and
the breath of his flute, and bade them follow him to the northland home
of their deserted children.

So by the magic of their knowledge they sped back as the stars speed
over the world at night time, toward the home of our ancients. Only at
night and dawn they journeyed, as the dead do, and the stars also. So
they came at evening in the full of the last moon to the Place of the
Middle, bearing their trays of seed.

Glorious was Paiyatuma, as he walked into the courts of the dancers in
the dusk of the evening and stood with folded arms at the foot of the
bow-fringed ladder of priestly council, he and his follower Shutsukya.
He was tall and beautiful and banded with his own mists, and carried the
banded wings of the turkeys with which he had winged his flight from
afar, leading the Maidens, and followed as by his own shadow by the
black being of the corn-soot, Shutsukya, who cries with the voice of the
frost wind when the corn has grown aged and the harvest is taken away.

And surpassingly beautiful were the Maidens clothed in the white cotton
and embroidered garments of Summer-land.

Then after long praying and chanting by the priests, the fathers of the
people, and those of the Seed and Water, and the keepers of sacred
things, the Maiden-mother of the North advanced to the foot of the
ladder. She lifted from her head the beautiful tray of yellow corn and
Paiyatama took it. He pointed it to the regions, each in turn, and the
Priest of the North came and received the tray of sacred seed.

Then the Maiden of the West advanced and gave up her tray of blue corn.
So each in turn the Maidens gave up their trays of precious seed. The
Maiden of the South, the red seed; the Maiden of the East, the white
seed; then the Maiden with the black seed, and lastly, the tray of
all-color seed which the Priestess of Seed-and-All herself received.

And now, behold! The Maidens stood as before, she of the North at the
northern end, but with her face southward far looking; she of the West,
next, and lo! so all of them, with the seventh and last, looking
southward. And standing thus, the darkness of the night fell around
them. As shadows in deep night, so these Maidens of the Seed of Corn,
the beloved and beautiful, were seen no more of men. And Paiyatuma stood
alone, for Shutsukya walked now behind the Maidens, whistling shrilly,
as the frost wind whistles when the corn is gathered away, among the
lone canes and dry leaves of a glea