siOBX; - Smithsonian Institution

36 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bull. 103
followed the Cherokees' trail ; and when they got to where the Cherokees had
settled and made a people, they settled and made a people close to the
Cherokees.
And the Choctaws fourth and last came out of Nanih Waiya. And they then
sunned themselves on the earthen rampart and when they got dry, they did
not go anywhere but settled down in this very land and it is the Choctaws'
home.''
The same writer states that a great Choctaw council was summoned
to meet at this mound in 1828 at the instance of Col. Greenwood
Leflore in order to make new laws, " so as to place the Choctaws more
in harmony with the requirements of modern civilization." He adds
that it was " the only known national Indian council held at Nanih
Waiya within the historic period." ^*
Similar to the versions given by Halbert is the following which I
myself collected from a Mississippi Choctaw, Olmon Comby:
The ancient Choctaw believed that in the beginning of things people came
cut of the ground at a certain hill and lay about its sides like locusts until
they were dried. Several tribes came out in succession. First were the
Cherokee. They lay upon the hillside until they were dried and then they
went away. Next came the Muskogee. They lay along the hillside, became dry,
and went away. After four others had made their appearance successively,
the Chickasaw and Choctaw came out together. They derived their names
from two brothers who were leaders of the respective bands. They remained
together for a long time and became very numerous. Afterwards they started
ofE like the others, still keeping together, but the Chickasaw were in advance.
Every night, when the latter camped, they left a mark by which to guide the
Choctaw. This went on for a considerable period. One day, however, Chickasaw
went out to smoke, and while he was doing so he set the woods on fire, so
that the marks were destroyed and the Choctaw lost their way. A long time
afterwards they discovered each other again but found that their languages
had diverged a little. It is not known which was more like the original
tongue.
In this connection consult the version obtained by Alfred "Wright
(pp. 201-202).
The two following tales were collected by Mr. D. I. Bushnell, jr.,
from the Choctaw of Bayou Lacomb, La. They show that the sacred
hill and its legends had as strong a hold on the beliefs of the southern
Choctaw as on those of the northern sections of the tribe.
Nang chaha (nane, "hill"; chaha, "high") is the sacred spot in the mountainous
country to the northward, always regarded with awe and reverence by
the Choctaw.
In very ancient times, before men lived on the earth, the hill was formed,
and from the topmost point a passage led down deep into the bosom of the
earth. Later, when birds and animals lived, and the surface of the earth was
'^ Halbpit in Pubs. Miss. Hist. Soc, iv, pp. 269-270
3* Ibid., pp. 233-234.