--- title: Dance in a Buffalo Skull — Old Indian Legends · full text with trees description: Dance in a Buffalo Skull, «Old Indian Legends» by Zitkala-Sa: the whole chapter, every sentence with its dependency tree and pragmatics. It begins: IT was night upon the prairie. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/) / [Old Indian Legends](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/) / Dance in a Buffalo Skull # Dance in a Buffalo Skull Dance in a Buffalo Skull of «Old Indian Legends» by Zitkala-Sa: the whole text, 39 sentences and 547 words. Every sentence has its own page with its syntax tree and pragmatics, parsed by Mova itself; 2 of them are in the tales treebank and were checked by a teacher model. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/1/) — IT was night upon the prairie. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/2/) — Overhead the stars were twinkling bright their red and yellow lights. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/3/) — The moon was young. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/4/) — A silvery thread among the stars, it soon drifted low beneath the horizon. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/5/) — Upon the ground the land was pitchy black. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/6/) — There are night people on the plain who love the dark. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/7/) — Amid the black level land they meet to frolic under the stars. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/8/) — Then when their sharp ears hear any strange footfalls nigh they scamper away into the deep shadows of night. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/9/) — There they are safely hid from all dangers, they think. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/10/) — Thus it was that one very black night, afar off from the edge of the level land, out of the wooded river bottom glided forth two balls of fire. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/11/) — They came farther and farther into the level land. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/12/) — They grew larger and brighter. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/13/) — The dark hid the body of the creature with those fiery eyes. - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/14/) — They came on and on, just over the tops of the prairie grass. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/15/) — It might have been a wildcat prowling low on soft, stealthy feet. - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/16/) — Slowly but surely the terrible eyes drew nearer and nearer to the heart of the level land. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/17/) — There in a huge old buffalo skull was a gay feast and dance! - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/18/) — Tiny little field mice were singing and dancing in a circle to the boom-boom of a wee, wee drum. - [19](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/19/) — They were laughing and talking among themselves while their chosen singers sang loud a merry tune. - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/20/) — They built a small open fire within the center of their queer dance house. - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/21/) — The light streamed out of the buffalo skull through all the curious sockets and holes. - [22](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/22/) — A light on the plain in the middle of the night was an unusual thing. - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/23/) — But so merry were the mice they did not hear the “king, king” of sleepy birds, disturbed by the unaccustomed fire. - [24](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/24/) — A pack of wolves, fearing to come nigh this night fire, stood together a little distance away, and, turning their pointed noses to the stars, howled and yelped most dismally. - [25](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/25/) — Even the cry of the wolves was unheeded by the mice within the lighted buffalo skull. — checked by a teacher - [26](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/26/) — They were feasting and dancing; they were singing and laughing--those funny little furry fellows. - [27](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/27/) — All the while across the dark from out the low river bottom came that pair of fiery eyes. - [28](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/28/) — Now closer and more swift, now fiercer and glaring, the eyes moved toward the buffalo skull. - [29](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/29/) — All unconscious of those fearful eyes, the happy mice nibbled at dried roots and venison. - [30](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/30/) — The singers had started another song. - [31](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/31/) — The drummers beat the time, turning their heads from side to side in rhythm. - [32](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/32/) — In a ring around the fire hopped the mice, each bouncing hard on his two hind feet. - [33](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/33/) — Some carried their tails over their arms, while others trailed them proudly along. - [34](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/34/) — Ah, very near are those round yellow eyes! - [35](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/35/) — Very low to the ground they seem to creep--creep toward the buffalo skull. - [36](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/36/) — All of a sudden they slide into the eye-sockets of the old skull. - [37](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/37/) — “Spirit of the buffalo!” squeaked a frightened mouse as he jumped out from a hole in the back part of the skull. - [38](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/38/) — “A cat! a cat!” cried other mice as they scrambled out of holes both large and snug. — checked by a teacher - [39](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/11/39/) — Noiseless they ran away into the dark. - ← previous: [Iktomi and the Turtle](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/10/) - next →: [The Toad and the Boy](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/12/) - ↑ back to [Old Indian Legends](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg338/)