Sponge-belly’s wives brought us food—succotash cooked with buffalo fat; we sat and smoked; and with the assistance of Verrieul we talked politely with Sponge-belly and a score of others.

From them we learned the reason for the profound interest in Tiny, and for the demonstration of grief when he had hurt his ankle. In spite of his youth, he was, it appeared, the greatest of the Sac ball-players; and in three days’ time there was a ball game to be played against the Foxes—a game that probably would last all day, and on which tremendous wagers would be made. Tiny, we gathered, was able, because of his height and strength, to throw a ball the better part of a mile; and if the Sac nation had been deprived of his services, it would have been a national calamity.

Because of Doc’s success at curing Tiny, a throng of Indians constantly surrounded us through the rest of that long afternoon, listening respectfully to every sound that fell from our lips.

Pahokuk came, sat and smoked with us. Wahoway left us. When he came back, he handed Doc a coat of buckskin, beaded on the breast and shoulders: then seated himself and sucked at Pahokuk’s pipe.

“Here, what’s this?” Doc asked, eyeing the coat longingly. “I ain’t got no money to buy nothing!”

“It’s your fee,” Verrieul said. “You cured his son: therefore he gives you a coat. That’s his fee when he’s called to make medicine over the sick; for difficult and important cases, one coat or a beaver-skin blanket. For women and unimportant people, half a coat. For children, quarter of a coat.”

Doc stared unbelievingly at Verrieul: then back at the coat again.

It was a handsome one, soft and almost white. In the middle of the back was painted the thunder-bird—the small bird no larger than the joint of my forefinger, but so powerful that the cracking of her eggs in the nest is the crashing of the thunder.

Doc blinked. “Why,” he said, “durned if I ain’t tempted to practice medicine around here, if these red minks got that much sense!”

Verrieul looked pityingly at Doc. “To practice medicine you must first be a shaman, and to be a shaman you must be taken into the Midewiwin—the Grand Medical Society that has chapters among all the Indian nations.”

Doc shook his head doubtfully. “I dunno about that!” he said. “I dunno about that!”

“You may say so indeed!” Verrieul said. “To join the Midewiwin is a great honor, and one seldom conferred.”