“Oh, Tom, look!” cried the small boy.  “What’s that?  Are the Indians going on the war-path?  I read of that in my school book.  If they are, we’d better go back and tell Uncle Tad and father.  Then they can get their guns and be ready.”

“Those Indians aren’t getting ready for war,” said Tom.  “They’re only having a roast corn dance.”

“What’s a roast corn dance?” asked Bunny.  “I’ll show you the roast corn part to-morrow night,” promised Tom.  “But don’t worry about those Indians.  They’ll not hurt you.  Now we’d better go home.”

As soon as Bunny was in the tent he shouted, much louder than he need have done: 

“Oh, Sue, we saw Indians having a roast corn dance, and to-morrow night we’re going to have one too!”

CHAPTER XIX

EAGLE FEATHER’S HORSE

Bunny Brown was so excited by the Indian campfire he had seen, and by the queer figures dancing about in the glare of it, seeming twice as tall and broad as they really were, that he insisted on telling about it before he went to bed.

“Did they really dance just as we do at dancing school when we’re at home?” asked Sue.

“No, not exactly,” Bunny answered.  “It was more like marching, and they turned around every now and then and howled and waved ears of corn in the air.  Then they ate ’em.”

“What was it for, Tom?” asked Mr. Brown.  “You have lived about here quite a while and you ought to know.”

“Oh, the Indians believe in what they call the Great Spirit,” Tom explained.  “They do all sorts of things so he’ll like ’em, such as making fires, dancing and having games.  It’s only a few of the old Indians that do that.  This green corn roast, or dance, is a sort of prayer that there’ll be lots of corn—­a big crop—­this year so the Indians will have plenty to eat.  For they depend a whole lot on corn meal for bread, pancakes and the like of that.  I told Bunny I’d show him how the Indians roast the ears of green corn to-morrow, if you’d let me.”

“Oh, please, Momsie, do!”

“Oh, Daddy, let him!”

The first was Sue’s plea, the second Bunny’s, and the father and mother smiled.

“Well, I think it will be all right if Tom is as careful about fire as he is on the water,” said Mr. Brown.

“Oh, goodie!” cried Sue, while Bunny smiled and danced his delight.

Finally Camp Rest-a-While was quiet, for every one was in bed and the only noises to be heard were those made by the animals and insects of the wood, an owl now and then calling out:  “Who?  Who?  Who?” just as if it were trying to find some one who was lost.

“Where’ll we get the ears to roast?” asked Bunny as soon as he was up the next morning.  “We don’t grow any corn in our camp.”

“Oh, we can get some roasting ears from almost any of the farmers around here,” said Tom.  “But we don’t want to make the fire until night.  It looks prettier then.”