SPECIMEN OF SONGS 
OF THE 
MODOC INDIANS 
ALBERT S. GATSCHET 
Reprinted from the “American Anthropologist,’’ 
January, 1894, pp. 26 to 31 
WASHINGTON, D. C. 
JUDD & DETWEILER, PRINTERS 
1894 SONGS OF THE MODOC INDIANS. 
BY ALBERT S. GATSCHET. 
During numerous conferences which the author has had in 
former years with Modoc Indians he was enabled to record from 
dictation a number of curious songs which they highly prize 
and frequently sing while either at work or sitting idly in their 
lodges. Only a few of them are of a lugubrious character; the 
majority are merry utterances of a mind free from care. There 
are erotic songs, dance-songs, satiric and mvthologic songs, all 
being delivered in a way that is half spoken and half sung. 
Some, however, have attractive and elaborate melodies, which, 
if well arranged for the piano or string instruments, would 
doubtless produce a sensation in cultured communities. 
I. Of the songs below, the first one is introduced as being sung 
or spoken by a small species of prairie-owl (Speotyto hypogca), 
which has the faculty of turning its head around and then 
turning it instantaneously to its normal position. The bird is 
therefore called in Modoc rollhead or turnhead, and, like every- 
thing else seemingly miraculous or unaccountable, is made the 
subject of songs and folk-stories. When this owl draws its body 
up it appears almost ball-shaped, and when it travels over the 
surface of the prairie seems like a light-colored ball rolling rap- 
idly over the ground. This owl lives in the ground. It is re- 
ferred to in two conjurers’ songs published in my “ Klamath 
Indians of Southwestern Oregon,” I, p. 154 (Washington, 1890) as 
Nfi'sh pilan tilalua'nsha, which signifies “ as a head only I roll 
around,” and (ibid., I, p. 167) as Lu'paksh ge'-u mu'luash, “ white 
chalk is my medicine tool,” because the feathers of the bird are 
of a chalk-white or grayish shade. 
In the song below, the man, after throwing off bis garments 
and limbs, appears also as “ a head only ” and rolls on for many 
miles, when he is seen partaking of food inside of his subterra- 
nean lodge. Evidently the “ hi'shuaksh,” or young man, who 
had just carried his sister on his back to her bridegroom and left 
her close to a pine tree, had become exhausted by bis exertions, Jan. 1KP4.] 
SONUS OF THE MODOC INDIANS. 
27 
and to feel more free had thrown away all his clothing, then 
parted also with some of his limbs and was transformed into a 
“ rollhead.” The faithfulness of the dog is well sketched, and 
the whole song is somewhat dramatic, which is not generally 
characteristic of Indian songs. The songs of the Pacific slope 
Indians are usually much shorter than the following, not often 
exceeding two lines in length. 
NIISII-TILANKNA-ASHAM SHIT'SII, THE SONG OF THE ROLL- 
HEAD OWL. 
Hi' shunkgh tu'pakshash e'nank ge'pgapfili shuino'ta: 
A nmn (his) sister carrying <m returned while singing 
his back 
“Tchu'i hai tak na nen kosh tam’no'la.” 
“Just now we (have gone) to the pine and have returned from it.' ’ 
It a't c h a <j: “ Wa-wfi'-n-a'! 
Hi'shuaksh: Tchi'shka Aliu-iwa'ga, ge'pk’i, mish ta'la nii 
Dear pet Alin iwa'ga, come here, I just only wanted 
gi'tki giu'g ak; pu'edsha ml kiidshigo'ga. Shui'na: 
to tell (you); I throwaway being exhausted. (Then) he sings: 
(my garments) 
“Tchu'i hai’ tak na nen kosli tam’no'la.” 
“ We have just gone to the pine and came back from there.” 
lli'slmaksh vuto'dshna wa'kshna. 
The man throws away (his) moccasins. 
11 atcha' ya (Dog runs after the moccasins and brings them back): Wa- 
wa-a-a-a ! 
H i' shnaksh: Tchi'shka Aliu-iwa'ga, ge'pk’i, inish ta'la 
My little Aliu-iwa'ga, come to me, to you simply 
mi gi'tki giti'g ak, pu'edsha ml kiidshigo'ga, shui'na: 
I wanted to tell (that) I throw away being fatigued, says: 
(my limbs) 
“ Tchu'i hai ta'k na nen ko'sh tamfino'la.” 
“Presently we have come back from the pine.” 
Pu'edsha teho'kash hi'shuaksh. 
(Then) throws away (his) legs'the man. 
Wutehn' ga: (Dog runs after the legs): Wa-wi-a-a'. 
When the man had thrown away not only his moccasins but 
both legs, and the faithful dog had run after them and brought 
them hack to his master, at the same time harking wa-wa-a-a', 
he also sacrificed his shirt, his hat, and both arms, repeating the 
words: pu'edsha tehu'lish, tehu'yesh, wiik: “/ cast away my 
shirt, my head-carer, my arms." The dog then tried to carry home 
the discarded articles; hut after repeating the “ Tchishka Aliu- 28 
THE AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST. 
[Vol. VII. 
i-wa'-ga, etc.,” the ungrateful man finished by cutting his own 
neck, so that the head (nu'sh)was the only remaining member. 
The head traveled on and on for miles and miles over the earth. 
The end of the story is as follows: 
Tu/paksh gadampaga, itkalpSli'n nadiuktua pue'dshisli ki, 
(His) sister followed him, picking up everytlung he had cast away 
saa'tkalshtka skadchampSle; tchu'i ga/tpa shtina/shtat, te'lhin 
(and) in (her) basket carried (it) home; after arriving at the lodge, she looked down 
shla-a' mVsh pila pa'pkash. Ga-uloltchadnpgle tu'paksh, tch’h&Oik 
(and) saw (his) h -ad only; it was eating. Stepped down (from the sister, and 
the lodge top) 
skad;ran vushc/kanksh. Nen ka-ta'nian. 
putting down (the basket) was What is said, (goes) so far. 
thoroughly frightened. 
II. THE ROBIN REDBREAST-A CRADLE SONG. 
Unadh, una/sh kimadlsh padak —- —/ | —' —| —- —/ | —' 
una/sh, una/sh waladh padak —' | — \ | 
una/sh, unadh tshiwEp, tsiwi'p | | \ ~/ 
tchidch, tsids, tchidch. —' | —/ | —7 
Early in the morning will eat ants (the robin), 
early, early will it pick at the cedar-tree, 
early in the morn (it chatters :) tchiwRp, tchiwi'p, 
Tcliitch, tsits, tchitch. 
This very pretty song is also sung in the following strain: 
Unadh padak kima/dsh p’s’w’p, 
una/sh padak kima/dsh 
unadh, unadh p’s’w’p, p’s’w’p. 
tchlds, p’s’w’p, tsids. 
The cradle song graphically depicts the habits of the wi's/ak 
or robin, which is seen earlier than other birds flying toward 
the cedar to pick at the bark in search of ants. The mothers 
tell their babes that Robin Redbreast sings the above p’s'w’p 
song to its young and sometimes also to its grandmother. The 
grandmother often plays a part in bird-lore ; the o'lash or gray 
dove when raising its plaintive voice is supposed to utter com- 
plaints before its grandmother. 
III. SATIRIC SONG. 
K’u'-i ak rnish nedikia Kudiuasht’ liu nunatiCga. 
w w/ | / | / | / w | / _ | 
“Uneasy you feel at Koha'shti for its numerous pyres.” Jan. 1894.] 
SONGS OE THE MODOC INDIANS. 
29 
This is a dance-song composed by the people of Ya'-aga, the 
main settlement of the E'-ukshikni or Klamath Lake Indians 
on the lower course of Williamson river. In spite of its serious 
wording it is in satiric allusion to the inhabitants of Koha'shti 
or Guhua'shktchi, “ boat-starting place,” or lake harbor, three 
miles north. It also applies, by a sort of word-play or calembour, 
to Kuya'ga, “ little bad place,” a settlement near Ya'-aga, the 
allusion occurring in the first two words : k’u'-i ak, uneasily 
perhaps. The song is of an earlier date than the Modoc war of 
1872-1873, and refers to the frequent cremations which once took 
place at Koha'shti, probably after an epidemic. The idea of 
“ numerous ” is not expressed by a separate word, but lies in 
nunatu'ga, the distributive verbal causative of nu'ta, to burn: 
nutu'ga, on account of one cremation; nunatu'ga, on account of so 
many or several cremations. The incremation of the dead was abol- 
ished among the Klamath Lake and Modoc Indians in 1868, four 
years after the conclusion of their treaty with the Government. 
• GLOSSARY TO THE TEXTS. 
For a more thorough understanding of these poetical speci- 
mens, a glossary for the linguistic analysis of each term is added. 
The emphasized syllables are made distinct by an acute accent, 
which is here placed after the vowel, as in shle'a and shla-a', to 
see. Long syllables show the macron ( “ ), short ones the breve 
( v ), and these, enlarged, are used also to give an idea, however 
slight, of the metrics in two of the songs. 
ak, Irak, only, but. When used as a suffix, it forms diminutive nouns, 
which end in -a'ga, -ak, -ka, etc. 
Aliu-iwa'ga, name of a dog. The diminutive ending -a/ga shows it to be 
of an endearing or caritative import, 
ehia, to carry one long object, as a person. Used here for “ carrying on the 
back ” a bride to her future husband, a custom prevailing throughout 
the Pacific Coast tribes, and performed by one of her nearest rela- 
tives. To carry many long objects is i'dsha. 
gadampaga, to march behind, or in a file; to follow somebody going, 
ga'tpa, to come to, arrive at a distance from the one speaking. Cf. ge'pka. 
ga-ulodtcha, to go down, descend upon the outside ladder or steps of a winter- 
lodge. Gfa-uloltchadnpele, to return by descending in the same manner, 
ge'pgapeli, to come back, to return to the starting place or home of the one 
speaking. 30 
THE AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST. 
[Vol. VII. 
ge'pka, to come; ge'pk’ i, come thou, imperative form. Used when the 
coming is a coming toward the one speaking. Cf. ga'tpa. 
ge'-u, my, mine. 
gi, to tell, to say; gi'tki gi'ug mish, in order to tell you. 
hai, ai, a particle which is in most instances intranslatable, but refers to 
acts or things seen or visible: “ as you see.” 
hi'shuaksh, (1) husband; (2J male person. Literally “consort, associate.” 
lift, Modoc particle for luVk. hunk in Klamath; points to distance in tim 
and space. 
i, thou, you; mish, thee, you, the objective case of i. 
i'tkal, to find, to pick up long objects as sticks, boxes, garments, etc.! 
i'tkalpeli, to pick them up again, repeatedly. 
ka, so much; ka-ta'nian, so much of it, extending so far in length or size. 
Modocs use this term to say that a story told has come to an end. 
ka/dshika, to be tired, exhausted, fagged out; kadshigo'ga, verbal causa- 
tive : on account of being tired. 
kima/dsh, ant; lit.: “the one who travels sidewise.” 
kosh, kush, pine-tree. 
Ku'huasbti, “at the boat-starting place” on the northeastern end of 
Upper Klamath lake, Lake county, Oregon. See remarks in Text, 
k’u'-i, badly, wretchedly, uneasily, mournfully. 
lu/paksh, chalk, lime-substance. 
mish, thee, you, to thee, to you; the objective case of i, thou. 
mu'luash, tool, implement, and applying to conjurers’ practices only. Lit- 
erally: “what makes ready,” from mu'lua, to be ready. 
na, abbrev. from nat, nad, we. 
na'nuktua, everything, and every sort of thing ; compound of na'iiuk, every, 
all, and tua', which thing ? and thing in general, 
nen, particle corresponding to our: as they say, as reported, as you hear. 
nS'pkia, the medial form of ne'pka; to feel, to •have a sensation. Refers 
here to sensations of a sickly, disagreeable kind, the adverb k’u'-i, 
badly, being added to the verb. 
nu, I, nu'tak, myself; its objective case is nush, nish, me, to me. 
inVsh, head, nu'sli pi'la, the head only, as a head only. 
nu'sh-tilansna'-ash, railhead owl; Speotyto hypogea. 
nu'ta, to burn, cremate, nunatu'ga, on account of repeated cremations (of 
bodies). 
o'lash, u'lsli (1) white hair or down; (2) mourning dove, whose note is 6-6; 
Zenaidura carolinensis. A derivative is o'lshaltko, gray-haired or 
having gray down. 
pa'ka, to eat, to feed on; pa'pkash, eating for a while, or continually. Jan. 18t»4.] 
SONGS OF TIIE MODOC INDIANS. 
31 
pi'lan is a comi>ound of pi'la only and n, abbr. from m'l /, myself. 
imitation of the robin’s note. 
pu'tnlsha, to throw or cast away, pue'dshish ki, he teas or had been thron- 
ing atray. 
shle'a, to see, perceive; sldii-a', she saw at the time. 
shtiua'sh, lodge, wigimm, house, shtinashtat, locative ease: ut (her) wigwam. 
shui'na, to sing; slmino'ta, verbal durative: while singing. 
shui'gh (1) song; (2) conjurer's song, and also conjurer's song-object, these 
being mainly animals invoked by the conjurer to find out the disease 
of the patient. 
to put down a basket or similar implement; is participle 
of the present tense: putting it down. 
ska'tcha, to carry something in a basket or similar implement, ska't- 
champgle, to carry bark or home in a basket. 
sja'tkalsh, basket, instrumental case: in (her) basket. 
tak (1) particle not easy to translate, but marking contrast or contrary 
statements; (2) when appended to verbal stems it forms a future 
tense in Modoc, as in pa'tak, it will eat, for pa'n tak; pa'n, to eat. 
Pa-ua'pka is another form for the future tense, 
ta'la, adv., straightly; only, but. ta'la nk,just only. 
tam’no'la, to return from, kosli, from the pine tree. Derivative of tahnenu 
to trace!. 
tch’hunk, and then; abbreviated from tehu'i hunk. 
tclii'ska, pet, darling; the ending -ka (-aga, -ak, -aka) shows it to he a 
diminutive form. 
tchi'teh, tsl'ts, imitations of the note of the robin redbreast, 
tchiwi'p, imitation of the note of the robin redbreast, 
tcho'kash, leg and legs. 
tehu'i, then, afterward, and. 
tchu'vesh, any head-cover, as cap, hat, ornamental head-dress. 
te'lhi, to look down to the ground; to look into, as into a lodge or wigwam. 
Te'lhin, looking into. 
tilalua'nsha, to roll about, to turn around, to render, v. intr. 
tu'pakship, abbr. tu'paksh, younger sister. Modocs use the word more 
frequently in the generic sense of sister. 
una'sh, li'nash, and u'na, at an early hour. 
vusho'kanka, to be scared or frightened for a while or thoroughly. 
vuto'dshna, to throw off, to cast atray while going or traveling, 
wa'k, wek, arm and arms. 
wa'kshna, moccasin, sing, and plural, 
watcha'ga, wa'tcliag, dog. 
robin redbreast, Merula migratoria.