ff
colored black from a charred plant. The Navajo paint their bodies with
the same plant. The top of the staff is ornamented with a turkey's tail
tied to the staff with white cotton cord; eagle and turkey plumes are
alternately attached to the staff with a cord.

The Naaskiddi are to the north and south of the painting; they carry
staffs of lightning ornamented with eagle plumes and sunbeams. Their
bodies are nude except the loin skirt; their leggings and moccasins are
the same as the others. The hunch upon the back is a black cloud, and
the three groups of white lines denote corn and other seeds of
vegetation. Five eagle plumes are attached to the cloud backs (eagles
live with the clouds); the body is surrounded with sunlight; the lines
of red and blue which border the bunch upon the back denote sunbeams
penetrating storm clouds. The black circle zigzagged with white around
the head is a cloud basket filled with corn and seeds of grass. On
either side of the head are five feathers of the red shafted flicker
(_Colaptes cafer_); a fox skin is attached to the right side of the
throat; the mountain sheep horns are tipped with the under tail feathers
of the eagle, tied on with cotton cord. The horns are filled with
clouds. The rainbow goddess, upon which these gods often travel,
completes the picture.

[Illustration: Plate CXXI. SECOND SAND PAINTING.]

Upon completion of the painting the song-priest, who stood to the east
of it holding in his hand a bag of sacred meal, stepped carefully
between the figures, sprinkling pollen upon the feet and heart of each.
He then sprinkled a thread of pollen up each cheek and down the middle
of the face of the figures, afterwards extending his right hand toward
the east. The face of the encircling rainbow goddess was also sprinkled.
The song-priest placed the sacred wands around the rainbow, commencing
on the west side of the painting, and repeated a prayer, pointing his
finger to the head of each figure. He also placed a small gourd of
medicine water in the hands of the rainbow goddess and laid a small
cedar twig on the gourd. The invalid upon entering the lodge was handed
an Apache basket containing sacred meal, which he sprinkled over the
painting and placed the basket near the feet of the rainbow goddesses;
the song-priest and choir sang to the accompaniment of the rattle. A
short time after the entrance of the invalid Hasjelti appeared, and
taking the evergreen from the gourd di