The I?'dos Company is a band of "medicine" people whose object is to preserve and perform the rites thought necessary to keep the continued good will of the "medicine" animals. According to the traditions of the company, these animals in ancient times entered into a league with them. The animals taught them the ceremonies necessary to please them, and said that, should these be faithfully performed, they would continue to be of service to mankind. They would cure disease, banish pain, displace the causes of disasters in nature, and overcome ill luck.
Every member of the company has an individual song to sing in the ceremonies, and thus the length of the ceremony depends on the number of the members. When a person enters the I?'dos, he is given a gourd rattle and a song. These he must keep with care, not forgetting the song or losing the rattle.
The head singers of the I?'dos are two men who chant the dance song. This chant relates the marvels that the medicine man is able to perform, and as they sing he proceeds to do as the song directs. He lifts a red-hot stone from the lodge fire and tosses it like a ball in his naked hands; he demonstrates that he can see through a