ns, the produce of the labours of other
men. He saw him precipitated from the dizzy height into the depths
below, where the Evil Spirit received him into ids arms, and condemned
him to that--to the criminal--hardest of punishments, a life of labour
and fatigue. The great stick of wood was placed upon his shoulders, and
a great pail of water in each hand, while the evil creature appointed to
be his task-master flogged him incessantly to incite to a quicker walk.
Again was the passage attempted by another. A Dahcotah came forward, who
had dared to paint his cheeks as a warrior paints, and to shave his
crown to the scalp-lock, and to prepare a sheaf of arrows, and to strike
the painted pole, that stood by the council fire, and to dance the
war-dance, and to utter the whoop of a warrior. Yet, when he came to the
field where the hostile Tetons were assembled to do battle with his
tribe--when his brothers had rushed like men upon their foes--he wiped
the paint from his cheeks, he cut off the scalp-lock, he threw away his
sheaf of arrows, he forgot that he had struck the war-pole, or danced,
or whooped, and fled from the field as a deer flies from the bark of a
dog. Him the master of the fetes of the bad ordained to a ceaseless
warfare with the shades of the Tetons, from whom he had fled. He saw a
liar attempt the dreadful passage--he fared no better than those who had
preceded him; a reviler of the priests, and disbeliever in their power,
met with the same fate. He saw the son of the aged Tadeus-kund, who had
beaten his mother and spat in the face of his father, double chained to
a wheel which moved over the floor of the abyss, at the top of the speed
of the unnatural son.

Then came the turn of the good to make the trial of the rock. He saw
pass safely over all who had been good to their parents, who had hunted
well, fought bravely, told no lies, nor ridiculed, nor doubted, the
priests. Having seen them all arrive in safety at the other end of the
rode, the spirit conducted Akkeewaisee over also. They had yet a long
way to travel, but they were guided by their observation of the
encamping places of the souls who had preceded them. At each of these
places tents were pitched, and fires always lighted where they could
warm themselves, and rest until they had driven away the pains of
fatigue, and recovered strength to pursue their journey. After many
moons of weary travel, they arrived at the habitation of the Waktan
Tanka, or G