According to Mr. Mooney the Rabbit society embraced boys of the age of
about ten or twelve. Martinez was about ten years old when he joined,
but said that any boy belonged to the Rabbits when old enough to walk
freely. In his case the event occurred later because he only came to
live among the Kiowa at nine. There were two leaders, who were grown-up
men and stayed with the Rabbits as long as they lived. These also
belonged to some other organization, but their first duty was to the
Rabbits if a meeting of both organizations should be called at the same
time. Kō´tar and Ayáte were the leaders in Martinez's time.
The Rabbits, generally, but not always, wore at the back of the head a
strip of elk hide with the hair and a feather standing erect. They wore
buckskin clothes and painted the face with different colors. All sang
while dancing. The leaders beat drums but also took part in the dance
sometimes. During one song three or four boys, or sometimes as many as
ten, got up to dance. After the dance the leaders told the Rabbits all
about their war deeds. If one leader died, the other nominated a
successor, and if the boys agreed all went to this man's place, seized
him and led him to their tipi.
The day before a feast one of the leaders would ride about, announcing
that such-and-such a boy had invited the Rabbits for a dance and feast
the next day.
In accordance with Mr. Mooney's statement that the boys of the society
"were drilled in their future duties as warriors by certain old men,"
Martinez compares the Rabbit organization to a school. The leaders would
rise and say: "When I was young like you, I was a little Rabbit, when I
got older I went and stole horses, took scalps, etc."
Martinez says that every once in a while nowadays he hears the father of
some sick child say, "If he recovers, I'll call the Rabbits together."
Then, if the child gets well, the father will entertain the boys with a
feast, and the Indians believe that the promise was the cause of the
recovery. In the old days the Indians used to do the same thing in
corresponding cases.
The Rabbits jumped up and down without change of position, held up their
hands to the level of their ears, moving the hands, and at the same time
imitated the sound of rabbits: ts'ā, t's'ā!
Martinez remained a Rabbit until he was about fifteen years old.