M. R. HARRINGTON — SACRED BUNDLES OF THE SAC AND FOX INDIANS. 219

The second was described as a deer song:
Pia tee wi ne ka pa wa (Toward me horns protruding)
Wi na ma na ne m wa (This man [buck] )
Yo ta tua kl wa ni (In the draw [hollow] )
Wi na ma na ne ni wa (This man [buck] )
A song of this sort was sung when starting out on the hunt.
In addition to the uses already mentioned, the contents of the bundle, or rather a portion of them, were used in gam- bling. One little package of herb mixture was employed in foot races when valuable bets were at stake, such as fine horses and blankets. In such a case the runner would chew the herbs and rub them on his feet and on the little down feather worn in his hair, in the hopes that this would help him to win. In horse racing they would tie one of the eagle down feathers in the horse’s tail, and a little red yam in the mane, after which a medicine usually kept in the weasel skin in the bundle was chewed to a pulp and placed in the horse’s mouth and nostrils, and rubbed on his head, back and legs, and on his hoofs. This was thought not only to give the horse the weasel’s power of running swiftly, but to keep rivals off the trail. Other horses, catching the scent of the charmed horse’s tracks, would bolt the course and buck off their riders. A feather song similar to the one used in courting was used when preparing a horse for the race, or for that matter when pre- paring for any sort of gambling. At the end of a race another compound would be given to the horse which would bring him back to his normal condition.
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220 UNIVERSITY MUSEUM — ANTHROPOLOGICAL PUBLICATIONS VOL. IV.
Similarly, whenever any of the medicines were used by a man or woman, the “curing medicine” found in the bundle was taken to counteract the bad effects on the user, effects which, it was thought, might mean sickness or insanity. A sweat bath and a swim were often taken as additional puri- fication.
When not in use the bundle is kept wrapped in half a yard of calico, and laid on the sleeping platform up against the wall of the bark house. It is not hung up, because they say that the weasel within the wrappings might not like it.
Every spring and fall the bundle was opened and the weasel “fed” by rubbing a little grease from a fat duck, turkey or other wild fowl on its teeth and upon its nose. Whenever the bundle was to be opened it was smoked at dawn, over burning branches of what seems to be a species of cedar, dipping four times to the eastward.. This cedar is called Pa pu ka de kw’.
The cover of the bundle is a bandana handkerchief, the calico mentioned above having been wrapped outside of this.
Contents (shown in PI. XXXVII): Weasel skin (C), a large brown one, but so folded as to be only 9" long, and held in that position by ties of buckskin and brown ribbon. A carry- ing cord of braided red yam by which to suspend the amulet from the wearer’s neck is fastened to the middle of the skin, while the head is ingeniously arranged to make a rattling sound when shaken. At the throat is a tiny buckskin packet smeared with green paint, and the same color is seen on the flesh side of the skin wherever exposed. A packet of magic red paint is tied to the carrying cord, also a little packet of roots.
Amulet for the scalp lock (E) consisting of eagle down feathers, hawk feathers, red yam and one medicine packet.
Amulet for the scalp lock (D) comprising two bunches of eagle down feathers, some dyed red, some discolored white ribbon and a medicine packet. Both feather amulets had buckskin strings for attachment.
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