bringers. A further Zuni distinction limits entrance to the Dance-
House of the Gods, inside a mountain, to initiates in the Kotikili.
A moral value is clear enough in the Tlingit conception of the judge-
ment of Nascakiyetl, and in this and other North-West notions it
appears that the possibility of rebirth is more or less dependent upon
the abode attained, though it may be doubted whether the mode of
death is not really the final crux even here, the mutilated and slain
finding reincarnation more difficult. One of the most ghastly of
North American superstitions is the belief that scalped men lead a
shadowy life (ghosts rather than spirits) about the scenes where they
met their fate, but this properly belongs to ghost-lore. See Notes

47 ? S3- references: Ch. I. iv. — Ch. III. vii (Perrot, Memoire^
English translation in Blair, i. 39; JR x. 153-55; Rand, Nos. x,
XXXV, xlii; Hoffman , pp. 118, 206). — Ch. IX. iii, vii (M. C.
Stevenson [c], p. 66). — Ch. X. vii. — Ch. XI. iii (Boas [g], xxv.
3); vii (Boas [g], zv. i; [j], pp. 37-38; Swanton [a], pp. 34-36; [d],
p. 81).

II. The Cosmos. — All American tribes recognize a world above
the heavens and a world below the earth. Many of them multiply
these worlds. Thus the Bella Coola believe in a five-storey universe,
with two worlds above and two below our earth. Four worlds above
and four below is a recorded Chippewa and Mandan conception,
and in the South-West the four-storey underworld is the common
idea. It is of extraordinary interest to find the same belief in Green-
land. The fact that the earth is divided into quarters, in the Indian’s
orientations, and that offerings are made to the tutelaries of the quar-
ters in nearly every ritual, may be the analogy which has suggested
the multiplication of the upper and under worlds, but it is at least
curious that the conception of a storeyed universe should be so. defi-
nite among the Northern and North-Western Coast peoples, with
whom the cult of the Quarters is absent or rare. The notion of a
series of upper worlds appears in the rituals of some Plains tribes;
thus the Pawnee recognize a “circle” of the Visions (apparently the
level of the clouds), a “circle” of the Sun, and the still higher “circle”
of Father Heaven; and the Chippewa believe in a series of powers
dwelling in successive skyward regions. It is possible that the analogy



276 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

of this upper-world series has been symmetrically extended to the
world below, and yet it is the four-fold underworld that recurs
most definitely. See Notes 6, lo, 31, 66, 68. Text references: Ch. 1 .
iv. — Ch. IL V (45 BBE, p. 21; Mooney , pp. 236-40, 430,
note i). — Ch. V. ix (J. 0. Dorsey [d], pp. 520-26; Fletcher and
La Flesche, pp. 134-41; cf. J. 0. Dorsey , [e]). — Ch. VI. ii
(Will and Spinden); iii (G. A. Dorsey [e], note 2, states that
‘^Tirawahut’’ refers to “^^the entire heavens and everything con-
tained therein”; Tahirussawichi, the Chaui priest quoted in 22
JRBE, part 2, p. 29, said: “Awahokshu is that place • . . where
Tirawa-atius, the mighty power, dwells. Below are the lesser powers,
to whom man can appeal directly, whom he can see and hear and
feel, and who can come near him. Tirawahut is the great circle in
the sky where the lesser powers dwell.”). — Ch. VII. iii (Teit [a],
p. 19, and Nos. 2, ro, 27, 28; , p. 337; Mason, No. 26). — Ch. VIII.
ii. — Ch. IX. ii (Cushing ; M. C. Stevenson , [c]; Fewkes
[a], [e]). — Ch. XL iv (Swanton [a], ch. ii; [e], pp. 451-60; Boas
Ul PP- 27-37)-

12. Ghosts. — The ghost or wraith of the dead is generally con-
ceived to be different from the soul, and is closely associated with the
material remains of the dead. Animated skeletons, talking skulls,
and scalped men are forms in which the dead are seen in their former
haunts; sometimes shadows and whistling wraiths represent the de-
parted. In a group of curious myths the dead appear as living and
beautiful by night, but as skeletons by day. Marriages between the
dead and the living, with the special tabu that the offspring shall
not touch the earth, occur in several instances, as the Pawnee tale
(Ch. VI. v) or the Klickitat story of the girl with the ghost lover
(Ch. VIL vi), for which Boas gives a Bella Coola parallel in which
the offspring of the marriage is a living head that sinks into the earth
so soon as it is inadvertently allowed to touch the ground ([g], xxii.
17). See Notes 8, 20, 53. Text references: Ch. I. iv. — Ch. VI. v
(G. A. Dorsey [g], Nos. 10, 34; [e]. No. 20; Grinnell [c], "'The
Ghost Wife”). — Ch. VII. vi (see Notes 20, 53 for references). —
Ch. VIII. i.

13. Sun and Moon. — The sun is the most universally venerated
aboriginal deity of North America; and this is true to such an extent
that the Indians have been reasonably designated " Sun-Worshippers.”
Nevertheless, there are many tribes where the sun-cult is unimpor-
tant, but on the other hand, there are well defined regions where it
becomes paramount, particularly among the southern agricultural
peoples. The moon is regarded as a powerful being, yet quite fre-
quently as a baneful or dangerous one (cf. Note . Usually the sun
is masculine and the moon feminine, though in a curious exception



NOTES


277


(Cherokee, Yuchi) the sun is the woman and the moon the man;
in the South-West and North-West both are generally described as
masculine. Husband and wife is the usual relation of the pair, and
the Tlingit explain the sun’s eclipse as due to a visit of wife to hus-
band; but in a myth which is told by both Eskimo and Cherokee,
sun and moon are brother and sister, guilty of incest (cf. Note 17).
In the South-West, and more or less on the Pacific Coast, the sun
and moon are conceived as material objects borne across the sky by
carriers, and the yearly variations of the sun’s path are explained
by mechanical means — poles by which the Sun-Carrier ascends to
a sky-bridge,. which he crosses and which is as broad as the ecliptic,
etc. While the sun is a great deity — “Father Sun” — he is seldom
truly supreme; he is the loftiest and most powerful of the interme-
diaries between man and Father Heaven, and both he and the moon
are invariably created beings. Sometimes, however, the sun seems
to be regarded as the life of heaven itself, and as its immortal life;

[Prometheus]

this is clearly the meaning of the Modoc myth of Kumush, the
creator, who annihilated by fire the beautiful blue man, but could
not destroy the golden disk which was his life, and so used it to
transform himself into the empyrean (Curtin , pp. 39-45). Doublet
suns and moons, in the worlds below and above our own, are fre-
quently mentioned; often the sun is supposed to pass to the under-
world after the day’s journey is completed, in order to return to his
starting-point; possibly the notion of an underworld whose days and
seasons interchange with ours (a Pacific-Coast notion) is due to the
assumption that the sun alternates in the world above and the world
below. Among the important sun-myths are: (a) the well-nigh uni-
versal story of the hero or heroic brothers whose father is the sun or
some celestial person closely akin to the sun (cf. Note 44); (b) the
Phaethon myth, common in the North-West, in which the Mink is
permitted to carry the sun-disk and, as a consequence, causes a con-
flagration; (c) the related legend of the creation of the sun, which,
until it is properly elevated, overheats the world; (d) traditions of
the theft of the sun, which are variants of the Promethean tale of
the theft of fire (cf. Note 51), Text references: Ch. 1 . v (Rink, No.
35; Rasmussen, pp. 173 - 74 ; Boas [a], pp. 597-98). — Ch. II. vi
{JR vi. 223; Converse, pp. 48-51; Hoffman , p. 209). — Ch.
III. i, vi (for the “Ball-Carrier” story, see Schoolcraft [a], part
iii, p. 318; Hoffman , pp. 223-38). — Ch. IV, ii (Mooney [a],
p. 340; , pp. 239-49, ^56; Lafitau, i. idy'-dS); iv. — Ch. V. vi
(Fletcher, pp. 30, 134-40; for Sun-Dance references see Note 39).
— Ch. VI. iii, iv (G. A. Dorsey [e], No. id; [h], Nos. 14, 15; [a],
pp. 212-13; Dorsey and Kroeber, Nos. 134-38; Simms, FCM ii,
No. 17; Mooney [c], pp. 238-39; Lowie [a], No. 18). — Ch. VII.



278 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

iii (Teit [a], No. 8; Lowie , No. 8; Powell, p. 24); Iv (Powell,
pp. 52-56). — Ch. VIIL ii, iii (James Stevenson, pp. 275-76); v
(Russell, p. 251; Lumholtz [a], i. 295 ff., 311; , pp. 357 ff.). —
Ch. IX. iii, iv, vi, vii. — Ch. X. vi (Goddard [c], Nos. 3, 4). — Ch.
XL iv, V (Boas [j], pp. 28-36; [g], v. 2; viii. 2; xv. i; xviii, i; xx. i, la;
xxii. I, 19; xxiii. i, 3, 4; Swanton [a], p. 14. For the Mink cycle:
Boas [g], xvii. i; xviii. 7; xx. 2, 3; xxi. 2; xxii. i, 2; Boas and Hunt
, pp. 80-163; Boas [j], p. 95).

14. Stars and Constellations. — No group of myths is more
uniform on the North American continent than those relating to
constellations; usually they are extremely simple. The Great Bear,
Pleiades, and Orion’s Belt are the groups most frequently men-
tioned; and the commonest tale is of a chase in which the pursued
runs up into the sky, followed by eternally unsuccessful pursuers.
This myth seems quite natural as a description of Ursa Major —
the four feet of a fleeing quadruped (usually in America, too, a bear),
and three pursuers. Equally obvious is the conception of Pleiades as a
group of dancers, or of Corona Borealis as a council circle. Of the stars,
Venus, as morning star, which is generally regarded as a young war-
rior, messenger of the Sun, and the Pole Star, believed by the Pawnee
to be the chief of the night skies, are the only ones widely indi-
vidualized in myth. The Milky Way is universally the Spirit Path.
Star-myths are especially abundant and vivid among the Pawnee
(cf. Ch. VI. iii). Text references: Ch. I. v (Rink, pp. 48, 232; Boas
[a], p. 636; Rasmussen, pp. 176-77, 320). — Ch. II. vi (Converse,
pp. 53-63; Smith, pp. 80-81; cf. E. G. Squier, American Review^
new series, ii, 1848, p. 256). — Ch. V. viii (Fletcher, p. 129.
G. A. Dorsey [e] states that the Evening Star is of higher rank among
the Pawnee. The legend of Poia has been made the subject of an
opera by Arthur Nevin and Randolph Flartley. The version here
followed is that of Walter McClintock, The Old North Trails ch.
xxxviii. Other versions are Grinnell [a], pp. 93-103; Wissler and
Duvall, ii. 4. The story belongs to a wide-spread type; cf. G. A.
Dorsey [e]. No. 16, and note 117; [f]. Nos. 14, 15; Note 36, infra.
For constellation-myths see Fletcher, p. 234; Lowie [a], p. 177;
McClintock, pp. 488-90; J. 0 , Dorsey [d], p. 517). — Ch. VI. i
(Morice, Transactions of the Canadian Institute^ v. 28-32); iii (G. A.
Dorsey [e], No. i, and Introd.); iv (see Note 13 for references); v (G.
A. Dorsey [e], No. 2; [g]. No. 35). — Ch. VIIL v (Lumholtz [a],
pp. 298, 3 1 1, 361, 436). — Ch. IX. iii, vi.

15. Cosmogony. — American cosmogonies ought perhaps to be
described as cosmic myths of migration and transformation. In a
few instances (notably the Zuni cosmogony and some Californian
legends) there is a true creation ex nihilo; but the typical stories



NOTES


279


are of sky-world beings who descend to the waters beneath and
magically expand a bit of soil into earth, or the characteristically
southern tale of an ascent of the First People from an underground
abode, followed by a series of adventures and transformations which
make the world habitable. The cataclysmic destruction of the first
inhabitants by flood, sometimes by fire, is universal in one form or
another; it is succeeded by the transformation of the survivors of
the antediluvian age into animals or men, by the creation of the
present human race, and frequently by a confusion of tongues and
a dispersion of peoples. There can be no doubt as to the truly aborig-
inal character of all these episodes, though in some instances the
native stories have clearly been coloured by knowledge of their
Biblical analogues. See Notes 6, ii, 31, 40, 49, 57, 70. Text refer--
ences: Ch. 1 . v. — Ch. III. i (Hewitt [a] gives an Onondaga, a
Seneca, and a Mohawk version of the Iroquois genesis, the first
of these being the one here mainly followed; other authorities on
Iroquoian cosmogony are: Hewitt and ‘‘Cosmogonic Gods of
the Iroquois,” in Proceedings of the American Association for the Ad-
vancement of Science^ 1895; Brebeuf, on the Huron, JR x, 127-39;
Brinton [a], pp. 53-62; Parkman [a], pp. Ixxv-lxxvii; Hale, JAFL
i. 177-83; Converse, pp. 31-36; Schoolcraft [a], part iii, p. 314;
and, for the Cherokee, Mooney , pp. 239 ff.); ii (important sources
on Algonquian cosmogony are: JR^ Index, “Manabozho”; Charle-
voix, Journal historique, Paris, 1840; Perrot, MSmoire^ English
translation in Blair, i. 23-272; Schoolcraft [a], i.; Brinton [d];
Rand; Hoffman [a], ; A. F. Chamberlain, “Nanibozhu amongst
the Otchipwe, Mississagas, and other Algonkian Tribes,” in JAFL
iv. 193-213). — Ch. IV. iv (Mooney , pp. 239-49; Gatschet [a],
; BusHnell [a], ). — Ch. V. ix (Fletcher and La Flesche,
pp. 63, 570). — Ch. VI. i (Morice, “Three Carrier Myths,” in
Transactions of the Canadian Institute^ v.; Lofthoxjse, “Chipewyan
Stories,” in ib. x.); ii (Lowie [a]. Nos. i, 2, 22, et al.; Will and
Spinden, pp. 138-41; Fletcher and La Flesche; J. O. Dorsey

[a] ; Eastman ; see Mooney [c], p. 152, for a Kiowa instance);
iii (G. A. Dorsey [e], No. i, is the authority chiefly followed here
for one of the finest of American cosmogonic myths); vii (G. A.
Dorsey , pp. 34-49). — Ch. VIII. ii (Matthews [a]); v (Russell,
pp. 206-38; cf. Lumholtz [a], pp. 296 ff.; , pp. 357 ff-); vi (Bourke

; Kroeber ; DuBois; James, chh. xii, xiv). — Ch. IX. vi
(M. C. Stevenson , pp. 26-69; Voth, Nos. 14, 15, 37); vii (M. C.
Stevenson [a], [c]; Cushing , [c]). — Ch. X. iii. — Ch. XL vi (see
Note 48 for references).

16. Origin of Death. — Stories of the origin of death are found
from Greenland to Mexico. What may be termed the Northern type


X — 20



28 o


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


represents a debate between two demiurgic beings, one arguing for
the bestowal of immortal life upon the human race, the other in-
sisting that men must die; sometimes the choice is determined by-
reason, sometimes by divination maliciously influenced. A South-
Western type tells of a first death, caused by witchcraft or malice,
which sets the law. On the Pacific Coast the two motives are com-
bined; the first death is followed by a debate as to whether death
shall be lasting or temporary; and often a grim reprisal upon the
person (usually Coyote) who decrees the permanency of death
appears in the fact that it is his child who is the second victim.
Other motives are occasionally found. These myths seem to be typi-
cally American. Text references: Ch. 1 . v (Rasmussen, pp. 99-102;
Rink, p. 41). — Ch. III. vii {JR vi. 159). — Ch. VI. v (G. A. Dor-
sey [e]. No. 2; [g]. No. 35; Wissler and Duvall, i. 3, 4; Dorsey
and Kroeber, No. 41). — Ch. VII. v (Powell, pp. 44-45; cf. Lowie

, No. 2). — Ch. VIII. ii (Matthews [a], “Origin Myth”); v (God-
dard [a]. No. i); vl (DuBois). — Ch. IX. vi. — Ch. X. iii (Dixon [d],
Nos. I, 2); vii (Kroeber [c]. Nos. 9, 12, 17, 38; Dixon , No. 7;

[c] , No. 2; Frachtenberg [a], No. 5; Curtin [a], pp. 163-74; , pp,
60, 68; Goddard , p. 76). — Ch. XL vi (Boas [g], xxiv. i); vii
(Boas [g], xiii. 2, 6b).

17. Miscegenation. — Stories of supernatural and unnatural
marriages and sexual unions are very common. Sometimes they
are legends of the maid who marries a sky-being and gives birth to
a son who becomes a notable hero; sometimes a young man weds
a supernatural girl, as the Thunder’s Daughter or the Snake Girl,
thereby winning secrets and powers which make him a great theur-
gist; sometimes it is the marriage of the dead and the living; fre-
quently the union of women with animals is the theme, and a
story found the length of the continent tells of a girl rendered preg-
nant by a dog, giving birth to children who become human when she
steals their dog disguises. This legend is frequently told with the
episode found in the tradition of the incest of sun-brother and moon-
sister: the girl is approached by night and succeeds in identifying
her lover only by smearing him with paint or ashes. See Notes 13,
32, 50. Text references: Ch. 1 . v (Rasmussen, p. 104; Boas [a], p.
637; Rink, No. 148). — Ch. II. vi (Mooney , pp. 345-47). — Ch.
IV. ii (Mooney , p. 256). — Ch. VL i (Morice, Transactions of
the Canadian Institute^ v. 28-32). — Ch. IX. vii (M. C. Stevenson
[c], p. 32; Cushing , pp. 399 ff.). — Ch. X. v (Dixon [c], No.
7; , Nos. X, 2; Curtin [a], “Two Sisters”).

18, Transmigration. — Belief in the possibility of rebirth is gen-
eral, although some tribes think that only young children may be
reincarnated, and certain of the Californians who practise crema-



NOTES


281

tion bury the bodies of children that they may the more easily be
reborn. Again, rebirth is apparently easier for souls that have
passed to the underworld than for those whose abode is the sky.
The Bella Coola allow no reincarnation for those who have died a
second death and passed to the lowest underworld. See Notes 10,
20, 46. Text references: Ch. I. vi (Rasmussen, p. 116). — Ch. V. ii,
viii (J. 0 . Dorsey [d], p. 508). — Ch. XL iv (Boas [j], pp. ay-zS).

19. Cannibals and Man-Eaters. — Cannibals occur in many
stories. Three forms of anthropophagy, practised until recently by
North American tribes, are to be distinguished: (i) the devouring
of a portion of the body, especially the heart or blood, of a slain
warrior in order to obtain his strength or courage (cf. JR i. 268;
De Smet, p. 249); (2) ceremonial cannibalism, especially in the
North-West, where it is associated with the Cannibal Society; (3)
cannibalism for food. This latter form, except under stress of famine,
is rare in recent times, although archaeological evidence indicates
that it was formerly wide-spread. The ill repute borne by the
Tonkawa is an indication of the feeling against the custom, which,
on the whole, the cannibal-myths substantiate (cf. Ch. VIII. v).
In many legends the anthropophagist’s wife appears as a protec-
tor of his prospective victim, as in European tales of ogres, and it
is interesting to find the ‘‘Fe fo fum” episode of English folk-lore
recurring in numerous stories. The grisly “cannibal babe’’ tradi-
tion of the Eskimo has a kind of parallel in a Montana tale (Ch.
VIL vi); while the obverse motive, of the old female cannibal who
lures children to their destruction, is a frequent North-West story. •
Legends of man-eating bears and lions are to be expected; the man-
devouring bird of the Plateau region is more difficult to explain,
though the idea may be connected with that of the Thunderbird
and the destructiveness of lightning. See Notes 2, 37. Text refer--
ences: Ch. I. vi (Rasmussen, p. 186; Rink, No. 39). — Ch. IV. vii.
— Ch. VII. iii (Teit [a], No. ; vi (O. D. Wheeler, The Trail of
Lewis and Clark^ New York, 1904, ii. 74; cf. McDermott, No. 5,
where Coyote takes vengeance on the babe). — Ch. VIII. ii. — Ch.
XL ii (Boas [f], pp. 372 - 73 ; Igl Sj 6, 7; [j], pp. 83-90; Boas
and Hunt [a]); iii (Boas [f], pp. 394-466; [g], xv. 9; xvii. 8, 9; xx. 8;
SwANTON [a], ch. xi).

20. Names and Souls. — Ghosts and souls are very generally
distinguished. The disembodied soul, or spirit, is mythically con-
ceived as related to fire and wind, and as transiently human in
form, sometimes as a manikin. Names also have a kind of person-
ality. Individuals believed to be the reincarnation of one dead are
given the same appellation as that borne by him, and Curtin tells
a story of a babe that persistently cried until called by the right name



282


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


(, p. 6). A curious custom of renaming a living man after a dead
chief, that the character and traits of the departed may not be
lost, is described by the Jesuit Fathers {JR xxii. 289; xxvi. ISS™'63).
See Notes 12, 18, S3- references: Ch. 1 . vi (Stefansson, pp.

395-400). — Ch. III. V (De Smet, pp. 1047-53). — Ch. V. ii. —
Ch. VIL vi (Lowie , Nos. 38, 39; Teit , pp. 342, 358; [d],
p. 611). — Ch. XI. iii (Boas [f], pp. 418 ff.; [j], p. 37); vii (Boas
[f], p. 482; [g], xiiL 2, 6; Swanton [a], p. 34 )-

21. Ordeals. — Ordeals may be classified as follows: (i) initia-
tion trials and tortures, of which flogging and fasting are the com-
monest methods; (2) trials of a warrior’s fortitude, in the forms
of torture of captives, expiatory sacrifices and purifications of men
setting out on the war-path, and fulfilment of a vow for deliverance
from peril or evil; the famous Sun-Dance tortures belong to the
latter class; body scarring and the offering of finger-joints are fre-
quent modes of expiation; (3) punishment for crime, especially mur-
der; (4) mourning customs involving mutilation and hardship, par-
ticularly severe for widows; (5) duels, especially the magical duels
of shamans, which range from satirical song-duels to contests of skill
resulting in degradation or even death for the defeated. Text refer^
ences: Ch. 1 . vi (Rasmussen, p. 312). — Ch. V. vi. — Ch. IX. iv. —
Ch. X. vi (Frachtenberg [a]. No. 4).

22. Orphans and Poor Boys. — Tales of orphans and poor boys
who are neglected and persecuted form a whole body of litera-
ture, second in extent only to the “Trickster-Transformer” stories.
The return of the hero, after a journey to some beneficent god, who
often is his father, and his subsequent elevation to power, as a chief
or medicine-man, are recurrent motives. The whole group might
be called Whittington stories, but there are many variations. Text
references: Ch. I. vi. — Ch. IV. vii. — Ch. VI. vii (G. A. Dorsey
[e] makes a class of “Boy Hero” stories, many of them tales of
orphans). — Ch. VIII. iv.

23. The Five Nations, or tribes of the original Iroquois Confed-
eracy, included the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca;
later the Tuscarora were admitted, whence the league is also called
the Six Nations.

24. Agriculture. — Pumpkins, squash, beans, sweet potatoes,
and tobacco are other crops cultivated in various localities by the
aborigines. Wild rice and the seeds of grasses were gathered; roots
and wild fruits were eaten; in the maple-tree zone maple sugar is a
native food, and particularly in the far West acorn meal forms an
important article of aboriginal diet. It seems certain that the Algon-
quians came from the north and learned agriculture of the south-
ern nations, especially the Iroquois. The northern Algonquians ~



NOTES


283

Montagnais, etc. — practised no agriculture when the Jesuits began
missionary work among them, though the cultivation of maize was
well established among the New England tribes before the appear-
ance of the Colonists. The introduction of maize among the Chippewa
is remembered in the myth of Mondamin (cf. Brinton [d], ch. vi,
and Perrot, Memoir ch. iv, English translation in Blair, i).
The Omaha, Navaho, and a number of other tribes among whom
agriculture is recent have traditions or myths recording the way
in which they first learned it. See Notes 35, 39. Text references:
Ch. II. i. — Ch. III. ii. — Ch. V. i. — Ch. IX. i.

25. Areskoui. — Lafitau, i. 126, 132, 145, discusses Areskoui, or
Agriskoue, whom he regards as an American reminiscence of the
Greek Ares. This seems to be the primary ground for the assertion
that Areskoui is a god of war, though it is to a degree borne out by
the nature of the allusions to him in the Jesuit Relations^ especially
Jogues’s letter (JR xxxix. 219). The members of the Huron mission,
who had a better chance to understand this deity, evidently con-
sidered him a supreme being, or Great Spirit; cf. with the passage

[Prometheus]

quoted in the text, from JR xxxiii. 225, the similar statement
in xxxix. 13: ‘^And certainly they have not only the perception
of a divinity, but also a name which in their dangers they invoke,
without knowing its true significance, — recommending themselves
Ignoto Deo with these words, Airsekui Sutanditenr^ the last of which
may be translated by miserere nobis.^^ Morgan, Appendix B, sect.
62, says: ^‘Areskoui, the God of War, is more evidently a Sun God.
Most of the worship now given to the Great Spirit belongs histori-
cally to Areskoui.” This seems to concede the case; Areskoui is,
like Atahocan, a name for the Great Spirit, addressed in times of
peril by an epithet, the Saviour.” Cf. Note 6. Text reference:
Ch. II. ii.

26. Oki. — The Huron Oki is regarded by Brinton ([a], p. 64)
as of Algonquian origin. A Powhatan Oke, Okeus, is mentioned by
Captain John Smith, and a few other traces of it are found in Algon-
quian sources. Lafitau, i. 126, calls “Okki” a Huron god, and so it
appears in the early Relations {JR v. 257; viii, 109-10; x. 49, 195),
though Nipinoukhe and Pipounoukhe {JR v. 173) are Montagnais.
It is not certain whether oki is a term belonging to the same class as
manito^ or whether it is the proper name of a supreme being, as
Lang regarded it {Myth^ Ritual and Religion^ 3d ed., London, 1901,
Introd.). Text reference: Ch. II. hi.

27. Stones. — Stones are of great importance in both Indian ritual
and myth; they are regarded as magically endowed, and a not infre-
quent notion is that if potent stones be broken they will bleed like
flesh. Their principal ceremonial uses are four in number, (i) The



284 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

sweat-bath — a universal North American institution, used for healing
and purification, and regarded as capable of effecting magical trans-
formations — consists of a small hut, large enough for the body of
the patient, which is filled with steam by means of water thrown
upon heated stones. (2) Stone fetishes, particularly nodules crudely
representing animals, which are sometimes partly shaped by hand,
form one of the commonest types of personal “medicine” (cf. espe-
cially Cushing [a]). (3) Stones of a special kind are frequently used
symbolically. This is particularly true in the South-West, where
crystal, turquoise, and black stones are symbols of light, the blue
sky, and night. The magic properties of white stones and crystals
appear in myths from many quarters: it is with crystal that the
Eskimo youth slays the Tunek (see p. 3); a crystal is in the head
of the Horned Serpent (cf. Note 50); a suggestion of crystal-gazing
is in the Comox myth recorded by Boas ([g], viii. 10), where the
serpent gives a transparent stone to a man who thereupon falls as
if dead, while the stone leads his soul through all lands. (4) Rocks
in situ are venerated for various reasons, as seats of power or as nat-
ural altars. Mythic themes in which stones are important include:
(i) stories of the placing of fire in flint and quartz; (2) stories of
“Flint” and the Stone Giants; (3) “Travelling Rock” stories; (4)
stories of red-hot rocks hurled by giants — apparently volcanic
myths; (5) stories of magic crystals and jewels; ( 6 ) cosmogonies with
a stone as the earth kernel; and (7) stories of living beings changed
into rocks, though sometimes only a part of the body is so trans-
formed. See Notes 31, 32, 37, 38, 62. Text references: Ch. IL iii,
vii. — Ch. V. be (Fletcher and La Flesche, pp. S7a-'7i). — Ch.

VI. ii (Fletcher and La Flesche, pp. 565-71: the name of the
Omaha “Pebble Society,” Inkugthi athin, means literally, “they who
have the translucent pebble”); iii (G. A. Dorsey [e], No. i). — Ch.

VII. iii. ~ Ch. VIII. i, ii, iii. — Ch. IX. iii.

28. Kitshi Manito. — This term is apparently the original after
which the English “Great Spirit” is formed, and Hoffman [a] renders
“Kitshi Manido” as “Great Spirit.” This is a Chippewa form;
the Menominee “Kisha Manido” and “Masha Manido” he trans-
lates “Great Mystery” or “Great Unknown.” S 3 BBE^ p. 143,
note, states: “The word manido is defined by Baraga as ‘^spirit,
ghost.’ The following explanation of the word . . . was given by
Rev. J. A. Gilfillan: Kijie Manido^ literally, ^he who has his origin
from no one but himself, the Uncreated God.’” De Smet, passim^
employs “Great Spirit.” The case for a spirit supreme over the evil
forces of nature is not so clear as that for the beneficent Great Spirit,
although there is some early evidence of Algonquian provenience
that points strongly in this direction. Thus Le Jeune in the early



NOTES


285

Relation of 1634 writes: ^‘Besides these foundations of things good,
they recognize a Manitou, whom we may call the devil. They re-
gard him as the origin of evil; it is true that they do not attribute
great malice to the Manitou, but to his wife, who is a real she-deviL
The husband does not hate men’’ {JR vi. 175 )- The wife of Mani-
tou, we are informed, is “the cause of all the diseases which are in
the world” (cf. p. 189); and it is possible that she is the Titaness
who was cast down from heaven, as the eastern cosmogonies tell,
and from whose body both beneficent and maleficent forces arise.
Mother Earth is, on the whole, beneficent, although Indian thought
fluctuatingly attributes to her the fostering of noxious underworld
powers. Bacqueville de la Potherie, Histoire de VAmerique septen--
trionale, Paris, 1753? i* ff-? says of the northern Algonquians, with
whom he was associated, that they recognized a Good Spirit, Qui--
•chemanitoUy and an evil, Matchimanitou^ but the latter is clearly the
name for a “medicine spirit,” magical rather than evil. The same
statement is probably true with regard to the Abnaki Matsi Niouask
which Abbe Maurault contrasts with the good Ketsi Niouask {His--
ioire des Abenakis^ Quebec, 1866, pp. 18--19); and we may suppose
it to have been the original force of the Potawatomi distinction be-
tween Kchemnito, “goodness itself,” and Mchemnito, “wickedness
personified,” recorded by De Smet, p. 1079. The devil is less a moral
being than a physiological condition, at least in his aboriginal status
(cf. the Hadui episode In Iroquoian cosmogony, Hewitt [a], pp. 197-
201, 232--36, 333~3S)* Mitche Manito is described in the Hiawatha
myth as a serpent, — a universal symbol. The Menominee have a
name “Matshehawaituk” (Hoffman , p. 225) for a similar being.
See Notes 3, 6. Text reference: Ch. II. iv.

29. Human Sacrifice. — Human sacrifice, in one form or another,
appears in every part of aboriginal America. It is necessary to dis-
tinguish, however, sporadic propitiations from customary and ritual-
istic offering of human life. The latter, north of Mexico, is rare,
(l) The sacrifice of captives taken in war, frequently with burning
and other tortures, was partly in the nature of an act of vengeance
and a trial of fortitude, partly a propitiation of the Manes of the
dead; captives made by a war-party were much more likely to be
spared if it had suffered no casualties. The tearing out and eating of
the heart of a slain enemy or sacrificed captive was not unusual, the
idea being that the eater thus receives the courage of the slain man
(cf. JR i. 268). The symbolism of the heart as the seat of life and
strength occurs in numberless mythic forms and reaches its ex-
treme consequences in the Mexican human sacrifices, the usual form
of which consisted in opening the breast and drawing forth the heart
of the victim. Possibly the mythic references to this form of offering.



286


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


occurring in the South-West (cf. M. C. Stevenson , pp. 34, 39,
45, 47), point to a like custom, more or less remote. (2) The sacrifice
of children, especially orphans, is not uncommon. A number of
instances are mentioned in the Creek migration-legend (cf. Ch. IV.
vii); in the cosmogonies of the Pueblo Indians there are references
to the sacrifice of children to water monsters, a rite obviously related
to the Nahuatlan offering of children to the tlaloque, or water-gods;
the myth also appears among the Piman-Yuman tribes, and doubt-
less refers to the same practice. De Smet mentions a Columbia River
instance of a child offered to the Manes of one of its companions
(De Smet, p. 559). (3) The sacrifice of slaves, especially in the rites
of the Cannibal Society, prevailed until recently on the North-West
Coast, and is mentioned in the myths of this region. (4) The most
notable instance of ritualistic sacrifice is that of the Skidi Pawnee,
who formerly offered a female captive to the Morning Star in an
annual ceremony for the fertilization of the maize fields. — See
Notes 9, 19, 21, 58. Text references: Ch. II. iv {JR xxxix. 219). —
Ch. IV. iv, vii (Gatschet [a]). — Ch. V. i (De Smet, pp. 977-
88, gives an account of the sacrifice of a Sioux girl by the Skidi
Pawnee). — Ch. VIII. ii, vi (DuBois, p. 184; Bourke , p. 188;
Russell, pp. 215-17). — Ch. IX, iv, v, vi, vii (M. C. Stevenson
, pp. 34, 45, 47, 67; [c], pp. 21, 30, 46, 61, 176; Cushing ,
p. 429).

30. The Calumet and Tobacco Rites. — The use of tobacco is
of American origin. As smoked in pipes it is North American, cigars
and cigarettes being the common forms in Latin portions of the
continent. The Navaho, Pueblo, and other South-Western peoples
generally employ cigarettes both for smoking and for ritualistic
use, though the pipe is not unknown to them. The ritual of the
ceremonial pipe, or calumet, is the most important of all North
American religious forms, and is certainly ancient, elaborate pipes
being among the most interesting objects recovered from prehistoric
mounds. The rite is essentially a formal address to the world-powers;
its use in councils and other formal meetings naturally made the
pipe a symbol of peace, as the tomahawk was a token of war. Cf.
Notes 63 31, 63. Text references: Ch. II. iv, v (cf. De Smet, pp.
394, 681, 1008-11, and Index). — Ch. V. iv (Fletcher and La
Flesche, p. 599). — Ch. VI. vii. — Ch. VIII. i, v.

31. The World-Quarters and Colour-Symbolism. — No idea
more constantly influences Indian rites than that of the fourfold
division of the earth’s surface, in conjunction with the conception
of a world above and a world below. The four quarters, together
with the upper and the under worlds, form a sixfold partition of
the cosmos, affording a kind of natural classification of the presiding



NOTES


287

world-powers, to whom, accordingly, sacrifice is successively made
and prayers addressed, as in the calumet ritual. The addition of
colour-symbolism, each of the quarters having a colour of its own,
forms the basis for a highly complex ritualism; for objects of all
kinds — stones, shells, flowers, birds, animals, and maize of dif-
ferent colours — are devoted to the quarter having a colour in some
sense analogous. In the South-West the Navaho and Pueblo Indians
employ a sixfold colour-symbolism, with a consequent elaboration
of the related forms. There is, however, no uniformity in the dis-
tribution of the colours to the several regions, the system varying
from tribe to tribe, while in some cases two systems are employed
by the same tribe (see jo BBE, “Color Symbolism,” with table).
In addition to the Quarters, the Above; and the Below, the Here,
or Middle Place, which typifies the centre of the cosmos, is of cere-
monial and (especially in the South-West) of mythic importance. As
in the Old World, the Middle Place is often termed the “Navel”
of the earth. The most usual form of naming the directions is after
the prevailing winds, and sometimes seven winds are mentioned for
the seven cardinal points (cf. JR xxxiii. 227). Settled communities,
however, employ names derived from physical characteristics (cf.
Cushing , p. 356); in the South-West names of directions are appar-
ently related in part to bodily orientation: thus, “East is always
^the before’ with the Zuni” (M. C. Stevenson , p. 63). It may
be taken as certain that the division of the horizon by four points,
naming the directions, is fundamentally based upon the fact that
man is a four-square animal: “The earliest orientation in space,
among Indo-Germanic peoples,” says Schrader (Indogermanische Al-
tertumskunde^ Strassburg, 1901, p. 371), “arose from the fact that
man turned his face to the rising sun and thereupon designated the
East as ‘the before,’ the West as ‘the behind,’ the South as ‘the right,’
and the North as ‘ the left.’ ” Evidence from Semitic tongues indicates
that a similar system prevailed among the early desert dwellers of
Arabia. In America orientation to the rising sun is abundantly illus-
trated in the sun rituals and shrines, and to some degree in burials.
Colour-symbolism, too, points in the same direction, the white or
red of dawn being the hue ordinarily assigned to the east. See
Notes II, 13, 30, 66, 68. Text references: Ch. II. v (De Smet, p. 1083;
Converse, p. 38). — Ch. III. ii. — Ch. IV. iv (Gatschet [a], p.
244; Bushnell [a], p. 30; , p. 526). — Ch. V. ix (J. O. Dorsey
[d], pp. 523-33; McClintock, p, 266). — Ch. VI. vii. — Ch. VIII.
i, ii, iii. — Ch. IX. ii (Fewkes [a], [e]; M. C. Stevenson , [c];
Cushing , pp. 369-70). — Ch. XI. iv.

32. Thunderers. — The well-nigh universal American conception
of the thunder is that it is caused by a bird or brood of birds — the



288 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

Thunderbirds. Sometimes the Thunderbird is described as huge,
carrying a lake of water on his back and flashing lightnings from
his eyes; sometimes as small, like some ordinary bird in appear-
ance — even the humming-bird occurring as an analogy. Very often
the being is the ‘‘^medicine’’ or tutelary of one who has seen him
in vision, and Thunderbird effigies are common among the Plains
tribes. Almost the only tribal groups unacquainted with the con-
cept are the Iroquois, in the East, whose Dew Eagle is related to
the Thunderbird idea, and some of the tribes of the far West and
the South-West, such as the Zuni, who regard the thunder as made by
the gaming stones rolled by the celestial Rain-Makers and the light-
ning as the arrows of celestial Archers. It is notable that a huge
man-devouring bird appears in the mythologies of the South-West-
ern peoples, from whose lore the Thunderbird is absent. See Notes
2, 27, 33, SO- Text references: Ch. II. vi (Converse, pp. 36-44;
JR V. 223; X. 45, and note 3; Schoolcraft , part iii, p. 322). —
Ch. V. ix (De Smet, pp. 936, 945; Fletcher and La Flesche, pp.
122-26). — Ch. VI. iii. The belief that stone axes, arrow-heads, and
celts are “thunderstones’’ or lightning-bolts is world-wide (cf. C.
Blinkenberg, The Thunderweapon in Religion and Folklore^ Cam-
bridge, 1911). The cult of the lightning in almost its Roman form,
i. e. the erection of bidentalia, was practised by the Peruvians (Gar-
ciLASSO DE LA Vega, Royal Commentaries, book ii, ch. i); and a
similar suggestion is found in the Struck-by-Lightning Fraternity
of the Zuni (M. C. Stevenson [c]). The Omaha have a ^"'Thunder
Society’’ (Fletcher and La Flesche, p. 133), whose talisman is
a black stone — suggestive enough of the black baetyl brought to
Rome, 205 B, c., as an image of Rhea-Cybele, or of the hoary sanctity
of the Black Stone of Mecca. — Ch. VIL iii, iv (Lowie , p. 231;
Powell, p. 26). — Ch. VIII. iv (Matthews [a], pp. 265-75; [c],
pp. 143-45). — Ch. IX. i, iii (M. C. Stevenson [c], pp. 65, 177,
308, 413). — Ch. X. V (Frachtenberg [a], No. 2); vi (Dixon [c],
No. 3; Kroeber [c], p. 186). — Ch. XL ii (Swanton [e], p. 454;
Boas [j], p. 47; [g], passim),

33. Rip Van Winkle. — In a note to Rip Fan Winkle, Irving
describes an Indian goddess of the Catskills who presides over the
clouds, controls the winds and the rains, and is clearly a meteoro-
logical genius. She may be a thunder spirit also, for the incident of
the gnomes playing at ninepins, and so producing the thunder, has a
parallel in the Zuni Rain-Makers, who cause the thunder by a similar
celestial game with rolling stones. The incident of foreshortened
time, years being passed in the illusion of a brief space, occurs in
several stories of visits to the Thunder; but this is a common theme
in tales of guestship with all kinds of supernatural beings. Text

[Prometheus]

NOTES


289

references: Ch. IL vi (Mooney , pp. 345-47). — Ch. III. vi. —
Ch. IV. V (Mooney , p. 324). — Ch. VII. ii (J. H. Williams, The
Mountain that Was God^ Tacoma, 1910).

34. Mother Earth. — The personification of the Earth, as the
mother of life and the giver of food, is a feature of the universal
mythology of mankind. It prevails everywhere in North America,
except among the Eskimo, where the conception is replaced by that
of the under-sea woman, Food Dish, and on the North-West Coast,
where sea deities again are the important food-givers, and the under-
world woman is no more than a subterranean Titaness. In many
localities the myth of the marriage of the Sky or Sun with the Earth
is clearly expressed, as is to be expected of the most natural of all
allegories. The notion that the dead are buried to be born again
from the womb of Earth is found in America as in the Old World (cf.
A. Dieterich, Mutter Erde^ Berlin, 1905); and there is more than one
trace of the belief in an orifice by which the dead descend into the
body of Earth and from which souls ascend to be reborn. De Smet
(p. 1378) mentions a cavern in the Yellowstone region which the
Indians named “the place of coming-out and going-in of under-
ground spirits,” and the South-Western notion of the Sipapu is an
instance in point; other examples appear in the mythologies of the
Creek, Kiowa, and Mandan. In the South-West, where large ground-
nesting spiders abound, the Spider Woman seems to be a mythic
incarnation of the earth; though elsewhere, very generally, this in-
sect is associated with aerial ascents to and descents from the sky,
by means of web-hung baskets, and Spider itself is often masculine.
In the Forest and Plains regions the conception of the life of the earth
as due to a Titaness, fallen from heaven, is the common one; and the
magic Grandmother who appears in so many hero-myths is certainly
in some cases a personification of the earth. See Notes 7, ii, 18,
28, 35, 43, 70. Text references: Ch. II. vii (Hewitt [a], p. 138). —
Ch. V. vii (Fletcher, pp. 31, 190, 721, et passim; Fletcher and
La Flesche, pp. 376 ff.; cf. Fletcher, “A Study of Omaha Indian
Music,” m Archceological and Ethnological Papers] Peabody Museum,
1893, i; H. B. Alexander, The Mystery of Life, Chicago, 1913). —
Ch. VI. ii (J. 0 . Dorsey [d], p. 513). — Ch. VIIL v, vi. — Ch. IX.
iii, vii (M. C. Stevenson , p. 22; Cushing , p. 379; Fewkes

p. 688).

35. Corn Spirits. — Spirits of the maize and other cultivated
plants are prominent figures in the mythologies of all the agricultural
peoples. Ordinarily they are feminine, the Algonquian Mondamin
being an exception. Corn, Squash, and Bean form a maiden triad in
Iroquois lore, and in the South-West there is a whole group of maiden
Corn Spirits. Hopi girls of marriageable age wear their hair in two



2go


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


whorls at the sides of the head, imitating the squash blossom, which
is with them the symbol of fertility. As a rule Corn Spirits are far
more vital in ritual than in myth. Ears of maize are important as
sacra or fetishes in numerous rites, especially in the South-West and
among the Pawnee, who show many South-Western affinities; ears
and grains of different colours are conspicuous in the symbolism of
the world-quarters; blades and stalks are often employed in adorning
altars; and corn meal [maize flour] is in constant use in South-West-
ern ceremonial. A similarly ritualistic use is made of other plants.
In the South-West the creation of men from ears of maize is a fre-
quent incident. See Notes 7, 24, 31, 34, 39. Text references: Ch.
II. vii (Converse, pp. 63-66; Smith, p. 52). — Ch. III. i (JR x.
139), viii. — Ch. IV. iv (Mooney , pp. 242-49). — Ch. V. vii

(Fletcher). — Ch. VI. hi (G. A. Dorsey [h]. Nos. 3-7; cf. [e],

No. 4), vii. — Ch. VIII. i, ii. — Ch. IX. hi, v, vi (Fewkes , pp.

299-308; [e], pp. 22, 58, 118; [f], p. 696; M. C. Stevenson [cj, pp.

29-32, 48-57; Cushing , pp. 391-98, 430-47).

36. Fairies. — The fairy folk of Indian myth are generally dimin-
utive and mischievous. A romantic version of the myth of the mar-
riage of a human hero with a sky-girl is given by Abbe Em. Domenech
(Seven Years’ Residence in the Great Deserts of North America^ Lon-
don, i860, i. 303 ff.), which he calls the Legend of the Magic Circle
of the Prairies.’’ There are on the prairies, he says, circles denuded
of vegetation which some attribute to buffaloes, while others regard
them as traces of ancient cabins. The myth tells of a hunter who
saw a basket containing singing maidens descend from the sky to
such a circle, where the girls danced and played with a brilliant ball.
He succeeded in capturing one of the girls, who became his wife;
home-sick for the sky-world, she, with their baby, reascended to the
heaven during the hunter’s absence; but her star-father commanded
her to return to earth and bring to the sky her husband, with tro-
phies of every kind of game. All the sky-people chose, each for
himself, a trophy; and they were then metamorphosed into the cor-
responding animals, the hunter, his wife, and son becoming falcons.
The dancing and singing sky-girls, on the magic circle, certainly sug-
gest the fairy dances and fairy rings of European folk-lore. Text
references: Ch. II. vii (Copway; Converse, pp. 101-07; Smith, pp.
65-67; Mooney , Nos. 74, 78), — Ch. IV. vi (Mooney , pp.

330-35)-

37. Great Heads, Cannibal Heads, Pursuing Rocks, etc. —

Myths of heads that pursue in order to devour or destroy are found
in every part of America. In some instances they have obvious
significations, but it is not difficult to surmise that the idea is older
than the meanings. Possibly it is connected with the custom of de-



NOTES


291

capitation which prevailed in America everywhere before scalping
largely displaced it; possibly the tumble-weed of the Plains, in the
autumn borne along by the wind like a huge ball, may have some-
thing to do with the idea; possibly it was suggested by the analogy of
sun and moon, conceived as travelling heads or masks, or by the tor-
nado — (the Iroquois have Great Head” stories in which the heads
are apparently wind-beings). In many examples there is a cosmo-
gonic suggestion in the myths. In Iroquois cosmogony the severed
body and head of Ataentsic are transformed into the sun and moon,
and there is a Chaui (Pawnee) tale of a rolling head that is split by
a hawk and becomes the sun and moon (G. A. Dorsey [g]. No. 5).
The cosmogonic character of the legend appears also in the Carrier
version (Ch. VI. i), though this same tradition as told by the Skidi
Pawnee (G. A. Dorsey [e]. No. 32) shows no cosmogony. Arapaho
stories (Dorsey and Kroeber, Nos. 32-34) are instances in which a
travelling rock is substituted for a head; in one instance (ib., No. 5)
the pursuer is a wart, and it is interesting to note that Flint”
bears the epithet “Warty” in Seneca cosmogony (Hewitt [a]). Pur-
suing heads and rocks appear in the far West as well as in the East
(examples are McDermott, No. 8, Flathead; Kroeber [a]. No. 2,
and Mason, Nos. 10, ii, Ute; Matthews [a], sect. 350, Navaho;
Goddard [a]. No. 10, Apache). Usually they are bogies or monsters
— folk-lore beings rather than mythic persons. A curious story found
among the Iroquois (Canfield, p. 125, variants of which are very
common in the North-West, e. g.. Boas [j], p. 30; [g], viii. 18; xvii.
8, 9; XX. 8; xxi. tells of a cannibal head which is transformed into
mosquitoes after it has been killed and burnt. One of the most in-
teresting versions is a Californian story preserved by Dixon ([c],
No. 14; cf. Curtin [a], “Hitchinna,” , “Ilyuyu”), which tells of
a man who dreams that he eats himself up; afterward he goes to
gather pine-nuts, and his son throws one down and wounds him;
he licks the blood, likes its taste, and eats all of himself but the head,
which bounces about in pursuit of people until it finally leaps into
the river. In connexion with head stories it is worth noting that a
number of myths relate to a tribal palladium or “medicine” consist-
ing of a skull (e. g. G. A. Dorsey [e]. Nos. i, 12). See Notes 2, 19,
27, 38. Text references: Ch. II. vii (Smith, pp. 59-62). — Ch. VI.
i (Morice ; Lofthouse, pp. 48-51; Lowie [a], No. 22). — Ch.
XL iv.

38. Stone Giants. — Apparently these beings are personifica-
tions of implements of stone, especially flint, and they find their best
mythic representative in “Flint” of Iroquoian cosmogony. In the
far West birds with flint feathers or heroes armoured with flint
knives appear. The Chenoo with the icy heart is a familiar concep-



292


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


tion in eastern Canada and New England, and may refer to rocky
recesses in which cores of ice are preserved through the summer.
Like other giants, the Stone Giants arc usually cannibals. See Notes»
2, 19, 37, 46. Text references: Ch. IL vii (Smith, pp. 62-64; Mooney
, Nos. 8, 67, p. 501; Leland, pp. 233-51; Rand, Converse,
etc.). — Ch. III. i, ii. — Ch. IV. vi (Bushnell [a]; Mooney fb]). —
Ch. VII. ii (Powell, pp. 47-51; Lowie , p. 262). — Ch. IX. iii.

— Ch. X. V (Merriam, pp. 75-82).

39. The Seasons. — The seasons that appear in North American
myth are almost invariably two, the hot and the cold, summer and
winter. Other divisions of the year occur, especially among agricul-
tural tribes (see 30 BBE, “Calendar”)? governing ritual, but even
here the fundamental partition of the year is twofold. What may be
called the supernatural division of the year into seasons, in one of
which the ancestral gods are present and in the other absent, with a
corresponding classification of rites, is found both in the South-West
and on the Pacific Coast, and it is in these two regions, likewise, that
we meet the interesting suggestion of antipodes — i. e. of underworld
seasons alternating with those of the world above. Everywhere the
open season — spring to autumn — is the period in which the great
invocations of the powers of nature take place in such ceremonies as
the Busk (Ch. IV. iii), the Sun-Dance (Ch. V. vi), the liako (Ch. V.
vii), and the Snake-Dance (Ch. IX. v); while rites in honour of the
dead or of ancestral and totemic spirits occur (like their classical
analogues) in autumn and winter. Text references: Ch. IL viii (Con-
verse, pp. 96-100; Rand, Nos. xl, xlvi; Schoolcraft , part iii,
p, 324 — obviously the original of the form used by Longfellow,
Hiawatha^ canto ii; JR vi. 161-63). — Ch. IV. iii (Gatschet [a],
pp. 179-80; Speck, JAFL xx. 54-56; MacCauley, pp. 522-23;
20 BBE “Busk”); vi (Mooney , p. 322). — Ch. V. ii, vi
(jo BBE , “Sun Dance”; J. 0 . Dorsey [d], pp. 449-67; Mooney [c],
pp. 242-44; McClintock, chh. xi-xxiii; G. A. Dorsey [a], ). —
Ch. VI. i (Lofthouse). — Ch. VII. iii (Teit [a], No. 10; , p. 337)-

— Ch. VIII. iv. — Ch. IX. iv (M. C. Stevenson [c], pp. 108 ff.;
Fewkes [a], pp. 255 ff.; [e], pp, 18 ff.; [f], p. 692). — Ch. X. iv
(Curtin [a], “Olelbis”). — Ch. XI. iii (Boas [f], pp. 383 ff., 632 ff.).

40. Animal Elders. — One of the most distinctive of American
mythic ideas is the conception that every species of animal is repre-
sented by an Elder Being who is at once the ancestor and protector
of its kind. These Elders of the Kinds appear in various rdles. Where
a food animal is concerned — deer, buffalo, rabbit, seal, etc. ' — the
function of the Elder seems to be to continue the supply of game;
he is not offended by the slaughter of his wards provided the tabus are
properly observed. Some tribes believe that the bones of deer are



NOTES


293


reborn as deer, and so must be preserved, or that the bones of fish
returned to the sea will become fish again. Many myths tell of pun-
ishment wreaked upon the hunter who continues to slay after his
food necessities are satisfied. The Elders of beasts and birds of
prey are the usual totems or tutelaries of hunters and warriors; the
Elders of snakes, owls, and other uncanny creatures are supposed to
give medicine-powers. Divination by animal remains and the use of
charms and talismans made of animal parts are universal. Magic
animals that have the power of appearing as men and men who can
assume animal forms occur along with stories of the swan-shift
type, in which the beast- or bird-disguise is stolen or laid aside and
human form is retained. Frequently animals assume symbolic rdles.
Thus the porcupine is an almost universal symbol for the sun, and the
mink and red-headed woodpecker appear in a like relation; the bear
is frequently an underground genius, and is conceived as a powerful
being in the spirit-world; the birds are regarded as intermediaries
between man and the powers above; the turkey, in the South and
the South-West, is a mythic emblem of fertility, and an interesting
episode in the Hako ritual tells how the turkey was replaced by the
eagle as the symbolic leader of the rite, on the ground that the fer-
tility of the turkey was offset by its lack of foresight in the protec-
tion of its nests (Fletcher, pp. 172-74); the whole Hako Ceremony
is dominated by bird-symbolism. Animal-beings are rarely to be re-
garded as deities in any strict sense. Rather they are powerful genii
and intermediaries between men and gods. In the cosmogonic cycles
three animals, the hare, the coyote, and the raven, appear as creative
agents, but they are beings that belong to the domain of myth rather
than to that of religion. Two incidents in which animals conspicu-
ously figure are found the length and breadth of the continent: (i)
the diving of the animals after soil from which the earth may be magi-
cally created or renewed — most frequently encountered east of the
Rocky Mountains, — and (2) the theft of fire — or of the sun or of
daylight — by relays of animals who bear afar the brand snatched or
stolen from the fire-keepers. The myth of the origin of the animals
(Note 41) is almost as ubiquitous. See Notes 3, 4, 5, 9, 13, 18, 46, 47,
48, 50, 52. Text references: Ch. 11 . viii {JR vi. 159-61; ix. 123-25;
xxxix. 15). — Ch. III. i. — Ch. IV. iv, vi (Mooney ). — Ch. V.
vii (Fletcher). — Ch. VI. vi (the legend of the Nahurak as here
recorded follows a version given by White Eagle — Letekots Taka —
a Skidi chief, to Dr. Melvin R. Gilmore, recently of the Nebraska State
Historical Society; see also Grinnell [c], pp. 161-70; G. A. Dorsey
[g], Nos. 84, 85); vii (Mallery, 10 JRBE, ch. x). — Ch. VIL iii. —
Ck IX. iii, V. — Ch. X. V (Curtin [a], Introd.; Merriam, Introd.).
— Ch. XL iv.



294


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


41. Origin of Animals. — A North American myth found prac-
tically throughout the continent tells of the release of the animals
from a cave, or chest, or the inside of a cosmic monster, whence they
distributed themselves over the earth. This event is sometimes
placed in the First Age, as an episode of a creation-story, sometimes
it follows the cataclysmic flood or conflagration which ends the pri-
meval period. The people of the First Age are very generally repre-
sented as human in form but animal in reality, and a frequent story
tells of the transformation of the First People Into the animals they
really are, as soon as genuine human beings appear. The converse of
this recounts how the original animal-beings laid aside their animal
masks and became human beings and the ancestors of men at the
beginning of the human era. Often both the transformation and the
liberation stories appear; in such instances the liberated animals are
usually of the food or game varieties. A vast body of traditions and
incidents account for the origin of animal traits; and it is these legends
which represent what is perhaps the most primitive stratum of
Indian mythology. See Notes 36, 40. Text references: Ch. II. viii
(JR X. 137; Hewitt [a], pp. 194-97; 232-41; 302-09). — Ch. III. ,i.
— Ch, IV. iv (Mooney , pp. 242-49); v (Mooney , pp. 261-
311; p. 293, quoted; Bushnell [a], pp. 533 ^ 34 ; M, P- — Ch.
VII. iv (McDermott, No. 2; W. D. Lyman, The Columbia River y
New York, 1909, pp. 19-21). — Ch. IX. vi. — Ch. X. iv. — Ch.
XI. vi.

42. Heaven Tree. — The conception of a great tree in the upper
world magically connected with the life of nature occurs in more than
one instance. In the Mohawk cosmogony (Hewitt [a], p. 282) it is
said to be adorned with blossoms that give light to the people in
the sky-world, while in the Olelbis myth (Curtin [a], “Olelbis’’) the
celestial sudatory is built of oak-trees bound together with flowers.
The Tlingit regard the Milky Way as the trunk of a celestial tree.
In many stories on the Jack-and-the-Beanstalk theme, the hero or
heroine ascends to the sky on a rapidly growing tree, sometimes be-
lieved to be a replica of a similar tree in the world above. In South-
Western genesis-stories the emergence from the underworld is by
means of magically growing trees, reeds, sunflowers, and the like.
Ascents to and descents from the sky occur with a variety of other
methods: the tradition of an upshooting mountain or rock, common
in California, is clearly related to the tree conception; the rainbow
bridge is a frequent idea, and is sometimes, like the Milky Way,
regarded as the Pathway of Souls; in the South-West lightning is
conceived as forming a bridge or ladder; and a similar idea in con-
nexion with the fall of Ataentsic is the Fire-Dragon episode; descents
and ascents by means of a basket swung from spider-spun filaments



NOTES


295

are common In Plains mythology, while magic shells, boats, and bas-
kets, raised to the sky by song or spell, occur east and west; on the
West Coast the arrow chain is frequent. The cult use of poles, orig-
inating from magically endowed trees, is associated with some of
the most picturesque myths and important rites. See Notes 13, 14,
6i. Text references: Ch. III. i, vi {JR xii. 31-37; Schoolcraft ,
part iii, p. 320; Hoffman , p. 181). — Ch. IV. iv (Gatschet [a]).
— Ch. VI. iv (see Note 13, for references). — Ch. VII. Iii. — Ch.
VIII. ii. — Ch. IX. vi. — Ch. X. iii (Curtin [a], ‘'Olelbis’’); vi
(Powers, p. 366).

43. Ataentsic. — Spelled also, JR viii. 117, Eataentsic. Hewitt
(^‘Cosmogonic Gods of the Iroquois,” in Proceedings of the American
Association for the Advancement of Science, 1895) gives Eyatahentsik,
and regards her as goddess of night and earth- She is also named
Awenhai (“Mature Flowers”). Cf. 30 BBE, “Teharonhiawagon,”
and Lang, Myth, Ritual and Religion, 3d ed., London, 1901. See
Note 34. Text reference: Ch. III. i.

44. Hero Brothers. — A common feature of American cosmo-
gonic myths is the association of two kinsmen, usually described as
brotkers or sometimes as twins. In Iroquoian legend one of the
brothers is good, the other evil, and the evil brother is banished to

[Prometheus]

the underworld. In Algonquian tradition (and the same notion is
found among Siouan and other Plains tribes), the younger brother
is dragged down to the underworld by vengeful monsters. An under-
world relative of one of the brothers appears also in the South-West,
where the father of the elder is always the Sun, while the younger
is sometimes regarded as the son of the Waters, welling up from
below. Almost always the elder brother, or first-bom in case of twins,
is the hero, the doer; while the younger is frequently a magician and
clairvoyant. It seems evident that the brothers represent respectively
the upper and underworld powers of nature, and it is doubtless for
this reason that Flint is described as the favourite of his mother
Ataentsic (the Earth) in Iroquois myth. In the South-West Coyote
often takes the evil part: thus the maladroit creations assigned to
Flint by the Iroquois are there the work of Coyote. Hero brothers
occur in other types of myth, and it is interesting to note that the
younger brother is the one to whom medicine-powers are ascribed.
See Notes 45, 69. Text references: Ch. III. i, ii. — Ch. VI. i, iii (G. A.
Dorsey [h], No. i), vii. — Ch. VIL ii, iii. — Ch. VIII. i, ii (Mat-
thews [a]; James Stevenson, pp- 279-80); iv (Matthews [c], “The
Stricken Twins”). — Ch, IX. vi, vii. — Ch. X. iii (Frachtenberg
[a], No. i); vi Dixon [d], No. 3; Kroeber [c], p. 186).

45. Yoskeha and Tawiscara. — The names of these twins are
variously spelled — as loskeha, louskeha or Jouskeha, Tawiskara,

X — 21 '



296 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

Tawiscaron, Tawiskala, etc. Yoskeha, called ‘‘Sapling” by the
Onondaga and “Maple Sapling” by the Mohawk, has been identi-
fied with the sun or light by Brinton ([a], p. 203), though there seems
better reason in Hewitt’s view that he is “the reproductive, rejuvenat-
ing power in nature” (“Cosmogonic Gods of the Iroquois,” in Pro-
ceedings of the American Association for the Advancement of Science ^
189s). Tawiscara is rendered by Brinton “the Dark One,” and in-
terpreted as “the destructive or Typhonic power.” “Flint” is the
name given to Tawiscara by the Onondaga; the Mohawk designate
him by the Huron name which in their language signifies “flint” or
“chert”; while the Seneca know him by the epithet “Warty” (cf.
Note 37). He is described as “a marvelously strange personage . . .
his flesh is nothing but flint . . . over the top of his head, a sharp
comb of flint.” Brebeuf s narrative tells how, when Tawiscara was
punished by Jouskeha and fled, “from his blood certain stones sprang
up, jike those we employ in France to fire a gun” (JR x. 131). In
Cherokee myth Tawiscala appears in association with the Algon-
quian “Great Rabbit,” which would indicate, what is indeed obvious,
that Yoskeha and Manabozho are one and the same. Hewitt re-
gards Flint (Tawiscaron, which he interprets as from a root signify-
ing “ice”; see jo BBE^ “Tawiscaron”) as a personification of Winter;
while Sapling, whom he identifies with Teharonhiawagon, personifies
Summer; but this can be, at best, only in a secondary mode. The
name Teharonhiawagon Flewitt interprets as meaning literally “He-
is-holding-the-sky-in-two-places,” referring to the action of the two
hands (50 BBE^ “Teharonhiawagon”). Other interpretations are:
Lafitau, i. 133, Tharonhiaouagon, “il affermit le ciel de toutes parts”;
Brinton [a], p. 205, Taronhiawagon, “he who comes from the sky”;
Morgan, ii. 234, Tarenyawagon, stating that he was “the sender of
dreams”; Hewitt [a], p. 137, Tharonhiawakon, “he grasps the sky,”
i. e. in memory. Mrs. Smith (p. 52) says that little more is known of
this god than that he brought out from Mother Earth the six tribes
of the Iroquois. The name is not much used, the cosmogonies pre-
ferring an epithet, as Odendonnia (“Sapling”), which is probably
also the meaning of Yoskeha. See Notes 38, 44, 47, 69, Text refer-
ences: Ch. III. i. — Ch. IV. vi.

46. Metamorphosis. — Transformations are of course common
mythic incidents. They may be classified into (i) phoenix-like period-
ical rejuvenations, as in the case of Sapling (Yoskeha) in Iroquoian
and of Estsanatlehi in Navaho myth; (2) the metamorphosis of the
People of the First Age into the animals or human beings of the final
period, in which men now live; (3) incidental changes of form,, as dis-
guises assumed by magicians or deities, “swan-shift” episodes, were-
folk incarnations, all in the general field of folk-tales; (4) reincarnation



NOTES


297

or transmigration changes, which may be from human to animal
form, as in the Tllngit concept that the wicked are reborn as ani-
mals, or the Mohave belief that all the dead are reincarnated in a
series of animal forms until they finally disappear; (5) transforma-
tions, frequently by way of revenge, wrought by a mythic Transformer
or other deity. Especially in the North-West and South-West stone
formations are explained as representing transformed giants of earlier
times; ( 6 ) animal trait stories, in which the distinctive character-
istic of an animal kind is held to be the result of some primitive
change, usually the consequence of accident or trick, wrought in
the body of an ancestral animal. See Notes 3, 5? iB, 35, 40, 41, 43,
48, 62. Text references: Ch. III. i (Hewitt [a]). — cL IV. iv, v
(Mooney , pp. 293, 304, 310-11, 320, 324; Bushnell [a], p. 32).
— Ch. VII. ii (Kroeber [a], No. 10; Mason, No. 25; Powell, pp.
47-51); hi (Teit [a]. No. 27). — Ch. VIIL i. — Ch. X. v (Curtin
[a], Introd.; Merriam, Introd.). — Ch. XI. vi (Boas and Hunt ,
p. 28).

47. Manabozho and Chibiabos. — These two are the Algonquian
equivalents of the Iroquoian Yoskeha and Tawiscara. Manabozho,
the Great Hare, is one of the most interesting figures in Indian myth,
and probably he owes his importance to a variety of traits: the
hare’s prolific reproduction and his usefulness as a food animal were
the foundation; his speed gave him a symbolic character; and per-
haps his habit of changing his coat with the seasons enhanced his
reputation as a magician. At all events, in one line of development
he becomes the great demiurge, the benefactor of mankind, spirit
of life, and intercessor with the Good Spirit; while in another direc-
tion he is evolved into the vain, tricky, now stupid, now clever hero
of animal tales, whose final incarnation, after his deeds have passed
from Indian into negro lore, appears in the “Brer Rabbit” stories
of Joel Chandler Harris. In Indian myth the relation between the
demiurgic Great Hare and the tricky Master Rabbit varies with tribe
and time. The tendency is to anthropomorphize the Great Hare
or to assimilate his deeds to an anthropomorphic deity. This has
gone farthest with the Iroquois, by whom indeed the conception of
a rabbit demiurge may never have been seriously entertained. The
Iroquoian Cherokee have many Rabbit stories, but they are folk-
tales rather than myths. Among the Abnaki there seems to be a
clear separation between Glooscap, the demiurge, and the Rabbit
(cf. Rand, Leland) ; Glooscap is, however, an obvious doublet of the
Hare, having all his tricky and magic character. It is interesting to
note that among the Ute, of the western Plateau, where, as in the
far North, the rabbit is a valuable food animal, the Rabbit again
becomes an important mythic being, though still subordinate to the



298 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

Coyote, which effaces him everywhere in the West. Apparently
the Coyote or some other Wolf was the original companion or
brother'’ of the Hare; for in practically every version in which two
animals are present as the Hero Brothers, one is a carnivore. In the
east it is often the lynx, which, like the wolf, preys upon the rabbit.
Sometimes birds replace quadrupeds, as in the Omaha myth of
“Haxige” (J. 0 . Dorsey [a]), where the duck and buzzard appear;
but the relation of prey and carnivore is constant. It is at least note-
worthy that the food animal should be the eminent hero in Forest
Region myth, while the beast of prey takes this rdle on the Plains and
westward. The Algonquian names and epithets for the Great Hare
are many; Messou, Manabush, Minabozho, and Nanaboojoo are
mentioned in the text (cf. Note i). Chibiabos (also Chipiapoos), the
companion of Manabozho, almost invariably occurs in the form of
a carnivore, as the marten, lynx, or wolf. In the interesting Pota-
watomi version given by De Smet (pp. 1080-84) two mythic cycles
seem to be mingled: Chakekenapok, with whom Nanaboojoo fights,
is clearly Flint, the wicked twin of the Iroquoian tale; Chipiapoos,
the friendly brother, is Algonquian, and the same being who be-
comes lord of the ghost-world after being dragged down by the water
monsters; Wabasso is clearly another name for the Great Hare, and
from the nature of the reference it is plausible to suppose that the
Arctic hare is meant — i. e. Nanaboojoo-Wabasso and Chiplapoos-
Cliakekenapok are in reality only two persons. See Notes 15, 44,
45, 49. Text reference: Ch. III. ii (Rand, No. lx; HoFr'MAN , pp.
87, 1 13-14; [a], p. 166; for general references, see Note 15).

48. Hero-Transformer-Trickster. — A being who is at once
a demiurge, a magical transformer, and a trickster both clever and
gullible is the great personage of North American mythology. In
some tribes the heroic character, in some the trickster nature pre-
dominates; others recognize a clear distinction between the myths,
in which creative acts are ascribed to this being, and the folk-tales or
fictions, in which his generally discreditable adventures are narrated.
Of the mythic acts the most important ascribed to him are: (i) the
setting in order of the shapeless first world, and the conquest of its
monstrous beings, who are usually transformed; (2) the prime rdle
in the theft of fire, the sun, or daylight; (3) the restoration of the
world after the flood; and (4), the creation of mankind and the insti-
tution of the arts of life. Where these deeds are performed by some
other being, only the trickster character remains in a group of fairly
constant adventures, nearly all of which have close analogues in
European folk-tales. The important hero-tricksters are: (i) the
Great Hare, or Master Rabbit, of the eastern part of the continent;
(2) Coyote, the chief hero of Plains folk-tales and in the far West



NOTES


299

the great demiurge; (3) the Raven, which plays the parts of both
demiurge and trickster on the North-West Coast; and (4) “Old
Man/’ who is chiefly important in the general latitude of the Oregon
trail, from Siouan to Salish territory. In some instances (as in cer-
tain Salish groups) there are a number of hero-trickster characters,
Coyote, Raven, Old Man, and the Hero Brothers all being present;
such cases seem to be the consequence of indiscriminate borrowing.
See Notes 40, 44, 45, 47, 63, 69. Text references: Ch. III. ii. — Ch.
IV. vi (Mooney , pp. 233, 273, quoted). — Ch. VI. vi. — Ch.
VII. iii (for references see Note ii); v (Teit [c], p. 621). — Ch. VIII.
i, ii, V, vi (Goddard [a], Nos. 15, 16, 23, 33, etc.). — Ch. X. iii, vi
(Goddard . No. 2; Dixon . No. 10). — Ch. XL vi (Boas [g],
esp. xvii~xxv; Swanton [a], pp. 27-28; , p. 293; [c], pp. 110-50;
[d], pp. 80-88).

49. The Deluge. — The conception of an abyss of waters from
which the earth emerges, either as a new creation or as a restoration,
is found in every part of the American continent. Not infrequently
both the evocation of the world from primeval waters and its subse-
quent destruction by flood occur in the same myth or cycle, and in
many instances what passes for a creation-story is clearly nothing
more or less than the post-diluvian renewal of the earth. The same
episode of the diving animals is found in connexion, now with the
creation, now with the deluge, so that it is difficult to say to which
myth it originally belonged. On the whole, it is best developed and
most characteristic in the East and North, where its cosmogonic
features are also most clearly evolved. The other most familiar deluge
motive, the upwelling of a flood because of the wrath of underworld
water monsters, is characteristic in the South-West, though it also
occurs in the Manabozho stories, generally in conjunction with the
diving incident. Physiographic conditions no doubt affect the cir-
cumsta;nces of the myth. Thus in the arid South-West the idea of
primeval waters is generally absent; the flood is an outpouring of
underworld waters, which we may presume is associated with the
sudden floodings of the canyons after heavy rains in the mountains;
it is curious to find the incidents of the South-Western myth repeated
in the North-West (cf. Boas [g], xxiv. i ; Swanton [d], p. no), although
this is not the customary form in that region. Again, in California
the notion of a refuge on a mountain-peak is common, and here, too,
we find the cataclysm of fire in conjunction with that of water,
indicating volcanic forces. Most, if not all, of the incidents of the
Noachian deluge are duplicated in one or other of the American
deluge-myths — the raft containing the hero and surviving animals,
the sending out of a succession of animals to discover soil or vege-
tation, the landing on a mountain, even the subsequent building of



300


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


a ladder to heaven, the confusion of tongues, and the dispersal of
mankind. There is no reasonable question but that these incidents
are aboriginal and pre-Columbian, although in some instances later
coloured by knowledge of the Bible talc; and it is hardly a matter
of wonder that the first missionaries were convinced that Indian
mythology is only a perverted reminiscence of the events narrated in
the Scriptures. See Notes 9, 15, 48, 50, 51. Text references: Ch.
III. iii iJRv. 155-57; ji. 157-S9; Hoffman , pp. 87-88, 13 1 ff.;
Perrot, Memoire, ch. I, English translation in Blair, i.). — Ch. IV.
iv (Bushnell ). — Ch. VI. i, ii; — Ch, VII. iii. — Ch. VIII. ii,
V, vi. — Ch. IX. vi, vii. — Ch. X. iii (Kroeber [c]; [d], pp. 342-46;
Powers, p. 383); iv (Powers, pp. 144, 161, 227, 383; Kroeber
[c], pp. 177, 178, 184, 189; Nos. I, 7, II, IS, 25, 37; Merriam, pp.
75, 81, 139; Dixon [c]. Nos. i, 2 ; [d]. Nos. i, 2; Curtin [a]). — Ch.
XI. vi (Boas [g], xxiv. i).

50. The Serpent. — Snakes seem naturally associated with under-
world-powers, and are so in many instances, notably the snake rites
of the Hopi (Ch. IX. v); but the great mythic serpent of Indian lore
is quite as much a sky- as a water-being — probably he is mainly the
personified rainbow and lightning and therefore associated with both
sky and water. Commonly he is represented as plumed or horned;
frequently he carries a crystal in his head; in the North-West the
Sisiutl has a serpent head at each end and a human face in the middle.
Flying snakes occur in Navaho myth as a genre; the Shoshoni regard
the rainbow as a great sky-serpent, and the rainbows on the waters of
Niagara may be the suggestion which makes this cataract the home
of a great reptile. The Sia (M. C. Stevenson , p. 69) have a series
of cosmic serpents — one for each of the quarters, one for heaven,
and one for earth; the heaven-serpent has a crystal body, and it is so
brilliant that the eyes cannot rest upon it; the earth-serpent has a
mottled body, and is to be identified with the spotted monster which
rules the waters beneath the world and, in South-Western myth
generally, causes the flood that drives the First People to the upper
world. The most frequent identification of the serpent, however, is
with lightning. It is partly as connected with the lightning, partly
as associated with the underworld-powers, that the snake becomes
an emblem of fertility, especially in the South-West, There may be
some connexion with the same idea in the frequent myth of the in-
tercourse of a woman with a serpent. In many hero-stories the rep-
tile appears as an antagonist of the Sun or the Moon or of the Hero
demiurge. Sometimes he is the husband of Night, and an obvious
impersonation of evil. On the Pacific Coast the horned serpent is a
magic rather than a cosmic being, though the latter character is by
no means absent. Very frequently medicine-powers are ascribed to



NOTES


301


snakes, and there are numerous myths of potencies so acquired by
visits to the snake-people. In the incident of the hero swallowed by
the monster, this being is in many cases a serpent, as in the Iroquois
version. E. G. Squier {American Review^ new series, ii, 1848, pp.
392-~98) gives a type of the Manabozho story with the following
incidents: (i) the seizing of the “cousin” of Manabozho, as he was
crossing the ice, by Meshekenabek, the Great Serpent; (2) Mana-
bozho’s transformation of himself into a tree and his shooting of the
Serpent; (3) the flood caused by the water serpents, and the flight
of men and animals to a high mountain, whence a raft is launched
containing the hero and many animals; (4) the diving incident; and
(S) Manabozho’s remaking of the earth. See Notes 2, 9, 41, 49.
Text references: Ch. III. iv (Hoffman , pp. 88-89, 125 ff.; Rand,
Nos, I, xxxiii; Mooney , pp. 320-21). — Ch. IV. vi. — Ch. VL i
(Morice, Transactions of the Canadian Institute^ v. 4-10); iv (Powell,
p. 26). — Ch. VII. iv. — Ch. IX. hi (M. C. Stevenson [c], pp. 94 if.,
179; Fewkes [f], p. 691); V (jo BBE^ “Snake Dance”; Fewkes ,
[c]; Dorsey and Voth, especially pp. 255-61; 349-53; Voth, Nos.
6, 7 > 27, 37). — Ch. XL ii (Boas [f], p. 371; [g], vi. 5, 5a; viii. 3, 4;
xvii. 2; [j], pp. 28, 44, 66).

51. The Theft of-Fire. — The Promethean myth is one of the
most universal in America. Sometimes it is the sun that is stolen,
sometimes the daylight; but in the great majority of cases it is fire.
The legend frequently has a utilitarian turn, describing the kinds
of wood in which the fire is deposited. Usually the flame is in the
keeping of beings who are obviously celestial, but there are some
curious variations, as in the North-West versions which derive fire
from the ocean or from ghosts (cf. Boas [g], xvii. i). It is impossible
to believe that the fire-theft stories refer to the actual introduction
of fire as a cultural agency; more likely the ritualistic preservation
and kindling of fire, with the distribution of the new fire by relays
of torch-bearers — rites of which there are traces in both North
and South America — constitute the basis of the myth in its com-
monest form, that is, theft followed by distribution by relays of
animals. See Notes 13, 40. Text references: Ch, III. v (Hoffman
, pp. 126-27; Mooney [d], p. 678; De Smet, pp. 1047-53); vi
(Hewitt [a], pp. 20i ff., 317 ff.). — Ch. IV. iv (Mooney , pp.
240-42). — Ch. VII. ii (W. D. Lyman, The Columbia River^ New
York, 1909, pp. 22-24; cf. Eels, Annual Report of the Smithsonian
Institution^ 1887, part i); iv (Kroeber [a], No. i; Lowie , No.
3; Packard, No. i; Teit [a], Nos. 12, 13; [c]. No. ii). — Ch. X.
iv, vi (Curtin [a], p. 365; , p. 51; Merriam, pp. 33, 35, 43-53,
89, 139; Goddard , No. 12; [c], Nos. 3, 4, 5; Frachtenberg [a],
No. 4; Dixon , No. 3; [c], No. 5; [d], No. 8; Kroeber [c], Nos.

[Prometheus]

302 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

85 16, 26; [e]. No. 17). — CL XL v (Boas [g], ili. i, 8; v. 2; viii. 8;
xiii. 66).

52. The Bear. — It is doubtless the cave-dwelling and hibernat-
ing habits of the bear, coupled with his formidable strength, that give
him his position as chief of the underworld Manitos. In the Midewi-
win the bears are the most important of the malignant Manitos bar-
ring the progress of the candidate during his initiation. See Hoffman
[a], pp. 167-69, and cL Note 14. Text references: Ch. III. vi. — Ch.
X. vi (Powers, p. 342; Dixon [c], No. 9; Goddard [c], No. 17;
Merriam, pp. 103, III; Kroeber [c], p. 180, No. 10). — Ch. XL v.

53. Return of the Dead. — Stories on the theme of Orpheus and
Eurydice are sufficiently frequent to form a class by themselves. In
some cases the return of the beloved dead is defeated because of the
breaking of a tabu, as in the Greek instance; in others the seeker is
given wealth or some other substitute; in still others the dead is
returned to life, but usually with an uncanny consequence; altogether
ghastly are the stories where the revivification is only apparent, and
the seeker awakes to find himself or herself clutching a corpse or
skeleton. See Notes 10, 12, 17. Text references: Ch. III. vii (JR x.
149-53; Smith, p. 103). — Ch. VI. v (G. A. Dorsey [g]. Nos. lo,
34). — Ch. VII. iii, vi (W. D. Lyman, The Columbia River ^ New
York, 1909, pp. 28-31). — Ch. X. vii (Kroeber [c]. Nos. 24, 25;
Powers, p. 339). — Ch. XL vii.

54. Hiawatha. — For the story of Hiawatha consult 50 BBE,
“Dekanawida,^’ ^Tiiawatha,” Wathototarho’’; Plale, Iroquois Book
of Rites^ a study of the traditions of the League as retained by the
Iroquois and reduced to writing in the eighteenth ccntuiy; Morgan,
i. 63-64; Smith; Beauchamp, ‘‘Hi-a-wat-ha,’* in JAFL iv; School-
craft [a], i.; , part iii, pp. 314 ff. Text reference: Ch. III. viii.

55. Hair and Scalp. — Of the parts of the body, the hair and the
heart seem to be particularly associated with the life and strength of
the individual. The scalp-lock was a specially dressed wisp or braid
of hair, separated out when the boy reached manhood, and it was this
that was taken as a trophy from the slain. The custom of scalping
seems to have originated in the east and from there to have spread
westward, replacing the older practice of decapitation, which, on
some parts of the Pacific Coast, was never superseded. Plair-sym-
bolism appears not only in scalping, but in the wide-spread custom
of giving a pregnant woman a charm made of the hair of a deceased
relative whose rebirth was hoped for (cf. JR vi, 207, for an early
instance). Hair-combing episodes are frequent in myth, usually
with a magic significance. In Iroquois cosmogony Ataentsic combs
the hair of her father, apparently to receive his magic power. Hia-
watha’s combing of the snakes from the hair of Atotarho is perhaps



NOTES


303


a symbolic incident. The character of Atotarho’s hair may be in-
ferred from Captain John Smith’s description of that of the chief
priest of the Powhatan: ‘‘The ornaments of the chief e Priest was
certain attires for his head made thus. They tooke a dosen or 16 or
more snakes, and stuffed them with mosse; and of weesels and other
vermine skins, a good many. All these they tie by their tailes, so as
all their tailes meete in the toppe of their head, like a great TasselL
Round about this Tassell is as it were a crown of feathers; the skins
hang about his head, necke and shoulders, and in a manner cover
his face” {Description of Virginia^ 1612, “Of their Religion”).
See Note 37. Text references: Ch. III. viii (Morgan, i. 63). — CL
V. ix (Fletcher and La Flesche, pp. I22-26).

56. Gamblers. — American Indians are inveterate gamesters, and
their myths accordingly abound in stories of gambling contests, in
which the magic element is frequently the theme of interest. See
Note 21. Text references: Ch. IV. vi (Mooney , pp. 311-15). —
Ch. VII. hi (Teit [a]. No. . — Ch. VIII. ii (Matthews [a], “Origin
Myth”); iv (Matthews [a], “The Great Shell of Kintyel”; cf.
Goddard [a], No. 18; Russell, p. 219). — Ch. IX. vi.

57. Migration-Myths and Histories. — Migration-myths and
more or less legendary histories are possessed by all the more ad-
vanced North American tribes. Such traditions are usually closely
interwoven with cosmogonic stories, so that there are formed fairly
consistent narratives of events since the “beginning.” Chronology
is generally vague, though there are some notable attempts at exac-
titude (see Ch. VI. vii). Text references: Ch. IV. vii (Gatschet [a];
Mooney , pp. 350-97). — Ch. VI. vii (G. A. Dorsey , pp. 34 ff.;
Mallery, “Picture Writing of the American Indians,” in 10 ARBEy
ch. x; Mooney [c], pp. 254-64). — Ch. IX. iv (see especially G. P.
WiNSHiP, “The Coronado Expedition,” in 14. ARBE; cf. Note 67,
infra),

58. Petalesharo. — See5oR-8jF,“Petalesharo.” The story is told
by Thomas M’Kenney, Memoirs Official and Personaly New York,
1846, ii. 93 ff., but Dr. Melvin R. Gilmore, recently of the Nebraska
State Historical Society, states that the Skidi of today deny its truth;
the Morning Star sacrifice lapsed, they say, by common consent.
Dr. Gilmore has very kindly given the writer the following data re-
garding Petalesharo and the Morning Star sacrifice which correct
many statements current in government and other publications:

“In the contact of two races of widely variant modes of thought
and manners of life there is abundant room for misunderstandings
and mistaken ideas to be formed of each by the other, and when one
race possesses the art of writing and the other does not, the people
with the superior advantage may, without any wrong intention,



304


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


perpetuate false views and impressions equally with true statements
of facts. Thus the misapprehension of one observer is thereafter
propagated and confirmed by every writer who deals with the given
subject. In such light, I think, is to be regarded the character of
Pita Leshara [Petalesharo], and especially one deed commonly as-
cribed to him in white men’s accounts,

‘'^Pita Leshara was chief of the Tshawi [Chaui] tribe of the Pawnee
nation. He was a forceful character, wise, brave, and benevolent,
and was in the height of his power just at the time that his nation
was coming into the closest contact with the white race. Because
of his outstanding ability and force of character, and because he
was a chief, the whites popularly regarded him as the principal chief
of the nation.

^‘Of the four tribes, originally independent, but in later times
confederated into the Pawnee nation, one, the Skidi, possessed the
rite of human sacrifice, the ofiFering of certain war captives, pro-
vided that at the time of their capture they had been devoted by
the consecrational vows of their captors. This ceremony was prac-
tised by the Skidi Pawnee until some time after the middle of the
nineteenth century. It died out at that time because of the various
influences incident to increasing contact with, and more constant
propinquity of, the white race. The cessation of this practice oc-
curring contemporaneously with the period of Pita Leshara’s public
activities, a belief obtained among white people, and crystallized
into a dictum, that it was due to a mandate of the chief that the
practice of the rite ceased. But the observance of religious ceremo-
nies does not originate nor terminate by mandate.

“By careful inquiry among the old people of the Pawnee I am
unable to find any support for either of the statements current
among the whites that Pita Leshara was head chief of the nation
and that he, by edict, caused the Skidi tribe to abandon their pecu-
liar ritual. The following account will serve as an example of the
information on the subject given me very generally by old people
now living who were contemporaries of Pita Leshara. My informant
in this instance was White Eagle, a chief of the Skidi Pawnee. He
was about eighty-three years old at the time he gave me this account
in 1914. His father was the last priest, or Ritual Keeper, of the rite
of human sacrifice who performed the ceremony, and White Eagle
himself, as his father’s successor, now has in his keeping the sacred
pack pertaining to the sacrifice and described below.

“White Eagle’s account follows. I told him the current story,
an educated young Skidi named' Charles Knifechief being our in-
terpreter. White Eagle listened with attention and at the close he
said; Ht is not a true account. Now let me tell you. At one time



NOTES


30s

there was a Skidi chief named Wonderful Sun (Sakuruti Waruksti),
This chief ordered the [Skidi] tribe on the buffalo-hunt. So they
made ready with tents and equipment. The people went south-
west, beyond the Republican River. While they were in that region,
they came into the vicinity of a Cheyenne camp. One of the Chey-
enne women was gathering wood along the river bottom many miles
from camp. Some Pawnees overtook her and made her captive.
The Pawnees at this time had finished the hunt and were returning
home. They brought the captive Cheyenne woman along. A man
of the Skidi declared the woman to be waruksti [a formula of conse-
cration], They continued on the return journey and camped on the
way at Honotato kako [the name of an old village site on the south
bank of the Platte River where the Tshawi, Kitkahak [Kitkehahti]
and Pitahawirat [Pitahauerat], the other three tribes of the Pawnee
nation, had formerly resided]. From this place they travelled along
the south bank of the Platte to the ford at Columbus. Before they
crossed the river one of the old men of the Skidi, a man named Big
Knife (Nitsikuts), went up to this woman and shot her with an arrow.
He did so because he thought that the white men at Columbus would
take her away from them and send her back to her own people if
they learned that the Skidi had a captive. And now this story as
I have told it to you is the real truth of the reason that the Skidi
Pawnee no longer continued the sacrifice. The captor of the Chey-
enne woman was a man named Old Eagle. He pronounced her to
be waruksti. Big Knife killed her because she had been made wa-
ruksti. The story of Pita Leshara is untrue. If he had interfered,
he would have been killed, because he had no authority over the
Skidi. He was chief of the Tshawi.^

“The sketch [mentioned below] was made by Charles Knifechief
as he sat interpreting for us. He has drawn a Pawnee earth lodge
in the distance as seen from the Place of Sacrifice. The door-way of
the house opens toward the rising sun. The victim was bound by
the hands to the upright posts, standing on the upper of four hori-
zontal bars, the ends of which were bound to the upright posts.
White Eagle said that the human sacrifice was not connected with
the planting ceremony, but was for atonement, planting being con-
trolled by another Sacred Pack. He declared that he has the Human
Sacrifice Pack which he inherited from his father, but he was not
instructed in the ritual, so that it is now lost. He said that the body
was sacrificed to the birds of the air and to animals, and was left on
the scaffold until it was consumed. The victim was put to death by
the authorized bowman of the ritual, by shooting with the four
sacred arrows. After the archer had thus slain the sacrifice, four
men advanced with the four ancient war-clubs from the Sacred Pack



3o6 north AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

and in turn struck the body, after which it was at the will of the
populace. The Sacred Pack pertaining to this ritual contains the
sacred bow, the four sacred arrows, four sacred war-clubs, and a
human skull, the skull of a man who was a chief long ago, distin-
guished by his great human sympathy.”

Despite White Eagle’s statement that the sacrifice was not con-
nected with agricultural rites, it may still be noted that neighbour-
ing tribes associated the Pawnee offering of human beings with
agriculture. Thus an Omaha narrative (J. 0 . Dorsey [a], p. 414)
declares that the Pawnee greased their hoes” in the flesh of a vic-
tim “as they wished to acquire good crops.”

The illustration to which Dr. Gilmore refers, and which is repro-
duced, through his courtesy, opposite p. 76, is of particular interest
since there is, so far as the author knows, no other existing picture of
the manner in which the famous sacrifice to the Morning Star was con-
ducted. Text reference: Ch. V. i. Cf. De Smet, pp. 977-88.

59. War and War-Gods. — Most North American Indians are
courageous warriors, though tribes vary much in their reputations.
On the Great Plains the northern Athapascans form an exception,
having, as a rule, little inclination for fighting. The Californian
tribes, also, were on the whole peaceful, and in the South-West the
Pueblo Dwellers, valorous in defence, were little given to forays.
The Sun and the Thunder are the war-divinities of the greater part
of the continent; in the South-West the war-gods arc the twin sons
of the Sun. Usually the Indian warrior relied more upon his personal
tutelary or Medicine-Spirit — especially the Bear, Wolf, and Eagle
— than upon any war-god of a national type. The bearing of palladia
into battle was common, however; and the loss of such a treasure
was regarded as a great disaster. See Notes 25, 37, 55. Text refer--
ences: Ch. 11 . ii. — Ch. V. i, ix. — Ch. VIII. ii. — Ch. IX. iii.

60. Feather-Symbolism. — The use of feather-symbols is one of
the most characteristic features of Indian dress and rituals. Eagle
feathers, denoting war-honours, are in the nature of insignia; but there
are many ritualistic uses in which the feathers seem to be primarily
symbols of the intermediation between heaven and earth which is
assigned to the birds. Feathers thus have a ghostly or spiritual char-
acter. Boas records a story in which a house is haunted by feathers
and shadows ([g] xxv. i, 13), and one of the most curious of Plains
legends is the Pawnee tale of Ready-to-Give, whom the gods restored
to life with feathers in place of brains. In the South-West feathers
are attached to prayer-sticks addressed to the celestial powers. Cfi
Notes 21, 27, 30, 31, 40, 61. Text references: Ch. V. vii (Fletcher,
The Hako, is perhaps the most important single source on feather-
symbolism). — Ch. VL vi (for stories of Ready-to-Give, G. A.



NOTES


307

Dorsey [e], No. 10; [g], Nos. 39-76; Grinnell [c], pp, 142-60). —
Ch. VIII. i, iii. — Ch. IX. Hi.

61. Sacred Poles. — The most conspicuous use of sacred poles
is in the Sun-Dance rite, where the central object of the Medicine
Lodge is a post adorned with emblematic objects, especially a bundle
tied transversely so as to give the general effect of a cross. Sacred
poles appear as palladia in a number of instances. The Creek migra-
tion-legend recounts such a use, and the Omaha tribal legends refer
not only to the pillar mentioned in Ch. V. ix, but to another and
older sacred post of cedar. In the Hedawichi ceremony of the same
tribe a pole made from a felled tree was a symbol of life and strength,
and of cosmic organization. The relation of these pillars to the pole
employed in the Sun-Dance, all forming a single ritualistic group,
seems obvious. The transition from poles to xoana, or crude pillar-
like images, is apparent in the wooden statuettes made by the Zuhi
and other Pueblo, which are little more than decorated stocks. On
the North-West Coast an entirely individual development is found in
the carved “totem-poles’’ and grave memorials carved with totemic
figures; but these seem to be heraldic rather than ritualistic in inten-
tion. See Notes 4, 42, 65. Text references: Ch. IV. vii (Gatschet [a]).
— Ch. V. ix (Fletcher and La Flesche, pp. 216-60). — Ch. VIII.
v (Lumholtz [a]). — Ch. IX. iii. — Ch. XL i, ii.

62. Magic. — Magic is the science of primitive man, his means
of controlling the forces of nature. Imitative and sympathetic magic
underlie most Indian rites to a degree that frequently makes it im-
possible to determine where magic coercion of nature gives place,
in the mind of the celebrant, to symbolic supplication. Both elements
are present in all the important ceremonies, and it is often a matter
of interest or prepossession on the part of the reporter as to which —
'magic or worship — will be emphasized in his record. Magic motives
in myth are too numerous to classify, but a few types may be men-
tioned. (l) Transformations (see Notes 5, 41). (2) Magic increase
and replenishment. The idea underlying this form is: Given a little
of a substance, it may be magically increased; possibly animal and
vegetable multiplication is the analogy which suggests this; at all
events it seems less difficult for the primitive mind to imagine con-
tinuity and increase than creation ex nihilo. Typical notions are
the creation of the earth from a kernel of soil, the stretching of the
world, the continuous growth of the heaven-reaching tree or rock,
the constant replenishment of a vessel of food which, like the widow’s
cruse, is never exhausted during need, or is emptied only by an orphan
after all others have partaken. (3) Songs and spells. The Indian
has an inveterate belief in the power of words, and even thoughts, to
produce mechanical and organic changes; hence the importance of



3o6 north AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

and in turn struck the body, after which it was at the will of the
populace. The Sacred Pack pertaining to this ritual contains the
sacred bow, the four sacred arrows, four sacred war-clubs, and a
human skull, the skull of a man who was a chief long ago, distin-
guished by his great human sympathy.’’

Despite White Eagle’s statement that the sacrifice was not con-
nected with agricultural rites, it may still be noted that neighbour-
ing tribes associated the Pawnee offering of human beings with
agriculture. Thus an Omaha narrative (J. 0 . Dorsey [a], p. 414)
declares that the Pawnee greased their hoes” in the flesh of a vic-
tim ^‘as they wished to acquire good crops.”

The illustration to which Dr. Gilmore refers, and which is repro-
duced, through his courtesy, opposite p. 76, is of particular interest
since there is, so far as the author knows, no other existing picture of
the manner in which the famous sacrifice to the Morning Star was con-
ducted. Text reference: Ch. V. i. Cf. De Smet, pp. 977-88.

[Prometheus]

59. War and War-Gods. — Most North American Indians are
courageous warriors, though tribes vary much in their reputations.
On the Great Plains the northern Athapascans form an exception,
having, as a rule, little inclination for fighting. The Californian
tribes, also, were on the whole peaceful, and in the South-West the
Pueblo Dwellers, valorous in defence, were little given to forays.
The Sun and the Thunder are the war-divinities of the greater part
of the continent; in the South-West the war-gods are the twin sons
of the Sun. Usually the Indian warrior relied more upon his personal
tutelary or Medicine-Spirit — especially the Bear, Wolf, and E.agle
— than upon any war-god of a national type. The bearing of palladia
into battle was common, however; and the loss of such a treasure
was regarded as a great disaster. See Notes 25, 37, 55* Text refer-’
ences: Ch. 11 . il. — Ch. V. i, ix. — Ch. VIII. ii. — Ch. IX, iii.

60. Feather-Symbolism. — The use of feather-symbols is one of
the most characteristic features of Indian dress and rituals. Eagle
feathers, denoting war-honours, are in the nature of insignia; but there
are many ritualistic uses in which the feathers seem to be primarily
symbols of the intermediation between heaven and earth which is
assigned to the birds. Feathers thus have a ghostly or spiritual char-
acter. Boas records a story in which a house is haunted by feathers
and shadows ([g] xxv. i, 13), and one of the most curious of Plains
legends is the Pawnee tale of Ready-to-Give, whom the gods restored
to life with feathers in place of brains. In the South-West feathers
are attached to prayer-sticks addressed to the celestial powers. Cf.
Notes 21, 27, 30, 31, 40, 61, Text references: Ch. V. vii (Fletcher,
The Hakoy is perhaps the most important single source on feather-
symbolism). — Ch. VI. vi (for stories of Ready-to-Give, G. A.



NOTES


307

Dorsey [e], No. 10; [g], Nos. 39-76; Grinnell [c], pp. 142-60). —
Ch. VIIL i, iii. — Ch. IX. iii.

61. Sacred Poles. — The most conspicuous use of sacred poles
is in the Sun-Dance rite, where the central object of the Medicine
Lodge is a post adorned with emblematic objects, especially a bundle
tied transversely so as to give the general effect of a cross. Sacred
poles appear as palladia in a number of instances. The Creek migra-
tion-legend recounts such a use, and the Omaha tribal legends refer
not only to the pillar mentioned in Ch. V. ix, but to another and
older sacred post of cedar. In the Hedawichi ceremony of the same
tribe a pole made from a felled tree was a symbol of life and strength,
and of cosmic organization. The relation of these pillars to the pole
employed in the Sun-Dance, all forming a single ritualistic group,
seems obvious. The transition from poles to xoana, or crude pillar-
like images, is apparent in the wooden statuettes made by the Zuhi
and other Pueblo, which are little more than decorated stocks. On
the North-West Coast an entirely individual development is found in
the carved ‘^totem-poles’’ and grave memorials carved with totemic
figures; but these seem to be heraldic rather than ritualistic in inten-
tion. See Notes 4, 42, 65. Text references: Ch. IV. vii (Gatschet [a]).
— Ch. V. ix (Fletcher and La Flesche, pp. 216-60). — Ch. VIII.
V (Lumholtz [a]). — Ch. IX. iii. — Ch. XL i, ii.

62. Magic. — Magic is the science of primitive man, his means
of controlling the forces of nature. Imitative and sympathetic magic
underlie most Indian rites to a degree that frequently makes it im-
possible to determine where magic coercion of nature gives place,
in the mind of the celebrant, to symbolic supplication. Both elements
are present in all the important ceremonies, and it is often a matter
of interest or prepossession on the part of the reporter as to which —
'magic or worship — will be emphasized in his record. Magic motives
in myth are too numerous to classify, but a few types may be men-
tioned. (l) Transformations (see Notes 5, 41). (2) Magic increase
and replenishment. The idea underlying this form is: Given a little
of a substance, it may be magically increased; possibly animal and
vegetable multiplication is the analogy which suggests this; at all
events it seems less difficult for the primitive mind to imagine con-
tinuity and increase than creation ex nihilo. Typical notions are
the creation of the earth from a kernel of soil, the stretching of the
world, the continuous growth of the heaven-reaching tree or rock,
the constant replenishment of a vessel of food which, like the widow’s
cruse, is never exhausted during need, or is emptied only by an orphan
after all others have partaken. (3) Songs and spells. The Indian
has an inveterate belief in the power of words, and even thoughts, to
produce mechanical and organic changes; hence the importance of



NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


308

song in his rituals, and the tabus which forbid songs to be sung out
of season (a hunting song in the closed season, for example). (4)
The magic flight. This is an incident that recurs many times: the
hero is pursued by a monster; as he flees he creates successive ob-
stacles by means of charms, which the monster in turn overcomes
(an example is given Ch. VI. i). The conception of the perilous way
to the underworld or spirit-world is related to this idea (see Note .
(5) Magic use of stones, wands, and other talismans. See Notes 4,
27, 30, 35, 60, 61. Text references: Ch. VI. i, vii. — Ch. VIL ii. —
Ch. VIIL hi, iv. — Ch. IX. iv. — Ch. X. iv (Goddard [c], Nos. 1,2).

63. Old Man. — The personage usually called “Old Man’^ is a
distinctly Western figure who seems to be in some instances a per-
sonification of the Great Spirit, though for the most part he is clearly
a member of the “Trickster-Transformer’’ group. The Blackfeet
and Arapaho, western Algonquians, share this character with their
neighbours of Siouan and Salish stocks (cf. De Smet, p. 525; Wissler
and Duvall, Nos. 1--23). Old Man is the hero of the raft story and
the diving animals in Arapaho myth, their version of which, as given
by G. A. Dorsey ([a], pp. 191--212; also, Dorsey and Kroebcr, Nos.
I, 2, 3), is one of the best recorded. It is interesting to note in this
legend that the raft is made of four sticks — the cruciform symbol of
the quarters — and that it supports a calumet, personified as “Flat-
pipe,” the “Father,” and representing the palladium of the tribe.
This connects both with the far north and the extreme south, for the
story of the raft is known to the Athapascans of the North, while the
Navaho and Pueblo traditions of the floating logs and the cruciform
symbol are an interesting southern analogue (cf. S JRBJS, p, 278;
and Chh. VIIL iv; IX, v). The Cheyenne creator, “Great Medicine’^
(G. A. Dorsey , pp. 34-37), is a similar, if not an identical being,
personifying the Great Spirit, or Life of the World, as a creative in-
dividual. This Cheyenne myth tells of a Paradisic age when men
were naked and innocent, amid fields of plenty, followed by a period
in which flood, war, and famine ensued upon the gift of understanding.
The Crow (Siouan) name for the creator, “Old Man Coyote” (FCM
ii. 281), is an interesting identification of this character with Coyote.
See Notes 6, 48. Text references: Ch. VI. ii (J. O. Dorsey [d], p.
Si3).-Ch. VILiii,v.

64. Hermaphrodites. — Unsexed beings appear not infrequently,
especially In the mythology of the western half of the continent.
Matthews ([a], note 30) says: The word (translated “hermaphrodite”)
“is usually employed to designate that class of men, known perhaps
in all wild Indian tribes, who dress as women, and perform the duties
usually allotted to women in Indian Camps.” The custom is certainly
wide-spread. Father Morice describes it among the northern Atha-



NOTES


309


pascans; and De Smet (p. 1017) gives a noteworthy Instance of the
reverse usage: “Among the Crows I saw a warrior who, in conse-
quence of a dream, had put on women’s clothing and subjected him-
self to all the labors and duties of that condition, so humiliating to
an Indian. On the other hand there is a woman among the Snakes
who once dreamed that she was a man and killed animals in the chase.
Upon waking she assumed her husband’s garments, took his gun and
went out to test the virtue of her dream; she killed a deer. Since
that time she has not left off man’s costume; she goes on hunts
and on the war-path; by some fearless actions she has obtained the
title of ‘brave’ and the privilege of admittance to the council of the
chiefs.” Perhaps the most interesting case recorded is that of Wewha,
a Zuhi man who donned woman’s attire, described by Mrs. Steven-
son ([c], p. 310) as “undoubtedly the most remarkable member of
the tribe . . . the strongest both mentally and physically.” The
assumption of woman’s attire and work by youths reaching puberty
is a matter of choice. This choice the boy makes for himself among
the Zuhi, and doubtless also in the other Pueblos where the practice
exists. “Hermaphrodites” have a certain mythic representation in
Zuhi ceremonies, and it is noteworthy that the Zuhi Creator is a bi-
sexed being, “He-She” (M. C. Stevenson [a], pp. 23, 37). Among
the tribes of the North-West Coast mythic hermaphrodite dwarfs,
life-destroyers, appear as denizens of the moon (Boas [g], xxiii. 3;
[j], p, S3). Text references: Ch. VIII. ii. — Ch. IX. vii. — CL XL v.

65. Masks and Effigies. — The use of masks in rites intended
as dramatic representations of deities finds its highest development
in the South-West (among the Navaho and Pueblo tribes) and on
the North-West Coast, though it is not limited to these regions.
The purpose of the mask is impersonation, but their employment is
not on the purely dramatic plane, since they can be worn only by
persons qualified by birth or initiation — i. e. the mask is to some
extent regarded as an outward expression of an inward character
already possessed. In both regions masks are associated with cere-
monies in honour of ancestral spirits or clan or society tutelaries
rather than concerned with the worship of the greater nature-powers.
The use of masks has to a degree affected myth: the Zuni regard the
clouds as masks of the celestial Rain-Makers; the Sun and Moon are
masked persons; and in the North-West an interesting mythic inci-
dent is the laying aside of animal masks and the consequent conver-
sion of the animal-beings of the First Age into mankind. Wooden
images of divine beings also occur in these same regions, and with
some ritual use, but on the whole idols are rare in America north of
Mexico; objects of especial sanctity are more often in the nature of
“Medicine,” and even tribal sacra have the character of talismans



310


NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


rather than of symbols. Elaborate masques, or ceremonies in which
maskers are the chief performers, are given in the Pueblos during the
season in which the katcinas, or ancestral spirits, are supposed to
be present. A similar division of the ritual year, for a like reason,
obtains in the North-West. It is difficult to characterize these rites
precisely. They are not ancestor-worship in the Oriental or classi-
cal sense; for while the spirits of ancestors are supposed to be repre-
sented, they are associated with mythic powers and totemic tute-
laries rather than with the well-being of households and clans as
such. Rites at the grave and prayers to the dead are a Pueblo cus-
tom, but the deceased are addressed primarily in their mythic rdk
of the Rain-Makers. On the whole, the distinctly ancestral character
is more marked in the South-West, where the masks are chiefly
anthropomorphic, while the totemic signification is more in evidence
in the mainly animal masks of the North-West. See Notes 4, 27,
30, 61. Text references: Ch. VIII. iv. — Ch. IX. iil (Fewkes [a], pp.
265, note, 312; [e], p. 16; M. C. Stevenson , pp. 20-21, 62 ff.,
316, 576 ff.)* — Ch. XL ii (SwANTON [c], pp. 26, 28; [d], No. 41;
Boas and Hunt [a], pp. 499, 503, 508, 509; Boas [g], xxii. i).

-66. The Swastika. — Cruciform symbols arc pre-Columbian in
both the Americas. Probably the commonest form is the swastika,
the symbolism of which is certainly in some, and perhaps in most,
uses that of an emblem of the World-Quarters and their presiding
powers. The most elementary geographical frame is the cross, each
arm of which, for cult purposes, is provided with an extension for
the support of the genii of the directions — especially tlie powers of
wind and storm. The circular horizon is a natural image with which
to circumscribe this cross; and thus is derived a kind of primitive
projection of the plane of earth. The sky above is conceived as an
inverted bowl; not infrequently the earth beneath is symbolized by
a corresponding bowl (as in the Pawnee Hako ceremony, while the
Pueblo Dwellers, who live in a land environed by mountain and
mesa, employ terraced bowls in the same sense); and thus the spher-
ical universe is defined in all but word (cf. the ‘^two kettle” palladium
of the ‘"Two Kettle Sioux” — a division of the Teton). It is inter-
esting to note that in the Sia cosmogony the first act of Spider, about
to create the world, is to draw a cross and to station goddesses at
the eastern and western points. See Notes ii, 31, and cf. Thomas
Wilson, "'^The Swastika,” In Report of the United States National
Museum^ 1894; and jo BBE^ ‘Xross.” Text references: Ch. IX.
ii, vi.

67. Seven Cities of Cibola. — The Kingdom of Cibola,” with
its ‘‘seven cities,” was discovered by Fray Marcos of Niza in 1539,
and the consequence of his glowing description was the Coronado ex-



NOTES


311

pedition of 1540, which resulted In the first contact of the Spaniards
with the Pueblo Indians. The “seven cities” are identified as a
group of pueblos of which Zuni is the modem representative, and
Zunian legends still recount the history of the period. It was while
among the Pueblos that Coronado learned of “Quivira” and set
out for that country, guided by an Indian whom the Spaniards
called “the Turk,” and who is believed to have been a Pawnee.
This is interesting in connexion with the many affinities of Pawnee
and South-Western rites (cf. Fletcher, pp. 84--85 and Note 35,
supra). It is supposed that Coronado penetrated into what is now
Kansas on this expedition, and that the great chief Tartarrax, of the
province of Plarahey, was a Pawnee chieftain. See 30 BBE^ “Qui-
vira,” “Zuni.” Text reference: Ch. IX. ii.

68. Number. — Four is generally said to be the “sacred number”
of the North Americans, and it occurs as the natural consequence
of the emphasis on the World-Quarters in cult practices. Possibly
the number three, which is occasionally found in Indian myths, simi-
larly reflects ritualistic relations to the Upper, Middle, and Lower
Worlds, while the combination of the two gives the sacred seven,
employed in Pueblo rites, or (with the Mid-World omitted) six.
Usually four is the magic number in myths — the “fourth time is
the charm.” The duration of Pueblo ceremonial periods of five and
nine days has been explained as the addition of a day of preparation
to a four-day period or its double. On the Pacific Coast the impor-
tance of the Quarters in ritual is not great; consequently four as a
mythic number is not so common there as elsewhere. See Note 31.
Text reference: Ch. IX. iv.

69. Culture Hero. — The term “culture hero” is not infre-
quently applied to the Trickster-Transformer, who is, however, a
demiurge on his heroic side. A second group of beings who may be
regarded as culture heroes are the mortals who make journeys to
supernatural abodes and bring thence to mankind not only medicine-
powers but gifts of various sorts. The acquisition of fire, of maize,
of utensils, and of methods of hunt and chase are the chief events
about which these myths centre. Usually some sort of tribal palla-
dium is acquired along with any distinct innovation in the mode of
life. “Medicine” heroes, who institute new rites and found societies,
appear in all important collections of myths; and the Messianic
promise of the return of a departing hero is again a frequent inci-
dent, suggesting the Quetzalcoatl legend of the Aztecs. See Notes
44 ? 54? $4 57 * references: Ch. VI. vi. — Ch. IX. vl, vii. —
Ch. XL iv (Boas [j], pp. 32-33)*

70. Creation of Men. — The creation of mankind in Indian
legends, as distinct from metamorphosis or from descent from


X— 22



312 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

earlier beings animal or semi-human in form, Is usuallf a rather
unimportant theme, with little mythic expansion. Men are made
from clay, sticks, feathers, grass, ears of maize, and, In one interest-
ing myth recorded by Curtin, from the bones of the dead. Some-
times they are ^‘earth-born,” or issue from a spring or swamp; and
in the North-West carved images are vivified to become human
ancestors. See Notes 15, 18, 34, 35, 46, 57, Text references: Ch, IX.
vi. — Ch. X. V (Goddard [c], p. 185; Kroeber [e], p. 94; Curtin
, pp. 39'-4S)-“Ch. XL ii (Boas [g], xxii. i, 2); iv (Boas [j]j PP*
29-32).



BIBLIOGRAPHY




BIBLIOGRAPHY

I. ABBREVIATIONS


AA .

ARBE

BAM.

BBS .

FCM

JAFL

JR ?
MAM
PAM.

UFC .


American Anthropologist.

Annual Report, Bureau of American Ethnology.
Bulletin, American Museum of Natural History.
Bulletin, Bureau of American Ethnology.
Anthropological Series, Field Columbian Museum.
Journal of American Folk-Lore.

Jesuit Relations, Thwaites edition and translation.
Memoirs, American Museum of Natural History.
Anthropological Papers, American Museum of Natural
History.

University of California Publications in American
Archaeology and Ethnology.


Note. — Citation by the author’s name refers to the work noted under “General
Works” or “Select Literature” (below). Where the same author has several works
listed, they are distinguished by letters in the list and correspondingly referred to in
the Notes.


II. BIBLIOGRAPHICAL GUIDES

Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico (50 BBE). Espe-
cially in part I (Washington, 1907), art. “Bureau of American
Ethnology”; in part 2 (Washington, 1910), “Bibliography,”
pp. 1179-1221.

List of Publications of the Bureau of American Ethnology with Index
to Authors and Tides {5^ BBE). Washington, 1914.

The Literature of American History. A Bibliographical Guide. J. N.
Lamed, editor. Boston, 1902.

The Basis of American History (vol. ii of The American Nation, Hart,
editor). By L. Farrand. Especially pp. 272-89. New York,
1904,

Narrative and Critical History of America. By Justin Winsor. Vol. 1 ,
Aboriginal America, “Bibliographical Appendix.” Boston,
1889.

Native Races of the Pacific States of North America. By H. H. Ban-
croft. Vol. i, “Authorities Quoted.” New York, 1875.

[Prometheus]

3i6 north AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

Manuel d^archeologie amcricaine. By H. Beucliat. Paris, 1912.
^‘Mythology of Indian Stocks North of Mexico,’^ by A. F. Cham-
berlain, in JAFL xviii (1905). Also, same author, "^Hndians,
North American,” in Encyclopaedia Britannica, nth ed.

‘‘Ethnology in the Jesuit Relations,” by J. D. McGuire, in JJj new
series, hi (1901). (Guide to the materials in JR.)

Ill COLLECTIONS AND PERIODICALS

Publications of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C.:
Contributions to North American Ethnology^ vols. i-vii, ix,
iB77~93-

Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology^ 1881 ff.
Bulletin^ Bureau of American Ethnology^ 1887 ff.

Report of the United States National Museum^ 1884 ff-

Publications of the American Museum of Natural History, New
York:

Anthropological Papers, 1907 ff.

Memoirs, 1898 ff.

Bulletin, 1881 ff.

Publications of the American Ethnological Society. F. Boas, editor*
Leyden, 1907 ff. (Texts and translations.)

Publications of the Field Columbian Museum. Anthropological Series*
Chicago, 1895 ff.

University of California Publications in Archaeology and Ethnology*
Berkeley, Cal, 1903 ff.

Memoirs of Canada Department of Mines. Anthropological Series*
Ottawa, 1914 ff.

Transactions of the Canadian Institute. Toronto, 1889 ff.

Proceedings and Transactions of the Royal Society of Canada. Mont-
real, 1st series, 1883-95; series, 1895 ff.

‘‘Ethnological Survey of Canada,” in Reports of the British Associa--
tionfor the Advancement of Science, i 8 g 7 -igo 2 . London, 1898-
1903.

Comptes rendus du Congres international des Americanistes. Paris
and elsewhere, 1878 ff.

Publications of the Hakluyt Society. Vols. Hxxix, London, 1 847-89,
Publications of the Champlain Society. Toronto, 1907 ff.

Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents. R. Thwaites, editor, Vols, i—
Ixx. Cincinnati, 1896-1901,



BIBLIOGRAPHY


317

Early W estern Travels, R. Thwaites, editor. Vols. i-xxxii. Cleve-
landj 1904-07.

V oyageSj relations et memoires originaux pour servir d Fhistoire de la
dkouverte de V Amerique, H. Ternaux-Compans, editor. Tomes
i-xx. Paris, 1837-41. (Mainly Latin America.)

Library of Aboriginal American Literature, D. Brinton, editor. Vols.
i-vi. Philadelphia, 1882-85.

Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics, James Hastings, editor. Edin-
burgh and New York, 1908 ff.

American Anthropologist, Vols. i-xi, Washington, 1888-98; new
series, vols. i ff., New York, 1899 ff*

Journal of American Folk-Lore, Boston and New York, 1888 ff.

Memoirs of the American Folk-Lore Society, Boston and New York,
1894 ff.


IV. GENERAL WORKS
{a) Descriptive

Catlin, George, [a]. Illustrations of the Manners and Customs and
Condition of the North American Indians, 2 vols. 2d ed., Lon-
don, 1866.

. Letters and Notes on the Manners^ Customs^ and Condi-
tion of the North American Indians, 2 vols. New York and
London, 1844.

De Smet, Life^ Letters and Travels of Father Pierre- Jean De Smet,
S,J, Chittendon and Richardson, editors. 4 vols. New York,

Lafitau, J. F., Mceurs des sauvages ameriguains. Tomes i-ii. Paris,
1724. (An edition in 4 vols. was also issued simultaneously.)

Schoolcraft, H. R., [a], Algic Researches. New York, 1839.

. Historical and Statistical Information Respecting the His-
tory^ Condition and Prospects of the Indian Tribes of the United
States, Parts i-iv. Philadelphia, 1851-57.

(J) Critical

Brinton, D. G., [a], Myths of the New World, 3d ed., Philadelphia,
1896.

, American Hero Myths. Philadelphia, 1882.

[c], Essays of an Americanist. Philadelphia, 1890.

Lowie, Robert H., ‘‘The Test-Theme in North American Myth-
ology,’’ in JAFL xxi (1908).



3i8 north AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

Powell, J. W., Sketch of the Mythology of the North American
Indians/’ in i ARBE (i88i).

Radin, Paul, Literary Aspects of North American Mythology {Museum
Bulletin No, id, Canada Department of Mines), Ottawa, 1915.

V. SELECT AUTPIORITIES
Chapter I

Amundsen, R., The Northwest Passage, London, 1908.

Boas, F,, [a], ‘‘The Central Eskimo,” in 6 ARBE (1888).

, “The Eskimo of Baffin Land and Hudson Bay,” in

BAM XV (1901).

[c], “Eskimo Tales and Songs,” in JAFL ii, vii, x (1889-97).

Gosling-, W. G., Labrador. London, 1910.

Murdoch, John, “Ethnological Results of the Point Barrow Ex-
pedition,” in p ARBE (1892).

Nansen, F., Eskimo Life, 2d ed., London, 1894.

Nelson, E. W., “The Eskimo about Bering Strait,” in 18 ARBE
(1899).

Peary, R., The Conquest of the Pole, New York, 1911.

Rasmussen, Knud, The People of the Polar North, London, 1908.

Rink, H., Tales a?id Traditions of the Eskimo, London, 1875,

Stefansson, V., My Life with the Eskimo, New York, 1913.

Thalbitzer, William, [a], “The Heathen Priests of East Green-
land,” in 15 Internat, Amerikanisten-Kongress, Vienna, 1910.

, “Eskimo,” in Handbook of American Indian Languages

{40 BBE^ part i). Washington, 191 1. (Bibliography of Eskimo
literature.)

Chapters II-III
{a) Algonquian Tribes

Barbeau, C. M., Huron and Wyandot Mythology {Memoirs of Canada
Department of Mines, A nthropological Series, No. 1 1 ) . Ottawa,

Blair, E. FL, Indian Tribes of the Upper Mississippi and the Great
Lakes Regions, z vols. Cleveland, ign. (Early documents.)

Brinton, D. G., [d], The Lendpe and their Legends {Library of Abo-*
riginal American Literature, v). Philadelphia, 1885.

Copway, George, The Ojibway Nation, London, 1850.



BIBLIOGRAPHY


319

Dixon, R. B., [a], *^The Mythology of the Central and Eastern
Algonkins,” in JAFL xxii (1909).

Heckewelder, John G. E., Account of the Indian Nations. Phila-
delphia, 1819. (Hiawatha legend.)

Hoffman, W. J., [a], ‘^The Midewiwin or Grand Medicine Society
of the Ojibwa,’’ in 7 ARBE (1891).

Jones, William, Fox Texts {Publications of the American Ethnologic
cal Society y i). Leyden, 1907.

JR. Especially Le Jeune’s ^‘Relations.’’

Leland, Charles G., The Algonquin Legends of New England.
Boston, 1884.

Mechling, W. H., Male cite Tales {Memoirs of Canada Department of
Mines. Anthropological Series^ No. iv). Ottawa, 1914.

Owen, Mary A., Folklore of the Musquakie Indians. London, 1904.

Parkman, Francis, [a], The Jesuits in North America. Boston, 1867.

. History of the Conspiracy of Pontiac. Boston, 1868.

Rabin, Paul, [a], ‘‘Winnebago Tales,” in JAFL xxii (1909).

, Some Myths and Tales of the Ojihwa of Southeastern On-
tario {Memoirs of Canada Department of Mines. Anthropological
Series^ No. 2). Ottawa, 1914.

Rand, S. T., Legends of the Micmacs. New York and London,
1894.

Speck, F. G., Myths and Folk-lore of the Timiskaming Algonquin and
Timagami Ojihwa {Memoirs of Canada Department of Mines.
Anthropological Series^ No. 9). Ottawa, 1915.

{b) Iroquoian Tribes

Canfield, William W., The Legends of the Iroquois. New York,
1912.

Colden, Cadwallaber, The History of the Five Nations of Canada.
2 vols. New York, 1902.

Converse, Harriet M., “Myths and Legends of the New York
State Iroquois,” in Bulletin 125^ New York State Museum.
Albany, 1908.

Hale, Horatio, The Iroquois Book of Rites {Library of Aboriginal
American Literature^ ii). Philadelphia, 1883.

Hewitt, J. N. B., [a], “Iroquoian Cosmology,” in 21 ARBE ( 1903 )*

— , artt. “Hiawatha,” “Tawiscaron,” “Tarenyawagon,” in

30 BBE.



320 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

JR. Especially Brebeufs ‘‘Relation’^ from the Huron Mission and
Jogues’ Letter from the Iroquois country.

Morgan, L. H., League of the Iroquois. H. M. Lloyd, editor. 2 vols.,
New York, 1901.

Smith, Erminnie A., “Myths of the Iroquois,” in 2 ARBE (1883).

Chapter IV
{a) Iroquoian Tribes

Mooney, James, [a], “Sacred Formulas of the Cherokee,” in 7 ARBE
(1891),

, “Myths of the Cherokee,” in ig ARBE, part i (1900).

Royce, Charles C,, “The Cherokee Nation of Indians,” in 5
ARBE (1887).

{b) Muskhogean Tribes

Bushnell, D. L, [a], “The Choctaw of Bayou Lacomb, Louisiana,”
in 48 BBE (1911).

, “Myths of the Louisiana Choctaw,” in AAj new series,

xii (1910).

Gatschet, a. S., [a], A Migration Legend of the Creek Indians (Library
of Aboriginal American Literature^ iv), Philadelphia, 1884.

MacCauley, Clay, “The Seminole Indians of Florida,” in 5 ARBE

(1887).

Speck, F. G., “Notes on Chickasaw Ethnology and Folklore,” in
JAFL XX (1907).

(c) Uchean Stock

Gatschet, A. S., , “Some Mythic Stories of the Yuchi Indians,”
in AA vi (1893).

Chapters V-VI
(a) Northern Athapascan

Jette, P. J., [a], “On the Superstitions of the Ten’a Indians,” in
AnthropoSj vii (1912).

, artt. in Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great

Britain and Ireland^ xxxviii-xxxix (1908-09). (Texts and
myths.)

Lofthouse, Bishop, “Chipewyan Stories,” in Transactions of the
Canadian Institute^ vol. x, part i (1913).

Morice, A. G., [a], “The Great Dene Race,” in Anthropos^ i-Y
(1906-10).



BIBLIOGRAPHY


321

Morice, a. G., , artt. in Transactions of the Canadian Institute^ Pro^
ceedings and Transactions of the Royal Society of Canada^ Comptes
rendus du Congres international des Americanistes .

Petitot, Emile, Traditions indiennes du Canada nord--ouest, Alen-
9on, 1887.

{b) Algonquian and Kiowan

Dorsey, G. A., [a], ‘‘The Arapaho Sun Dance,” in PCM iv (1903).

, “The Cheyenne,” in PCM ix (1905).

Dorsey and Kroeber, “Traditions of the Arapaho,” in PCM v

(1903)-

Grinnell, George B., [a], Blackfoot Lodge Tales, New York,
1892,

McClintock, Walter, The Old North Trail. New York, 1910.

Mooney, James, [c], “Calendar History of the Kiowa Indians,” In
17 ARBE^ part i (1898).

WissLER and Duvall, “Mythology of the Blackfoot Indians,” in
PAM ii (1909),

{c) Siouan Tribes

Dorsey, G. A., [c], “Traditions of the Osage,” in PCM vii (1904).

Dorsey, J. Owen, [a], “Dhegiha Texts,” in Contributions to North
American Ethnology^ vi (1890).

, “Omaha Sociology,” in 5 ARBE (1883).

W? ‘‘Osage Traditions,” in 6 ARBE (1888).

[d], “A Study of Siouan Cults,” in ii ARBE (1894).

[e], “Siouan Sociology,” in 15 ARBE (1897).

Eastman, Charles A., [a], The Soul of the Indian. Boston, 1911.

, Indian Boyhood, New York, 1902.

Fletcher, Alice C., and La Flesche, F., “The Omaha Tribe,”
in 27 ARBE (1911).

Lowie, Robert H., [a], “The Assiniboine,” in PAM iv (1910).

Mooney, James, [d], “The Ghost-Dance Religion,” in 14 ARBE,
part 2 (1896).

Will and Spinden, “The Mandan Indians,” in Peabody Museum
Papers, hi. Cambridge, 1906.

{d) Caddoan Tribes

Dorsey, G. A., [d], Mythology of the Wichita, Washington, 1904.

— [e], Traditions of the Skidi Pawnee, Boston and New York,

1904,



322 NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY

Dorsey, G. A., [f], Traditions of the Caddo, Washington, 1905.

[g], The Pawnee^ Mythology^ part i. Washington, 1906.

[h], Traditions of the Arikara, Washington, 1904.

Fletcher, Alice C., ‘‘The Hako: a Pawnee Ceremonial/’ in 22
ARBE^ part 2 (1903).

Grinnell, George B,, , The Story of the Indian, New York,
1898.

[c], Pawnee Hero Stories and Folk-Tales, New York, 1909.

Chapter VII
(a) Salishan Tribes

Farrand, L., “Traditions of the Quinault Indians,” in MAM iv
(1909).

McDermott, Louisa, “Folklore of the Flathead Indians of Idaho,”
in JAFL xiv (1901).

Teit, James, [a], Traditions of the Thompson River Indians of British
Columbia {Memoirs of the American Folk-Lore Society , vi).
Boston and New York, 1898.

, “The Thompson River Indians of British Columbia,”

in MAM ii (1900).

[c], “The Lillooet,” in MAM iv (1909).

[d], “The Shuswap,” in MAM iv (1909).

{b) Shahaptian Tribes

Packard, R. L., “Notes on the Mythology and Religion of the Nez
Perces,” in JAFL iv (1891).

Spinden, H, J., [a], “Myths of the Nez Perce Indians,” in JAFL xxi
(1908).

, “The Nez Perce Indians,” in Memoirs of the American

Anthropological Association, ii (1908).

(r) Shoshone an Tribes

Kroeber, a. L., [a], “Ute Tales,” In JAFL xiv (1901).

Lowie, Robert H., , “The Northern Shoshone,” in PAM ii
(1908).

Mason, J. A., “Myths of the Uintah Utes,” in JAFL xxiii (1910).

Mooney, James, [d], “The Ghost-Dance Religion,” in 14 ARBE,
part 2 (1896).



BIBLIOGRAPHY


3^3

Powell, J. W., ^‘'Sketch of the Mythology of the North American
Indians,’’ in J ARBE (i88i).

Sapir, Edward, ‘'^Song Recitative in Paiute Mythology,” in JAFL
xxiii (1910).

Chapter VIII
{a) Southern Athapascans

Bourke, John G., [a], ‘‘The Medicine Men of the Apache,” in g
ARBE (1892).

Goddard, P. E., [a], “ Jicarilla Apache Texts,” in PAM vhi (1911).

Matthews, Washington, [a], Navaho Legends {Memoirs of the
American Folk-Lore Society^ v). Boston and New York, 1897.

, “The Mountain Chant: a Navajo Ceremony,” in 5

ARBE (1887).

[c], “The Night Chant: a Navaho Ceremony,” in MAM vi

(1902)

Stevenson, James, “Ceremonial of Hasjelti Dailjis and Mythical
Sand-Painting of the Navajo Indians,” in 8 ARBE (1891).

{h) Piman and Yuman Tribes

Bourke, John G., , “Cosmogony and Theogony of the Mojave
Indians,” in JAFL ii (1889).

DuBois, C. G., “The Mythology of the Dieguehos,” in JAFL xiv
(1901).

James, George W., The Indians of the Painted Desert Region, Bos-
ton, 1904.

Kroeber, a. L., , “Preliminary Sketch of the Mohave Indians,”
in A A, new series, iv (1902).

Lumholtz, Carl, [a]. Unknown Mexico, 2 vols. New York, 1902.

. New Trails in Mexico, New York, 1912.

Russell, Frank, “The Pima Indians,” in 26 ARBE (1908).

Chapter IX

Cushing, F, H., [a], “Zuhi Fetiches,” in 2 ARBE (1883).

, “Outlines of Zuni Creation Myths,” in jj ARBE (1896).

[c], Zu^i Folk Tales. New York, 1901.

Dorsey, G. A., , Indians of the Southwest, Published by Atchison,
Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad, 1903. (Bibliography.)

Dorsey and Voth^ “The Stanley McCormick Hopi Expedition,”
in FCM iii (1901-03).



NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY


324

Fewkes, J. W.5 [a], ^‘Tusayan Katcinas/’ in 15 ARBE (1897),

, ^^Tusayan Snake Ceremonies,’’ in 16 ARBE (1897).

— [c], ‘^^Tusayan Flute and Snake Ceremonies,” in Jp ARBE

(1900).

[d], ‘^‘Tusayan Migration Traditions,” In ig ARBE (1900). •

[e], ^‘^Hopi Katcinas,” in 21 ARBE (1903).

[f], ^‘The Tusayan Ritual: a Study of the Influence of Envi-
ronment on Aboriginal Cults,” in Annual Report of the Smithso^
nian Institution^ 1896.

Lummis, Charles F., Pueblo Indian Folk Stories. New York, 1910.
Stevenson, Matilda Coxe, [a], “The Religious Life of the Zuni
Child,” in 5 ARBE (1887).

, “The Sia,” in ii ARBE (1894).

[c], “The Zuni Indians,” in 2j ARBE (1904).

VoTH, H. R., “The Traditions of the Hopi,” in FCM viii (1905).

Chapter X
{d) Californian Tribes

Bancroft, Hubert Howe, The Native Races of the Pacific States of
North America^ iii, “Myths and Languages”; also, “Authori-
ties Quoted,” i, for bibliography. New York, 1875.

Curtin, J eremiah, [a]. Creation Myths of Primitive A merica. Boston,
1912.

Dixon, R. B., , “Shasta Myths,” in JAFL xxiii (1910).

[c], “Maidu Myths,” in BAM xvii (1902-07).

[d], Maidu Texts {Publications of the American Ethnological

Society y iv). Leyden, 1912.

Goddard, P. E., , “Hupa Texts,” In UFC i (1904).

[c], “Kato Texts,” in UFC v (1907-10).

Kroeber, a. L., [c], “Indian Myths of South Central California,”
in UFC iv (190s).

[d], “The Religion of the Indians of California,” in UFC iv

(1905)-

[e], “Wishosk Myths,” in JAFL xviii (1905).

Merriam, C. Hart, The Dawn of the World: Myths and Weird Tales
Told by the Mew an Indians of California. Cleveland, 1910*

Powers, Stephen, “Tribes of California,” in Contributions to North
American Ethnology ^ iii (1877).



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32s


(J) Oregonian Tribes

Boas, F., [d], ‘^Chinook Texts,” in 20 BBE (1894).

[e], ‘‘Kathlamet Texts,” in 26 BBE (1901).

Curtin, Jeremiah, , Myths of the Modocs. Boston, 1912.
Frachtenberg, L. J., [a], Coos Texts {Columbia University Con-
tributions to Anthropology^ i). New York, 1913.

, Lower Umpqua Texts {Columbia University Contributions

to Anthropology^ iv). New York, 1914.

Gatschet, a. S., [c], ^‘Oregonian Folk-Lore,” in JAFL iv (1891).

[d], ‘‘^The Klamath Indians of Southwestern Oregon,” in

Contributions to North American Ethnology^ ii (1891).

Sapir, Edward, Wishram Texts {Publications of the American Eth-
nological Society^ ii). Leyden, 1909.

Chapter XI

Boas, F., [f], ‘‘The Kwakiutl Indians,” in Report of the United States
National Museum, 1895.

[g], Indianische Sagen von der Nord-Pacifischen Kiiste. Berlin,

1895. (Reprinted from Zeitschrift fur Ethnologic, xxiii-xxvii.)

[h], “Tshimshian Texts,” in 2^ BBE (1902).

, Tshimshian Texts {Publications of the American Ethnolog-
ical Society, iii). Leyden, 1912.

[j], “The Mythology of the Bella Coola Indians,” in MAM ii

(1900),

[k], “The Kwakiutl of Vancouver Island,” in MAM viii

(1909).

[ 1 ], “Tshimshian Mythology,” in 31 ARBE (announced).

Boas, F., and Hunt, G., [a], “Kwakiutl Texts,” in MAM v (1905).

, “Kwakiutl Texts. Second Series,” in MAM xiv (1908).

.Johnson, E. Pauline, Legends of Vancouver. 8th ed., Vancouver,

1913.

Jones, L. F., A Study of the Tlingits of Alaska. New York, 1914.
SwANTON, John E., [a], “Contributions to the Ethnology of the
Haida,” in MAM viii (1909).

, “Haida Texts,” in MAM xiv (1908).

[c], “Haida Texts and Myths,” in 2g BBE (1905).

[d], “Tlinglt Myths and Texts,” in 39 BBE (1909).

[e], “The Tlingit Indians,” in 26 ARBE (1908).