where might fails
I conquer by Love!
Where I have been led
I now will lead others,
Undimmed will I pass on
The light I have kindled;
The flame in my hand
Shall mount higher and higher,
To be a Torch Bearer
Is now my desire!"
A round of applause followed. Next the "Count" was called for.
This had also been written by Migwan. In rippling Hiawatha meter
it told how the Winnebagos had journeyed
"From their homes in distant Cleveland
To Loon Lake's inviting waters--"
how they pitched the tents and made the beds, how they named the
tents Alpha and Omega, how eagerly they awaited Gladys's coming,
how Sahwah was placed on the tower to wave at her,
"And the telescope descending,
Fell kersplash into the water,"
and all the rest of the doings up to the beginning of Council
Fire.
Nyoda then rose and said that as the Camp Fire was a singing
movement she wished the girls to write as many songs as possible,
and to encourage this had worked out a system of local honors for
songs which could be sung by the Winnebagos. Any girl writing
the words of a song which was adopted for use would receive a
leather W cut in the form of wings to represent "winged words" or
poetry; the honor for composing the music for a song would be a
winged note cut from leather, and the honor for writing both
words and music would be a combination of the two. These were to
be known as the "Olowan" honors, because "Olowan" was the
Winnebago word for song, and were quite independent of the
National song honors, because a great many songs which could not
be adopted by the National organization would be admirable for
use in the local group on account of their aptness.
Just before they sang the Goodnight Song, Nyoda drew Gladys into
the group and officially invited her to become a Winnebago at the
next Council Fire. Gladys accepted the invitation and the girls
sang a ringing cheer to her because her coming made it possible
for them to have the camp.
To close the Ceremonial Meeting the girls sang "Mammy Moon,"
ending up by lying in a circle around the fire, their heads
pillowed on one another. The fire was burning very low now and
great shadows from the woods lay across the open space. Nyoda
stole silently to the edge of the clearing and the girls rose and
filed past her, softly singing "Now our Camp Fire's burning low."
Nyoda held each girl's hand in a warm clasp for a moment as she
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