The few songs of the cult which the writer was able to collect are direct invocations for rain, or for the presence of zoomorphic beings in ceremonials for healing the sick, a few words sufficing for many unexpressed ideas. The epic ritual of the Sia is so elaborate that much time and careful instruction are required to impress it upon the mind, and the younger men either have not the mind necessary for the retention of the ritual or will not tax their memories; therefore the web of Sia myth and religion is woven into the minds of but few. The aged theurgists were eager to intrust to the writer the keeping of their songs, which are an elaborate record of the lives of their mythic heroes and of the Sia themselves. The Sia sometimes adopt the poet’s license in their songs and alter a word; for example, the name for “badger” is tuo´pi, but is changed in the sko´yo song for rain to tupi´na, because, they say, the latter word renders the stanza more rhythmical. And, again, different words are synonymously used. The hĭs´tiän and quer´ränna have each a similar song of petition for rain, this song having been given to the hĭs´tiän by the sun. It will be remembered that the name of this society indicates the knives or arrows of lightning given to the heroes by their sun father. SONGS. A RAIN SONG OF THE SHU´-WI CHAI´ÄN (SNAKE SOCIETY). 1. Hĕn´-na-ti 2. Hĕn´-na-ti shi´-wan-na He´-äsh He´-äsh shi-wan-na Pûr´-tu-wĭsh-ta Pûr´-tu-wĭsh-ta shi-wan-na Kŏw-mots Kŏw-mots shi´-wan-na Kash´-ti-arts Kash´-ti-arts shi´-wan-na Ka´-chard Ka´-chard shi´-wan-na (1) _Translation_:—Hĕnnati, white floating masks, behind which the cloud people pass about over ti´ni´a for recreation; He´äsh, masks like the plains, behind which the cloud people pass over ti´ni´a to water the earth; Pûrtuwĭshta, lightning people; Kŏwmots, thunder people; Kashtiarts, rainbow people; Ka´chard, rain, the word being used in this instance, however, as an emphatic invocation to the rulers of the cloud people. (2) Shi´wanna, people. _Free translation_:—An appeal to the priests of ti´nia. Let the white floating clouds—the clouds like the plains—the lightning, thunder, rainbow, and cloud peoples, water the earth. Let the people of the white floating clouds—the people of the clouds like the plains—the lightning, thunder, rainbow and cloud peoples—come and work for us, and water the earth. 3. Sha´-ka-ka 4. Sha´-ka-ka shi´-wan-na Shwi´-ti-ra-wa-na Shwi´-ti-ra-wa-na shi´-wan-na Mai´-chi-na Mai´-chi-na shi´-wan-na Shwi´-si-ni-ha-na-we Shwi´-si-ni-ha-na-we shi´-wan-na Marsh´-ti-tä-mo Marsh’ ti-tä-mo shi’-wan-na Mor´-ri-tä-mo Mor´-ri-tä-mo shi´-wan-na