CtlAPTER ONE<br > Oklahoma Territory， 1896<br > "Maheo. All-Father.<br > To the four winds I cast my prayers.<br > Upon the four winds my voice drifts like smoke.<br > I hold my People as I hold the Arrows in my hand.<br > What am I? What am I?<br > Fire in the blood of nako-he， the Bear;<br > The crack of ice on frozen rivers，<br > The call of the wild geese.<br > I ride upon hotama haa-ese， the North wind.<br > Call me Spirit Catcher， Sweet Medicine，<br > By many names men have called me.<br > I am the Arrow Keeper s Song.<br > I walk here."<br > IIE IIAND OF MAIIE()， TIIE ALL-FATIIER， APPEARED IN TIIE<br > center of a circle of old men whose stern features were<br > etched in stark relief by the brightness of the appari-<br >tion. The heartbeat of Maheo filled the air and caused the<br >earth to tremble. The Maiytm， the spirits of those who have<br >gone before， leaped soundlessly one moment， gyrated madly<br >the next， as if to distract the elders from their somber ritual.<br > Tom Sandcrane， blind to the hand of God， saw only the<br >